Wilton Drill Press Vise Minimum Lift Mod

[jjr2001]

While the Kurt vise is awesome it is kinda big for the mini mill. The Wilton drill press vise on the other hand is just the right size for the mini mill. Problem is jaw lift. Not any more! While this does not remove all of the lift it reduces it to .001" or so. Not good enough for all milling but good enough for most. When I need perfect I use a machinist vise.

The fix is simple. Remove the "shoe" on the bottom of the moveable jaw and replace it with a monster sized one.
I have done this on two Wiltons and the results have been very good. Not as good as a Kurt but better than stock by a lot. I use blue locktite on the bolts holding the shoe in place and just get them tight enough that I have some resistance. Makes the lead screw a bit harder to turn but not too much. You can always touch up the setting as everything wears in.

Cheers, JR