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View Full Version : Help me design Frankenstein's bench or two in my vice museum.



James W Glenn
09-24-2015, 6:13 PM
I have collected a number of vices over my itinerant years. Haveing settled down and its time to build my first real bench or three.

In the vice pile I have an Emmert, a Wilton turret/pattern-makers vice, a couple Wilton rapid action cabinetmakers vices, a similar craftsmen cabinetmakers vice, a Versa vice knock off, a large Chinese engineers vice shaped object, a recently inherited 50 pound classic machinists vice and a selection of metal screws.

At this point I am part way through putting together a 20' "planking" bench along one wall. This bench has spaces set up for the 2 Wilton cabinetmakers vices. The engineers vice has a reserved place on the "to be" metal working and sharpening station. I don't think their will be room there for the classic machinists vice on the metal bench. The Wilton Turret vice might not interfere with the Engineers vice, and work for holding hand tool blades and other more delicate parts for sharpening and file work.

Outside under a tarp I have 2 sections of 5 1/2 x 16" fir glue-lam beam. They are 6' and 12' long. My first thought is a Robou bench but am having a hard time visualizing how to best utilize the pattern-makers style vices with a large timber bench top.

At this point I am thinking of adding a thinner bench top to the back of the slab to mount the 2 pattern-makers vices to and the craftsman cabinetmakers vice and some sort of tail vice to the "Roubo" side. Or maybe just the Emmert opposite the the tail vice in a "left handed" set up for joinery and such, with the right hand side clear for sawing or mounting a "moxon" vice, the Versa Vise or the machinists vice.

I have an open floor space of approximately 16x8' for "bench work sawing and general assembly. In theory I may have to move what ever free standing benches I build. It seems like a tight space for two additional free standing benches in addition to the built in benches and an assembly table. If I make the assembly table high enough to use as an out feed table the height would be ok for joinery but I would need to make it mobile for out feed duty which would not be great for hand planeing and such. I would also have to counter balance the weight of the Emmert, to keep the table from being unstable, so that would end up lot of weight in motion with in a small crowded space.
Would an Emmert be usefully on its own small and heavy joinery bench? Perhaps a 2x4' top with a full grid of dog holes?

This is a sketch of my most recent shop plan, just to add a little context. Thanks, Woody

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Derek Cohen
09-24-2015, 7:23 PM
What do you plan to build - how would these vises be used in your shop?

Regards from Perth

Derek

Reinis Kanders
09-24-2015, 7:53 PM
One can never have too many vises, but they might get in each others way. Just pick a nicest smoothest one as a main front vise and go from there.
I have found that a good all steel front vise grips better than ones with the metal screw but wood jaws. I recently switched out Jorgensen quick release for Veritas fancy quick release vise with wood jaws and that is a basis for my opinion. Veritas quick release action is very smooth, but needs a leather on both jaws to have a good grip. Maybe I am pushing too hard, but Jorgy was handling it ok.

James W Glenn
09-24-2015, 8:55 PM
What do you plan to build - how would these vises be used in your shop?

Regards from Perth

Derek

Stuff like this, warts and all..

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Its going to be a mixed bag... boat carpentry and woodwork for people who like stuff that looks like it was put together by a boat builder. For my self small boats and canoes along with all the rigging, a house full of furniture as promised, in the craftsman style, 2 better than Ikea kitchens coming up, an office built to match an oak roll top desk, 20 years collection of rusty hand tools returned to glorious industry, artful things made from logs in the James Krenov and WM.S Copertwhaite school, small Hardware forged, Dirks and Muskets reproduced (for entertainment purposes only) and general faking a frequent occurrence. And teaching the boy what little I remember.

So with all that the vices need to help the efficient wood processing and joinery with primarily hand tools, augmented by power tools where circumstances (time/money) dictate. I also tend to have more than one project happening at a time so a certain amount of redundancy of bench space can help with separate work flows in the shop.