Lathe Milling Attachment questions

British, thanks for the suggestion. I can see where extra support from the TS might help in certain operations.
My set up might look a bit flexible but the angle iron is much longer than most cast angle plates so does not bend easily. So far the finish has not been a problem.
If there ever is a need for more rigidity I think some ribs could be welded on in strategic locations.
 
Little Machine Shop carries several 3" and 4" milling vises, with and without swiveling bases. They seem to have a pretty good reputation as far as importers go. www.littlemachineshop.com
 
Something looks screwy. Check the second photo. The jaw height is given as 3.2", but the overall height of the vise, including base, is given as 6.7" ... just doesn't pencil out. My best guess, looking at the proportions, is that the jaw height is something like 1.2" Then, below in the text it says that the jaw height is 0.31" No idea where they plucked that number out of.

Might well be a decent vise, but it's a matter of luck with Chinese tools. And if you look back at previous threads, you'll see that the swivel base is hardly ever used.

+1 on Little Machine Shop.
 
I used a single slide mill table I got for about $100 then use the T-slots to mount a milling vice when I need it. I put a curb at the bottom that stays dialed in to minimize setup time. Just slide the vice down the slots until it hits the curb and it's within .001". It also works well using a clamping kit with the T-slots and no vice.

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Epanzella, Thanks so much for posting the pics!! That looks very clos to what I have as the mill vertical slide.

Please express any tips tricks tools that are helpful handy or just plain cool to assist with operations on the vertical mill slide.

I have some ER32 collets on the way to start testing some milling. I thought I had the vise ordered but the company cancelled. Said the product was damaged and would have more in 20 days. Not sure if a redesign is going on or just a bad batch of milling vises?
 
Creativechipper said:
Epanzella, Thanks so much for posting the pics!! That looks very clos to what I have as the mill vertical slide.

Please express any tips tricks tools that are helpful handy or just plain cool to assist with operations on the vertical mill slide.

I have some ER32 collets on the way to start testing some milling. I thought I had the vise ordered but the company cancelled. Said the product was damaged and would have more in 20 days. Not sure if a redesign is going on or just a bad batch of milling vises?
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The handiest tip is the curb at the bottom which I already mentioned. A quick way to tram it right to left is to use 1 2 3 blocks against a faceplate if yours is true. Mine was out .003 but I faced it and it's dead nutz now. My slide nods in about .004 at the top but I haven't gotten around to shimming it yet. Make sure the top of your xslide and the bottom of your angle plate get along. If your xfeed gets tighter when you bolt the milling attachment down find the problem and fix it. I use MT3 end mill holders with a home made drawbar and it works really well. For a quick and dirty slot or cut you can use the 3 jaw if you put masking tape on the end mill. You don't want hard to hard. The runout of a 3 jaw will make for some very rough finishes. It's no milling machine by a long shot but you can do some decent work if you're careful. Good luck
 
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