Tips When Buying Milling Machine Vises – 提示当买铣床虎钳
A milling machine vise is a must-have piece of equipment for any machine shop. Which vise to choose depends on whether the shop is a personal hobby shop or a professional operation. The difference in price ranges from $40 to $5,000. Obviously, there is a potential to misspend a lot of money.
How often the milling machine vise will be used is the first piece of information that needs to be determined. Is this something that will be used everyday or once a week? Something that is used everyday will have to be sturdier than something only used occasionally. Heavy duty use would require a cast steel construction. Not all metals are forged equal. Softer metal would be acceptable for infrequent use but not a good investment of money for a milling machine vise under heavy use.
A swivel base or a fixed base is also determined by usage. A swivel base allows for 360 deg swiveling on a horizontal plane. This is very convenient for small jobs but should not be used for rough, heavy work because it is less stable than a fixed base. The swivel base can be removed in most cases making the milling machine vise both a fixed base and a swivel base as needed.
A universal vise tilts 90 deg on the vertical plain and 360 deg on the horizontal plain. This is the most versatile vise for milling at all angles.
An air or hydraulic vise is wonderful for high production shops. They quickly grip or release the object being worked. They have a consistent pressure to help prevent marring of the work surface. Manual vises have a lever that is turned by hand. It is tempting to bang the handle with a mallet to make sure it is tight but this will likely mar the work and damage the threads on the vise.
Finally, try to determine how large the work being milled will be. Most vises only have up to 4 inch jaw openings. Larger industrial milling machine vises have up to 8 inch jaw openings.
A good quality milling machine vises will have precise dimensions for perfect alignments. Much time and energy can be wasted by buying a vise that needs to be grinded into shape.
A milling machine vise is more than a tool, it is an investment. A cheap, poorly made, or unstable vise can cause damage to the work and the machine and also to the operator.
Discussion Area - Leave a Comment