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Thread: Reducing the jaw lift of a Wilton 11674 Vise for use on a mill

  1. #1
    Supporting Member jjr2001's Avatar
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    Reducing the jaw lift of a Wilton 11674 Vise for use on a mill

    Well we will attempt to improve upon our first Wilton 11674 vise mod and see if we can reduce the jaw lift even more.
    Homemade Vise Lift Modification - HomemadeTools.net
    While it will not replace the Kurt vise on any large mill it will make a very nice addition to the Mini Mill.
    A Kurt or even Import milling vise dwarfs the mini mill and I have had good luck with my Wilton so far,
    just wanted to make it act like a Kurt...( A light weight Kurt that is) My alternate method on the mini mill is
    to use a 3" machinist vise that does not exhibit any up lift tendencies. (none that I noticed)

    A base plate was needed in order use the clamping groove in the vise for the lock down feature:
    http://www.homemadetools.net/forum/i...punching-65904
    Once this was installed the lock down clamps were made. Simple parts made of 1018 cold rolled.
    10-32 cap screws were used throughout. A small recess was milled in the side of the main clamp blocks
    to provide clearance for the vise base. (Vise jaw is not quite as wide as the base)
    Clamp down action is accomplished with the top cap screw on the left and right hand clamps.
    Yep, I know, not as convenient as the single screw Kurt but this vise is convenient to use on the mini mill
    and I feel that a full size lock down vise is just too big for my little mill. Two pins in each clamp guide the foot and keep it from twisting. Loctite was used on the main clamping block to secure the pins.

    I will be making some before and after tests on this setup tomorrow.


    Another vise addition for the Wilton was this thread with the vise stop:
    Homemade Milling Vise Stop - HomemadeTools.net
    And of course the soft jaws:
    http://www.homemadetools.net/homemade-vise-soft-jaws-12
    Attached Thumbnails Attached Thumbnails Reducing the jaw lift of a Wilton 11674 Vise for use on a mill-img_1503b-copy.jpg   Reducing the jaw lift of a Wilton 11674 Vise for use on a mill-img_1504b-copy.jpg   Reducing the jaw lift of a Wilton 11674 Vise for use on a mill-img_1505b-copy.jpg   Reducing the jaw lift of a Wilton 11674 Vise for use on a mill-img_1506b-copy.jpg   Reducing the jaw lift of a Wilton 11674 Vise for use on a mill-img_1507b-copy.jpg  

    Reducing the jaw lift of a Wilton 11674 Vise for use on a mill-img_1508b-copy.jpg   Reducing the jaw lift of a Wilton 11674 Vise for use on a mill-img_1509b-copy.jpg   Reducing the jaw lift of a Wilton 11674 Vise for use on a mill-img_1510b-copy.jpg  

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    Last edited by jjr2001; Jan 22, 2018 at 05:33 PM.

  2. The Following 7 Users Say Thank You to jjr2001 For This Useful Post:

    Carnel (Jul 17, 2020), high-side (Aug 1, 2020), Paul Jones (Jan 22, 2018), PJs (Jan 28, 2018), rlm98253 (Jan 23, 2018), Seedtick (Jan 23, 2018), sossol (Jan 24, 2018)

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    Thanks jjr2001! We've added your Jaw Lift Reduction Method to our Vises category,
    as well as to your builder page: jjr2001's Homemade Tools. Your receipt:




    2000 Tool Plans

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    jjr2001 (Jan 23, 2018)

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    Supporting Member jjr2001's Avatar
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    Test results are in......and they are good.

    Well it is not a Kurt but then it is just the right size for a little mini mill.

    In a nut shell I tested the new vise setup on my mini mill and found that
    in one inch of Y travel the jaw only lifts .0005". But it was a surprise at
    the method of setting the vise for that result.

    I thought the process would be to have both clamps loose, then cinch
    down on the part with the lead screw...Tap the part down...and then tighten the
    new left and right side clamps. Well that helped to reduce the lift from
    .0025" to about .0015"...Not so good so I tried it without tapping down and
    the results were about the same.

    The ideal process for this system would be to simply tighten up the clamps until
    they are quite snug but still allow the lead screw to push the moveable jaw. No
    further adjusting of the clamps will be required as long as you stay in the
    vicinity of the adjustment just made.
    The slot in the vise base is just a bit high on one end so it gets too
    stiff when the moveable jaw is at the rear.

    So I thought what if I moved the jaw near the final closure point for the
    part and then snugged down both clamps. That was it. I tightened them
    so I could move the jaw but with a fair amount of torque required. (somewhat
    like tighteng the gibs on the carriage or cross slide on the lathe)

    I have found the clamps are adjustable to "snug" over at least a 1" range of jaw movement.
    The real tightness happens at the rear of the travel and the clamps can be left
    snug when in use over any 1 to 2 inch area of jaw movement in front of that.
    For multiple parts or repeated clamping of the same part the new clamps
    only have to be set once for the job and the lift is very low at .0005"...

    I think it is a good mod which makes a fair vise into a very good vise for the mini mill.
    Maybe make the clamp feet out of brass to give better sliding fit?
    I am sure the method could be used on any drill press vise that has clamping slots on the side.
    The vise can still be used on it's side if the base is removed and the clamps are removed from the vise.

    If you try it let us know how it works out.

    Cheers, JR

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    Supporting Member Paul Alciatore's Avatar
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    Nice job, I love it. Looks like it could be done with many brands of vise.

    And, of course, it started my thought processes for another project. Seems to me that a vise like that could be modified with a Kurt like device to draw the movable jaw down as it is tightened. Here comes more midnight oil.
    Paul A.

  8. The Following 2 Users Say Thank You to Paul Alciatore For This Useful Post:

    jjr2001 (May 27, 2018), Paul Jones (May 30, 2018)

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    Supporting Member jjr2001's Avatar
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    Thanks Paul, this vise has been in place on my mini-mill since I modified it. I have not used my machinist screwless vise at all on this mill.
    It holds within about .0015" without a final tightening of the "hold downs". I just keep them snug. I can reduce the lift by cinching them down to less than .001.
    Not bad for a $60.00 vise that gives me more head room than the Kurt style. Just what we need for the mini mill.

    Cheers, JR



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  10. The Following User Says Thank You to jjr2001 For This Useful Post:

    Paul Jones (May 30, 2018)

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