Work Hold down systems

General Chat
1

Work holding systems that have worked for you…

2

As many of you may have noticed - I am still seeking the right solution for holding work down. Yes- The Black box is my first choice… But more than half my projects are of the smaller size. between 6x6 and 20 x 48 size items. What is working for you- I have used double sided tape, t-track, screws, and wedges- I have never tried airweights or another style of mechanical hold downs…

3

For a long time I used a 3M double sided tape. It had a little flex when pushed from the side so it wasn’t ideal. Next I tried the masking tape/super glue/accelerator combo(tape on the spoil board, tape on the part, super glue on one piece of tape, accelerator on the other, smash it together). Made for a stiffer connection. I have been trying bench dog solutions for holding thing in place and they seem promising.

4

I have done the super-glue thing- and it works- except when it bleeds through and the project gets messed up or the spoil board has chunks come out with the tape… I don’t/haven’t done a lot of full sheet work, so the Blackbox idea is a bit over-kill. I do need to make a bunch of melamine cabinets in the near future- so using the blackbox might be a good thing in the short term. But then what?

5

Have you looked at Airweights? Great company with lots of options for different sized vacuum tables. Also check into making your own vacuum jigs. I took a class with Tom Dalia that was vacuum jig specify but guitar related. Lots of info.

6

I’ve had pretty good luck with a 3D-printed downward wedge. I screw a fixed part with spacer against the edge of the wood, then a wedge gets screwed down between them to press against the wood as well as pull it down. That lets me mill the whole top. If I don’t need full access, I have a range of 3D-printed clips of various heights I use.

7

Not sure what type of parts you’re making but here’s a couple quick thoughts…

  • Plastic pin nails work if your material is thin enough (1" or less seems to work)
  • You can thread inserts into your main spoil board in a grid pattern, then you can make what I call “work boards” that thread into the inserts. You can use T-track, threaded inserts, vacuum boards, clamps of all sorts and sizes, wedges, etc, etc.
  • You can use blue tape and superglue (my typical choice on prototype projects
  • If I can work it into the design, I like to use 1/4-20 bolts, you just gotta make sure you’re clear of the toolpath

I also do a fair amount of machine work. That’s where I learned that often you spend over 1/2 your time addressing the work holding needs of your part… I can say this - every minute I put into designing work holding saves me an hour down the road. It’s a PITA to make yourself do it, but it’s a necessary part of the process.