Which clamping kit

I bought a Teco set recently (BP size) that seems pretty decent and better finished than the "quality" import bought from J&L about 8 years ago. It was around $100 from Enco, I think. I'm not sure what the consensus opinion is, but try to get a set that has the holes on the bottoms of the T-nuts closed a bit so that the studs can't be rotated through them to the press against the bottom of the T-slots on your table. The T-nuts are cheap enough to replace if you get a decent clamp set with through threaded T-nuts.

Mike

Does any one know if a clamping set for Bridgeport will work for Millrite?

I vote for Teco. Good stuff.

Measure your table slots. If they're 5/8", order a set with 1/2" bolts. That's the Bridgeport sized one.

Grant

My T-slot is 11/16 MSC sells TECO set in 11/16 for $195. A little steep for a clamping set.

Grant Erw>

AMF

Nick

Measure the width of the Tee slots.

Most, if not all the clamping kits list the width of the tee slot as part of the sales literature.

Cheers Trevor Jones

Wait until they go on sale - they go on sale all the time. Check Enco.

GWE

Can you get T-nuts (only) that fit your mill and will take 1/2-13 studs? If so, buy the BP set and then order seperate T-nuts. That should be a lot cheaper than the 11/16" set.

Mike

I just got a Millrite (from Steve Smith, who lives 3.5 hours north of me).

One thing I have discovered is that the three T-slots are not exactly the same size, and that they differ slightly from current sizes. I assume that the Millrite was made to the then standard for T-slots, and that the T-slot standard has since changed.

The throats of the slots are all 0.6865" minimum width, which is nominally 5/8". Half-inch hardware will fit, but doesn't spread the clamping load as widely as it should. Anyway, the slots are quite consistent, as is the height of the undercut part (0.403"), the big difference being in the width of the undercut part. The three widths are 1.157", 1.162", and 1.132".

Another, minor issue is the burr that forms at the underside corner of the slot, narrowing that slot. The solution is to remove this burr with a file.

Anyway, I've had no problem with current 5/8-inch "T-Slot Bolts" (with the forged heads), but I've had to cut down some 5/8-inch "T-Bolts" and metric M16 by 18mm "T-Slot Nuts" to fit. These are MSC catalog numbers

By current T-slot standards, the M16 T-slot nut should have fit, but I had to thin the slot part by 0.005" on each face, and remove the slot burr.

It's easy to mill these nuts and bolts down to size on the Millrite, using a HSS mill and black sulfurized cutting oil, as the steel is tempered for toughness, not hardness.

Joe Gwinn

Years ago when I had my mill drill it had 9/16 slots and I bought a cheepie import set from ENCO for about $30 and wasn't disappointed at all. FWIW they were 1/2-13 and even had the 'damaged' thread on the bottoms so you couldn't screw through them. A year ago when I bought the BP I made my own nuts from scrap kicking around.... I'm still using the same set...

--.- Dave

Don't get too exact on sizing T nuts. On my Millrite I had a few that needed to be ground down to fit.

Steve

Alex wrote:

Alex, I bet the narrowest part of the slot isn't 1 1/16".... really large for a Millrite if so.

Steve

Alex wrote:

Steve,

you are right. I was measuring bottom of the slot. Slot itself is 0.68"

Steve Smith wrote: