# Unusual Work Holding Device



## bearbon (Jul 4, 2015)

Here's an unusual device I can't find any information on. It was made by Universal Vise & Tool Co., Parma MI. It was part of a portable welding table but looks like it could mount on a drill press column and serve as a good anti spin device for repeated drilling without a vise setup. The arms can slide on the bar and lock rigidly with the cam lock sleeves. They can also be swung out of the way when not needed.

I made the mistake of showing this on the Practical Machinist and got a lot of sneers and put-downs. One member apparently thinks any drill with less than a 5" column is a toy. Big egos there.


----------



## mcostello (Jul 4, 2015)

Could easily be swung out of the way quickly leading to less hand held parts.


----------



## f350ca (Jul 4, 2015)

There are some interesting holding devices out there. This drill press vice came on a drill press I bought at a yard sale. (the vice was more useful than the press) I've never seen one like it. The clamp bolts to the table to stop rotation but the vice can be moved around the table to position it. The jaws have a small step at the top to hold thin plate, the jaws also have vertical and horizontal prisms for round stock. Use it all the time now.


----------



## RJSakowski (Jul 4, 2015)

bearbon said:


> I made the mistake of showing this on the Practical Machinist and got a lot of sneers and put-downs


There are a lot of tool snobs out there!  Any tool that makes your job easier is worth merit. I using the drill press, I frequently just mount a stud or clamp a stop on the table to prevent rotation.  Often, you want the part to be able to move to find the center.  If you have a lot of parts to make, reclamping can be tedious.

f350ca, I like your clamp as well.  I may have to make something like that.


----------



## bearbon (Jul 4, 2015)

f350ca - I like your vise even better! I think it's an AMF or Wahlstrom Float-Lock vise. If it came with your drill press you got a deal. They're pretty expensive even used.


----------



## A618fan2 (Jul 5, 2015)

bearbon said:


> I made the mistake of showing this on the Practical Machinist and got a lot of sneers and put-downs. One member apparently thinks any drill with less than a 5" column is a toy. Big egos there.


I can't imagine someone thinking it's a toy - that's a nice drill press clamp.  I have an older Mitty AMF float lock - I'd be tickled to have one like yours for my other "little" Craftsman 150.  

John


----------



## ogberi (Jul 5, 2015)

Very interesting vises!  Don't sweat the tool snobs.   Not all of us feel the need to break out a 6,000 lb three phase radial drill press to pop a 1/4" hole in a piece 1" wide, 1/8" thick, 4" long.    Little 1/4 hp bench mounted drill press does just fine for that.


----------



## pineyfolks (Jul 5, 2015)

These are some easy to make stops I made for my drill press. They are T-nuts  with 1" stock drilled and tapped for the body, then cross drilled so I can use the chuck key to tighten them.


----------



## f350ca (Jul 5, 2015)

bearbon said:


> f350ca - I like your vise even better! I think it's an AMF or Wahlstrom Float-Lock vise. If it came with your drill press you got a deal. They're pretty expensive even used.



Was a better deal than I thought, have never looked it up. Was on a bench top press that's been sitting in storage since I got it. Think I payed 15 or 20 dollars for the unit.

Greg


----------



## bearbon (Jul 10, 2015)

george wilson said:


> Those guys on Practical  Machinist can be a bunch of jerks. It is never a pleasant feeling of anticipation to go there. The owner does nothing to stop the constant dog fights there.


Yeah, it didn't take long to realize I was in the wrong place. I got dogpiled with a bunch of snarky comments. I won't be going back to that forum. In contrast, this forum is friendly, witty and informative so I'll stick with you guys.


----------



## Grumpy Gator (Jul 10, 2015)

OK guys the rules say we don't talk about other forums no matter how bad they are.
Please stay on topic.
***G***


----------



## kingmt01 (Jul 10, 2015)

Don't take this as bad mouthing. It was the first site I signed up on. I was quickly told I was in the wrong place. There rules actually say you aren't welcome to talk about Asian machines on that site. Since I'm not welcome there it didn't bother me. They must not need the ad money from me. I just looked for a new site. I found this one & was very impressed.

That is a really nice looking clamp there. Welcome to the group.


----------



## bearbon (Jul 10, 2015)

grumpygator said:


> OK guys the rules say we don't talk about other forums no matter how bad they are.
> Please stay on topic.
> ***G***


Understood. I didn't mean to start a topic about another forum and won't mention it again. I did appreciate the support though. Thanks - Bear


----------



## Grumpy Gator (Jul 10, 2015)

Thank You .
***G***


----------



## chips&more (Jul 10, 2015)

I have a few of those vises. And yes, very handy when used on the drill press. One of them says “Float Lock” on it. Hope that helps in your search. I found mine over the years going to the flea markets…Good Luck, Dave.


----------



## Alphonse (Jul 12, 2015)

bearbon said:


> Yeah, it didn't take long to realize I was in the wrong place. I got dogpiled with a bunch of snarky comments. I won't be going back to that forum. In contrast, this forum is friendly, witty and informative so I'll stick with you guys.



