I remember the first time I tried to line up a large plate in a milling machine. I must have been back and forth over that plate twenty times before I got it straight. I remember thinking to myself "there must be an easier way." There was, of course, I just wasn't aware of it.

In our never ending quest to find easier ways to do things, we can't help but learn a thing or two. Sometimes we'll figure things out for ourselves and other times we have to be shown. Either way, finding an easier way to do something is often rewarding. "Easier" is almost always faster and is often more accurate.

1. Line things up the easy way

   If you do the procedure properly, you can get a vise or a plate lined up with one or two passes of your indicator.

   Start by lightly tightening one side of the vise to the mill table. Run an indicator slowly from the snug side of the vise towards the loose side, tapping the vise in as you go. If you get to the end of the vise jaw before it is square then go back (rapid traverse) to the snug side and repeat the process. Don't try to tap the vise in by going from the loose side the snug side. You'll probably get messed up. After the vise is square then tighten both sides.

2. Tram the head of a conventional mill with a hammer

   This is an operation that...