[How-To] Advise for a Vise

[pontiac428]

This is a 5" vise on my old RF-30, which I think is the same as the Jet. It's about perfect as far as using available space, if not a little bit large. I agree with the others, 4" is the sweet spot for those mills.

 

[ChazzC]

What nonsense! I use my swivel-base at least once every 4-5 years... ;-)

GsT

That just means you’re one of the “not most”

 

[kenart]

I have a machine similar to yours. Table 9-1/2” x 31-1/4”
This is what a 5” vise looks like on it, I’m pleased with the size, a 4” vise would also be fine IMHO.
I got the vise on Amazon years ago, it’s very accurate for a knock-off, maybe I just got lucky.
I’ve never used the swivel base that came with it, but a member here has fixtured a rudimentary poor man’s rotary table with his swivel base, & If it doesn’t add much $$ & you have no RT, buy it.
I would also avoid Vevor, i purchased a 5” 3 jaw chuck from them for very cheap, bad idea, probably will offload it with a full disclosure.
And I agree, buy the best vise U can afford.

I like where you have mounted your hold-down tooling. I believe that I will do that with mine when it arrives. Thanx

 

[Manual Mac]

Charles, that bar on the vise is an adjustable work stop, as is the small one clamped to the bar.
This is a smaller version of the one I built for the Kurt 6” vise on the Sharp BP clone with the 10x50table that I ran when I did this for a living.
And I do know the difference between a Kurt & a knock-off. ;-)

EDIT: I also have cheap IGaging DRO on X Y& Z, it’s been very durable & works great.

 

[kenart]

This is a 5" vise on my old RF-30, which I think is the same as the Jet. It's about perfect as far as using available space, if not a little bit large. I agree with the others, 4" is the sweet spot for those mills.

View attachment 507306

This looks about right for me. I will search for something used before I buy. A friend has a vise that I can borrow in the meantime. This "getting tooled up" is a challenging adventure!

 

[neilkingent]

Greetings! New member here, and new to the hobby of home machining. I have acquired a Logan lathe Model 1920, and a Jet JMD-18 Drill / Mill. I am beginning to acquire some tooling so I thought I would ask some advise regarding a Vise for my Drill/Mill. I know that Kurt Vises are some of the best, but my budget does not allow for that. I am looking at a Vevor

VEVOR High Precision Milling Vice 6 Inch,Bench Clamp Vise Nodular Cast Iron Material,Flat Clamp Vise Mill Vise for Milling Drilling Machine and Precision Parts Finishing​

Would this vise be a good one to use on my Jet JMD-18 Mill?
Appreciate your thoughts

I bought a vevor 5" vice for $45 shipped! I don't see that price anymore. It was too good to pass up for that price. It's a pretty good vice. Looks like it is $87.99 now. It's worth it. I have a homge 5" from PM it's a much better vice. I also have a grizzly 4" that's better as well. But for getting started on the cheap you could do a lot worse that the vevor.

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[kenart]

I bought a vevor 5" vice for $45 shipped! I don't see that price anymore. It was too good to pass up for that price. It's a pretty good vice. Looks like it is $87.99 now. It's worth it. I have a homge 5" from PM it's a much better vice. I also have a grizzly 4" that's better as well. But for getting started on the cheap you could do a lot worse that the vevor.

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Thank you for the advice...

 

[G-ManBart]

A while back I bought a beautiful Sheldon No. 0 horizontal mill that has a 22 x 5.25" table and it needed a vise. I decided to keep my eye out for a used Kurt 4" but bought an import 4" in the meantime. There's a company local to me called CME (Complete Manufacturer's Equipment) in Madison Heights, MI that is the original importer for a lot of the stuff that many other retailers sell and I've bought a lot of stuff from them over the years. They let me go back in the warehouse and will pull stuff out of boxes so I can look at it before deciding...super nice guys. I bought one of their standard 4" Ang-Lock machine vises with the swivel base for around $100 out the door. They have that same vise listed on eBay for $126 with free shipping. The pictures show a black vise, but the one I have, and the others I saw were all blue. I'm really impressed with the quality as far as the machining, etc.

I actually use a swivel base from time to time. I have one for my 6" Kurts that go on my Bridgeport, the 6" vise (ancient brand no longer made) I have on my larger K&T horizontal mill and for the little Sheldon horizontal mill. I use the swivel base more on the horizontal mill than the vertical mill, but it can come in handy. As an example, last year I was making a cantilevered rack system for wood storage and none of my saws would cut the exact angle I needed for the support arms. I put the swivel base on the Bridgeport, set the angle I wanted and milled the ends of the supports to the exact angle...worked perfectly. My alternative was to try cutting those angles with a grinder, reciprocating saw or a port-a-band....they wouldn't have been nearly as nice. Little things pop up like that fairly regularly for me, so I like having a swivel base even though I don't keep it mounted. I did eventually find a Kurt 4" for the Sheldon, but haven't mounted it as it needs new jaws and I keep forgetting to order them...and the CME vise is totally fine...probably not as good as a Tegara or some of the other better imports, but it won't hold you back. If you later decide to upgrade it would make an outstanding drill press vise as well.

"4 ANG-LOCK MILLING MACHINE VISE w. swivel base #850-400 | eBay

<p>PATENTED GRIPLOCK PRINCIPLE ELIMINATES TILT OF MOVEABLE JAW WHEN IT IS CLAMPED AND ALSO TAKES UP WEAR. FOUR JAW PLATE POSITIONS ALLOW EXTRA CAPACITY WITH JAW PLATES IN THE OUTSIDE POSITION. ALL IMPORTANT SURFACES PRECISION GROUND.</p><p>MAX. JAW OPENING: 4"</p><p>JAW WIDTH: 4"</p><p>JAW...

www.ebay.com

 

[neilkingent]

The lead screw isn't covered so it opens wider than my other 5in

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[Charles scozzari]

I like your choice and also have what I feel are one of these generic vises that are popular because of the price. They mate well but I found they do not hold evenly under load. Lock up on a Parallel to make sure they hold the work correctly / squarely. Had to shim the stationary jaw to get it to hold correctly.