I agree...This is the main reason I do not post very much on any forum.  Here on Home Hobby Machinist is a great pleasure to post.    I recently made a mistake of posting a welding comment on PM, and quickly got a snide challenge to it, even though I had gleaned the information from a top Welding Engineer from Lincoln Electric [who visits the welding tech college I teach welding at] concerning MIG welding voltage settings.


----------



## 4GSR (Jul 12, 2015)

OK guys, grumpygater has spoken, no more remarks not related to the thread!!!!

Has anyone used the "Visegrip" looking clamp on their drill press or mill table?  I'm wondering if it would be just as versatile as the clamp mention above or not as good.  I'm the world's worse at not clamping down parts to drill one or two holes.  And yeah, I have war injuries from the results of not doing so, too!


----------



## Bill Gruby (Jul 12, 2015)

I'm going to put it bluntly since you will not listen to Gator. To disparage PM is in violation of Rule #6. Please refrain from this or other action will be used to stop if. This is a friendly forum to all, not just those that are members.

 "Billy G" ---  Board of Directors member.


----------



## brav65 (Jul 12, 2015)

4gsr said:


> OK guys, grumpygater has spoken, no more remarks not related to the thread!!!!
> 
> Has anyone used the "Visegrip" looking clamp on their drill press or mill table?  I'm wondering if it would be just as versatile as the clamp mention above or not as good.  I'm the world's worse at not clamping down parts to drill one or two holes.  And yeah, I have war injuries from the results of not doing so, too!




I have the vise grip clamp on my drill press and it works OK for flat stock with lots of space to hold on to.  Irregular shapes or sloped surfaces are difficult to hold.  I break out my standard drill press vice for those items.


----------



## 4GSR (Jul 13, 2015)

I was also thinking of taking two of these and mounting to a piece of flat bar about 12" long.  This way I could throw it up in the mill vise, clamp what it is I need to clamp to drill quick holes with.


----------



## bearbon (Jul 14, 2015)

I was going to sell this clamp/vise/positioner thing I started this thread with but decided to try it on my favorite ancient Craftsman drill press that I do most small work at. The clamp was originally an accessory on a portable welding table which had a 2-5/8" column so I had to do a *lot* of grinding with a drum sander and a grinding wheel to make it fit the 2-3/4 column on the drill press. (My mill is down with motor problems and I don't have a boring head anyway.) Anyway, I got it fitted and all the sliding parts work very smoothly. I was surprised at how solid and rigid the arms are when locked in place! Now it will be much easier to use a drill vise without having to bolt it down. I too have learned the hard way about hand-held drilling operations.


----------



## PGB1 (Feb 16, 2016)

I really like the stops you made, Pineyfolks. Simple Yet Elegant! 

About the Vise Grip table hold down clamp gizmos, I had a pair & they worked great if I used two of them.  Like Brav65 mentioned, irregular parts were hard to hold without doing lots of shimming & configuring. But, on soft items, like wood, they worked great every time.

I did wreck them, however. I had a piece of square tube gripped with two of them and it would not stay in place while being hole sawed. Instead of being smart & bolting stop bars to the table, I over-tightened the clamps for extra grip and squeezed with all my gripping power. 
Each tool's pivot pin snapped. But, that was certainly my fault. (I should have made some of the stops Pineyfolks shared!)
Enjoy Today!
Paul


----------



## Ben Nevis (Feb 16, 2016)

pineyfolks said:


> These are some easy to make stops I made for my drill press. They are T-nuts  with 1" stock drilled and tapped for the body, then cross drilled so I can use the chuck key to tighten them.
> 
> View attachment 106845
> View attachment 106846



Great idea, I am going to have to make some, too.

 To prevent the part from lifting when you withdraw the bit, add a shaft collar on each one.


----------



## pineyfolks (Feb 17, 2016)

Somewhere in my pile of misc stuff I have an old drillpress vise that I drilled a series of holes down the top of the solid jaw and the top of the movable jaw.  It makes it a pin vise by putting three 3/8 dowel pins in. It allows you to grip round disks and odd shapes by using the jaws as parallels to prevent tipping.


----------



## FOMOGO (Feb 17, 2016)

That's a handy looking vise. I think I would be very tempted to make a shaft extension for the handle end to get it out over the table. Mike


----------



## PGB1 (Feb 17, 2016)

Ben Nevis said:


> Great idea, I am going to have to make some, too.
> 
> To prevent the part from lifting when you withdraw the bit, add a shaft collar on each one.



Now it's perfect!  
You & Pineyfolks could team up & get crazy rich selling these to machinists, hobbyists and wood workers. I'd bet places like Rockler & Woodcrafter would sell a ton for you.


----------



## f350ca (Feb 17, 2016)

FOMOGO said:


> That's a handy looking vise. I think I would be very tempted to make a shaft extension for the handle end to get it out over the table. Mike


The clamp that holds it to the table is a sliding fit on the shaft. You can pull the vice out to the edge to tighten it then position where ever on the table. Pretty slick little tool. There are prisms in the one jaw to hold round stock vertical or horizontal, and the top of the jaws have a step to hold material up off the table so you can drill through and not make an arc of shame.

Greg


----------

