# Poor Mans Machine Vise With Improvements!



## bearbon (Mar 10, 2016)

I bought a used 6" mill vise with rotary base recently off Craigslist. There are no identifying marks anywhere on it. It's old enough to have been probably made in Taiwan but all the dimensions and hardware are American SAE. Very well made and the saddle fits perfectly with a close tolerance. The jaws are perfectly parallel and the movable jaw operates smoothly. There was no handle, but an 8-point 11/16 socket and a flex handle do the job well.

Anyway, I was happy with my $50 find until reading all the blogs about mill vises and how they ain't worth dog doo unless it's a Kurt Angle-Lock $700 name dropper. After giving it some thought I came to the conclusion that the only thing the expensive one has is the function of forcing the movable jaw down to eliminate lifting if the work piece isn't perfectly square. I figured I could do the same thing with gib locks that could be loosened to move the jaw easily and snugged down once the work piece is in place before the jaws are finally tightened with the main lead screw.

Before this mod the gibs were snug enough to prevent lifting but were shimmed to slide without much drag. Now there is even less drag until the gib dogs are socked down. The gib nuts are 1-1/8 cold rolled, 3/8 thick tapped 5/16-18 to fit the set screw studs which replaced the original Allen cap screws. The dog handles are 1/4 bolts with heads removed and tapped 1/4-20 on both ends. Shim washers under the nuts prevent damage to the  gibs. Nice little 13/16" phenolic knobs from McMaster finish it off. It works great!

Oh, and the last vise is another recent find. It's just too cool. I've heard them referred to as a "farmers vise". The best feature is the wide space under the jaws to hold things like a shaft with gear on the end - or something.


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## Ed ke6bnl (Mar 10, 2016)

nice looking vices, I have a chinese kurt style, am very happy with it. I have an old post vice, but like the old vice you have.  I also have what might be a 6in. machine vice that both jaw move at the same time and will always be centered under the quill and heavy maybe 60-80 lbs.


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## Chipper5783 (Mar 10, 2016)

I'm sure that will work great.  Perhaps even better than the angle lock arrangment?  I have a 6" Kurt, far from new - it came to me with a mill I picked up.  I've dissassembled, cleaned & lubricated the vise.  It is a good vise, but it isn't perfect either, the sliding jaw will still lift.


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## Andre (Mar 10, 2016)

Machining was done for many, many, many years before Kurts came about. I've used a Chinese 8" copy on my boss's mill, it didn't impress me. I have a very old vise on my mill, but it has no name or branding marks. The ways were actually hand scraped, and I think it's actually a shaper vise. It's worn out and the jaw lifts quite a bit, so when clamping a part cradle it in paper and give it a whack with a mallet. A mallet runs about $680 less than a new Kurt vise LOL


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## Bob Korves (Mar 11, 2016)

My Bridgeport 6" vise has box ways like the one you modified.  I fit the box ways and the gibs, as well as the sliding jaw to the table and now it slides freely but has .0005" lift of the work if you really gronk on it.  Measure your Kurts doing the same thing and report back.  The two I tested indicated .001 to .002".  The other nice thing is that the bed is flat all the way across, no slot to drop stuff down into.


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## wrat (Mar 11, 2016)

Very slick!
Maybe get a sharpie and carefully paint "Kurt 2.0" on the side.


Wrat


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## george wilson (Mar 11, 2016)

I have a like new Kurt,and it still lifts a little bit. I swat the work with a plastic dead blow mallet.


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## bearbon (Mar 12, 2016)

Thanks for the nice feedback guys. I originally had the feeling this vise was too large and heavy for my Hardinge UM horizontal mill. It takes up most of the table and it weighs 44 lbs not counting the swivel base, which is another 11 lbs. Without the swivel it still leaves plenty of Z axis room for anything I would be making. It might feel heavy when lifting it with my aching 72 year old arms but I think the Hardinge probably won't notice so I think it will do the job. It was a fun project but like a couple of you said, a mallet will work also.    - Bear


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## bearbon (Mar 12, 2016)

*Ed ke6bnl*    I also have what might be a 6in. machine vice that both jaw move at the same time and will always be centered under the quill and heavy maybe 60-80 lbs.

I'd like to see a picture of that self-centering vise. I think I saw one somewhere else but can't remember where. Sounds neat.


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## British Steel (Mar 12, 2016)

Best of all, another four handles to crank on 

DAVE H. (the other one)


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## FOMOGO (Mar 12, 2016)

Nice job on the modifications, and I've never seen a vice like the second one. The anvil end is pretty cool. I too would be interested in seeing the self centering vice. Mike


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## Silverbullet (Mar 13, 2016)

Your are a machinist ,making the best with what you have. One of the shops I worked at had an ancient overhead flat belt drive, if ya didn't jog the motor to start it the belt would jump off , with all the OSHA caging it took half hr to reinstall.  The old gears would clank and rattle everything on it worked but we had indicators on every moving part to make accurate cuts and it really did work well. The moral I guess is making do with what you have. All those different shops I worked at doing my apprentice years taught me to make the best out of what you have to work with. Ok nuff said  I'd like to have a vice like the old one too, I've seen some near like it called blacksmith vise.


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## benmychree (Mar 21, 2016)

bearbon said:


> I bought a used 6" mill vise with rotary base recently off Craigslist. There are no identifying marks anywhere on it. It's old enough to have been probably made in Taiwan but all the dimensions and hardware are American SAE. Very well made and the saddle fits perfectly with a close tolerance. The jaws are perfectly parallel and the movable jaw operates smoothly. There was no handle, but an 8-point 11/16 socket and a flex handle do the job well.
> 
> Anyway, I was happy with my $50 find until reading all the blogs about mill vises and how they ain't worth dog doo unless it's a Kurt Angle-Lock $700 name dropper. After giving it some thought I came to the conclusion that the only thing the expensive one has is the function of forcing the movable jaw down to eliminate lifting if the work piece isn't perfectly square. I figured I could do the same thing with gib locks that could be loosened to move the jaw easily and snugged down once the work piece is in place before the jaws are finally tightened with the main lead screw.
> 
> ...


People did good machine work in mill vises long before the Kurt vise was invented; all it takes is a lead hammer to seat the work in the vise, and hold downs are a blessing as well.


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