Low Profile Clamps (Inspired by Clickspring) Part 2

[@ericbrackenbury]

Thanks for doing this, I am currently making the clamps :-)

[@Preso58]

I used my set earlier this week to make some hammer forms. They are a great accessory for a rotary table. Regards, Mark

[@jasonneedham6734]

Health wise, All the Best. Thanks for your videos.❤

[@kimber1958]

Very helpful. I got some good tips.

[@MattysWorkshop]

Gday Preso, the clamps are looking really good, very handy to have mate, cheers

[@Preso58]

Thanks Matty. The hard part is knowing where to stop. There are so many variations you can make. Regards, Mark

[@camillosteuss]

Oh yeah baby, 44 minute video by Prezza, innit a joy... Ill rewatch your parkerizing and finishing videos after this one...

[@MyMiniHomeWorkshop]

Pro-tip for drilling brass and trust me after chewing through 22 tonne of 385 every 2 months in the repetition shop I had in Brisbane, I have plenty of experience drilling it. Simply grind the cutting edge to a neutral rake, cuts nicely with no snatching. Your clamps came out nice 👍

[@TorteTS]

Could be a short video showing this technique

[@Preso58]

Thanks. We used to modify drill bits in this way for drilling acrylic. It also tends to be a bit grabby and a positive rake drill bit can cause a lot of chipping. The only issue is that you really need two sets of drill bits unless you really like re-sharpening drill bits. I have a project coming up where I will be making a drill bit sharpening rig for small drill bits. I may cover the topic then. Regards, Mark

[@patrickshaw7983]

Thank for the video, nice work as always. Like the wildlife as well, you've got some strange critturs down there.

[@joewhitney4097]

Great video and camera positioning. I am picking up a lot of helpful information watching your channel. Thanks for sharing.

[@Preso58]

Thanks Joe. Cameras in the workshop! They get in the way, they are never where you want them to be, they need constant cleaning and battery charging and no matter where you park them, they will be in front of something you want to get at. And don't get me started on the number of times you forget to press record when you carry out some one off machining process! Regards, Mark

[@clonoid]

G'day from Bunbury, WA

[@chrisarmstrong8198]

William Chitham's comment below was my thought, too. Since the high point of the eccentric is randomly oriented with respect to the thread, tightening the screw is unlikely to securely clamp the brass jaw to the base at the same time as clamping the work-piece. Any gap may allow the work-piece to lift, despite the incline. Using a standard cap-screw to hold the jaw to the base and an eccentric cap-screw pushing against the jaw from the rear would decouple the two motions. Tighten the eccentric screw first to clamp the work-piece, then the other screw to push the jaw (and work-piece) down. The incline would not be needed.

[@Preso58]

Chris, I tried to model the mechanism in my CAD software to calculate the clamping forces but failed miserably. However, the jaw cannot lift straight up vertically because it's axis in inclined to the vertical face of the stock it is gripped against. In order to lift it would also bite harder into the stock. I think Chris (Clickspring) mentioned that you need to be realistic and conservative when using this style of clamp. So far I haven't had any stock come loose during machining operations. In the last episode of this playlist I showed some rotary table work using these clamps and they worked well enough. Regards, Mark

[@luisrodrigues9377]

Hi, Mark! Greetings from Aveiro, Portugal. 😊 Thanks for the great videos! Now you can add another 📌 to you map: on the Portuguese coast, just south of Porto (or Oporto, as the Brits say); actually, it'll probably be touching the Porto pin, as Aveiro is really close. Hope someday you'll be able to drop us a visit and sample the great Portuguese wines! 👌😁🍷 Cheers, mate! 😉

[@Preso58]

Luis, we are planning a trip for later this year. We wanted to fly from the east coast of Canada to Belgium but there are almost no direct flights. We kept seeing flights with stop overs in Portugal. At first we were really annoyed and then we thought, Portugal might be nice to visit. We did a bit of googling and realised that it really is a wonderful destination. The only thing we wondered about was the language barrier. I can understand a bit of Spanish and my wife is learning French but Portuguese might be a bit of a stretch for both of us. Porto could well be on our list of places to visit. Regards, Mark

[@bostedtap8399]

Nice additions to the shop, nicely made, great job on difficult photography 👍. Thanks for sharing

[@outsidescrewball]

Enjoyed…great discussion/demonstration/build

[@AmateurRedneckWorkshop]

Excellent clamps as are all of the things you make. Thanks for the video keep on keeping on.

