Hold down clamping kits

[genewiseman]

I recently got my Jet JMD -18 milling machine set up and am basically starting from nothing as far as accessories go. I bought a set of collets and a parallel bar set. I already had a good vise as one came with the mill. I make folding knives so most of the milling I will be doing will be on small bar stock and thin stainless steel. I am considering getting one of the cheap clamping kits that they sell on Amazon for around $50.00. Would that be a smart investment? What are Y'all's experience with these cheaper clamping kits? Are they worth buying?
Thanks a lot,
Gene

 

[mikey]

Measure the slot width on your table. It is probably 5/8 so you would need a 5/8" set with 1/2 studs.

You can buy cheap sets on ebay or Amazon but there are several brands that are better options.

• Northwestern Tools has a nice set but doesn't come with a holder. I can attest to the quality of their tools.
• Te-Co is probably the standard and Amazon has the best prices. There are two versions of their 5/8" set; the 20402 forged steel set with steel holder and the cheaper 20402PL powdered metal set in a plastic holder. I opted for the forged steel set and can say that it is top notch in quality. They are not the standard for nothing.

If you are going to use these kinds of clamps a lot then it is probably a better idea to go for a good set. I don't use them as often as you might but I prefer to buy good and buy once. Your budget may vary.

 

[Chewy]

Find out from owners of that machine what size it takes. Found out from reading that my PM30MV takes 12mm tee nuts, not 1/2" as advertised, so I got mine from PM. People who bought bargain sets had to grind and mill slightly to make them work. Bought the bargain 3/8" set for rotary table. I rounded the edges to get further into the slots, but otherwise OK. Now making tee nuts for mill that will work with the 3/8" set and also for 1/4" to do mini hold down clamps. You will probably end up making custom hold downs to hold the work. Say 5/8" tee nuts with 1/4" studs and small flat hold downs. A 5'8" holding set for a 6" piece of steel might be a bit overkill. You tube and Pinterest has a million ideas to pick from on work holding. Good Luck! Charles

P.S. You came to the right forum for help and ideas.

 

[Chewy]

Just thought of this. Check into mini pallets. Might be a better way to go for small pieces. Also good practice in making them.

 

[martik777]

I've used mine maybe 2x in 10 years

 

[C-Bag]

I bought one of the cheap HF sets and I use them all the time on my mill, my bandsaw and drill press. Yeah, they are not as nice as TeCo (I also look for clamps in garage sales and have picked up a couple of pieces) but not being a knife maker I have no idea what you need. And you don't either yet. I've also ground the ends of a couple of the big ones. I don't think I would do that with a TeCo set that one piece is close to what I paid for the cheapo set.

I didn't have enough experience at first to know what I needed for the particular kind of work I do and rather than blow a wad on high end tooling that would ultimately sit I bought cheap so I could get a feel for what was going to be truly useful to me. I have dedicated several pieces of that set as basic kit on my drill press and especially my vertical bandsaw.

I respect all those who say "buy once, cry once" but in this case I think the proper size cheap kit is a good way to get started.

 

[mikey]

I respect all those who say "buy once, cry once" but in this case I think the proper size cheap kit is a good way to get started.

Can't argue with this. My problem with cheap tools is when they aggravate me every single time I use them or if they break doing the job they are intended to do. I would rather pay another hundred bucks to have a clamp set that will last me a lifetime and work the way they should, every single time.

 

[FOMOGO]

I have several of the cheap sets. Not really a precision tool in any way, but they do everything I ask them to, and have never failed. In this particular case I would save the money on the inexpensive clamping sets, and spend it on more critical tooling. Mike

 

[macardoso]

I bought a cheap set for my G0704 and use it constantly. Simple and small parts fit in your vise, but anything big or awkward needs to be held with these clamps.

I ended up making a tooling plate from 5/8" aluminum for the table of my mill. It has 3/8-16 tapped holes and .251 reamed holes on offset 1 inch centers. Just makes using the kit even easier with more locations to build setups.

You can see it here under the vise. The clamping kit is holding this low profile vise to the table.

 

[RJSakowski]

I have two sets of clamps, both coming with mills I have bought. The first set is for 9/16" slots anuses 3/8-16 studs.My table slot were actually 5/8" wide so I made my own tee nuts for 5/8" slots and 3/8-16 studs. This is a forged and hardened set and has seen some extreme use without failure.
The second set appears to be powdered metal and is soft to the file. It is for 5/8" tee slots and has 1/2-13 studs. It is a more clunky set and I don't use it much. Mostly if I need more pieces than I have with the first set. On a small mill, a 3/8" set is more compact and less likely to get in the way of machinung. Unfortunately, I have yet to find any tee nuts threaded for 3/8-16 to fit 5/8" slots.

I have made/bought additional tee nuts for varying width slots to fit other machines and accessories. They range from those for 7/16" to 9/16" slots.