There are seven successful workholding methods that you can use to keep your project on track.

It's important to hold your work securely for a successful project.You can cut it accurately if you use seven proven methods.The pros and cons of each method will be summarized by me.

A simple way to hold down a piece is with a slot in it.You put the screw through the slot and place the piece on top of it.The machine has a bed.The M3 has a grid of points for fastening while the Carve King uses T track.The Power Route has infinite fastening options.

The thickness of the material should be taken into account when choosing a shim piece on the backside.Take a look at the piece before you cut it down.Many people have a bow before you even cut it.The edges should be raised from the surface if you use this method.The bow can be pulled out with the help of the clamps.There is a video of the Power Route cutting aluminum.Every machine bundle that we sell includes a set of water jet cut aluminum clamps.

Is it possible to add a bow to the material.There is limited access to the edge of the stock.Heavy cuts can cause problems.

It's a less common method, but still should be in your workholding toolkit.This method involves applying pressure to the part from opposing sides in a similar way that a vise holds stock.There are ways to achieve this.You could make your own toe clamps.If you want to build some of the clamps described there, we have eccentric spacers.Blocks and wedges are inexpensive edge clamping solutions.You can cut the files yourself.You simply fix one block in place and then slide the stock up to it with blocks and wedges.On the other side, you fix another block to the table and leave a little space for the wedge to get between your stock and the block.You can press or gently tap the wedge with a mallet.Press down on the material as you work the wedge in to make sure it isn't lifted from the bed.

It is one of the most effective methods.We can better understand the power of vacuum clamping with a little science.The air pressure around you is 14.7 pounds per square inch.The air pressure is around the sea level.Most of that pressure is removed from one side of the piece with vacuum workholding.The vacuum system probably won't be completely efficient, so I say "most" of that pressure.Suppose you only achieve 80% of a perfect vacuum and your work is 25 square inches.294 pounds of hold down force is equal to 80% times 14.7 PSI times 25 inches.What if the work piece is 10 by 10 inches?The hold down force goes up to 1,176 pounds.If you tried to push the work piece off the table, you wouldn't be able to.Our vacuum system uses an air compressor and a venturi vacuum generator instead of a large vacuum pump.Put on your work piece, turn the valve on the venturi vacuum generator, and arrange the gasket material in the vacuum plenum to match the shape of your part.

It was very easy to take parts on and off.The material is completely flat.A lot of holding force is generated.The top of the work piece can be accessed.

You can cut all the way through your material, but you need to think about where your gasket material is placed relative to the profile.You could leave a few thousandths of an inch at the bottom so as not to break the vacuum seal.Small pieces can't be cut.

The best way to hold a piece you are cutting is in a vise.There is a challenge in using a low profile vise.The Carve King and Power Route would benefit from a drill press vise.If you have homing switches, you can designate the corner of the vise's fixed jaw as the origin of a work coordinate system.This will allow you to work quickly.

The amount of holding force is very high.Very quick to work with tools.The top of the work piece can be accessed.

There are only relatively small pieces that can be held.It isn't fun to accidentally collide with an iron vise.Thinner or weaker materials will collapse.

It sounds like direct fastening.You screw the stock down.You can run a wood screw through your material and into your spoil board or you can pre-drill the stock and run machine screws or bolts through the material.I use this method with another.

The way totack down thin parts in the center is great.It allows you to profile the outside of a piece.

It can take longer than other methods to set up work.You have to plan your cut paths so that they don't collide with the screws.

Home PCB fabricators like to use double sided tape.You need to clean the bottom of the work piece as well as the table or spoil board to make sure it sticks.If you want to avoid putting anywrinkles in the tape, you need to pick a strong tape and be careful in applying it.Make sure the piece is stuck well by pressing firmly down on it for 10 or 15 seconds.

Flatten out printed circuit boards.The entire top side of the work piece can be accessed.

You will be left with something that needs to be cleaned up.Sometimes a firm hold down is not always provided.

A similar method is to use painters tape.The table and the spoil board surface are the first to be cleaned.There should be no dirt, burrs, or debris on the surface.Blue painters tape should be applied to each surface.Use tape that is wide.Don't overlap them if you lay down each strip right at the edge of the last.Remove air bubbles with a knife or straight edge and flatten the tape.Press the work piece down to the table after applying quality superglue to one side.As the glue sets, hold it down with your own pressure.For a couple more minutes, you may want to put a weight on top of the work piece.

It's a very firm hold.Flatten out the bowed pieces.The entire top side of the work piece can be accessed.

There is no right answer in many workholding cases.It's usually a wrong answer.It is not possible to hold a sheet of thin aluminum with a vise.The vise or edge clamping would work well for a 1” cube.The methods have their place.Try a few different methods to see what works best for you.

If you haven't already, be sure to subscribe in the footer by leaving a comment and telling us which method you prefer.

I use the one you missed.I attach my wood blank to the board using hot melt glue around the edges of the blank and then plane it flat.The advantage of using hot melt glue is that it is quck and you can easily destroy the glue bond using methylated spirit.There is no damage to your cutter if the tool overruns the piece.

I have used hot glue in another application and it usually holds great and peels off when done.Hot glue can be used to clean magnetic surfaces.

Some people use our machines to cut metals, but they are usually left to heavy mills.Soft metals like brass and aluminum are used in our machines.Many of our users wouldn't use a magnetic chuck.You can place magnets on top of the material over where they are embedded in the spoil board.How do you use Jim?

It is a great idea to put magnets in the table.I would like to cut balsa, lite ply, and foam and that would be an ideal setup.Thanks!

We don't own a mill.I've been trying to get the management to buy one.I didn't know what Mill Right sold when I came to this website.When cutting steel, I use a magnetic chuck on our old, tired, manual mill.I use high strength magnets such as the Magsquare 600 to hold thin sheets of aluminum, galvanized steel, and acrylic to the machine's cast iron table for cutting.I put a spoil board under the work.Even though my old machine has a top speed of 2500rpm, I use a zero flute bit when cutting aluminum or plastic.I use heavy weights to hold the thin sheets down.The suggestion of hot glue and painters tape is a good one.

P.S.The yellow banners and buttons are not showing up in my browser.At least not to the old eyes.I am sure these are your company colors, but please use a darker color with the yellow.

Thank you for the discussion.It is a great topic for a beginner.I have been using a setup where I hold down a spoilboard and then screw up the parts directly to the board.I countersink the screws because I am not confident in myCAM skills.Getting there...