Super Simple Milling Table Vise

[jjr2001]

When plates won't fit in the vise I like to use this simple 3 part "milling vise".
There are about a million types that have been shown but I think this one is quick and easy to make.

To prevent drilling or milling into the mill table just place the part to be milled on some 1/8" thick aluminum spacers.
I did not need that for this operation since I was just surfacing the plates.

Cheers, JR

[Dimsa]

Great idea! Thanks!

[DIYer]

Thanks jjr2001! We've added your Mill Table Vise to our Vises category,
as well as to your builder page: jjr2001's Homemade Tools. Your receipt:

Mill Table Vise by jjr2001

tags: vise, mill

[Jon]

Congratulations jjr2001 - your Simple Mill Table Vise is the Homemade Tool of the Week!

Huge week around here, with many top-tier builds, but this one wins on simplicity.

Some more nice builds from this week:

Auto Retracting Thread Cutting Tool by olderdan
Lathe Indexer by DIYSwede
Lathe Safety Shield by machining 4 all
Roller Bender by Mr.DK DIY
Expanding Arbor by EclecticNeophyte
Retractable Casters by thehomeengineer
Multifunction Bender by Bricoleando
CBN Grinder by winkys workshop
Welding Table by tiger carpenter
Marking Gauge by orioncons36
Bandsaw Jaw Power Drive by rgsparber
Mini Lathe Pulleys by DIYSwede
Anvil Chuck for Rivet Threading by editor@glue-it.com
Electric Scissor Lift by Kwandotechnic
Voltage Regulator by HandmadeCreativeChannel
Fixture Plate Modification by N4NV
Multimeter by HandmadeCreativeChannel


jjr2001 - you'll be receiving a $25 online gift card, in your choice of Amazon, PayPal, or bitcoin. Please PM me your current email address and gift card choice and I'll get it sent over right away.

This is your 8th Homemade Tool of the Week win. Here are all of your Homemade Tool of the Week winning tools. Congrats again

Grinder Fine Feed Adjuster by jjr2001

tags: grinder, adjustable

CNC Motor Spindle by jjr2001

tags: CNC, spindle, motor

EDF Thrust Tester by jjr2001

tags: fan, tester

Offset Tool Bit Holder for Lathe by jjr2001

tags: machining, threading

Model Assembly Fixture by jjr2001

tags: fixture, assembly

Die Filer by jjr2001

tags: motor, controller, die filer

Universal Tool Bit Holder by jjr2001

tags: tool holder

Mill Table Vise by jjr2001

tags: vise, mill

[jjr2001]

Thanks Jon, Seems like for almost every project I need to make something new for cutting, holding, or aligning.
That is what makes machining so much fun. I think I like to make the tools the best!

Cheers, Jr

[Crusty]

Congrats on the win. Those can be really handy for holding some odd things and a lot quicker than than using a clamping kit. I made one too some time ago but it wasn't even added to my builder page so no recognition.

[mklotz]

An added benefit...

Mount one half of the vise near one end of the table and tram it perpendicular to the table x motion. Leave it in place and you have a handy reference surface for locating workpieces - either those clamped in your vise or those clamped with a clamping kit.

I undercut the bottom edge on mine so errant chips wouldn't disturb the orthogonality. Also added a threaded hole in the middle of the bar so that a clamp screw could be placed there to use in holding workpieces tight to the reference bar.

[jjr2001]

Thanks Crusty, your design is nice and heavy for holding larger pieces. What I like best with these simple table vises is the gain in
Z-axis travel over a machinist or kurt style vise.

Cheers, JR

[jjr2001]

Thanks Marv, tramming in is a good time saver and I like the idea of the under cut. Adding another clamp screw is good too. In my version I would need to
add 2 more clamp screws to each side since I already have a vertical hole that can be used for clamping the "jaw" to the T-slots in the table.

Cheers, JR

[Crusty]

It holds smaller stuff too - I just don't tighten it as much. Something I still intend to do to it is mill a couple of small ledges into the jaws so that I can hold plate material without resorting to parallels for support. I have the same lack of headroom on my mill and the added 1½" is appreciated because my fixturing and clamping sometimes gets out there on the edge of possible.