To keep parallels in place, simply find or cut with a knife a couple of styrofoam blocks that are slightly oversized. Open your vise, place your parallels against the vice faces, and the styrofoam blocks in between the two parallels. Tighten just a bit so that the blocks bear against the parallels. You now have your parallels held gently in place! Try to avoid having the styrofoam directly underneat the drill or mill spindle – this keeps cleanup easier. It’s the only use, other than packing, I’ve found for those little blocks of styrofoam that some things come packed in.

- James R. Bosley, Jr.

Forstner bits are generally considered dedicated woodworking tools, but they will do a very neat job on aluminum, too. Just be sure to clamp the part tightly, spray lots of WD-40 and keep the RPMs relatively low.

- Frank Ford

To get an accurate reading with digital calipers, it's a good idea to squeeze the blades against the part to be measured. If you use the thumb wheel or grip, you can really see the flexibility in the caliper as it influences the reading, and you can easily be off a couple of thousandths depending on how wide the caliper is open and how hard you're pushing.

- Frank Ford