Work Holding Solutions: Sometimes There Isn't Room for Clamps

How To
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First, I must confess that this idea isn’t 100% mine. This is something I picked up as a manager working at JPL. FACT: We were not allowed apply clamps while machining optics (glass), and as a necessity, my guys would use an expensive temperature controlled hot plate, and some expensive adhesive to hold down the glass. Well, I don’t have money for an expensive temperature controlled hot plate, and the expensive adhesive, but what I have is a Salvation Army used $5 Flat Iron and some hot glue from the 99 cent store .

I usually try to but my stock with material so I can use the threaded holes in my metal table, but I shop for my material at the remnant bin at a local metal supplier ($2lb for Aluminum), and sometimes I end up with a piece of material that will just fit my part, OR my design and desire is to do as much machining on one side, that I can’t clamp or bolt the part down.

Today’s part was just that, so here is my 6.900" Pulley for my Power Hack Saw project. I was able to machine the OD, Belt Face, ID, C’Bore and Spokes (after facing the part to thickness). NOTE: I have NEVER lost a part due to lack of adhesion, even though I use WD40 as a cutting lubricant, and sometime have minor crash (like today).

The part is easily removed within just a few minutes back on the Flat Iron, and the glue residue is easily removed with a few drops of isopropyl. Here is a video I did a few months back. Works better than Double sided tape, Super Glue and the cost is fractions of a cent. Try it you’ll like it. Feel free to hit me upi with any questions (after viewing the video)

Link: https://youtu.be/sILeFJSANBk

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First Side Complete (Penny for Scale)

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Part freshly removed from the Aluminum Glue Plate (Back Side)

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Chips Ahoy

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Part is faced to the final thickness, and it’s flat within 0.001" (Note the paper shims to correct for the tolerance of the rails)

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Back on the Flat Iron after the completion of the first side

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Cool post. I am sure this is a reasonably known thing to many of you, but I am intrigued by the can of WD-40 you have mounted there. I assume it somehow is rigged to auto-lube your cutter?

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Yup. About 4 drops a minute.

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That particular WD40 can trick is ingenious, and hadn’t seen such a widget before… where can I find the details to make or buy such a setup? Does it have to be aerosol, or have you setup other drip-lube configurations with non-pressurized lubricants?

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That’s great. I love the photo of the S3 full of aluminum chips!

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Also, I see you’ve got a wooden chip barrier running along the inside edge of your So3 rail in the third image, I presume that’s not against the extrusion because of the carriage, so is it just fastened with an angle bracket to the table or something for keeping mess contained?

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Those are just 3/4 x 3.5" just pine boards from Home Depot. I milled a small groove (to clear the V-Wheel nuts) to allow the boards to get closer to the aluminum rails. I also planed the bottom with a slight angle to the boards lean towards the rails. Nothing hold then in place (well except gravity). They keep the chips (and I do make a LOT of chips) away from the bottom V-Wheels. Hope tis helps.

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Jonathan,

I’ll make a “how to” post on this WD40 drip system in the near future.

FYI: A coated cutter seldom need lubricant to stop chips from sticking to the end mill. I was testing a new spindle, and running the machine harder than I normally would, and had the drip system there as insurance. (Set to about 4 drips a minute,.) PS It’s non-aerosol in this configuration.

More about that in the upcoming How To post.

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Now Im going to be saying “Chips Ahoy” for the rest of the day like a Pirate.

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