Glacern GMT vise

[Xyzzz]

I wanted a mill vise for my new knee mill and I wanted it ASAP and for less than 700 bucks. I looked at orange (too expensive but nice) Kurt (100% of my (excellent) experience) GMT, and a few others. I also wanted a vise that can be used on its side, and will take industry standard Kurt jaws, etc. GMT promised 2 tenths accuracy (not sure what that meant exactly) and also could deliver in a day, I normally would have automatically gon with the Kurt, but liked the lower cost and speed, so GMT was a sweet spot. USA vs Asian was a good thing too.

I took some flatness and straightness measurements and will post a video of that soon. I appreciated another member posting a video of mill stiffness measurements with an indicator, so I figure I’ll let the indicator do the talking.

If u don’t want to watch the vid, Suffice it to say that the flatness and straightness surfaces that are important to me were within the 2 tenths (0.0002”) advertised.

In summary, (my impression) every bit as nice as the many Kurt vises I’ve used, arguably better, but I’m sure Kurt has upped their game in the last 7 years since, so probably not fair to say better than a new Kurt since that is not my experience.

I also looked as the Haas, which seems like a really nice vise, similar price. I have one of their shell mills, which is priced nicely, and is an animal. So darn good value there, and also excellent fit, finish, and performance. The best she’ll mill I have used.

So if anyone is looking g for a 6” mill vise, Haas may be a place to look.

 

[Xyzzz]

 

[Parlo]

It looks a really nice vice, probably too good for a manual mill. The part accuracy, finish & geometry will rely entirely on the machine and tooling so don't expect jig boring or grinding tolerances.

A good vice will help with repeatability though and here are a few things I would definitely consider to reduce variation and increase robustness.

Use forged high tensile tee bolts with thick oversize toughened jig washers & high tensile collar nuts.

Make a sturdy datum retaining end stop. Similar to the video

Try to position the end stop as close as possible to the centre of the datum face. This video shows the advantages especially when re-locating the part on another setup, or turning it over.

Finally; for ultimate repeatability within the capabilities of the machine, use a torque wrench to tighten. Especially when finding the datum jaw position.

 

[frugalguido]

I have the same vise on my cnc Deckel. I have had it for many years and has been good for me.

 

[BGHansen]

I have 2 of them on my Tormach 1100. The only problem I've had is chips getting into the nut/screw. The brush chip guards are probably getting overwhelmed with my flood cooling. I've since made some sheet metal guards that cover the screw area, helps a lot.

Bruce

 

[DavidR8]

I have 2 of them on my Tormach 1100. The only problem I've had is chips getting into the nut/screw. The brush chip guards are probably getting overwhelmed with my flood cooling. I've since made some sheet metal guards that cover the screw area, helps a lot.

Bruce

I have the same issue, are you able to post a pic of your guards?

 

[BGHansen]

Hi David,

No problem, mine are very simple. I cut various width strips of 26-gauge galvanized stock around 6" wide. Stick them to the vise with magnets. In between the fixed and moving jaw are two strips that shingle over each other.

Bruce


It's hard to see, but the sheet metal between the vise jaws is two strips. They slip over each other to vary the width between the jaws. Just stick them down with a couple of magnets.

 

[DavidR8]

Hi David,

No problem, mine are very simple. I cut various width strips of 26-gauge galvanized stock around 6" wide. Stick them to the vise with magnets. In between the fixed and moving jaw are two strips that shingle over each other.

Bruce


It's hard to see, but the sheet metal between the vise jaws is two strips. They slip over each other to vary the width between the jaws. Just stick them down with a couple of magnets.
View attachment 410242
View attachment 410243

Thanks Bruce, appreciate the pics!