Vise options for a plywood bench

[John Serna]

Hey all,

I bought a house in 2019, and the prior owner was a woodworker who left his plywood bench. It's attached to the garage wall. It's a 1 car garage, so space is an issue. The bench is maybe 7ft long and 2.5ft off the wall. It has no way to hold work. What are my options for a vise? I've already tried some bench dogs, but they don't work very well in the plywood.

If photos would help, I can get some in a bit.

Ps. I've just began to learn woodworking during Covid. Total novice.

Thanks!

[ChrisA Edwards]

When I built a new mobile bench, a few years ago, I wanted the capability or using a wood vise swell as a metal work vise.

The top of the bench is two layers of 3/4" plywood and that provided enough support for the lag bolts for the wood vise.

Might give you some ideas.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EPy5fkNf_98

[Zac Martin]

Hi John,

I think some pictures would help us to know what you're working with exactly.

Welcome to the hobby!

Zac

[Charlie Velasquez]

A work bench is in essence a clamping station.
The kind of work you do will influence the kinds of things you need to hold which will determine the kinds of clamps you will need.

Don't be thinking, "What kind of clamping will my bench support?" But, rather, "What kinds of clamps will I need?", then modify your bench to accommodate that kind of clamping.

[Jim Dwight]

My shop garage is also one car size, 14x24. I have a mobile 3x7 foot table built of plywood that serves as my outfeed table, my assembly table, and my track saw cutting station. I put a leg vise on it a year or so ago and I like the addition. I just bought the screw from Amazon and glued up some oak I had for the "leg". The top of my table is two layers of 3/4 plywood but they are 8 inches apart. So you have a lower horizontal surface to put tools on so they do not clutter the top (Ron Paulk concept). I attached the nut of the screw to the lower of these two levels near one of the plywood legs. But you could put it nearly anywhere that would be convenient for you.

[Tim Andrews]

I also work out of my garage with a bench that is attached to one wall with drawers underneath. With limited space a built in vice is not really an option. I would highly recommend building a Moxon vise, which can be clamped just about anywhere. I built mine last year, as well as a rolling fold up assembly table, and those 2 portable devices are used on almost every project I build, and can be put away at night. There are lots of versions, here’s mine.
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[John Serna]

I also work out of my garage with a bench that is attached to one wall with drawers underneath. With limited space a built in vice is not really an option. I would highly recommend building a Moxon vise, which can be clamped just about anywhere. I built mine last year, as well as a rolling fold up assembly table, and those 2 portable devices are used on almost every project I build, and can be put away at night. There are lots of versions, here’s mine.
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Awesome didn't know about those. I will look into this.Thanks!

[Tim Andrews]

If you decide to build a Moxon vise, a couple of recommendations. Use light colored wood like Maple or Poplar. It’s very useful to make pencil marks sometimes for repetitive tasks. Line one of the jaws with leather or something similar for better grip. And most importantly, definitely add the back shelf that is flush with the vise jaws. It is very useful for many tasks such as making mortises, or what I was doing today, making handles on cutting boards.
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[John Serna]

If you decide to build a Moxon vise, a couple of recommendations. Use light colored wood like Maple or Poplar. It’s very useful to make pencil marks sometimes for repetitive tasks. Line one of the jaws with leather or something similar for better grip. And most importantly, definitely add the back shelf that is flush with the vise jaws. It is very useful for many tasks such as making mortises, or what I was doing today, making handles on cutting boards.
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Thanks. Are there any downsides to it? Does it get in the way of your workflow at all?

[Tyler Bancroft]

How thick is the top? That'll be a major factor in determining your options. I have an all-plywood workbench that I threw together out of 3/4" – the top is four layers thick, glued and screwed, and the legs are five layers thick. You could park a car on it and it never moves when planing (or doing anything else, for that matter), and I have a 9" Yost vise on it. Holdfasts work extremely well, too. (I use the Gramercy Tools ones sold by Lee Valley.) If your top is only one layer of 3/4", you're probably very limited in vise options.

[Tim Andrews]

Thanks. Are there any downsides to it? Does it get in the way of your workflow at all?
My Moxon vise is the perfect solution for my situation, but I’m sure that a quality vise built into a solid, heavy bench would be the most stable for those that have that option. It doesn’t get in the way of my workflow, it enhances it.

[John Serna]

How thick is the top? That'll be a major factor in determining your options. I have an all-plywood workbench that I threw together out of 3/4" – the top is four layers thick, glued and screwed, and the legs are five layers thick. You could park a car on it and it never moves when planing (or doing anything else, for that matter), and I have a 9" Yost vise on it. Holdfasts work extremely well, too. (I use the Gramercy Tools ones sold by Lee Valley.) If your top is only one layer of 3/4", you're probably very limited in vise options.

Yeah, unfortunately it's only one piece of 3/4" ...I think that's why the holdfasts are failing. The plywood just enlarges. I was wondering if attaching maple blocks under the holes would allow the holdfasts to catch tight.

