Ready to order my first mill, trying to make an educated choice

The PM vises—and they have a couple, will work great for stock inletting. An AR police armored told me that a Kurt vise is sturdier for machining metal. I don’t see how the PM 4” would have any issues with metal though. The PM clamping set has worked great for me as has the ultra precision chuck. Matt is very focused on quality and will shoot straight with you. I found I needed a couple of v-blocks, an angle plate, some parallels, edge finders, etc.
 
I had already decided on the blue 5" vise and the precision chuck. From all I read and the money I am throwing down, I had a feeling the stuff was good but wanted to check.

Anyone run a dual side by side vise setup? Thinking this would be a great idea for multiple part work.
 
I have four of their drill chucks, both the large and small, for both my mill and lathe.

The Homge vises are very good.

I also have Matt's 5C collet set in 1/32nds. and they work well enough for what I do.

And a bunch of other stuff I can't think of ATM. And no complaints. :)
 
Dumb new guy question. Looking at these amazing vise's with perfectly machined bottoms. Are there special blocks that you put underneath a piece to not run the bit into the vise when you finish the hole? I know I am missing something very simple here.
 
Kind of answered my own question, vice parallels or stepped vise jaws. When using parallels I am assuming the downward pressure of a good vise keeps them in place?

I have so much to learn
 
Rockgolfer said:
Kind of answered my own question, vice parallels or stepped vise jaws. When using parallels I am assuming the downward pressure of a good vise keeps them in place?

I have so much to learn
Click to expand...

Good answer. :)

When I install new vice jaws I always machine a step .1"x.1" in the top of the jaws. I hold a lot of small pieces like pistol slides, frames, sight bases, etc.,etc., and the step is just easier and faster than using parallels all the time.

Any time I put a piece into the mill's vise (I got lucky and found a used, great condition 5" Kurt for my 935). I always smack it down with a deadblow hammer I keep nearby. Easiest way to see if the part lifts is when you clamp it down, see if the parallels are loose under the workpiece. If loose, give it a love tap to tighten things up. :)
 
Last edited:
I have watched guys smack pieces in videos and now I know exactly why! Much appreciated wrmiller, thank you. I have been watching videos all night lol.

I am already picturing making a U shaped clamping fixture to pin multiple pieces, elevated in a vice to make one set of location touching to process many holes in multiple pieces to save constant set up time. All these years of being in a production environment and problem solving are going to pay off in this "hobby" :D lol
 
Just placed my order for the PM 932 :D

So, anyone care to share some recommendations on tooling. End mills, drill bits, calipers and such? Point me at some items direct or just some websites.

Thanks again everyone for your help in this process
 
I have bought quite a bit of stuff from Shars, although I typically do it on Ebay instead of their website as sometimes they charge WAY too much for shipping.

Some things you can skimp on, price-wise, like hold-down kits and such. If you have not done much of this, may I suggest some of the cheaper end mills like those from India and whatnot? Once you get a bit more comfortable doing this you can start spending the big bucks for the higher quality cutters. Just a suggestion. :)

My personal preference is not to skimp on measuring tools like calipers and micrometers. Get the best you can afford, that way you only pay once. But again this is just my opinion. Depending on the accuracy you are trying to attain you could probably start with a 6" caliper from Shars or another vendor and do fine with it. You can upgrade later as your skills progress.

Spend the money and get a good quality R8 collet set. Along with a good quality vise. Matt's collet set is pretty decent, as are his blue vises.

Eventually, you'll spend more on tooling and measuring equipment than you did for your mill if you are like many of us here. Welcome to the club! :D
 
Good advice on the cheaper bits to start, that's the sound advice I need to here. I measure stuff all day at work now so I certainly know not to skimp there. Have any recommendations for brands of caliper?

I ordered the r8 sleeve set and hold down kit with the machine. Glacern has a March madness sale right now so getting their 5" vice and drill chuck at a great price and using the free shipping code :)

Cant wait to get this all here and up and running.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top