Quick Change Fixture Plate - CNC Machining - Practical Machinist

Hello,

I'm looking for a system to go on our Hass mill. I would like a main plate mounted to the machine table that accepts fixture plates to run different jobs. I have found a few different systems but would like a recommendation from people who have used different systems.

Any suggestions or review would be appreciated.

Thanks Athack

Make your own and buy somebodies ball lock setup, or just use dowel pins and bolts. There is nothing special about the plates being sold, and they are way overpriced, and you can make yours to suit whatever you want it to do.

I’ve had good luck with Jergens ball locks / receivers. I’m sure there’s a million others out there just like it but now I stay with them for consistency.

Hello,

I'm looking for a system to go on our Hass mill. I would like a main plate mounted to the machine table that accepts fixture plates to run different jobs. I have found a few different systems but would like a recommendation from people who have used different systems.

Any suggestions or review would be appreciated.

Thanks Athack

,
many make a slot in table at center 90 degree to t slots then fixture keys sit in the 2 slots at 90 degrees within .001 or .002 located at table center
.
some have plates sticking up on side of table at front and right side. fixture sits against those plates side bolted and bolted down to tee slots. this allow cleaning table fast and fixture put on and bolted to less than .001 feeler gage check in less than 1 minute. similar locating to putting part in vise against back jaw and using a side stop
.
both methods are fast cleaning and low maintenance and low cost. fixtures on for months tend to get rusty and tee slots full of hardened chips. usually better to not leave fixtures on too long Make your own with dowel pins to locate and vacuum to hold it down. Of course the answer to your question depends a great deal on exaxtly what you will be doing with your fixture plates. For mine I only run production jobs on them, some fixtures are dedicated to one part and one operation and some will have small double station aluminum vises bolted to them. Makes setups and part swaps in production real fast. For my Kurt vise or 4th axis work I bolt those things to the table of my mill.

Have you ever spent sleepless nights wondering, “How are we going to get more product out the door?” or “Why can’t we find enough good people to keep our spindles running?”

For more information, please visit our website.

While investing in automation may seem like the obvious solution for increasing throughput with fewer people, consider starting with quick-change tooling systems. These systems keep your spindles running and producing more parts without having to hire staff.

Quick-change systems have dramatically improved manufacturing across the board, from traditional lathes and machining centers to multi-task machines and automated setups.

At Triumph, we aspire to bring meaningful advancements in technology to our customers. That means not only highlighting the benefits but also helping with a Return on Investment (ROI) analysis and ultimately calculating savings upon implementation. Our goal is to ensure that you are increasing your uptime and maximizing chip- and profit-making!

In this blog post, we dive into a few key strategies that can really move the dial on reducing downtime.

Quick-Change Systems for Standard Tooling

Capto®

In terms of toolholding  systems that utilize quick-change technology, Coromant Capto® (Capto) from Sandvik Coromant is your best choice and industry leader!

Capto provides the repeatability and rigidity you can trust to save time on tool changes. Plus, its robust design can potentially extend the life of your tools with your existing consumables.

It’s also a game changer for companies struggling with skilled labour shortages. Capto is very easy to set up, even with limited technical know-how.

More benefits of the Coromant Capto include:

• Reduce tool change time by up to 50%, typically from 2 minutes down to 20 seconds.
• Boost overall production by up to 25%.
• One clamping unit covers many applications, saving turret space and changeover time.
• Suitable forlathes, machining centers, multi-task and special-purpose machines.

Quick-change Systems for Live Tooling

Solidfix quick-change from Benz Tooling allows for quick and accurate changes between different types of holders.

Live tools are not cheap, but they are extremely valuable! Incorporating quick-change on your driven tool or angle head also gives you versatility to use other types of tooling without having to buy a second live tool.

Further benefits to the Solidfix include:

• Minimization of setup times.
• Significant production increases.
• Preset tool changes within seconds.
• Easy operation leads to simple handling.
• Lower initial investment.

Sticking to traditional systems instead of switching to quick-change options like Sandvik’s Coromant Capto and Benz Tooling’s Solidfix can add up to significant lost profits annually.

For demonstrative purposes, let’s consider that each machine in a shop has 10 hours of downtime per month due to manual changes. That same shop could reduce that to, say, two hours with Capto.

With a machine rate of $100/hour, the annual savings could equate to roughly $10K per year per machine in uptime!

If you are looking for more details, kindly visit NEXTAS.

Featured content:
5 Must-Have Features in a Inspection Surface Plate

Quick-Change Workholding

When it comes to working with quick-change systems, our valued supplier partners – including Schunk, 5th Axis, Jergens, and Raptor – all provide solutions to help your shop become as efficient and cost-effective as possible.

Quick-change systems aren’t just for taking your fixtures in and out of the machine but also streamlining the process of changing parts on your fixture or vise. Focusing on quick-changing your fixtures or vises from your machine, we wanted to share a few points to consider.

Quick change fixtures, at the minimum, need three points for positioning to ensure accuracy:

1. Ground flat datum for the fixture to rest on that will control your z-axis.
2. Datum pin ground for positioning the fixture that will control your x & y axis.
3. Rotational stop pin that aligns the fixture square to your machine spindle.

Note: depending on the size of the quick-change fixture, additional pins may be needed for clamping only, which increases rigidity in the setup.

Schunk offers an innovative quick-change workholding component known as the Vero-S quick-change pallet system. Specifically, the Vero-S NSE3 and the NSE have capabilities that allow them to be utilized in high machining parameters due to their high pull-down forces, and they also reduce setup costs significantly. This feature contributes to the main goal of increasing your uptime without suffering lower accuracy along the way!

Benefits of Schunk’s Vero-S and their NSE3 version specifically include:

• Up to 90% reduction of setup costs.
• Repeat accuracy of <0.005 mm.
• Pull-down forces of up to 40 kN.

Countless variants of the workpiece clamping.

5th Axis provides workholding solutions through their RockLock quick-change system. This is a versatile base that is designed to securely hold a variety of different vises, fixtures, and tooling. With efficient changeover capabilities that maintain repeatability (repeated tolerance of less than 0. inches) when switching operations between machines, this system will ensure that you stay efficient and keep the spindles running without sacrificing accuracy after setup.

The number one goal is to keep your spindles running and the chip-making process going without sacrificing accuracy or efficiency. When you invest in quick-change systems, it opens the door to other options, such as presetting, to further streamline the time it takes to set up a tool. Presetting eliminates the risk of downtime, inefficiency, and errors caused by reliance on less experienced staff or manual data transfer to the machine.

There are many ways we can help you minimize unnecessary downtime. One of our Technical Sales Reps can visit you to discuss options based on your requirements and budget.

As we move further along Industry 4.0, automated systems and operations that require the fewest operator touchpoints possible will become increasingly vital. Triumph Tool along with our Supplier Partners are here to assist you in this journey!

References:

Coromant Capto®

BENZ Solidfix®

SCHUNK Workpiece Clamping

If you are looking for more details, kindly visit Quick Change Fixtures​.