A Great Way To Square Stock In The Mill by Joe Pieczynski

[Paul Alciatore]

Depending on the accuracy of your measurements, you will never have perfect right angles nor perfectly parallel sides. There is always some error. Even Jo blocks are sold with a list of their deviations from the nominal size.

All of our work is done to some tolerance. Parts just need to be good enough to work in their intended application. A gate latch on a cow pasture fence does not need +/-0.001" accuracy, +/-0.1" or even greater will probably do. It seems to me that his method very quickly gets you into the ball park. And yes, it IS limited by the accuracy of your machine and vise: it is depending on those accuracies. But from that point you can then work to whatever level of accuracy that is actually needed.

Anyway, it seems to be useful to me.

You won't have a parallelogram unless your mill X, Y and Z are a not at right angles. The perpendicularity of the first 5 sides all depend on the accuracy of your machine; the 6th comes off the others.

Mike

[Dan Dubeau]

Paul, I heard his claims of "no burrs". Yeah, when you climb cut you wont get a "burr" on the exit, as the cutting forces are directed back into the block. Conventional will always leave somewhat of a burr as you're running the cutting edge off the work and will almost always bend that last little foil section out. You still have a sharp corner though that needs a touch from a file (unless you desire a sharp corner)

I'll actually program small 0.01-0.02" chamfers, or larger fillets to break the corners for the CNC to drive around. Depends on the desired end result, but really adds a nice finishing touch to your work, and a big return on time investment. A block comes out ready for service. Splitting hairs, but a CNC will actually drive around a rounded corner faster than it will create a square one.....

Rich, I've tried a leather mallet, and never really liked the feel of it and always go back to my Armstrong deadblow with replaceable faces and don't have problems seating blocks. It's a feel thing after a few thousand swings one will get the hang of it and get comfortable with whatever they're swinging. One good firm whack and a quick check of the parallels is all that's needed most times.

[754]

I watched it, it's just common sense. I worked in a shop with steps in the vise jaws like that... one of the Best Mods you can do.
So is havinga good vise, before I got a good one I wasted endless time fighting squareness...
now one thing I tend to do to check if work is seated on parralel, if they are long... I just grab the end see if it moves up or down and has more clearance on one end.

[JoeLee]

All well and good as long as the vise is perfectly parallel with the table travel if your going to trim around the perimiter. If it isn't you end up with a diamond shaped part.

I have always climb cut when I can to avoid the burr roll off.

JL...................

[Doozer]

I watched it, it's just common sense. ...

Yes, I use the slide planes of the mill to establish square features on parts all the time.
Why is this being seen as a new thing?

-D

[john b]

Because it is to some folk. They like to learn what is a new way of doing things.

[754]

Like I said, having a decent vise takes out most of the work..I learned the hard way.
as someone mentioned on here.. how square was it actually ?
well to partly answer that..... once you know your vise, and what it will do in repeatable circumstance.. the game changes..
you will more often than not be in the Meets Or Exceeds Tolerance Zone..... and dont need to sweat it every time..

[Paul Alciatore]

It isn't that I did not know all of the things that he did. It is that I never put them together so well. I always looked at a part and decided on how I would proceed on an individual basis. I think from now on, I am going to use all or at least a part of this process FIRST. Then worry about how to cut the individual features.

Call me what you will, but I learned something from that video. I DID.

Because it is to some folk. They like to learn what is a new way of doing things.