Benchcrafted Tail Vise Build

[David Wadstrup]

Hi,

I have a question for those of you who have built Benchrafted's Roubo. Or those who have installed one of their tail vises on an existing bench....

I was drilling all of the holes in the end cap this morning, and noticed a discrepancy of sorts in the provided directions. The directions that my vise came with call for a 1,3/8" through hole for the vise screw. Benchcrafted, however, has recently updated their instructions. The new instructions call for a 1,1/2" through hole. My question, essentially, is what size should I drill? They have made a slight modification to how they ship their vises, and I'm wondering if, perhaps, the size of the screw has recently gotten bigger. On the other hand, though, maybe they just decided that a slightly bigger hole would be better overall??? I've emailed Benchcrafted, but Jameel is out of the office until next week, but I would really love to drill this hole ASAP. What do you think?

Thanks for your help,

David

PS If it makes a difference... all of the Forstner bits I own were purchased for this bench build. Which means that I do not have a 1,1/5" bit. I would need to buy one....

[Jessica Pierce-LaRose]

Seems to me the obvious answer would be to measure the screw you've got. If you haven't got it yet, well - after running into this issue with guitar building in the past, I find it's always best to wait until hardware is in hand before doing any serious work.

[Joe Leigh]

I just installed my tail vise about two weeks ago. 1-3/8" works fine with a 1-3/4" clearance hole for the washer. These are the same two bits used for your leg vise assembly (if you have one).

Two other cautions; first make sure you use the template to locate all holes, second make sure your printout is properly scaled on your template.

[Michael Peet]

I just installed my tail vise about two weeks ago. 1-3/8" works fine with a 1-3/4" clearance hole for the washer. These are the same two bits used for your leg vise assembly (if you have one).

It's been maybe a year since I did mine, but this sounds right to me. Also agree with the advice to measure your screw if you aren't sure. The hole is only for clearance so it needn't be too big.

Mike