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[Slabbercabber]

That's a common problem.  Make sure the thread clamp closes all the way.  If the threads are stripped they can be recut with a standard tap.  You may also have to remove a bit of material so they can then close all the way again.  This can usually be done several times before new parts are needed.

[robirdman]

After I pulled back and restarted it finished this time.  Thanks for the suggestion.  The 2 halves would need to be clamped together.  I can't remember if they meet at the top and bottom over the feed and I have it running again. I'll check later, as if they didn't, that would be more difficult.

[robirdman]

After cutting more slabs and putting in a new rock, after one cut, I went to the garage to check on the 2nd.  It was raining and the rain made the garage door so heavy that it wouldn't stay up at all.  I needed to stick a 2x4 piece to keep it open, but I couldn't reach while holding it open.  I let go to pick it up and the door crashed down and now won't open.  I climbed in a small window with some difficulty, and tried prying the door with some boards and levers, to be about 10" open, but despite the disengagement of the tabs that normally would lock it, I couldn't budge it.  So today, I rearranged some equipment in the basement and cleaned off rocks I hadn't looked at in decades.  The biggest surprise was a box with many slabs of agatized dinosaur bone. Though I know I had 150 lbs, I hadn't remembered cutting so much.

[Stonemon]

Nice find! The dino bone is not inexpensive...

[robirdman]

Neither Home Depot nor Menard's had the large tap size, and I ordered at Grainger. Got it, clamped in vise and after 1st feeling loose, I felt resistance as it went in further, as though it was cutting.  I put the 2 halves back in the apparatus and attached to the vise platform in the saw.  I didn't put the heavy vise back on top.  I just ran the saw to test and came back to see it had traveled about 9".   I put bolted the vise back on, put a big rock in and checked back after I heard the saw still running after what I thought was enough time to cut and shut off.  The vise hadn't budged, so there was no cut.  What a disappointment.  As I wound the vise to get the rock out of the saw path, I noticed how much inertia there was to push the vise ahead, by the amount of force.

[robirdman]

Slabber cabber:  The tapping didn't work.  I notice that there seems a slight separation from the split nut and the feed bolt.  How would I accurately remove material to reduce this.  It seems that filing or sanding by hand would be inaccurate and change the angle slightly or wear more at the edges than the middle.  so upsetting for this little split nut to bring everything to a standstill.

[Slabbercabber]

You don't need to be accurate in this.  When you have removed enough material above and below that prevents the split nut from closing all the way, the two halves will center on the threaded rod.  The iron of the clamps will be in free air.

[robirdman]

Maybe I need to remove material at the top where the locking mechanism touches, because that prevents the halves from meeting?

[catmandewe]

Looks to me like the spring on the right has lost its tension.
See if you can find a replacement spring.

Tony

[robirdman]

Actually it seems like that one has more pressure since the spread is more, causing it to bend.  Isn't that an unlikely thing to be able to find?

[Slabbercabber]

The right hand spring is an improper replacement.  Measure the wire diameter, coil ID and length.  Go to Mcmaster.com and order a new "die spring".  That may be all you need.

[robirdman]

Sounds useful.  I can measure diameter and length but what is coil ID?

[Slabbercabber]

Inside diameter.  It specifies the mandrel around which the coil is wound.  Die springs are wound with the last coil on each end flatened and ground so they sit straight and apply proper pressure.

[robirdman]

Finally got back to this project and took vise apart and springs out.  Photographed adjacent and then found I had a similar photo used in an earlier post.  The one looks less stretched so maybe it lost its tensile strength.  It seems a lighter gauge and I wonder which was original as it was very hard to put back together, last time, such was the pressure.  2 comparison shots. feed one is previous.

[Slabbercabber]

The spring on the left of the pic is a die spring.  The other looks like someone cut a piece out of a longer spring and then tried to stretch it to proper length.  Even if you have to buy two, they need to be matched or you will just keep fighting it.