[@MrLukealbanese]

Fine work Mark 👍👍

[@kenwood8665]

Thanks for another amazing video.

[@Engineerd3d]

I designed a set of clamps that I 3d printed for my CNC router. They use m3 bolts, and hold parts nicely on my router. One of the advantages for me has been saving my expensive end mills in case of a run into them while machining.

[@stevensexton5801]

Love your videos Mark. Keep up the good work.

[@dancollins1012]

Another great video, cheers

[@Radiotexas]

Absolutely amazing Mark. I see a lot of utility in this project. I think all of us have more in common with the eccentric head screws than we realize!!!!

[@Preso58]

Thanks Jay. I made a few more bits yesterday. There seems to be lots of add ons for this type of clamp. One needs to know where to stop! Regards, Mark

[@dennisbjones]

Ha, very witty Mr Wild

[@JanBinnendijk]

Run a small endmill through the step blocks at an 45° angle to get some clearance.. you could also use a Slitting saw.. Another way of doing it is drilling a small hole were the faces meet.. that way you also get a nice clearance. Instead of soldering the rings, you also could have machined the holes in the Jaws to 11 mm.. that way you don't have to solder..using the tough steel from the bolts as pressure surface..

[@rebelelectrons1803]

Mark - I've really been enjoying your videos. I too was inspired by Chris @ Clickspring's video and have been constructing a fixture plate and low profile clamps. I'm thinking they should be useful when working with castings. Thanks for sharing!

[@Meusde]

ty

[@thehobbymachinistnz]

Nice work Mark, I like the jig for machining the square parts. Need to watch out for those cheeky little burrs. But, it looks like it all worked out well once you found the culprit.

[@Preso58]

As you would know, getting a camera in the way is not the best way to carry out close tolerance machining! I hope you are well above the flood levels in Auckland. It looks pretty bad. They showed the concourse in the airport awash with flood water on the news last night. Regards, Mark

[@thehobbymachinistnz]

@@Preso58 Thanks for asking Mark. Yes, we are well above the flood levels as we are on a bit of a hill here. If we ever get flooded here then the rest of Auckland would be 10 meters under water, which would be disastrous.

[@kentuckytrapper780]

Going to be a very nice kit, great video, keep'um coming..

[@howder1951]

Great work Preso everyone should have a tooling plate with those nice clamps. Enjoyed the video and the turkey shot, cheers!

[@Woodsguy]

You can use soap stone to prevent solder to stick to metal so if you cover the face of the mandrel and the threads, the solder won't get the bolt stuck

[@Preso58]

That is true. I believe graphite and white out correcting fluid also works. Regards, Mark

[@TheArtOfMistake]

Great vid! My latest shows me drilling a bronze casting and the part uplifting. We share that experience haha.

[@Preso58]

You can modify a drill for cutting brass and bronze by grinding the rake off the cutting edges but it means that drill bit is now only good for cutting brass and bronze! You almost need to have two sets of drill bits if you are going to take that approach. Regards, Mark

[@mathewmolk2089]

Hey Mark- Another good idea that I will be trying but I got a trick that I do (Mostly for welding and post heat of cast iron) that you might find useful if you ever need to anneal a large piece again. Dig a shallow pit big enough to put the piece of steel into and build a charcoal fire in it. Put the part on the bed of coals and cover it with more charcoal. Then cover the whole thing with fiberglass insulation and leave it overnight . It will bring the steel past the critical temperature and hold it there and then slow cool it. - Then you can cut off just the part you need,. Also works for stress revealing weldments. One other "Hot" idea that dawned on me when you were soldering on the rings. - Give them a couple thousandths interference fit, Heat the rings red and shrink fit them on. ,,,, Just another bright idea from up here in Cleveland.

