Now added to the portfolio of Leader Chuck Systems is the Piranha Clamp range of centring vices. The Swiss-manufactured vices replace the usual dovetail guides found on many vices with parallel, twin cylindrical jaw guides that are said to offer better precision and clamping force.

Designed to act much like a hydraulic press, the hardened and coated spindle guides provide an increased surface area for load distribution, while the drive spindle has been tested to withstand pressures above 1300 Nm². This capability supports high-pressure workpiece clamping with a minimal depth of just 3 mm, so material waste is kept to a minimum.
The nature of the twin-guide design results in an open construction for easy chip evacuation, with any swarf flushed away by the coolant. Another benefit of this concept is an extremely low overall height, so that operators can make the most of the available working envelope.
A built-in zero-point clamping system on the base of the Piranha Clamp provides the interface with the machine tool’s work table and achieves a repeatable loading accuracy of 0.01 mm. However, the quick-change location system can be specified to fit any zero-point design, with adapter plates making the vices totally interchangeable.
Two base sizes are available, the Piranha Clamp 170 is 170 mm long by 90 mm wide, while the larger Piranha Clamp 300 is 300 mm long by 120 mm wide.
Tested against established vices that use pre-stamped raw material, the deflection measured in the Piranha Clamp range is just one-tenth of that measured (at the same clamping pressure) in competitor vices, says Leader. This makes the vice more accurate for first operations and more repeatable for second operation work.
For further information www.leaderchuck.com