Drill Press; Securing Items

[D45]

What are the options I have for securing items when using my drill press?

I see that they have vises that mount into the slots and with the open centers, they seem like they would work well and not damage the drill bit or the wise

I also see that they sell "slot" vise grips

What GJ say, are both styles needed or is one type better than the other?

Any other type of neat holding devices available to secure items on the press bed?

 

[f150skidoo]

I mainly use my drill press for drilling steel. I find my 5" cross slide vise a necessity for getting the most accurate holes.

 

[ranger302]

Both of my presses have a "drill press vice" on them not bolted down. This works fine for me.

 

[Richard Cranium]

Same here my vise is not screwed down to the drill press.

 

[D45]

What size you guys using for the vise?

I see they typically sell 4" and 6" versions

 

[404]

I am a bad person and hold stuff with my hand. I never curve my fingers around the item, so if it grabs and spins my fingers stay with me. Theoretically.

 

[crewchief888]

What size you guys using for the vise?

I see they typically sell 4" and 6" versions

i have a 6"

if you dont plan on bolting your vise down, rotate the vise handle clockwise and let it rest against the left side of the column.

that way if a bit does grab, the vise (theoretically) cant go anywhere, and spin around.

 

[pcmeiners]

"I am a bad person and hold stuff with my hand."
Same here, but had too many close calls, I get stupid around drill presses; ended up get a dual axis vise, not bolted down, wonderful. Dayton 6", vise is about 25 lbs

" Theoretically" , I came close to losing a couple fingers.

 

[DanarchyCustoms]

I only bolt my vise down when drilling repetitive holes or using a drill bit larger than 1/2". I'm sure a vise and the slot vise grips would make a good combo for clamping the work piece in the vise then securing the vise to the drill press.

 

[nehog]

I mainly use my drill press for drilling steel. I find my 5" cross slide vise a necessity for getting the most accurate holes.

Agreed, I have a nice Dayton cross-vise and that makes for accurate work.

 

[404]

"I am a bad person and hold stuff with my hand."
Same here, but had too many close calls, I get stupid around drill presses; ended up get a dual axis vise, not bolted down, wonderful. Dayton 6", vise is about 25 lbs

" Theoretically" , I came close to losing a couple fingers.

Excellent, thank you.

 

[cruzer75]

I have used both depending on what I am working on. Now I have a mill and no drill press so lots of vise action for me.

 

[lilredex]

I use a variety of things......mainly the angle iron fence, it stops pieces from turning should the bit catch.

 

[atch]

I have used both depending on what I am working on...

Me too. PLUS; I have several drilled & tapped holes in the table. They are 3/16" coarse threads. I ground off the heads of a few 3/16" bolts (rounded the tops, too) a couple of inches long. I only screw the bolts in finger tight. I use these when I'm holding something by hand (accuracy not needed) and let the item being drilled rest up against the bolt.

I probably don't drill as many things that need tight tolerances as some of you do. I use the vise grip thingies and the bolts screwed into the table much more often than I use the vise.

That's on the "steel" drill press. I have another nearly identical drill press to use for drilling wood. That way I never have to worry about getting oil or steel shavings in a nice piece of wood being drilled. And I never have sawdust or shavings around my steel work area.

 

[Shadowdog500]

I have a drill press vise, everyone should have one of these near thier drill press. Even the cheap HF one works well.

I have two of those vise grip style clamps that HF sells and used them on my old drill press that had through slots on the table so I could tighten the nut from the bottom of the table. They don't work on my new drill press that has t-slots but I keep them around to hold feather boards on my table saw.

Since I bought my new Porter Cable drill press that has t-slots last fall I have been Using the t-slot hold down set from my mill. They work great.

If I'm Drilling through something long enough to reach the column I hold the piece so it is up against the column so it can't start to whip around if the bit fetches up. I had a friend almost lose his thumb by holding a piece of metal while drilling through it, and the drill fetched up and started swinging the metal around like a saw. Not good, be careful.

Chris

 

[D45]

Thanks for all the help and info guys

Time to go shopping on Craigslist and Ebay, I love used vintage stuff

I just torn down the entire drill press, sanded, degreased, painted, and overhauled my used CL press for around $50 in parts

It runs so smooth and quiet, I love it and plan on putting it to work

 

[matt_i]

A 6" Kurt milling machine vise is quite heavy compared to the garden variety drill press vise. I find the extra mass plus the length of the hex shaft & handle to hold on, helps out a lot in keeping the workpiece quiet. That said, I probably use an actual milling machine (Bridgeport) for 90% of drill press work. The other 10% is mainly when I want to use the footpedal reversing setup (its part of a VFD setup) for tapping multiple holes.

It doesn't have to be a super nice milling vise so you can go for either an overseas knockoff or one that sells for a low price because some ham handed person drilled a large number of holes into it.

 

[MushCreek]

I hold a lot of stuff by hand. The secret is to resist the overwhelming urge to lift the quill when the drill grabs. If you hold it down against the table, it generally won't go flying across the shop before you can shut the motor off. Better to clamp it.....

 

[HenryAZ]

These come in pretty handy for locking something down.

 

[bgarrett]

I hold a lot of stuff by hand. The secret is to resist the overwhelming urge to lift the quill when the drill grabs. If you hold it down against the table, it generally won't go flying across the shop before you can shut the motor off. Better to clamp it.....

About 30 years ago. I quit holding sheetmetal when a piece spun and sliced my hand badly.

