Moxon Vise
Posted: Wed Apr 28, 2021 9:08 pm
I’ve never had a proper vise in my shop because I have never had the space for a traditional workbench. Recently I got to thinking I could remedy that by building a small, portable vise that I could clamp to my existing tables. That lead me to an internet search for Moxon Vises (https://www.bing.com/videos/search?q=yo ... ORM=VDRVRV https://www.bing.com/videos/search?q=yo ... F7449E9265).
It’s mostly constructed of cherry and oak that I milled last summer at my brother-in-law's farm in Madison. The jaws are 2-inch-thick cherry lined with leather, the rails are oak and the 24” table is mostly cherry and oak with walnut and maple for accent. The vise itself has two 3/4” screws where I used a special type of washer so the jaws can rack to about 3 deg and handle out-of-square timber. I also put chamfered dog holes in the table top to allow clamping of larger flat pieces (the dog holes will also allow me to use the surface as a small sanding table with good dust control). To hold it firmly to my existing work tables I simply pop a couple of clamps on the outriggers I cut into the rails and unmovable jaw. It looks great and works even better.
If you don't have the space (or money) for a traditional workbench, this might be an option for you.
-Erik
It’s mostly constructed of cherry and oak that I milled last summer at my brother-in-law's farm in Madison. The jaws are 2-inch-thick cherry lined with leather, the rails are oak and the 24” table is mostly cherry and oak with walnut and maple for accent. The vise itself has two 3/4” screws where I used a special type of washer so the jaws can rack to about 3 deg and handle out-of-square timber. I also put chamfered dog holes in the table top to allow clamping of larger flat pieces (the dog holes will also allow me to use the surface as a small sanding table with good dust control). To hold it firmly to my existing work tables I simply pop a couple of clamps on the outriggers I cut into the rails and unmovable jaw. It looks great and works even better.
If you don't have the space (or money) for a traditional workbench, this might be an option for you.
-Erik