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Many traditional workholding systems rely on pre-machining operations, such as dovetailing or pre-indenting, to secure the workpiece with sufficient force for aggressive machining. However, pre-machining operations should not be necessary. They are compensation techniques utilized when the workholding cannot provide the performance your application requires. You are sacrificing your productivity and profitability to subsidize poor workholding performance.

In addition, pre-machining operations have many drawbacks and hinder productivity. You should eliminate them whenever possible as they can lead to the following:

• Longer lead times to complete workpieces
• Increased material costs
• Increased workpiece costs
• Increased labor requirements and costs
• Extra machine tool resources required or dedicated specialty equipment for pre-indenting

The Mate workholding system can eliminate pre-machining operations. The combined performance of the Mate DynoGrip™ self-centering vises, DynoGrip™ vise jaws and DynoLock™  zero-point bases delivers the holding force and repeatability required to grip raw material without any preparation.

How to Eliminate Pre-machining Operations with Mate Workholding

To eliminate pre-machining operations for your application, you must consider three critical factors.

1. Workpiece Material Hardness – Mate DynoGrip vise jaws are constructed from S7 tool steel and hardened to a core hardness of 45-50 HRC and a surface hardness of up to 65 HRC.  These premium materials enable the precision, high-performance pentahedral vise jaw teeth to penetrate materials up to 45 HRC, delivering the necessary holding force. Combining DynoGrip’s best-in-class clamping force with the two-piece jaw and pusher design that eliminates jaw lift ensures that if your material is less than 45 HRC, you can confidently remove dovetailing or indenting from your process.
2. Workpiece Size – Mate DynoGrip self-centering vises are capable of holding workpieces up to 355mm (13.98”) in the vise jaw teeth.  You can confidently machine workpieces that fit within this envelope without any pre-machining operations. Workpieces that exceed this size will require a different approach to fixturing.
3. Workpiece Parallelism – For optimal performance, the workpiece stock must be reasonably parallel along the clamping surfaces.  Parallelism ensures an even distribution of clamping force across the DynoGrip vise jaws, maximizing stability under machining forces.  Poor parallelism can cause uneven penetration by the vise jaw teeth, resulting in a reduced holding force and potential workpiece movement.  Workpieces that maintain reasonable parallelism on the clamping surfaces can be held securely in Mate DynoGrip self-centering vises without time-consuming pre-machining operations.

When selecting a workholding solution to integrate into your operation, it is crucial to understand how this choice will impact your overall operations.  The workholding you choose will determine whether you need to add unnecessary pre-machining operations. These unneeded operations will increase your labor requirements, reduce process productivity and increase workpiece costs.

Your workholding is more than a one-time expense; it is an investment in the overall productivity of your machining operations. Investing in Mate workholding will streamline your operations, increase your spindle uptime and improve your profitability.