This is some absolutely awesome stuff. Hand Tool Rescue is one of my favorite channels on YouTube because whether it is some weird 1800s apple peeling machine or even an ancient hand tool, seeing things restored is fun and in some ways exciting. Let’s just say that this is one video that any gearhead worth their salt will love for the fact that it involves one of the most iconic pieces of shop equipment ever invented: The Bridgeport Mill. Yes, this video showing the rescue and restoration of a Bridgeport Milling Machine is spectacular. It is BangShifty in the sense that the whole unit is not absolutely stripped mechanically bare, but it is made “right” and useful again with skill and a minimal outlay of cash.
The Bridgeport is a piece of equipment nearly every gearhead aspires to have in their shop. They are so useful that books have literally been written on them. They are the famed “machines that can replicate themselves” because of how flexible and useful they are in so many different ways. This one was used up, busted, and likely acquired for a song which is the way most of us around here like to buy cars. Like an old car that needs love, it is more about elbow grease than cash, and the end result is as satisfying as restoring a car to some degree and the end product is a mill that will continue to work like it was designed to for years and years to come.
More a love letter than a restoration video, we think you will truly enjoy seeing an amazingly useful hunk of iron and steel go from being a sad sack lump in the corner to a productive weapon in Mr Hand Tool Rescue’s impressive arsenal of tools that get used on a daily basis.