 

[D45]

Thanks guys, I bought a nice used 4" Columbian, which is a rebadged Wilton?

It should work just perfect for my needs.....the vise has a 9"x6-1/2" base/platform

$35

 

[Shadowdog500]

Thanks guys, I bought a nice used 4" Columbian, which is a rebadged Wilton?



It should work just perfect for my needs.....the vise has a 9"x6-1/2" base/platform



$35

Do you have a photo, I'd like to see it.

Thanks,

Chris

 

[66354dream]

I use a drill press vise and use the slots on the drill press table to bolt it down depending on what I'm doing.

 

[D45]

 

[Jagmandave]

I have a bench drill press, so I use a 4" from HF, I've had it for 20 years or more and it still works perfectly.....I watched a friend get his hand sliced by a piece of sheet metal he was trying to hold while he drilled, I learned my lesson from his pain.

 

[67CarGuy]

I just picked up a used HF cross-slide vise for this purpose. Previously, I used two pieces of angle iron clamped together - one under the DP table, the other on top. Works really well for round stock too!

 

[Dennis Leigh Henry]

As a rule of thumb, I almost always drill anything with any size/length made of wood by holding it. If its is small or I'm in production mode, I always use a vise or a fence arrangement with a clamp of some sort.

When drilling plastic and metal, I always use a clamp of some sort. Either the small Wilton drill press vise, pictured, or that Jorgenson 1623 clamp that is super handy. I also will use C Clamps and a host of V blocks, angle plates, etc. if more sophisticated. I also have a vertical mill that I use when precision is demanded, as a drill press. I've learned the hard way to use a vise with a C Clamp.. No one needs to feel that shrinking feeling when the drill grabs and you must make that split second decision to either hold on or let go. Safety First.. Also, my decision to clamp or not depends on drill size.. Over 3/16" always...

 

[metalmagpie]

I have one of those Columbian vises too. I have never understood why the trough just below the fixed jaw is so big. I'm considering filling mine with JB Weld and machining it to match the bed height.

I daydream about taking a cheap 5" cross-slide vise and scraping it in to make it into a solid machine tool accessory.

The best solution to workholding in a drill press is to buy a knee mill.

metalmagpie

 

[Davefr]

Get a t-slot fixturing set and your choice of vise:

These also come in handy:

 

[Steevo]

I keep a 4" drill press vise on the table of my drill press, and use it a lot. I almost never hand hold anything I am drilling into or through.
I sometimes clamp things to the table to drill them, or clamp a piece of angle or 2x4 to the table keep an item I am drilling from spinning should it get away from me.

I just recently made this jig for holding small round items I am drilling:

It is about 8" long and 2" wide, so I can hold it by hand while drilling small stuff clamped under it's hold-downs.
It also fits easily into the drill press vise, as in this picture:

 

[QwikKotaTx]

I keep a 4" drill press vise on the table of my drill press, and use it a lot. I almost never hand hold anything I am drilling into or through.
I sometimes clamp things to the table to drill them, or clamp a piece of angle or 2x4 to the table keep an item I am drilling from spinning should it get away from me.

I just recently made this jig for holding small round items I am drilling:
https://sdwike.smugmug.com/photos/i-7sTGtnW/0/M/i-7sTGtnW-M.jpg
It is about 8" long and 2" wide, so I can hold it by hand while drilling small stuff clamped under it's hold-downs.
It also fits easily into the drill press vise, as in this picture:
[img]https://sdwike.smugmug.com/photos/i-59mqzfj/0/M/i-59mqzfj-M.jpg[/QUOTE]

Very slick. Did you make that on a mill?

 

[Steevo]

Very slick. Did you make that on a mill?

Yes. I milled the beveled slots and the channels under them.
Also used the belt sander, drill press, files, band saw, hand taps, emery cloth and elbow grease.

 

[MotoDave]

WAHLSTROM™ floating drill press vise are the best I've ever used. I've been on the look out for a used one in my budget for years.

http://specialtytooling.eaglerockon...l-float-lock-vice-for-drill-presses/item-2842

 

[McLean]

WAHLSTROM™ floating drill press vise are the best I've ever used. I've been on the look out for a used one in my budget for years.

http://specialtytooling.eaglerockon...l-float-lock-vice-for-drill-presses/item-2842

Those look rad and I'd love to pick one up also. Similar and also very nice looking are the Heinrich floating vises.

I just recently picked up a pair of these and I'm thoroughly impressed: http://www.grizzly.com/products/4-1-4-Hold-Down-Clamp/G9590

 

[marvinlee]

Ref. vise sizes, I have a 4" Ridgid conventional bench vise and a 6" Ridgid quick release bench vise. Both are useful but the 4" gets used more. These are not the cheapest nor the best vises but represent possibly the upper mid-range of vises.

 

[D45]

Those are exactly what I need!

 

[Zeke]

These are cheap, handy but not all you need:

 

[mikegt4]

I made a post that I mount in one of the slots to keep what I am drilling from spinning. I used a 1" dia. rod about 4" long, drilled/tapped for a 1/2" bolt on one end. Like what Lilredex showed in post 13 except without the welded on T handle. I just mount it though the slot on the left side of my table. I rest whatever I am drilling against the post so it doesn't rotate, works great.
I very rarely fasten my vise to the table as that forces the drill bit to one exact position. I prefer to let the vise "float" a bit and let the drill bit settle into spot that I have center punched. If I need precision hole spacing I use my mill.