Small Fixture Plate Setup Techniques

This video presents some setup thoughts and attachments to expand your holding capability of small parts on a fixture plate.
This link will take you to our store if you'd like to buy one.
Fixture Plates (Web Store) : www.advancedinnovationsllc.co...
Website: www.advancedinnovationsllc.com
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[@davidmasters9793]

I made one of these years ago and use it regularly. Mine uses 1/4 hardware, I chucked up all the 1/4 hex screws up and face and champher the hex. That allows you to use an openend wrench when the fastener head is in contact with the plate. I still use small shims under the heads. Even though I have a surface grinder to redress the plate, why make more work than necessary for yourself. Your tips have shown a few tricks I haven't thought of thx for that! I also want to thank you for your rotory table videos. They opened up a whole new world for me and over the years have saved my butt . You, Joe Pie, have set a new standard in the utube machining community where other creators are really lacking. Your math and setup demos are stellar. I have never had to bother you with a question. I simply just watch the video and do the exercise in real time as I watch, and it clicks. I enjoy all the creator's and learn things, but they could all step up their game for the guys and gals that are no longer newbes. Thx Joe

[@cyclingbutterbean]

I always said machining is easy. It's work holding that is the skill. Also , it's not what you have done. It's what you've SEEN done. Folks don't have exposure to set ups other guys doing jobs/projects things get a bit gray. Your little 15 minute video is enlightenment beyond years Joe. I can't tell you how many of these I made during my career, Some big some small. Some aluminum , some precision ground tool steel etc. I have a few small one I made yet I still went ahead and got one and a couple of sets of clamps from you. Sure I could have made a real nice one like yours, but WHY? These little plates are just so dang cool I couldn't pass it up. Besides it's helping a good out a good guy and it's made right here in the USA! Thanks Joe!

[@luckenbachmachineworks7000]

This video increased the value of my purchase of your fixture plate by at least 97%. Thanks for sharing!

[@150flyer4]

Best late night TV commercial I’ve seen!! Only 3 easy payments, and if you act now, the second one is half off!! The success of most projects relates to the preparation taken before the actual work.

[@rickhiland422]

I ordered one, got it, and love it. Well made and is great for fixturing in the mill vise. I fixtured a barreled receiver in it the other day in order to drill/tap the side of the receiver. AWESOME....thank you, Joe!

[@joepie221]

Thanks for the positive endorsement. I try to make it worth the price. Its really is a great addition to any toolbox. Many thanks for your business.

[@radardoug]

I made a big round fixture plate like that for my rotary table. Took forever to manually drill and tap all those holes but what a life saver!

[@FactoryDragon87]

How large is Your round ficture plate?

[@radardoug]

14" diameter on an 8" rotary table. All that extra real estate is great. I went as big as I could without covering the scale on the hand crank.

[@FactoryDragon87]

@@radardoug I want do similar work: make faceplate for my big lathe. I have D=690mm (~27inch), B=30mm (~1,2in) steel blank for this. Looks that to this work will take a decade until I get it ready.

[@garysmith9772]

I’ve built the number of these plates and what I did on everyone was to rabbit a 1/8 inch to quarter inch on the complete length. That way it can drop right into your vice without having to use parallels.

[@tonybryant5524]

Very nice job boss ! Tool maker for 45 years and I have several versions of the same. Some have dowels some with both. You are correct, VERY versatile !

[@jhhuntster]

If you throw a few pennies in the kit you always have the shims you need to protect the surface from the jack screws. Thank you for your time and effort,

[@hilltopmachineworks2131]

Good idea.

[@warrenjones744]

Nice Video Joe. I have been meaning to build a small steel fixture plate and some more clamps. However I have not had a lot of extra time to do so. Todays video inspired me to simply order an 8 " plate kit and some extra hold downs. So now I don't have to make one and more importantly. As a small token of gratitude. I can help support your channel and perhaps help you offset the cost of making such useful content here on You Tube.

[@johnwallace9002]

You can also add a 2"round rod to one edge to clamp in the vice to mill angles like on the end of your clamps.

[@noahkatz9616]

Could you please explain that a bit further?

[@angelramos-2005]

Extremely impressed with the possibilities that your fixture set opens up for machining amall parts.You have a great collection of videos on how to use the rotary table too.Thank you,Joe.

