Hi,
I'd like your advise. I was thinking about getting a cross-sliding vise. I found several on Amazon, like the Woodstock D4082 4-Inch for $70. I also saw a Grizzly G1064 4" on their site for $50 (plus shipping).
While looking around I also discovered xy tables, like the Proxxon 27100 Micro Compound KT 70 ($100 at Amazon).
To a novice the cross-sliding vise and xy table do essentially the same thing. But they are obviously different designs, optimized for different uses. So what is each one traditionally used for? In our hobby, when would you use one versus the other?
On a 1 to 10 machinist scale I'm a maybe a 2. The metal work I've done is pretty trivial. Things like adding brass tubing as an axle carrier on an old Strombecker chassis, or making a guide flag sleeve (soldered to an old brass chassis or press-fit into a modern plastic chassis). I do everything pretty much with hand tools and my Dremel (the Model No. 2 kit I got in the '60s!).
To give you more insight into my skill level, I've never removed a chuck from a drill. I've read that there are a few ways a chuck is secured (a tapered or threaded spindle or a tapered shank arbor) and that with one of the ways (the tapered spindle) it's not safe to do milling. Talk at that level is mostly Greek to me.
You can also search for posts from oz10k, there are only a handfull. That would give you a good idea of my skill level.
Whatever I buy I'll use with my 8" Craftsman drill press. I primarily want it to simplify drilling, i.e. to make it easier to get the piece I'm drilling in the exact location I want. I don't think I'll try any milling, and if I do it would only be on plastic (modern chassis).
For the low-end vises, everything I've read recommends disassembling the vise and cleaning it up. For non-critical tolerance work, is this really necessary? How difficult is it? My fear is that I'd make things worse (not knowing what I should/shouldn't do) or not even be able to put it back together.
If you do recommend the cross-sliding vise, is 4" sufficient for slot car work?
Thanks, I really do appreciate your help!
Ron