Vise suggestions for Sherline mill?

[lazylathe]

Greetings fellow members!

I am looking for some suggestions for a vise for my milling machine.
It came with a pretty bad one that is functional in the only aspect that it resembles a vise! The jaws are about as parallel as a mountain road and as horizontal as the horizon appears from a small boat in the centre of a hurricane!

I know that Sherline sells a well made vise but was wondering if there are any of you out there that have found something better or just more practical.

Thanks!

Andrew

 

[vlmarshall]

http://cgi.ebay.com/2-Screwless-Vis...rmsZalgo=LVI&itu=UCI&otn=3&ps=63#ht_732wt_940

These are two of the vises I use on mine. I also have a larger screwless vise... but the smaller screwless in this set is the vise I use most often, the toolmaker's vise seeing a lot of bench use.
The seller does NOT communicate, but he ships quickly, and the vises really ARE square within .0002" like he says. When I got the vises, after the no-reply thing, I was ready to leave a negative feedback and grind them myself, but, they're actually really good.

The only thing i've done to the screwless, was to change out the dowel pin for a longer one, so that I can slide it out of the side holes when changing sizes. It was made with a short pin, to hook in bottom grooves, but I prefer the long through-pin style and did my vise shopping LOOKING for a vise with side holes, and clamping grooves all the way around the body.

I had to limit the size of the vise I use, because my Sherline is in an enclosure, and i didn't want to worry about the vise limiting my travel, or running into anything. When I use the toolmaker's vise, or my larger screwless, I mount them sideways on the mill table.

 

[ChooChooMike]

You can also see a similar 2" screw-less vise from LittleMachineShop.com that'll work on the Sherline mill. I bought this one myself

Check it out.

Mike

 

[Twmaster]

I have one of the 2" screwless vises like shown in the FeeBay link above. My Taig mill is not much bigger than your Sherline. I could not be happier with the vise. It's square and setup on my table is a snap. Holds strong too.

The first time I set it up I was praying the thing was square. Placed the vice. Loosely set one clamp, squared it to the table with a 100 year old Browne and Sharp machinist square. Secured, ran an indicator across the fixed jaw. Perfect.

The only grump I have with it is the pin. You have to be careful when changing the position of the movable jaw. Otherwise I love the thing. I got mine from JTS machinery and it was a bit less expensive than the one from 800Watt.

 

[vlmarshall]

The only grump I have with it is the pin. You have to be careful when changing the position of the movable jaw. Otherwise I love the thing. I got mine from JTS machinery and it was a bit less expensive than the one from 800Watt.

Yeah, I didn't like the short pin either. I changed it for a full-width pin, and avoid blocking the holes on both ends of the holes when clamping the vise.
JTS, eh? I'll check them out. Thanks for the tip.

 

[lazylathe]

Thanks for the tips guys!
Vernon, i sent that guy an email on ebay and he actually responded within a day!

I think i will most likely go with his vises as they are quite a bit cheaper that the Sherline one!

Love the look of your mill Vernon!!
Looks like you have upgraded it quite a bit...

 

[Twmaster]

JTS had the best price. They even have 10% off if you order on a Tuesday. I've also bought a couple things from 800Watt. I am shocked they replied at all, yet alone in a day...

;D

 

[vlmarshall]

Thanks for the tips guys!
Vernon, i sent that guy an email on ebay and he actually responded within a day!

I think i will most likely go with his vises as they are quite a bit cheaper that the Sherline one!

Love the look of your mill Vernon!!
Looks like you have upgraded it quite a bit...

Wow, I emailed him about 5 times before buying a vise, and once afterwards. Never did get an answer. Maybe he finally read all his negative feedback about communication.
Still, his vice had the widest jaw and the largest opening that I could find in an overall length that'd clear my mill's enclosure. If I'd made the enclosure myself I'd have added a few inches inside.... and a shape that'd control flood coolant
The add-on mill table was fun to make, just a spacer to clear the stepper mounts, and a t-slotted plate. It worked out well, flat within .0003 in X and .0002 in Y, except for the front inch of the table, which drops off .001 for some reason.