[@TomokosEnterprize]

Hello Joe, Want some snow, we have some to spare eh, LOL. If I was in the need I would have both these plates and fixings. Beautifully designed and from all the right materials. Endless setups just waiting to be put to work. Thanks teach, Enjoy the warmpth of Texas for me, LOL.

[@PaulSteMarie]

One mod i made to mine that you might have missed: counterbored holes at either end for direct mounting to the mill table. I popped some counterbored holes for #10 cap screws in mine and it directly bolts to the table on my Taig quite nicely, no vise required.

[@billchiasson2019]

I have purchased one of these plates, very useful! I like the idea of making the U shaped piece for the bottom, that could be handy, thanks Joe always learning something watching your videos!

[@mattholden5]

Holy crap! I've been extraordinarily myopic with what I can do with a uniformly tapped fixture. Thanks Joe!

[@ChazzC]

Hi, Joe; lots of great tips. I keep a bag of Copper pennies (the newer ones are a copper/zinc alloy and I think are harder) to place under the “heel” screws and also under the nose of the clamp when using on softer parts. I also use plain head (no class markings) carriage bolts for the heel - this makes for less friction when clamping and also reduces side forces (and you can use a small wrench on the square under the bolt head to tighten the heel). Best regards, Charlie

[@Andrew_Fernie]

You can also drill a couple of through holes and bolt it to the table. Mine is thick enough to have the holes counter-bored so the heads don't protrude.

[@user-vc9oe3zl7n]

I've been thinking of making a fixture plate 8x12x.5 for my bridgeport after this video i think i will. THANKS JOE.

[@roadshowautosports]

As usual, thank you for sharing your vast knowledge and experience with us!!! Once we spoke and I found out you are just a few years older than me. Some call us old, some will understand how much those extra years are valuable!! It’s not a rule but, usually, those extra years will sum up to how wise you became! You’re such an inspiration to me, even though I won’t achieve the experience you have based on the time I have left but give me a great target to aim for! Thank you for the effort of being on the cold just to keep us a little wiser every day! STAY WARM AND SAFE! GOD BLESS YOU

[@user-eo2ow8mi4g]

I told my kids that a successful life is exchanging youth for wisdom and getting the better part of the deal.

[@ls2005019227]

Excellent tool, demonstration, & video Joe! You have the best channel (hands-down) for showing setup tricks & workholding. It did surprise me that you didn't show an angled setup, with a round bar attached to the plate.... which is another handy use for these fixture plates. Thanks again!

[@DavidKutzler]

I have a fixture plate and used it just last week on a project. I like the flexibility of a fixture plate, especially for machining small parts that are unsuitable for holding in a vice. Thanks for the tips on fixturing techniques that I will use in the future. I made a round fixture plate for my rotary table. My "economy" rotary table is only 4". I made the plate out of a round, 8 x 0.5 inch aluminum plate and fixed a fence on one side. It really expands my fixturing options for my rotary table.

[@snoyes34231]

ordered one today..!! thanks,...

[@chrisburbank6484]

there:s some advantages to putting washers under the screw head. less creeping around as you tighten the screw, it also helps keep from wrecking the slot edges of the clamps

[@wash3141]

When I made blocks similar to these I added three holes 2" apart in right angle arrangement. When used vertically I can put pins in two of the holes and use them as a sin bar. Love it!

[@robertwalker7457]

Very interesting thankyou. Mate coincidently it is 36 degrees down under as well (Celsius). Stay warm and safe.

[@bearsrodshop7067]

Yeepers, now for it to warm up here too! I haven't been out to my shop in 2 wks, and its 59 deg back in my office watching this. Great fixture kit for the money, and handy even if not a model builder. Headed to the fire place where it's 70+, Bear

[@bruceanderson9461]

I bought one of the fixture plates and 8 hold downs. First thing I did was go through and smooth the end of all the screws so if they do contact the plate surface they are kinder to it. Second, I bought different length screws but I see that I need to buy short screws too. Third, I ran all the screws through a die to make sure they all turned easily by hand (some of the screws had burs on them). I had been envious of your clamps for years and jumped at the chance to buy some and I hope help you out financially too. Thankyou for all the great content!

[@mikepelelo5657]

Great info as usual. Thanks Joe! BTW, it's 2° F here in NW Iowa right now.

[@jrkorman]

I purchased the 8 inch metric plate and am very happy with it. A ground plate is something I don't have the tools to make, but I can make adapters and such for use on it. Some nice holding ideas, thanks.

