Workbench Vises - all the different ones in the same thread - contributions please

[Bushmiller]

Workbench Vise Resources

You may want to cross reference with this link and see if there is any that haven't been covered.

Good link .

Regards
Paul

[damian]

Do you need a patternmaker's vise? Do you work with odd-shaped pieces and carve?

While it is tempting to start out with tools (bench and vise included) that you believe you may use one day, we often end up taking a different path in our woodworking careers. It is personal experience that determines what works for oneself. Advice helps - when you know the questions to ask. Slavishly following the lead of others does not. Live with a basic set up for a while. There are always work-arounds to aid one - that is the greatest teacher of them all!

Regards from Perth

Derek

Thank you for your reply. I apologize for the delay. Retirement is remarkably time consuming.

My reasoning:

The patternmakers vice seems competitive in price and offers tremendous versatility.

I assume they are fairly strong both in clamping and holding to the bench ?

I realize there are much cheaper/simpler/prettier options but if the patternmakers will carry a pair of dogs well at the end of the bench like a wagon or tail vice, do what a conventional vice will do, plus add the vertical clamping AND the tapered work and narrow jaws it just looks to me like it'd cover a lot of situations no matter which way your woodworking interests develop. Carving ? yes, tapered legs, tick. Hand hacking a tennon or mortice at the top of a long piece, done, clamp down a job to the top of the bench, plane the face of a triangular piece....

From the posts here it seems to me it's one obvious shortcoming is flush clamping to the apron. Face vice, tick

Anyway just a though.

I encourage everyone to keep this and the self made vice threads going. Most informative. Thank you all for your trouble.

[pmcgee]

Advantages of the leg vise so far: slightly greater depth of job holding
...
With all that in mind I also struggle with why a tail vise of massive holding power is required for use in planing. There's only so much pressure that you can put on a piece before it will bend (particularly a thin piece). Again, am I missing something here?? It wouldn't be unusual .

Maybe you might want to keep some measurements appropriate to each option as well ... ? (eg depth of holding)

The leg vice job depth depends on where the screw sits in relation to the whole jaw.

In CS's book Workbenches (fd&ttc&u), the Nicholson bench leg vice has 17" above the screw (diagonally, cos it is a diagonal leg vice). Also having the apron it doesn't necessarily require a deadman.

(OK - appears from the plans to be 13"-14" vertical height above the screw)
((I've also been wondering if you could design it so the the bottom guide disconnects and you swing it through 90' to a second guide and use it as a "face vise"))
(((I'm sorry. I drive around, I think of stuff. )))

Cheers,
Paul

[FenceFurniture]

Maybe you might want to keep some measurements appropriate to each option as well ... ? (eg depth of holding)

The leg vice job depth depends on where the screw sits in relation to the whole jaw.

In CS's book Workbenches (fd&ttc&u), the Nicholson bench leg vice has 17" above the screw (diagonally, cos it is a diagonal leg vice). Also having the apron it doesn't necessarily require a deadman.

(OK - appears from the plans to be 13"-14" vertical height above the screw)
((I've also been wondering if you could design it so the the bottom guide disconnects and you swing it through 90' to a second guide and use it as a "face vise"))
(((I'm sorry. I drive around, I think of stuff. )))

Cheers,
Paul

(fd&ttc&u) Que?

Also having the apron it doesn't necessarily require a deadman. I've been thinking similarly since seeing Chrism3's bench. It does mean that F-clamping something to the top requires a bigger clamp, or just using the dog 'oles in the top.

and you swing it through 90' to a second guide and use it as a "face vise" but to get it to be level with the top of the bench you'd sacrifice most of the depth that you gained by using a leg vise....surely self-defeating?

I'm sorry. I drive around, I think of stuff. Better than lying in bed thinking of it.

[pmcgee]

(fd&ttc&u) Que?

"from design and theory to ..."

Also having the apron it doesn't necessarily require a deadman. I've been thinking similarly since seeing Chrism3's bench. It does mean that F-clamping something to the top requires a bigger clamp, or just using the dog 'oles in the top.

