A trick I learned for lining up vise jaws quickly

Setting up multiple parts in a vise can be a pain. I used to measure each jaw separately and it took forever. Now I just use a parallel and a rubber mallet. Tap the parallel against the fixed jaw until it seats flat. This squares everything up in seconds. I do this for every job now and it never fails. Saves me a bunch of time during changes.

4 comments

4 Comments

troychen1mo ago

Tap a parallel with a mallet? That sounds like a great way to ruin a good parallel and maybe even your vise over time. I've seen guys try this and it just puts a ton of side load on the screw and the jaw itself. For a one off maybe, but doing it every job seems like asking for trouble when just measuring with a square takes a few more seconds but is actually right.

phoenix_burns281mo ago

I get what you're saying about side load on the screw, but a light tap with a deadblow isn't the same as beating on it. You check with a square first, obviously, but sometimes that last tiny bit needs a nudge to seat. I watched a guy I worked with do it for years on the same Kurt vise with no play. The key is you're not forcing it, you're just tapping out the last little air gap. A square can lie if there's a tiny burr or speck of dust.

milaj951mo ago

I saw a thread on Practical Machinist where a guy said his shop foreman banned tapping parallels with a hammer. The old timer claimed it was the main reason their older Kurt vise got sloppy over the years. Makes sense if you're forcing things instead of checking with a square.

casey8186d ago

Banning a tap with a deadblow is wild overkill.