[@FactoryDragon87]

All ficture plates, tables and etc stuff is handy. One nice day I want do my "homework" and build few similar of ficture sets as You show. Cheers!

[@peterconnan5631]

Some nice ideas here, thanks Joe. I made myself one of these plates before you started selling them. I have two additinal ways I use mine. First I driled two additional counter-sunk holes and one dowel hole. This coupled with a little taper boss with the same size dowel hole allows me to easily mount it on my rotary table with the dowel hole centred up. Secondly I have mounted mine in the vice with an angle plate underneath it to work on tapered parts.

[@johnferguson2728]

Thank You Joe.

[@daveticehurst4191]

Thanks Joe, you are too clever by half. I have your 9 inch set here in Australia and although I have never used it yet, some of your clamping ideas I have never seen used. Expecially stacking the spare 2 jaws to give you an adjustable stop. Well done, thanks for all the extra setup tips. Regards from Australia.

[@jimhudson9958]

Just ordered one! One of these has inspired me to use it for checking the precision of drilled holes in a cylindrical tube.

[@erikisberg3886]

Thanks for all the good tips Joe! I made a very similar a little larger plate from pre ground stock way back in the 1980:s. Still have it an use it, not only in the mill but also for various temporary mechanical test jiggs etc. I found it useful to standardize on m5, also have cubes and clamp blocks etc in the same "standard". I highly recommend this technique if You make lots of small odd parts.

[@FullSendPrecision]

Ordered one. I've been looking for a small fixture. I had no idea you had a store. Thanks as always.

[@TheTacktishion]

Good lesson on Fixturing...! Got my "buttons" made today..... Thanks for sharing!!!

[@TAWPTool]

Outstanding Joe! I am so glad that I bought my mini pallet from you, but I have yet to use it. These tips that you’ve provided really open my mind to what is possible. Thanks for sharing!

[@SpruceSculptures]

Have a plate and enjoy using it. Will get more use after this video, stuff I never considered. Thx for the added value.

[@ericsandberg3167]

I made a round version of this same concept for my lathe with a D1-4 quick mount, works great for small to medium size parts that need detail boring or turning operation.

[@raymondhorvatin1050]

Thanks for sharing

[@stanseel8900]

Made myself a few of these a while back. I use it alot for holding sheet material while hand sawing with a jewlers saw. I even made a small hybrid bench horn style one that screws to a board that i put in my bench vise.

[@nickhall5959]

Thank you, a real eye opener.

[@dagorithe]

36F. Heat wave to those up north (Ohio). 10:05 Great video. Can’t wait until I can afford my first mini-mill so I can play. Love the videos … educational and entertaining.

[@user-kr6ul3jm1y]

Great video Joe - I love mine I bought from you - super super quality

[@stuartscott9646]

I made a couple of these before I retired (still have them, and use them in "rinky Dink Tool-Die and sawdust in my basement) made out of 6061 aluminum. Alternated dowel holes between the tapped holes. Handy as all get out for the small stuff I often ran into on the Wire EDM. Wasn't a submerged machine, so 6061 took care of the rust issue. Even have one I mad 40 plus years ago I use on the lathe faceplate.

[@mpetersen6]

Agree a bun out the dowel holes a long as they are inline along the x axis. Very useful as register points for repeated set-ups.

[@stuartscott9646]

@@mpetersen6 Yep when I made the plate the centerlines are parralell to the edges.

[@TheEvertw]

Mind - Blown.

[@paulshermet535]

I live 3 hr drive north of Toronto, it is 35.6 degrees here on the 27th. Go figure!

[@Radiotexas]

Nifty! Thanks for ideas Joe!

[@rexmyers991]

W O W ! ! ! So much info packed in. Thanks, Joe.

[@cletusberkeley9441]

Very, very cool indeed!❤

[@outsidescrewball]

Setup gems!!❤

[@bulletproofpepper2]

Thanks Joe! Great tutorial.

[@joepie221]

Thanks. Its good to see different approaches.

[@christurley391]

Thanks again

[@PhotogNT]

That’s a great fixture, I want one I’ll have to keep checking back.

[@Preso58]

Some great tips Joe. I liked the last one the best.

[@1320pass]

Wealth of knowledge. Thanks Joe Pie 👍

[@owenclark7210]

Nice tips Joe. I need to order one of these from you for when I make stainless steel pendants.

[@stevespra1]

Thanks Joe. I really get a lot out of your channel.

