Railcar truck bolster side bearing mounting pad milling machine and method

A railcar truck bolster side bearing mounting pad milling machine and method. A milling machine of the present invention includes a pair of milling heads and associated cutters suspended from an overhead frame member. A sliding saddle unit is provided for transporting the bolster into and out of a work envelope of the milling machine. At least one fixturing assembly is attached to the sliding saddle unit to support and fix the position of the bolster in three directions. The bolster is rigidly supported from its underside, thereby eliminating the risk that the bolster may move downward during machining. Since the vertical position of the bolster when presented to the cutters is fixed, thereby the need to raise the bolster into a working position is also eliminated.