[Todd Mason-Darnell]

Katz-Moses has two good videos on building a Moxon vice:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pMpqhpgxzPE&t=26s

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zpg2XiVdYGc

[Tyler Bancroft]

Yeah, unfortunately it's only one piece of 3/4" ...I think that's why the holdfasts are failing. The plywood just enlarges. I was wondering if attaching maple blocks under the holes would allow the holdfasts to catch tight.

Probably, but I'd want to make the blocks wide and long enough that you're not essentially creating a lever that's going to warp the plywood during use. Why not add another layer or two of plywood? It's not pretty or elegant, but a plywood benchtop has the advantage of being relatively stable and durable.

[Andy D Jones]

My Moxon vise is the perfect solution for my situation, but I’m sure that a quality vise built into a solid, heavy bench would be the most stable for those that have that option. It doesn’t get in the way of my workflow, it enhances it.

Most Moxon vises I have seen are designed to be clamped to the bench with heavy F or C clamps, so they don't take up benchtop (or -edge) space when you are not using them.

I also use a lot of hand screw clamps for holding work at the bench, whether clamped to the bench by another clamp (hand screw or otherwise), or held in a vise, or whatever. They are very versatile, especially when you have a variety of sizes of them. Don't be afraid to modify them for special purposes (like V notches for holding round stock securely.)

-- Andy - Arlington TX

[John Serna]

I also work out of my garage with a bench that is attached to one wall with drawers underneath. With limited space a built in vice is not really an option. I would highly recommend building a Moxon vise, which can be clamped just about anywhere. I built mine last year, as well as a rolling fold up assembly table, and those 2 portable devices are used on almost every project I build, and can be put away at night. There are lots of versions, here’s mine.
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Hey Tim, thanks for the moxon recommendation. I built it today. It was my first woodworking project, and I needed a vise, so it seemed like the place to start. It came out great (for me)! I made it out of cherry and lined it with cork. I had no power tools nor even a drill press so it took a while. I think this is going to do what I need it to do.

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[Tim Andrews]

Nice job John, looks great. I’m sure you’ll get a lot of use out of it.

[Andy D Jones]

Beautiful job, John!

If you find the front jaw flexes too much between the two screws, you can stiffen it similarly to the way the clamping ledge on the back jaw stiffens the rear jaw, if such a ledge will clear the "wing nuts" on the vise screws. If it does not clear the wing nuts, the ledge can be shortened to fit between the two wing nuts.

Regardless, keep the front re-enforcing ledge the same length as the front jaw (flush with the ends of the front jaw), not extended like the rear clamping ledge, to keep the front jaw ends flush with the rear jaw ends.

I might glue & screw the front ledge flush with the top of the front jaw, for a wider support on top of the vise, and perhaps to permit clamping a workpiece to the top of the vise.

If that does not stiffen the vise jaws sufficiently, add similar ledges at the top of the rear jaw, and the bottom of the front jaw, transforming the two jaws into back-to-back "C" channels.

-- Andy - Arlington TX

[Tom Bender]

I like having the garage bench attached to the wall. Recently I rebuilt it, lowering it a few inches and making it a few inches shallower. 30" deep is good but in a 1 car it may be more than optimal.

[John Serna]

I used the moxon vise for the first time today. It's awesome. Quick question, though: what is the best (aesthetics + function) clamp to use if I'm going to keep it attached to the bench frequently? It would be nice to have something attractive that doesn't get in the way visually (like the clamps I own, unfortunately).
Thanks!

[Tim Andrews]

I used the moxon vise for the first time today. It's awesome. Quick question, though: what is the best (aesthetics + function) clamp to use if I'm going to keep it attached to the bench frequently? It would be nice to have something attractive that doesn't get in the way visually (like the clamps I own, unfortunately).
Thanks!
John, glad to hear that your vise works well for you. I tried several different clamps, and the most solid are C clamps. I turn them so the “handle” for tightening is underneath leaving a cleaner profile on top. They apply enough force to dent the wood on your vise, so I used double stick tape to add a small block of wood on each side to keep my vise looking purdy.

[John Serna]

Awesome, thanks, Tim.

Is there any reason we can't permanently screw down the little wooden tabs we cut for the clamps?

[Tim Andrews]

Awesome, thanks, Tim.

Is there any reason we can't permanently screw down the little wooden tabs we cut for the clamps?
Sure, you could do that. But for me, that defeats the purpose of attaching them in the first place. My thought is that they are disposable, can be replaced when needed, and leave the vise unmarred by the clamps.

[Tom Bender]

Yes you can bolt it to the bench. I'd suggest 3/4" bolts with giant wing nuts underneath, if you can find them.

[John Serna]

Yes you can bolt it to the bench. I'd suggest 3/4" bolts with giant wing nuts underneath, if you can find them.


Awesome, thank you. I think I have that hardware. I'm going to make a second, smaller one and mount it to the bench as my main vise. Then keep the bigger one for larger projects and clamp that one.

And thanks, Tim!

This thread has been super helpful. Finally have a vise!