Removable Floating Leg Vise

[Jimmy Harris]

I've been building a new bench, which is kind of a Scandinavian/Roubo hybrid. Basically a Scandinavian bottom with a thick, hard maple top, wagon, and "leg" vise. Only the "leg" vise won't be attached to an actual leg. So it'll have to hang below the top, about an inch or so off the floor, flush with the face. As such, I'll probably have to support it with either a pair of heavy-duty SS shelf brackets in the back (which I have left over from another project) or a brace along the bottom of the vise to attach it to the actual leg, or both. I'll figure that out later, after I get it assembled and determine how much more support I need.

Now, the whole point of doing it as a Scandi/Roubo hybrid is so that it can be broken down if need be. That's not something I plan on doing often, but I do tend to move a lot. So I would like this "leg" vise to not be a permanent installation, but semi-permanent. After all, having a single leg like structure permanently hanging off the bottom kind of defeats the purpose of a removable, flat top that can easily pack into a semi-trailer. I'm planning on connecting the "leg" portion of the vise to the top with a mortise and tenon joint and have the mortise about half the depth of the top, which is about 3 inches. Maybe more or less as the situation calls for, but my point is, I don't want it to go all of the way through the top. I'd rather not have any end grain showing up there.

So my question is, how should I attach this so it's semi-removable. Since I can cover the jaws of the vise in crubber, I was thinking about using flush head screws in the jaws of the vise to go through the face jaw and hold the "leg's" tenon in place behind it. Or I could use dowel pins and just drill them out later if needed. I probably want to avoid a drawbore, because removing it and reinstalling it won't be easy without making a big mess. And I don't think I could use any glue here, as that would make it permanent. At least not on the mortise and tenon itself. Heating up hide glue that deep into some wood would probably be too difficult.

What do you think? How would you go about doing something like this? Am I missing an option? Thanks for your help!

[Eric Brown]

Might consider these: https://www.leevalley.com/en-us/shop...kdown-hardware

[Jimmy Harris]

Might consider these: https://www.leevalley.com/en-us/shop...kdown-hardware

I had considered something like that. I have the Benchcrafted versions to attach the end cap for my wagon vise. However, I was worried that I'd have to drill a bigger hole into the jaw of the vise, and thus plug it up. Which might make drilling it out hard, as I have a bolt right behind it. That, and I can't see what it offers over a pair of wood screws. Sure, if I were removing it often, the wood screws will weaken the wood. But I don't plan on removing the vise more than a couple of times, if at all.

I chose it for the end cap as my wagon vise design doesn't allow for any way to get inside there and repair or replace things over time. Which is also why I didn't use the traditional dovetail on the end cap. I'm trying to make a "last bench" or at least one worthy of becoming "the other bench" should I feel the need to make another one down the road. Which means I'm trying to skirt the line between durable and repairable.

[Bill Dufour]

I would just look around and see if you can buy the factory bench bracket for a leg vise. As long as the square hole is similar in size it should fit.
BillD

[mike stenson]

I'd look at how they do this on Moravian benches. They're designed to be portable, and most use a leg vise. Or, am I missing something?

[Jimmy Harris]

I'd look at how they do this on Moravian benches. They're designed to be portable, and most use a leg vise. Or, am I missing something?

No. I'm missing something. I forgot to include that the front lip of the benchtop extends past the legs. So I can't directly fit the "leg vise" into the cross bar like you see on most Moravian benches. So I have to admit, I kind of neglected them. But, upon your suggestion to revisit them, I'm starting to see the light. If nothing else, the Moravian is proof of concept that the leg vise doesn't need to be hard set into the top to work. I just need it to be supported at the top and bottom.

Yeah, I can work with this. Thank you!