By Dave Kellogg
When using a horizontal band saw to cut angle iron, sometimes it is desirable to cut through only one leg of the iron, requiring the angle to be clamped square to the jaws of the vise. Work on the mill also typically requires the angle to be clamped with one of the legs against the vise jaw. Simply clamping the angle by itself can sometimes work, but is far from being a solid setup.
An easier and safer way to clamp the angle iron in the vise is to use a short off-cut of the same size angle as cribbing in the vise to form a square “box” section. Be sure that the off-cut is positioned so the top and bottom of the workpiece is pinched to the vise jaw.
In the drawing, you can see how the extra piece of angle iron (shaded) helps to securely lock the workpiece. This should help to avoid any unpleasant surprises while cutting angle iron in the saw or milling machine.
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Please do us a tremendous favor and share this tip with your machining friends!