[@TLF-zv6cr]

Just ordered my second set....I'd struggle to do a better job making one of these. And struggle to beat the price...Great Job Joe!! Outstanding Sir!

[@joepie221]

Thank you for the repeat business. These fixtures are very handy to have around.

[@trainengineerrick]

Hey, great project, Do you have any overview of how you made the attachment at the end of the video?

[@davefieldsend1909]

Superb video as always. You can also make the back screw out of a grub screw fitted with a brass acorn nut to soften the contact to the plate, just my 2c

[@grahammorgan9635]

Thanks Joe much warmer here but lots of good tips for workholding

[@LikeFactoryMade]

thanks, you just gave me a new weekend project! :D Very versatile solution!

[@StuartsShed]

Very excellent. It's a great tool - and these are great tips for the tool. Cheers!

[@graemebrumfitt6668]

Rite Joe, That was more than enough for me Cheers 😀TFS, GB :)

[@MrSanman28]

Now... I need one.

[@davecross4321]

Joe, they make pennies for under the screws to protect the plate.

[@garysgarage101]

Great jig Joe. Love the versatility. I’ve had materials put aside for a couple years now. Time to get off my butt.

[@ariesmars29]

Excellent fixture! I looked and the one I'd like is out of stock. I'll keep checking back.

[@patricksullivan9951]

Hi Joe, hey, I have one of your fixture plates, I really like it. It's handy & quite useful. Thanks for the tips , I'm always looking for ways to simplify setups, or at least be more efficient!

[@dynamiteralph]

Looks good!. I want one! But every time I check, it's out of stock. When will you have imperial sets back in stock? Do you carry "buttons?"

[@joepie221]

3+ weeks to restock, and I don't sell those buttons.

[@ronwilken5219]

You're welcome to some of our chillys Joe. You're right, be thankful you're not as cold as our prairie provinces where temperatures of -50°C have been recorded this winter and we're not over the cold yet. Don't know what your funnyhiet temperature equivalent would be but -40°C = -40°F so it'd be less than -50°F. For friggin' cold ! Thanks for the demo and suggestions. Regards from Canada's "chilly" banana belt where its currently -6.3°C outside my kitchen window. 🤞🇨🇦☃️🍌🥋🌦️🇺🇦🕊️🇺🇲🦃👍

[@907jl]

Good stuff Joe. Have you considered doing some videos on surface grinding? Hope you have a great 2024!

[@VanguardSys]

got one from ya!!! where did u get/make the buttons?

[@ronodowd5724]

Hey play nice I'm in Windsor Ontario just across the river from Detroit its cold there also lol Love see your projects and point of view would like to see you build a model like Alex Steele is building stay warm lol

[@lilernie01]

Got mine and already put to use! Thanks Joe for taking the time to educate us. Do you recommend any protective coating for the plate or clamps?

[@joepie221]

I'm sure a quick shot of WD-40 wouldn't hurt if you don't plan to use it for a while.

[@hennyvanbodegom5871]

Metric is out of stock, but I ordered one. This is going to make my life so much easier 😁

[@mikebryan544]

silky smooth delivery ace

[@johnmcdonald1632]

Joe, Thanks as always for an informative video. My grandson has asked me to make him dice for Dungeons and Dragons. Only one is a normal six-sided die. The rest are platonic solids, tetrahedron (4), octahedron (8), dodecahedron (12), and icosahedron (20). Do you have any suggestions on how to hold a part for making these dice? My only thought is to drill and tap the part for a screw. Hold the screw and with a rotary table and angled headstock mill the faces. Eventually plug the screw hole on the last face. Appreciate your thoughts.

[@TheFredmac]

If you could cast the shape of the die then you just have to clean up the surface. Otherwise, machine the parts as far as you can with a standard setup. When you get to the tricky part cast a low melting point metal around the work piece. I think high temperature silicone can stand up to molten zinc. You might be able to plate a set of plastic dice. Rock grinders use dop wax on the end of a stick to hold the stone they're working. Hope this helps.

[@cccook4819]

As you showed the clamping with a small vice, I was thinking you could use buttons screwed to the underneath of the plate not as secure as yours though you beat me to it.

[@kennethstaszak9990]

That's one thing that's low cost enough to buy rather than build. Some enjoy making tooling and others would rather buy if available. I'm firmly in the camp of I'd rather be building parts than tooling.

[@tabaks]

Woooow!

[@joell439]

Handy 👍👍

[@Jeff-KN6UDG]

Is the six inch the more popular and if so by what ratio? Also, will you be offering more of the rotary table alignment-setup pins?

