Shop Task 3 In 1 Machine

[NEL957]

I finally took the dive and purchased a milling vise. It is a 4 inch and makes my machine look like a toy. I had to remove the tailstock to be able to tighten the vise. My problem is when I set it on the machine, everything fits nicely t-nuts and bolts and alignment pins. The problem! The vise has a rock, the machine is about 20 years old and all I ever used on it was toe clamps and a mini pallet. I put a indicator o it and found I have 1 1/2 thousands front to back but side ways it has about .100? My question would be should I take a skim cut to true it up or ant suggestion would be appreciated. The machine is a column machine.
Nelson Collar

 

[rgray]

At .100 I would wonder if it needs straightened first. If it's cast iron that may be risky. I'd say it needs flattened some how straightened ,skim cut then ground or scraped would make it usable.

 

[tweinke]

I agree that a four inch vise looks huge on a 1720 been there done that. Bought a PM 727 recently now a four inch vise looks about right. The table on my Shoptask is pretty close to flat so hopefully some one here will chime in on repairing your issue

 

[dlane]

If it's the vice ied send it back

 

[NEL957]

Fella thanks for the suggestions. No it's not the vice, I ran an indicator over it. Its the mill, it had an abusive life and did not stand up to the torture. I do not know what direction I will take at this point. There is always more than one ways to skin a cat.
Nelson Collar

After thinking about skim cut would be impossible, with a tool swinging that far from the spindle. WRONG

 

[JR49]

Nel957, if I understand correctly, the vise rocks back and forth on the table. If thats right, then do you mean the indicator goes from the zero setting at one end of table, to a high reading in the middle, then back to about zero at the other side? If thats the case then do you think the hump in the middle is from tightening the toe clamps to much over the years? I ask this because, as a newbe to milling, I worry that if I tighten anything to my table to tight, I might cause the edges of the t-slots to raise up. Hoping to hear oppinions on this, but, I also have a suggestion (from a newbe of coarse) If you have a friend with a bigger mill, you remove your table and mill it flat on the larger mill. Or, even taking it to a shop and paying to have it milled flat would be cheaper than getting a new table. Just a thought from a newbe, will be watching with interets, please keep us informed, JR49

 

[NEL957]

Jr
Yes that is what I am saying. I do not think it was from the clamping. If the clamps did it I think the raised area would be to the sides of the t-slots. The crown seems to be in the middle of the bed and it has 2 slots, it just does not make sense.

By the way it does not take a super tight clamp to hold if clamped properly.

 

[mixdenny]

I have a Shopmaster from 2000 with the Quadralift. A 4" vise is what I have always used. Remember, the vise can be mounted in line with the table too, and you do not have to remove the tailstock. I prefer to pull it off anyway to have more working room and travel. So you are saying when you run the saddle left to right looking at the machine, the top surface of the table rises up and then drops off? That's in only 6" travel! Are the gibs tight? Have you confirmed this with a straightedge placed both ways on the table? I really don't see how the ways could possibly wear like that, it has to be a warp.

 

[NEL957]

I looked at it today and thought I'd put the swivel base under the vise and when I dialed in the swivel base it wasn't that far out. The side toward the chuck has about -15 thousands coming around the curve to the back of the machine it comes back to -O- as I come around on the tailstock side it drops to about 25 thousands. The next time I work with it I'll pull the vice and use the straight edge and see how it does. I just need to get my MillRite up and running. The nice thing the tooling fits both machines but the MillRite needs a lot of work.
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