Milling Fixtures

• Milling fixture is a work holding

device which is clamped or bolted
to the milling machine table.
• It is bolted to the machine table
with the help of two T-bolts. (or
sometimes four T-bolts)
• These bolts fits in the T-slots of
the machine table.
• The w/p has to be correctly
located in the fixture relative to
the milling cutter.
• This is achieved by the use of a
setting block and feeler gauges.
 Contd.....
• Feeler gauges are placed between the cutter
and reference planes of the setting block.
• This will give correct depth of cut.
• Generally, a gap of 0.4 to 0.5 mm is kept
between the cutter and reference planes of
the setting block.
• The two tenons are located on the underside
of the fixture base.
 Classification of milling fixtures
• Milling fixtures are classified
1. According to the type of milling operation
performed on the w/p (Plain milling fixture,
string or line milling fixture and gang milling
fixture) and
2. According to the method of presenting the w/p
to the cutter (Indexing Fixtures)
 Plain milling fixtures
• Specially designed fixture used to hold a single
w/p.
• The w/p has to be correctly located in the fixture
relative to the milling cutter.
• This is achieved by the use of a setting block and
feeler gauges.
• The setting block has two hardened setting faces
(reference planes).
• One for depth of cut and the other for transverse
setting.
 Contd….
• The table setting is done by the feeler gauge
placed in between the cutter and reference
planes.
• This will prevent the damage to the block by
the cutter during machining.
• The two tenons are located on the underside
of the fixture base.
• These two tenons sits in one of the T-slots
that run along the length of the machine
table.
Plain milling fixture
 String or line milling fixture
• When a number of components are strung
behind each other in a line, the fixture is called
a string or line milling fixture.
• The figure shows a string milling fixture for
milling four square pins at a time.
• The fixture moves relative to the cutter by
applying feed to the machine table.
• The clamping of the pins is done by the
clamping screw.
 Gang milling fixture
• If more than two cutters are used together on
the arbor for milling, the operation is called
gang milling.
• The fixture used with gang milling cutters is
known as gang milling fixture.
• The gang milling fixture must be rigid in design
to absorb heavy cutting forces.
• The width of machine table determines the
number of components to be machined
together.
 Contd…
• Swarf disposal is also taken into account as
there is enough material removal during the
process.
Gang Milling
 Index Milling fixture
• It uses a multi-station indexing
table on which number of
fixtures are mounted.
• Figure shows a two-station
fixture.
• The w/p ‘A’ is milled at
machining station.
• The loading and unloading of
the w/p is done from the other
end.
• When the milling of w/p A is
completed, the indexing table
rotates and milling of w/p B
starts.
• The w/p A is now unloaded
from the other station.