made my first machinist clamps

[werowance]

made my first machinist clamps and wanted to show them off.
i know for most of you this is probably childs play but its really one of the few things i have made that was actually square and came out like i planned.

the jaws were cut from a chunk of mystery steel, the clamp screws and tommy bars were cut from scrap drill rod, and the tang that holds one of the screws in place was cut from a scrap piece of brass that came off the bottom of a door - i think they call it a toe kick or something but was free scrap. the brass screws i cut from a piece of 360 brass bar.

i band sawed out the rough shape of the jaws, milled then fly cut some flats so i could glue them together with locktight, blued and marked the dimensions, made the rest of the cuts and drilled the holes and popped them apart.

first thing i have milled on my at750 that actually came out square.

even electro etched my name

 

[dnalot]

Very nice and very usfull. They look store bought.

Mark T

 

[gerritv]

Quality job, and very useful


I use my high school shop one from 1962 on a regular basis.

Gerrit

 

[crueby]

Very nice and very usfull. They look store bought.

Mark T

Nicer than any store bought ones I have - great work!

 

[Swifty]

Excellent job, I made a small pair when I was an apprentice, they are only about 1 1/4" long and open up to nearly 1", very handy little things.

Paul.

 

[RonGinger]

Very nice, much nicer than the black finish commonly seen. And I am very pleased to see you put your name on it. I so often buy a nice tool like that at some flea market, or vendor at a show, and there is no sign of a makers name. Artists always sign their work, there is no reason we should not sign work like this. It is every bit as much art.

 

[gus]

Your clamp is so well made and polished.

Made the same clamp in Trade School in 1961. Regret I did not make a request to take it home.

 

[werowance]

Thank you all very much. i never realized all those years just how much work it really is doing machine work. and how much time and effort is involved in just doing the setup to hold the piece before you even get to make a cut that only takes a couple of mins to cut (hours to setup, seconds to cut sometimes). i have had my lathe mill combo now for i guess about 3 years and i am just getting to the point that i can accurately cut a machinist clamp. but im lovin it!

so just want to say "MUCH RESPECT" to all of you here, you make it look so easy when in reallity it is very very very dificult, tedious and yet rewarding and fun.

 

[kvom]

That was the first thing I made in machining class (2 of them). Yours look excellent.

 

[Omnimill]

Very nice job! Thm:

 

[kquiggle]

Beautiful work - I'd be tempted to put it in a display case instead of using it! Electroetching your name was a very nice touch.

 

[necchiom]

With compliment!

 

[gus]

Excellent job, I made a small pair when I was an apprentice, they are only about 1 1/4" long and open up to nearly 1", very handy little things.

Paul.

I just can't take it longer, missed my DIY Trade School Clamp. Will DIY so as I get '' Lynx '' going.

Also DIY a ToolMaker's Precision Vise in Trade School. Its Ok I bought 2 look alikes from Southern China while on ''Biz Trip'' years ago. Stood up well after 8 years. But from Dean's Forum there is such vise. Might give a DIY go.
But right now I have three such vise!!!.

 

[werowance]

Been following your Lynx build Gus, you are almost there. cant wait to see it run!

 

[Wizard69]

Wow, almost too nice to use! A nice hard chrome plating would preserve them for a very very long time.

 

[Meldonmech]

Nice job, these are very useful, especially when used as a pair.

 

[werowance]

well.....the clamp jaws are now starting to get some surface rust very light but still there. came off easily, and the drill rod screws are still nice and shiney. i had cleaned and rubbed it down liberly with 10/30 motor oil conventional not synthetic. any suggestions for rust prevention oils or solvents? i just don't think they deserve chrome or something like that but would like to know what i can do at home for metal like this to help it last.

 

[Jyman]

A hot oil dip would help prevent rust


Sent from my iPhone using Model Engines

 

[Wizard69]

well.....the clamp jaws are now starting to get some surface rust very light but still there. came off easily, and the drill rod screws are still nice and shiney. i had cleaned and rubbed it down liberly with 10/30 motor oil conventional not synthetic. any suggestions for rust prevention oils or solvents? i just don't think they deserve chrome or something like that but would like to know what i can do at home for metal like this to help it last.

I've used cold blackening solution for some stuff I've made for my lathe. Birchwood Casey is one vendor. These guys: http://www.caswellplating.com/metal-finishing-solutions/black-oxide-kits.html have a system and many other possibilities. You can also find metal blackening kits at all of the major tool distributors. So far I've gotten fairly good results without a great deal of prep work. That is the more you polish the steel the the nicer the results. Most systems involve a blacken solution followed by a "sealer", with lots of cleaning in between. The quality of your local water may be a factor in the results you get.

You still need to keep the steel coated with a rust preventative, in that regard I use the same material I use on my guns. Break Free CLP is one option but many others exist. You can also use Boeshield T-9. There are so many out there it is hard to keep track and honestly I don't know what the "in" rust preventative is. I do like the blackening approach for most tools or things that get used as it simple and safe.

Plating can be dangerous and in California you might even need a permit to buy the required materials. However a hard chrome can be very nice on tools, especially if wear is an issue. At one time it was common to find hard chrome plating on cutting tools like taps. You are probably better off finding cheaper solutions.

One thing I've always wanted to try is: http://www.cerakoteguncoatings.com/ which have an interesting and very high performance baked on finish for metals. The problem is the prep and equipment are beyond what I have to work with. If you have a local applicator you might try to get home to do your stuff with another project hopefully saving some costs. If you look around the site they have a great manual that details the extensive work required to apply their finishes. If you have the resources you might be able to DIY. Even then this is probably a finish better suited to a very high quality model.

Beyond that there is always Rustoleum . Really it pays to look at what new finishes are available from the paint companies.
.

 

[Swifty]

I've used cold blackening solution many times, and it works great. The solution that I use is different to the one mentioned above, I don't have to wait several days for the sealer to work. You can see how I do mine in the last posting here, http://www.homemodelenginemachinist.com/showthread.php?t=22438&highlight=Black+oxide&page=5

I only just grabbed a couple of pieces for the demo and did not prepare them much, I only gave them a bit of a wipe. With proper cleaning and maybe polishing, the black would be much better.

Paul.