All American Products Co.

Q.What is the Ball Lock System?
A. A means of locating and locking two
flat surfaces together. These are
usually a fixture plate and a subplate.

Q.How does it locate the plate?
A. It locates in the same manner as
locating pins. In other words, there are
two precision bores (receiver bushings)
located on two precision pins
(shanks).

Q.How many shanks (pins) do I need
to locate the plate or part?
A. Two shanks are the maximum needed
to locate. Anything more is a hindrance
rather than a help. (This also applies to
locating pins.)

Q.How does it lock?
A. The Ball Lock system achieves its
holding force by a combination of
force generators. A threaded screw
exerts force onto a center ball which,
in turn, directs this force onto three
balls that register on a taper seat.

Q.How many do I need to lock the
part?
A. This would depend on the particular
application, but in most cases, we
would recommend that at least four
shanks be used (two shanks to locate
and lock, and two shanks to lock
only).

Q.If I should only locate on two shanks,
how do I install the other two shanks
without causing interference?
A. This is accomplished by only using
liner bushings for the locating shanks

and drilling a clearance hole (shank
diameter plus approximately .030") for
the remaining shanks.

Q.How close a repeatability can I
expect?
A. If the center distance between the two
locating holes (receiver bushings) is
held to ±.0002" tolerance, and two
primary liner bushings are used, then
repeatability of ±.0005" can be
maintained.

Q.What is the difference between the
primary and the secondary liner
bushings?
A. The only difference between the
primary and the secondary liner
Most Commonly Asked Questions
bushings is that the secondary liner
bushings is that the secondary liner
bushing has an oversized I.D. to
accommodate the wider center distance
tolerance on your fixture.

Q.Is there a preferable location for the
liner bushing?
A. The location of the liner bushing is not
critical, but in order to be consistent,
we recommend that wherever possible,
locate the liner bushings at bottom left
and at top right.

Q.What are the advantages of using
the Ball Lock System over the
conventional method of dowel pins
and cap screws?
A. Both locating and locking are accomplished
in the same motion. Two and
one half turns are the maximum

needed to lock (whereas a 1/2-13 cap
screw with one and a half diameters of
thread engagement would need ten
turns to lock). On C.N.C. machines,
the repeatability of fixture locations
makes indicating of the fixture
unnecessary.

Q.If I need to recess the fixture plate in
order to have a clear surface, what
do I have to do?
A. Counterbore the fixture plate to a
diameter large enough to allow easy
removal of the shank. Note: The
thickness of the plate section under the
head of the shank is critical! It must
conform to plate thickness recommended
in the catalog.

Q.What if my plate is thinner than the
recommended thickness?
A. It is possible that by adjusting the
depth of the counterbore for the
receiver bushing, you can still use the
Ball Lock System. If there are any
questions on this type of application,
please call 1-800-361-0059

Q.Can I use the shanks in a heated
environment?
A. The shank is made of alloy steel, heat
treated to 40-45Rc and should stand
temperatures up to 400°F. However,
the "O" Ring that retains the balls
could disintegrate. Note!
Be aware that thermal expansion of
your plate could affect the center
distance tolerance and repeatability.