Or a split top ... ?

and you swing it through 90' to a second guide and use it as a "face vise" but to get it to be level with the top of the bench you'd sacrifice most of the depth that you gained by using a leg vise....surely self-defeating?

I said I was thinking about it ... I didn't say it made sense. I also think about sneakers made of cheese ... mmmm cheeese
Although since I wrote that ... what if the screw/nut assembly could travel up and down in a slot ...
("Oh Max ..." "Cmon '99' - there's work to do")
This is more for Ian's Shop-made thread ... 'cept Ian wouldn't want it.

Cheers,
Paul

[pmcgee]

Dammit. So easily distracted. The reason I was back here was this quote for your consideration ...

Mike Siemsen's blog | Mike Siemsen's School of Woodworking

Mike Siemsen's blog



Nicholson Vise Question

Submitted by Mike Siemsen on Mon, 12/05/2011 - 13:48

I received this question from another Mike wondering about the „original style“ vise on the Nicholson Bench.

Mike,
I hope this finds you doing well. I have a quick question regarding your Nicholson bench. I currently have a Nicholson which has a twin-screw vise rather than a copy of the original like you included in your bench. I've heard some pretty negative comments about the original style, but it certainly looks like it takes up less room than my twin screw, which requires 34". Would be nice to get some of that space back to make planing easier and more comfortable.

[artme]

(((I'm sorry. I drive around, I think of stuff. )))

Cheers,
Paul

That's OK mate!! All is forgiven!!!

[FenceFurniture]

O'course the lower the screw is, the further you have to bend to grab the handle or wheel.

Not a biggie, but just sayin'.

[IanW]

O'course the lower the screw is, the further you have to bend to grab the handle or wheel.

Not a biggie, but just sayin'.

And the less clamping force on the job....

You're right on both counts Paul, it could be in the home-made thread, and I don't want one.

Cheers,

[Pac man]

I also think about sneakers made of cheese ... mmmm cheeese

mmm cheese

Wouldnt need odor eaters... mould may be a problem...string cheese laces..

[pmcgee]

And the less clamping force on the job....

... for a given amount of turn of the handle/hub.

I guess the screw could be made slower or faster compared to the higher setup also.

Paul

[pmcgee]

Rightio, this isn't what I meant originally, but these things happen.



In drawing that up, I realised that the Shoulder Vise is really a Leg Vise turned 90 deg...... so maybe that additional face and thread wouldn't be necessary.

The vice on a vice part of this wouldn't solve the racking issue in itself ... it is all the same to the guide bars .. BUT ...

what I liked about your idea/plan is that you could grip an appropriately sized chunk of wood in the vice proper, then use the 'vice on a vice' just like an original-style shoulder vice ... and then reset it all back afterwards.

Cheers,
Paul

[FenceFurniture]

what I liked about your idea/plan is that you could grip an appropriately sized chunk of wood in the vice proper, then use the 'vice on a vice' just like an original-style shoulder vice ... and then reset it all back afterwards.

It would also allow you to fully grab a large slab with the world's biggest rebate .

[Sawdust Maker]

Actually a possible problem with that 'train of thought' of fencies bench drawing is the operation outside the bars
I asked Len about dogs and he suggested in line with the bars (screws) or inside them so outside might not be a good idea

[Ball Peen]

I'm glad all this choice wasn't around when I built my first bench. I went with Tage Frid's trad euro bench, the holding/ clamping system is very flexible. One of the unsung good features of this design is the base.
The legs (75mm x 50mm ) are morticed top and bottom into cross pieces (75mm X 50mm ) that sit on the floor and the bench underside. My legs are angled, making very strong, lightweight ends that are easy to level and shift around the workshop as needed.
Next and most important, the rail ( 180mm / 200mm x 35mm ) is half way up the leg. This makes a structure very hard to wrack. Most benches I see have a very small
( comparatively ) rail very close to the floor. This structure is a large, unbraced rectangle prone to wracking. The only disadvantage, my deadman clamps in the tailvice
and is always a fixed distance from the face vice ( 900mm ).
https://www.woodworkforums.com/f213/new-bench-149535/