Vice Time
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I’m nearing the end of my bench-build and it’s time to start thinking about a vice. I’m not sure whether a simple vice will do, or should I go for the larger (heavier) quick-release version. Given the small scale of my bench I’m not sure which is the better option.
What have people gone for on their builds?
If your looking for alternative to a traditional vice setup this is what I did. I purchased two vice screws and installed them with a 2X6. They are about 30 inches between centeres and 10 inches in from each end. I set the left end flush with the bench edge. This puts the right end near the middle of my bench. I also have the ability to clamp a cabinet side between the screws. The two screws allows me to rack the vice slightly to give extra grip on the ends. There is no metal anywhere near the edges to hit with a saw or chisel. When I tear up the 2X6 I will replace it for about $2. Im sure most people will not like this “sloppy” setup but I have found it very versitile for me.
Years back when I built my first dedicated woodworking bench (and it happens to be the last one I have built to this point) I decided to spend the $135 it cost back then, and bought a 10″ quick release vise like the one I expect you are talking about. I have never had any issues with it and it’s given me many years of good service. The only things I have done is, replace the hard maple face piece that had gotten marred up over the years, holding things other than wood in it, and I replaced the handle. The handle it came with just wasn’t long enough to give me the leverage I sometimes needed, so I turned a new one out of some ash and gave it some handsome finials.
26 May 2014 at 5:00 am #57556I used a vise like this one
http://www.leevalley.com/en/Wood/page.aspx?p=31137&cat=1,41659,41661&ap=1
for many years. It was inexpensive and worked, mostly. About 6 months ago, I finally got tired of dealing with the racking and replaced it with this one:
http://www.leevalley.com/en/Wood/page.aspx?p=49980&cat=1,41659
(the 9 inch size). I wish I had done so years ago. It does everything I ask of it and has given me no problems. I am very happy with it.30 May 2014 at 5:54 pm #57713We bought some of the quick release vices from lee valley three years ago and used them quite extensively. They’re made in Czech republic and sold under the York name.
After about 40 days of use, we discovered that the winding mechanism stopped working on all of them. They sent replacement mechanisms to fix the problem, but they’ve not really had adequate use since then to tell if it’s still a problem.
They may have worked on the problem since then, but I wouldn’t want to recommend them if they haven’t. If at all possible I would recommend looking for an old record vice as recommended in these blog posts:
http://paulsellers.com/2013/10/record-vises-old-quick-release-still-best/
http://paulsellers.com/2013/03/add-vise-on-bench-vises/Hope this doesn’t put a spanner in the works for anyone.
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