Small horizontal mill vise suggestions

[rmack898]

I know, just what we need, another vise thread. I've searched pages and pages of threads and can't seem to find a picture of a vise on a small horizontal.

I'm looking for a vise to put an a Burke #4 that recently followed me home. It seems that just about every machine vise 3" or smaller will have the fixed jaw hanging about 3" off the back of the table once it's mounted. Does anyone have a small horizontal that can post a pic of their vise?

I did check out the Burke Yahoo group but you need to be a member to see the pics, and you need permission to be a member, and you need to write a short essay about why you want to join

[doctor demo]

I'm looking for a vise to put an a Burke #4 that recently followed me home. It seems that just about every machine vise 3" or smaller will have the fixed jaw hanging about 3" off the back of the table once it's mounted. Does anyone have a small horizontal that can post a pic of their vise?

:

Mac, I don't have a pic or a ''mini'' horiz. mill but I think that You could possibly do what I did on a slightly larger scale. I have a Kempsmith universal #2 with a Cutter 8'' vise on it, and have it mounted with the jaws paralell to the arbor other wise I would give up almost all of the Y clearance to the col.
I know this will not work in all cases but I have used it several times sucessfuly.

Steve

[rmack898]

The problem is that the table is only 3.75" wide with one Tee slot. If I can't find anything else I might wind up modifying an import toolmaker's vise.

[doctor demo]

I would think that a 4 or 5'' vise would not be to too big and a bolt on each end should do unless You get realy aggressive with feed and speed. I only have one bolt on each end ov My vise and it works, I can't use the hold down slots on each side of the jaws because they are outboard of My T slots.
A modified import does not sound like a bad idea. If You have enough knee travel maybe a drilled and tapped sub plate bolted on top your table could work also.

Steve

[platypus2020]

Mack,

Are you looking for a vise similar to the one in the picture, on the Atlas horizontal milling machine, its a 3" vise.

jack

http://s230.photobucket.com/albums/e...urrent=005.jpg

[rmack898]

That's pretty much what I'm looking for Jack. There's nothing in the picture to reference for size but if that's a 3" vise, than that would work. The tabs for the mounting bolts are close enough to the fixed jaw that the vise is not hanging off the back of the table. Who manufactured that vise and does it have a model or part # on it?

[platypus2020]

Mack,

here is one, on ebay, has all of the mfgr numbers. Mine is an Atlas, and came with the mill.

jack
http://cgi.ebay.com/ATLAS-MILLING-MA...3A1%7C294%3A50

[Spin Doctor]

And what is wrong with putting a 4" vise on the sideways?

[J Tiers]

You wanted a pic?

[oldtiffie]

"Free-jaws" vise

Thanks JT for that post.

I missed it earlier.

I note too that very useful longitudinally-mounted set of "hold down" "free vice" jaws that was the subject of a recent article by you in a VP magazine is/are on the mill as well.

Are you able to post the details of it - or some of it - without compromising any agreement or limitation that you may have with VP?

There are a lot here with small mills with the same or similar problems that you had - until you solved them when you made those free jaws.

[J Harp]

The article by J Tiers is in the Dec. 2008/Jan. 2009 issue of Machinists Workshop. I saw it at Borders last Friday. Looks like just the thing for a small mill.

[tony ennis]

and you need to write a short essay about why you want to join

That's just so the moderator can tell you're not a bot. I enter something like, "I like cheese and I am not a spambot" and you'll be fine I'd wager.

[J Tiers]

VP has only the "first north American publishing rights", but I think I ought to let them have it for a while longer. It hasn't been but a couple of issues, I think, I don't remember, actually...

But, essentially, they are blocks of steel, in my case hot rolled mystery metal, which are set up with a milled-in key on the bottom, and are otherwise as you see.... They are held down to the table by t-nuts.

The far side in the picture is the "fixed jaw", which has two screws holding it, while the near side is two pieces. One is a backer, having threads in it for two cap screws that "push" the "moving jaw" against the work.

If you leave the hold-down of the moving jaw slightly slack, you can tighten it down last, pulling the work down against the table somewhat.

Jaw faces as you please, smooth, checkered, with V-cut, or whatever. Make a variety of different jaw faces and be ready for anything.

Here's a view of the whole set of pieces from before final trimming of sides