Here’s a set of plans for a handy Die Holder that fits any lathe with a #3 Morse Taper tailstock.

The aluminum body of the die holder holds the die perpendicular to the axis of the spindle rotation and rotates freely around a steel shaft firmly inserted into the tailstock. This ensures that your part is threaded perfectly.

Here’s a picture of the Die Holder with a 1.5″ die inserted:

Here’s a picture of the Die Holder flipped 180 degrees with a 1″ die inserted:

I got the idea from Steve Bedair’s Die Holder and I adapted it to look similar to a smaller die holder sold here by LittleMachineShop.com.

I created the plans myself using Autodesk Inventor. It was my first attempt using the software, and my first time drawing up plans for the machine trade – so if there are any errors please let me know and I’ll do my best to fix them.

Here are the plans (in PDF format):

  MT3_Die_Holder_-_1.0_to_1.5_Inch.pdf (999.4 KiB, 246 hits)
NOTE: You need to be a registered member (and logged in) to download this file. You can register or log in using the "Log In" section located in the upper left corner of the site (don't worry, it's free to register and your email address will be kept private). Please note, subscribing to the RSS feed is not the same as registering. Also, registering for the site will grant you forum access, allowing you to log into the forum using the same username and password you used to register for the site.

To leave a comment join the forum discussion on this post - (3) Posts

I found this nifty little vise over on the Prints and Plans Yahoo group, posted by “SterTrak”. The design allows for the vise to be as large as the length of your mill’s table – which makes it great for holding larger parts.

But as you can see from the pictures, it works just as well for smaller items.

If you decide to make your own please take a few pictures of the process and post them to the forum!

  Versatile_Mill_Vise_Plans.pdf (844.6 KiB, 263 hits)
NOTE: You need to be a registered member (and logged in) to download this file. You can register or log in using the "Log In" section located in the upper left corner of the site (don't worry, it's free to register and your email address will be kept private). Please note, subscribing to the RSS feed is not the same as registering. Also, registering for the site will grant you forum access, allowing you to log into the forum using the same username and password you used to register for the site.

To leave a comment join the forum discussion on this post - (1) Posts

Material: Steel, Brass
Units (mm)

This is the 5th and final project contributed by Ken. This Joinery Marking Gage closely resembles the traditional woodworking tool used to scribe a line parallel to the edge of a workpiece.

Here’s what Ken has to say about his final project:

“This project is similar to the last, but greatly simplified, and is more for use with joinery.

No doubt you already have a timber one in your tool box, but I’ll bet it’s beginning to split.

This one will last for ever, and can be knocked up in a few hours.

The polished brass and steel make a good visual combination.

Manufacture is straight forward, except if you opt for the grooves around the body. For this, you will need access to a dividing head.

My Unimat 3 mini lathe/mill, comes with one, so I was lucky.”

- Ken

Ken originally posted these plans back in 2007 (along with 4 others) on the Metalworking section of Woodworking Australia’s Woodwork Forums. Here’s a link to Ken’s original Joinery Marking Gage post in the Metalworking section of the forum.

Here’s a complete list of all 5 of Ken’s projects:

1. Slitting Saw Arbor
2. Fly Cutter
3. Knurling Tool
4. Marking Gage
5. Joinery Marking Gage

Thanks for all your contributions Ken!

  Joinery_Marking_Gage_Asssembly.pdf (39.5 KiB, 1,012 hits)
NOTE: You need to be a registered member (and logged in) to download this file. You can register or log in using the "Log In" section located in the upper left corner of the site (don't worry, it's free to register and your email address will be kept private). Please note, subscribing to the RSS feed is not the same as registering. Also, registering for the site will grant you forum access, allowing you to log into the forum using the same username and password you used to register for the site.

To leave a comment join the forum discussion on this post - (1) Posts