[@Preso58]

Matthew, the charcoal idea is a good one. I used to anneal old files by lighting a fire in an old tree stump (to burn it out of the ground) and I would just throw in a few old blunt files and leave them until the fire burned out. It works well but often the files came out bent. Regards, Mark

[@tinchy45]

Excellent work, but I don't understand why turning the eccentric on the screw, being able to drill by moving the hole in the hexagonal bar, I'm sure there is a reason, I would like to know, thank you from Argentina

[@ab-shop]

Hi Mark, what a nice work: i really like that simmetric end mill that you used to make the teeths of the clamps ( i don't know the correct name), but i will go to check if i can find something in AliExpress, It Is a good inspiration for the next videos! 😀 Thanks Mark, see you soon, Alberto

[@Preso58]

Alberto, they are called a double angle cutter. www.deelat.com/blog/single-and-double-angle-mill-cutters-types-common-uses-and-differences/ They also come in single sided versions. They can be purchased with all variations of included angles and some come with built in shanks for holding in a collet. It saves having to tilt the head over on your mill for cutting vee grooves. Very handy. Regards, Mark

[@ab-shop]

@@Preso58 Thanks so much Mark!! I am searching to buy one of that!! 😀 Now i have the name!!

[@JohannSwart_JWS]

If those 3D printed parts are done in Nylon, with 4 layer walls, and 70% infill, they will probably make excellent clamps for many materials. I think.

[@Preso58]

I have never tried nylon filament but I hear it's good. Those clamps are small enough to do in a resin printer too. Regards, Mark

[@simongroot7147]

If you had cut the pocket to machine the clamp angle and groove feature, you could have used the eccentric bolt to ensure it was engaged on both faces of the pocket by tightening the screw and the burr would have been a non issue

[@Preso58]

That is true. There's always more that one way to skin a cat! 😁 (no cats were harmed during the filming of my video). Regards, Mark

[@WilliamChitham]

What effect if any does the action of the screw have on the clamping? In action does the clamping jaw push up against the underneath of the eccentric leaving space between the jaw and the body of the clamp?

[@Preso58]

It is impossible to have the screw bottom out on the jaw at the point where the maximum clamping force occurs. There will always be some space under the head of the eccentric screw but in practice it doesn't seem to matter too much. I used the clamps to do a lot of milling on parts held on my rotary table and none of them slipped during the cuts. I think Chris from Clickspring warned that you have to be conservative when using this style of clamp. I kept the depth of cut moderate and it went well. The 10 degree incline does mean that the jaw cannot move up vertically (easily). There is also a lot of friction between the head of the screw and the counterbore. I may do a follow up later on when I have had a chance to do some more work with these clamps. Regards, Mark

[@simongroot7147]

Would it have been easier to set the mandrel up un the 4 jaw and turning the offset into that and then if you need to make more parts you just put the mandrel in the 3 jaw and you do not need to do the set up again?

[@Preso58]

I did have to set that mandrel up again to make some longer eccentric headed screws. just put it back in the 4 jaw and went through the same steps again. If you did want to use it in the three jaw you would need to mark it against one jaw and put it back the same way each time. Regards, Mark

[@Balsamancnc]

Hi Mark. How do you ensure that the eccentric bolt is causing the square clamp to be on the outward stroke at the same time that the bolt is tightening and therefore applying downward clamping force?

