Is having a wobbly bottom normal? Drill Vice...

Hopefully that title got your attention...

Well I bought a low profile drill vice for use on my Novamill (due to low Z travel) as it seemed one of the more compact machine vices without the very high price tag.

It arrived, and is meant to have a milled and ground base, but when I put it on my table, or any table for that matter it rocks from side to side as pressure is applied to different bits of the vice.

I can push one corner and it rocks that way, then press the other corner and it rocks that way - its not massive, maybe a few mm - but it makes it nearly useless.

Is that a normal feature of these types of vices?

I ask as I complained and the supplier contacted the manufacture (I wont name at the moment, but not a small name) and then sent me one direct - but when it arrived it too rocks (though not as much)

So the question, is it normal to have a wobbly bottom?

Thanks

Send them both back. The bottom of the vice must be flat. In some cases precision vices are hand scraped to acheive this.

Is the bottom is wobbly, I would hate to think what the surface between the jaws is like.

You sure you didn't buy a drill press vice?

Even my drill press vices are nice and flat underneath, send 'em back!
A good milling vice is definitely one of those bits of equipment where the money is well spent and a less than good one will consistently affect work unless it's shortcomings are precisely identified and compensated for,

- Nick

Interesting - thanks guys I will call them.

Ref the vice, the reason I dont want to drop 500+ on one is I have such little Z height I wont be using for most jobs, as I plan on using alu fixture plates for most of the stuff (as I will be doing very small batches) so it sucks to drop so much on something that is there just for the odd adhoc job.

Yes its a drill press vice - wasn't aware that made a difference? Just wanted something low profile for a decent ££ - imagined it would at least have a flat bottom

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Dangle_kt

Interesting - thanks guys I will call them.

Ref the vice, the reason I dont want to drop 500+ on one is I have such little Z height I wont be using for most jobs, as I plan on using alu fixture plates for most of the stuff (as I will be doing very small batches) so it sucks to drop so much on something that is there just for the odd adhoc job.

Yes its a drill press vice - wasn't aware that made a difference? Just wanted something low profile for a decent ££ - imagined it would at least have a flat bottom

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I seem to remember one of the home machining books by the likes of Harold Hall or similar had a way of fixing the drillpress vises for light milling.

As with most drill press related items they are only meant to take forces in one direction. have a look at low profile milling vices on googles. You do not need to go to the expense of 500.

Thanks Komatias, I didn't know that... so the X and Y motion of the mill wont agree with the drill press vice? Thats interesting.

So much to learn :D

As you have a low Z clearance, you might consider a two part milling vice. Arc do one but it is probably too big. Chronos also have the Vertex ones, which are smaller.

Someone on here (routercnc I think) linked to a low profile vise that they use...the likes of rdgtools, arceurotrade etc. all stock them I believe...

Sent from my HUAWEI VNS-L31 using Tapatalk

little video I made of the issue as it explains it better than I can

https://youtu.be/iIlEiHpCyX0

Could, I suppose, bolt it down inverted to parallels on the router bed, using the vice jaws machined surface on the parallels. Then skim the bottom. Pound to a penny, though, that the casting warped after machining and both bottom and "vice jaw face" are similarly distorted.