{"title":"Stages and measuring","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eThe parts that make a hole land where you meant it, and the instrument that tells you whether your machine is straight.\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eAn \u003cstrong\u003eXY stage\u003c\/strong\u003e goes under the vise so you move the work a known amount instead of by eye. That is the difference between a row of holes and a row of nearly-holes.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThere are two of them here and they are not interchangeable. The \u003cstrong\u003eXY stage, 60 mm\u003c\/strong\u003e bolts to the Mikrabench base and is sized for the little 12 volt machine. The \u003cstrong\u003ecross-slide worktable\u003c\/strong\u003e is heavier, carries its own steel vise, and clamps to a full-size bench drill press instead. Read the page before you pick, because the wrong one will not fit your machine at all.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eA \u003cstrong\u003edial indicator\u003c\/strong\u003e is the only honest way to find out what your own machine actually does. Everybody quotes runout figures; this is how you check one. Put the tip on the spindle, turn it by hand, read the needle.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eWhat we do not have yet: a micrometer depth stop we can honestly say fits this press, a rotary table, and an indexing fixture. We would rather list the gaps than let you find them after the parcel arrives.\u003c\/p\u003e","products":[{"product_id":"brass-micro-vise-xy","title":"Brass Micro Vise with XY Stage","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eThe same brass vise, sitting on a two-axis stage with fine-adjustment screws.\u003c\/strong\u003e You clamp the part once and then move it under the bit instead of unclamping and guessing.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThis is the piece that turns a drill press into something you can put a row of evenly spaced holes into. Set the first hole, wind the screw a known amount, drill the second.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cul\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eBrass vise on a machined XY platform.\u003c\/strong\u003e Two lead screws, one per axis.\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eBolts to the drill press base\u003c\/strong\u003e - centre hole and six M3 threads.\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eBuilt for watch and instrument work\u003c\/strong\u003e: plates, dials, small brass, anything where the second hole has to relate to the first.\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003c\/ul\u003e\u003ch3\u003eBefore you add it to the cart\u003c\/h3\u003e\u003cp\u003eThis is the most expensive thing we sell that is not the machine itself. If you only ever drill one hole at a time, you do not need it - buy the plain drill press vise and keep the difference. We would rather write that here than take the order and have it come back.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eIt is also worth shopping around on this one. Specialist shops in Europe carry the same vise and stage, and at the moment at least one of them lists it lower than we do. We are not going to pretend otherwise: what you get here is a US delivery, one parcel, free shipping and a person who answers.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003ch3\u003eWhat it will not do\u003c\/h3\u003e\u003cp\u003eIt does not make the machine into a mill. The stage moves the work, but the drill chuck still grips for downward force only. Side load pulls a bit out of a drill chuck. Milling needs a collet spindle, and we do not have one yet.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003ch3\u003eDelivery on this item\u003c\/h3\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e2 to 3 weeks.\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Mikrabench","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":46209228865727,"sku":"MB-VISE-BRASS-XY","price":155.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0760\/5826\/3743\/files\/S6521becfa6a44c35bd2d394ce00c4ed9z.webp?v=1789512041"},{"product_id":"brass-movement-holder","title":"Watch Movement Holder","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eA small adjustable clamp that holds a watch movement still while you work on it.\u003c\/strong\u003e Two jaws on a screw, opened and closed by the knurled head. It sits on the bench, or on the drill press table under the chuck.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cul\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eAdjustable\u003c\/strong\u003e, so it takes a range of movement diameters rather than one.\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eSoft on the plate.\u003c\/strong\u003e The jaws are softer than a movement plate, which is the whole reason a holder like this exists instead of a steel vise.\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eSmall.\u003c\/strong\u003e The seller lists the size as 23 mm.\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003c\/ul\u003e\u003ch3\u003eAbout the word brass\u003c\/h3\u003e\u003cp\u003eThe listing we buy this from calls it brass. On the photographs the body looks plated silver and only the screw is clearly brass. We have not held one yet, so we are not going to print a material we cannot see. If it turns out to be plated steel with a brass screw, we will say so here and change this paragraph.