[@Preso58]

Hi Eric, I have missed your posts on Instagram! The short answer is that the screws don't bottom out in the counterbore so the only thing that stops the part from lifting up is the friction between the circumference of the eccentric head and the circumference of the counterbore. My understanding is that the downward clamping force is a function of the clamp sliding down the 10 degree slope as it bears against the part. I guess there is no way to ensure that the thread pitch relative to the eccentricity of the head can be arranged so that the head bottoms out right at the point where the locking takes place. I am just getting ready to fit the fixture plate to the rotary table to try out the clamps in an actual machining operation. It could all end in tears but that will be the subject of the next video. Regards, Mark

[@Balsamancnc]

@@Preso58 Hi Mark, I'm still out in the shop every day but am taking a break from social media. :)

[@benstrait333]

Maybe I'm being dense, but wouldn't it have been easier to make your countersink on the clamping blocks the smaller size that the screws would have been once you made them eccentric?

[@Preso58]

Ben, although the screws were a nominal 8mm diameter on the shank, the hole in the steel or brass jaw needs to be 10mm to allow for the 1mm eccentricity. If you just machine the head eccentric and don't add a sleeve, the head of the screw ends up very close to the same diameter as the hole in the bottom of the jaw. It probably wouldn't fall through but it won't be bearing on much of a surface either. Regards, Mark

[@benstrait333]

@@Preso58 ok, that does make sense. Thanks for the reply!

[@garyrogers6761]

Ref: The bird at the end of the video, Method for cooking - 3\4 fill 5 gallon Kerosene tin with water, add bird and old Mattock handle, boil vigorously until Mattock handle is soft, remove bird and handle, discard bird and eat Mattock handle !

[@Preso58]

Yes, not sure I would want to eat one. We went for a swim down at Noosa beach on Friday and there were little brush turkeys everywhere. The young ones are quite comical to watch. Regards, Mark

[@wrstew1272]

Mark- is the bar of material (silver solder I assume) the usual form down there, or a remnant from a former profession? It’s in a tiny coiled form that I have seen here. Hobbies form vs. professional?

[@eliduttman315]

I believe that was soft solder of some kind. Are lead bearing alloys still purchasable in Australia? FWIW, the stuff did not appear to be eutectic.

[@Preso58]

I have lots of those bars of soft solder. It is just a general purpose 60/40 lead solder (60% lead 40% tin). It was commonly used by plumbers in the olden days for soldering up guttering and downpipes. The more common wire type used for electrical and electronic work usually has a rosin core so it tends to be self fluxing. Regards, Mark

[@eliduttman315]

Electronic soldering is something I'm knowledgeable about. 63% tin/37% lead (63/37) eutectic alloy with zinc chloride activated rosin flux (RA) works very well in the home workshop. "No-clean" flux easily could be better in a production environment. The 40/60 stuff stays pasty and can be wiped. Which alloy is appropriate is very job dependent.

[@wrstew1272]

Hit the button! It’s FREE!

[@timelessengineering]

How about that Whitelaws poster.

[@Preso58]

I will let the viewers take a look at that poster in an upcoming video. I tend to take it for granted but I refer to it just about every day. I do have a machinery handbook and a few other ready reference books but that wall chart is laminated and I don't have to worry about making it dirty with my oily hands. Regards, Mark

[@Preso58]

Actually, I just checked out Whitelaw Engineering's website and they now have an online store. Fancy a Narex boring head for your mill? It's a bargain at $8346.80! Yeah, not cheap but they sell good quality stuff. Regards, Mark

[@timelessengineering]

Rocky just recently sold it....that's probably why it's now in the age of online shopping.

[@Gauge1LiveSteam]

Would Loctite work for those sleeves?

[@simonbirt6121]

I made something similar some years back, I used high strength Loctite, it worked fine.

[@Gauge1LiveSteam]

@@simonbirt6121 Thanks.

[@Preso58]

Robert, yes Loctite would be fine. In Clickspring's original video, he mentioned it as an alternative. Regards, Mark

[@davet2667]

I don't see why there is a need for collars on the eccentric screws

[@Preso58]

It's to do with the relationship between the thread diameter of the socket head screw and the bearing surface of the head. I also wondered why it was necessary but after having modelled the parts in CAD it became clear why it's necessary. Regards, Mark