[@kennyburgess1756]

I ordered one waiting on it should work very nice, Dumb question what is the groove on the fix jaw I have the same vise haven't figured it out

[@kyfho47]

If you have a Kurt or similar clone, look on top of the vise, closest to you, just behind your handle. You should find what looks like a small pointer held in place with a socket head screw. Loosen this screw and remove the "pointer". This is actually a handy part stop that fits into that rear groove. I had my Kurt vise for years and never knew what that was for until I stumbled across a YT video where one was being used as such.

[@grntitan1]

It’s for a stop that is adjustable throughout that slot.

[@tonywilson4713]

Hey Joe, when you were doing the first of the PM Models that had the odd frame with the angled bearings and other stuff I asked if this sort of pallet would enable taking an object like that and moving it about AND NOT LOSE the location because you'd be able to re-reference the part. Part of my idea was that you put one of your calibrated tooling balls onto a hole on the plate and leave it there for the entire job. That way you'd have a fixed reference so it would not matter how many times you took the pallet out of the mill you'd be able to re-reference the part from that tooling ball. Was I wrong to see that or is there something else to it.

[@rlsimpso]

Good tip on standing the plate up vertically. Somehow that never occurred to me 😅

[@charlesbrewer6552]

It has been nice and warm here on the south coast of NSW, Australia. A little wet and humid but pleasantly warm. I don't envy the cold you guys get in the US! Thanks for the video, I was looking for something just like this!

[@Stefan_Boerjesson]

Lots of magic, easy to setup. Having a fixture plate made in aluminium, thos shims are even more important.

[@CreaseysWorkshop]

Hi Joe, this looks great. What material are the plates made from?

[@mftmachining]

A36...he said it....

[@joepie221]

Yep. A36

[@noahkatz9616]

Great bunch of tips! Question though: Where you screwed down the three brass bushings, wouldn't the tolerance stackup of the threaded holes and bushing holes make true squareness questionable?

[@larshoneytoast722]

Depends on the level of accuracy you need but overall it probably won't make enough difference to worry about

[@PaulSteMarie]

Two ways around that: countersunk holes with flat-head screws will locate consistently, and you can take a straight dust cut across the sides of the bushings after mounting them to square them up perfectly.

[@noahkatz9616]

@@PaulSteMarie Yep. But I think the best solution was mentioned during the video, which would be to have dditional holes for close-fitting pins. @Joe Pie, Would you consider adding that as a stock feature?

[@PaulSteMarie]

@@noahkatz9616 Chuckle. I already did that on mine.

[@jacknelson8397]

I have some old machinist books that used the word kinks for tips and tricks

[@deepwinter77]

Could you use an aluminium Bolt? Or would that be too soft?

[@muddlersworkshop]

do you send these kits to Australia?

[@joepie221]

Yes we do. The shipping may take a while and be a little stiff, but the USPS controls that.

[@user-gl5kj1fm5x]

i think you said 36 i guess you meant Fahrenheit where i am they are forecasting for the mining area north max and myself 46 Celsius (115F) love the fixture

[@sylvaingervais247]

SALUT ET MERCIE DU CANADA

[@johneriksson9990]

Hi Everybody. 5 miutes and five seconds in the video You are using some cylindrical "spacers". I was tinking make the spacers vith a larger diameter and then drill a hole in the part that is excentric. Then You cuold use thoose spacers to set any angle Yoiu want to by means of rotating two spacers to each other. If you havfe a cylindrical spacer that You could use as a reference then it is repaeatable.. Just an idea from John Eriksson in Sweden that find Yout wideos very nice and educating.

[@ericmcclelland7942]

Joe - Where would I find cost and ordering information? These seem pretty slick.

[@joepie221]

@ericmcclelland7942 Greetings Eric. Good to hear from you. These are very handy. I use mine quite a bit. The link to the web store ( www.advancedinnovationsllc.com/shop ) is also in the video description below the video. Currently, the imperial 10-32 version is on backorder, the M5 kits are still available. We ware working diligently to restock the imperial products in the next 3-4 weeks.

[@ericmcclelland7942]

So put me down for one of the imperial kits. I'm seeing roughly 100.00 bucks, yes? The timing is not a problem. When are you going to make t up here to tour the brewery and let me buy you dinner? Is it possible for you to let me know when they become available Or do I need to reach out in a month or so? @@joepie221