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003ch3\u003eWhat this is not\u003c\/h3\u003e\u003cp\u003eIt is a simple, cheap, useful thing. It is not machined to a tolerance worth quoting and we are not going to pretend otherwise. It holds a movement, it does not mark it, and it costs less than a bit set.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eYou get one holder. The factory also packs them in twos; if you want a pair, order two and we will ship them together.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003ch3\u003eDelivery on this item\u003c\/h3\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eAbout a week.\u003c\/strong\u003e This is one of the small parts that moves fast, unlike the press itself.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003ch3\u003ePrice\u003c\/h3\u003e\u003cp\u003eFourteen dollars. It costs us a little over three, and the rest pays for the page, the support inbox and the returns we take back without arguing. If that maths bothers you, the part is on the big Chinese marketplaces under the name \u003cem\u003ewatch movement holder\u003c\/em\u003e and we are not going to pretend otherwise.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Mikrabench","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":46209228898495,"sku":"MB-HOLDER-BRASS","price":14.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0760\/5826\/3743\/files\/Sdbef13dcd1be48ec974920f01a8bf62ca.webp?v=1789591489"},{"product_id":"xy-stage-60","title":"XY Stage, 60 mm","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eA two-axis platform that goes between the drill press base and whatever is holding your work.\u003c\/strong\u003e Clamp once, then move the part under the bit by turning a screw.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cul\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003e60 by 60 mm table\u003c\/strong\u003e, one lead screw per axis.\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eBolts to the drill press base\u003c\/strong\u003e - centre hole and six M3 threads - and every vise we sell for drilling bolts on top of it.\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eMachined aluminium.\u003c\/strong\u003e The mass is doing work here: a stage that flexes is worse than no stage.\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003c\/ul\u003e\u003ch3\u003eWhat the 60 mm actually means, because we had this wrong\u003c\/h3\u003e\u003cp\u003eUntil today this page said \"60 mm travel platform\". That was our mistake and we are correcting it in public rather than quietly.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eThe 60 refers to the size of the table, not to how far it moves.\u003c\/strong\u003e Stages of this type are named by their platform, and the screw travel is a fraction of it - on comparable 60 by 60 platforms sold elsewhere the usable stroke per axis runs to a few millimetres either side of centre, not sixty.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eOur supplier does not publish the stroke, we have not measured one, and we are not going to put a number here that we guessed. When we have one on the bench we will wind each axis lock to lock, measure it with the dial indicator and print what we read. If the figure disappoints anyone who bought on the old wording, write to us and we will take it back and pay the postage, whether or not the 30 days have run out.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003ch3\u003eTake 30% off the drill press vise with it\u003c\/h3\u003e\u003cp\u003eAdd the \u003cstrong\u003eDrill Press Vise\u003c\/strong\u003e to the cart alongside this stage and the vise drops from $59 to $41.30. The discount applies by itself - no code, no minimum. The two are meant to be used together: the stage moves the work, the vise holds it square under the bit.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003ch3\u003eWhy you would want one\u003c\/h3\u003e\u003cp\u003eBecause the second hole has to relate to the first. Freehand, you eyeball it and you are out by half a millimetre. With this, you wind the screw and the work moves a known amount.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eFor a row of holes longer than the stage travels, you unclamp once in the middle rather than for every hole. That is still the difference between a line and a scatter.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003ch3\u003eWhat it will not do\u003c\/h3\u003e\u003cp\u003eIt does not turn the machine into a mill. It moves the work; the chuck still only grips for downward force. Milling needs a collet spindle and we do not have one yet - when we do, this page will say so.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003ch3\u003eDelivery on this item\u003c\/h3\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e2 to 3 weeks.\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Mikrabench","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":46209231356095,"sku":"MB-XY60","price":79.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0760\/5826\/3743\/files\/S762fe7e4e2ee4a6288263d9a18bcc23cI.webp?v=1789511586"},{"product_id":"dial-indicator-magnetic-base","title":"Dial Indicator with Magnetic Base","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eThe tool that tells you whether your machine is actually straight.\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eClamp the magnetic base, put the tip on the spindle, turn it by hand and read the needle. That number is your runout. Everybody quotes runout figures; almost nobody shows you how they got them. This is how.