Vice Advice

mountainbreeze · Post by **mountainbreeze** » Fri Aug 19, 2011 1:17 am

I'm building a new workbench and there are two things I'd like to ask the group...

1. Can you recommend a good mid-grade woodworking vice? I don't want anything that I would be replacing in a year or two and I don't need anything that will last for a hundred years either. Recommendations on brands to avoid may be helpful too. Also, is quick release a luxury or a must have?

2. Apparently, there are two methods for mounting. One being to integrate the rear jaw into the edge of the workbench as shown here. It seems to me this has a big disadvantage of not being able to easily replace the rear jaw should it become necessary. Thoughts?

pennview · Post by **pennview** » Fri Aug 19, 2011 8:56 am

Regarding Number 1, I'd say that any of the woodworking vises you see in the woodworking catalogs would be fine. Wilton, Colombia, Record are good names in vises, but I'd expect that most are made in China these days. A quick release would be nice, but not essential. I don't have a quick release and don't see a need for one myself, but if you're using hand tools on the work bench a lot, one likely would come in handy. I guess it also comes down to how much you want to spend.

I believe the ones I have are Wiltons that I picked up when they dropped woodworking at one of the local high schools.

Regarding Number 2, my vise is surface mounted, but I don't see a problem either way since all I'm clamping in the vise is wood and there isn't much likelihood of damaging the wooden faces attached to the jaws. If clamping other than wood, you could always use some sort of sacrificial jaw pads that you insert when needed.

wa2crk · Post by **wa2crk** » Fri Aug 19, 2011 9:03 am

Mountain Breeze;
I have built that workbench from Woodsmith TV show and it is one HEAVY bench. I put a vise at each end of the bench and I got mine from Harbor Freight Tools. The HF ones are cast iron and have a quick adjust feature and price runs about $60. The one in the popular catalogs are about twice the price. The photo shows the new bench with my old Sjobergs bench. The new one has more than twice the surface area of the old one
New and old bench

[ATTACH]14044[/ATTACH]

Bill V

wa2crk · Post by **wa2crk** » Fri Aug 19, 2011 9:09 am

Breeze;
I could not post a second pic so I am typing again. I buried the vise behind the front edging on the bench and also added a router table later. The router table can be removed if necessary but it serves as an extra work surface. This makes the bench almost 9 feet long which is good for assembling long items such as bookcases or tall cabinets.
Bill V

Workbench with router table attached
[ATTACH]14045[/ATTACH]

mountainbreeze · Post by **mountainbreeze** » Fri Aug 19, 2011 9:23 am

Thanks for the feedback. I'm still researching and now I must add another question...

3. What are the pros and cons of a front vice like this vs. a woodworkers vice like this?

wa2crk · Post by **wa2crk** » Fri Aug 19, 2011 11:21 am

Mountainbreeze;
I don't see much difference between the two. Any woodworking vise that you buy shoold have the feature that enables you to add wood faces to the jaws to prevent marring your project parts. The rest would be personal preference. If you have a HF outlet near you the price can't be beat. After they all are made of cast iron so the decision is how much do you want to pay for various manufacturers cast iron?
Bill V

pennview · Post by **pennview** » Fri Aug 19, 2011 12:02 pm

The Jorgensen has that built-in dog that slides up and down, and that can be useful in conjunction with a stop on the bench for clamping/holding panels flat on the bench top. I'd expect the Jorgensen also could apply more pressure because of the cast iron jaws, but have no way of substantiating that. Here again, I guess it's just a matter of what you like and how much you want to spend.

wa2crk · Post by **wa2crk** » Fri Aug 19, 2011 12:59 pm

All;
I just found out that the quick release vise that I got from HF is no longer carried. Further, according to the rep, there is no equivilent replacement at this time. Too bad cuz this is a real good vice. Glad I bought two of them when I did.
Bill V

mountainbreeze · Post by **mountainbreeze** » Fri Aug 19, 2011 4:20 pm

wa2crk,

I like the router table! In the spirit of Shopsmith compactness (a must for me), I am considering building the router table right into the workbench.

S Brian · Post by **S Brian** » Fri Aug 19, 2011 8:05 pm

A few years ago I bought the Quick Release Steel Bench Vise (medium size) from Lee Valley. It is well made and works smoothly.

http://www.leevalley.com/us/wood/page.a ... at=1,41659

The price today is $139.

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