Repair Enco vise

lsneon · Mar 20, 2021

Trying to repair a 6" Enco mill vise. There is a bronze part that goes on the acme threads and connects to the base. This part is sheared in half. Just wondering if this part might be available or cross reference to some other mfg. Thinking its probably going to be a "make one" situation but thought I'd ask as I'm consistently amazed at the resources / knowledge on the forums. Thanks to all who contribute.
lsneon

johneezreno · Mar 20, 2021

Enco Vise? Why? Let it die. Put it down. Let the scrap gods have it. It might get boiled down and be reborn a Kurt

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TGTool · Mar 20, 2021

lsneon said:
Trying to repair a 6" Enco mill vise. There is a bronze part that goes on the acme threads and connects to the base. This part is sheared in half. Just wondering if this part might be available or cross reference to some other mfg. Thinking its probably going to be a "make one" situation but thought I'd ask as I'm consistently amazed at the resources / knowledge on the forums. Thanks to all who contribute.
lsneon

I don't have an Enco vise so don't know what the piece looks like. If you post photos of the vise and the broken part someone might be able to match it more easily. You'd at least have a better chance.

Richard King · Mar 20, 2021

This company sells acme nuts and screws. You may have to buy one and make it fit you situation. Green Bay Manufacturing

lsneon · Apr 11, 2021

Enco, I get it, did I mention it was freeeeee......?
If I were using this thing for anything other than hobby, absolutely American made.
I have a 4" Kurt that I LOVE. The Enco on the other hand has a really nice swivel base.
And the only this wrong with it is this little 1.75" dohickey. (W. Tex tech term) Anyway, I
started looking around for a small hunk of bronze and you know how google spitballs stuff at
you hoping something will stick? One of the suggestions was aluminum and the light came on
thinking I'm up to my ears in hunks of T6. Finally my question, how does T6 shear strength
compare to import bronze? What are the down sides to my making this little part out of aluminum?
Keep in mind "Light hobby use" if there is such a thing on a Bridgeport. I'll try a picture.
Thanks again
lsneon

awander · Apr 11, 2021

I'd call that piece a "nut".

dalmatiangirl61 · Apr 11, 2021

I'm thinking aluminum would gall under pressure, maybe just shear. McMaster carries bronze acme nuts, maybe you could carve another doohickey out of what they carry.

Milland · Apr 11, 2021

Yeah, not aluminum. Bad tribological properties for this use. Either a bronze nut, made beefier where it failed, or perhaps a good cast iron from a broken machine that would have sufficient free carbon to act as a lubricant.

CarbideBob · Apr 11, 2021

Wow, why do i think a much bigger hammer or force used in use of this screw/nut than pictured.
Yes this fixable, the person who has used it maybe not.
More important a fix is why did it die? Will I kill it again? If so how long?

Richard King · Apr 11, 2021

Have you called MSC and ask them if they have repair parts. MSC bought Enco.

If that doesn't work, you have to figure out the value of the "free vise" and the cost to repair it. If you want to buy a new acme nut you will need to know the pitch or threads per inch. You could call Green Bay Mfg and order a cast iron tower nut and bore a hole in it and turn a stud and use steel or bronze. It seems like a real cheap stud as it looks like a bronze bushing. They may have done that on purpose to shear off if Bozo tightened it to much.
Green Bay Manufacturing

CBlair · Apr 12, 2021

I like the hammer in your photo, looks like a cobblers hammer to me? Good luck with your repair. Frankly it would be nice to see how you solve the problem and if you take any steps to improve the vise. Some like to comment on how the cheaper Asian made tools are more like kits waiting to be put together into a more useful tool. Ha Ha. If you can not get a nut to fit this screw are you able to make a new screw or at least modify one you can get? Kind of the long way around the barn but it would work just as well.

Charles

lsneon · Apr 12, 2021

I love hammers and have quite the hammer collection from all manner of endeavors, That particular
hammer came from my father in law who was a band director, I think it was used to tap out dents
in brass instruments - or I could be misremembering things. OK, I'm convinced T6 is not the way.
Looking around for a reasonably priced piece of bronze I found some C510 Phosphor Bronze Round Rod
on ebay for about $25 - never knew there were so many types of brass/bronze, shoulda guessed.
My min size requirement are 1 x 1.5 x 2.25 and I think I can see a path to me making this.
Never cut Acme threads but can't be that diff than reg sae/metric. Famous last words.
Right now practicing on some delrin. Thanks for all the help
lsneon

Scottl · Apr 12, 2021

Before making a new part I'd be tempted to first try drilling mating holes in the spigot and nut (light press fit) and then insert a dowel pin plus putting some JB Weld on the break during reassembly.

The purpose of the epoxy is simply to prevent any gaps that might eventually allow the dowel pin to "worry" its way to looseness.

Milland · Apr 12, 2021

Scottl said:
Before making a new part I'd be tempted to first try drilling mating holes in the spigot and nut (light press fit) and then insert a dowel pin plus putting some JB Weld on the break during reassembly.

I'd bet dollars to snail tears that the stress would break that Red Green repair pretty quickly...

What I'd do is check the mating part where the spigot goes and figure out how large I can make the hole in it so that the bronze piece can be made larger.

I'd also try to see if the threaded section can be made longer, as a short section "tips" more under load, putting a bending stress at the base of the spigot, encouraging it to crack.

Mr. Frog Beer, if you post photos of the rest of the parts (especially the gozinta thing the spigot fits into) we can help you totally F'it up, I mean make it better.

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