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cul\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eDial indicator plus articulated magnetic base.\u003c\/strong\u003e The base locks with one lever.\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eUse it on the spindle, the chuck, the table or the part.\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eIt is the only honest way to check a used or new machine\u003c\/strong\u003e before you trust it with a part you care about.\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003c\/ul\u003e\u003ch3\u003eWe use this one ourselves\u003c\/h3\u003e\u003cp\u003eWhen our own sample arrives, this is the indicator we will put on it, and we will publish the reading - including if the reading is bad. One owner of this machine reported several millimetres of play at the spindle. We will find out whether that was a bad unit or the design, and we will say which.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003ch3\u003eDelivery on this item\u003c\/h3\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e2 to 3 weeks.\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Mikrabench","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":46209231487167,"sku":"MB-DTI","price":34.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0760\/5826\/3743\/files\/S25d9049317ca4bfe8be802488c29193dT.webp?v=1789512040"},{"product_id":"cross-slide-worktable-vise","title":"Cross-slide worktable with vise","description":"\u003cp\u003eA drill press holds the bit still and lets you move nothing. This is the part that moves the work. An aluminium table on two screws, a steel vise bolted on top, and a handwheel for each axis, so you wind the part to where the next hole goes instead of nudging it and hoping.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003ch3\u003eWhat it does\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eTurn the front handwheel and the table travels toward you. Turn the side one and it travels across. Each wheel has a graduated collar, so a hole 12 mm from the last one is twelve marks, not a guess and a ruler.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe green base swivels. Loosen it, turn the whole assembly to an angle, lock it, and the two axes now run at that angle instead of square to the bench. That is how you drill a row of holes along a line that is not parallel to anything.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe vise on top is steel with flat jaws, and it comes already fitted. It is not a separate purchase.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003ch3\u003eThis one is not for our machine\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eWe need to be blunt about this, because it is the first thing you will want to know. It does \u003cstrong\u003enot\u003c\/strong\u003e go on the Mikrabench drill press. It weighs 2.6 kg and it is built for a full-size bench drill press or a small mill - the base has slots so you clamp it to that machine's table.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eIf your machine is the little 12 volt one, the tool you want is the \u003ca href=\"\/products\/xy-stage-60\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eXY stage, 60 mm\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/a\u003e, which bolts straight to its base. This page is for the bigger press you already own.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003ch3\u003eShipping\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThis is the second thing on the site that does not come from overseas. The supplier holds it in a warehouse in the United States, and quotes about a week to ten days. That is their figure. We have not timed a shipment yet, and when we have, the real number goes here.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003ch3\u003eWhat the maker publishes, and what it does not\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eModel BG-6369. Aluminium alloy table and base, steel vise. It ships in a 25 by 25 by 17 cm box at 2.62 kg.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eWhat the maker does \u003cstrong\u003enot\u003c\/strong\u003e publish anywhere we can find is how far each axis actually travels, or how wide the vise opens. We are not going to invent those numbers or borrow them from a similar-looking table. When we have one on the bench we will measure it and print what we measured.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003ch3\u003eHonest limits\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eOwners report a little play in the leadscrews. That is what an aluminium table at this price is: it will put a hole where you wound it to within a fraction of a millimetre, and it is not a machine-tool slide. Wind up to a position from one direction rather than backing into it and the play stops mattering.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eIt is a positioning table, not a mill. Side load from an end mill is more than this is built for, and more than a drill press spindle is built for either.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Mikrabench","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":46212225007807,"sku":null,"price":79.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0760\/5826\/3743\/files\/S3649b8674e02427c864161a56784b395k.webp?v=1789571838"}],"url":"https:\/\/arvonelle.com\/collections\/stages-and-measuring.oembed","provider":"ARVONELLE","version":"1.0","type":"link"}