I know some readers are loath to drill a new hole in their workbench (or file the mouth of a handplane, or reshape a saw handle) without a court order. Today I’m putting on my robes and firing up the wooden gavel. Judge Crissy is in session.
The advantage of the carver’s vise (on sale at Grizzly until August – not sponsored) is that it can go anywhere there’s a hole. But where should the hole go?
Here’s my thought. Put it at the far end of your bench, where a tail vise would go. Drill the hole about 3-1/2” from the front edge of the bench and 3-1/2” from the end of the bench. That allows the vise’s sheet-metal base to contact the benchtop fully. And it allows you to stand anywhere in a 270° arc around the vise to use it.
But here’s the best reason: It will speed up your work with a tenon cutter. By rotating the vise diagonally, as shown above, you can tenon both ends of a stick without reclamping it or re-leveling it. It’s just level the stick, clamp the stick, tenon one end and then tenon the other.
The second advantage is that I usually have a garbage can under the bench there, so about half my waste from tenoning ends up in the bin automatically. And the rest is easily brushed from the benchtop and into the garbage can.
— Christopher Schwarz
Can you pivot the two jaws 180 and use to pull something apart?
Yes.
Any reason not to put it on the other (back)side of the bench (if there is room to work on both sides)?
And keep the front clear for long stock, etc.
Chris, nice, but I think you will find the base of the carver’s vise (at least mine and the one you,show) have a cast iron type base, not sheet metal.
Cheers
Nah, I don’t think they’d have a very good reputation if they were using 1.5mm thick cast iron.
These are on sale at the moment at Carbatec for those in Australia BTW.
Indeed and on special for $208. Just bought one. A bit ugly blue but apparently the colour doesn’t hold the project…LOL
I’m so loath to drill another hole for my red oak carver’s vise, that I’ve slipped the 1-inch wooden attaching screw down between the jaws of my face vise, and applied the nut, there. The face vise is at the left corner of the waist-high bench. I do have holes for that Woodsmith-designed carving vise in my Roman bench, but I’d prefer to follow your example, and carve tenons standing up. Thanks for the excellent Gibson chair video series!
As long as you’re there, could you drill a couple 1″ holdfast holes, perfectly located to hold my twin-screw vise?
Socket to me, Judge! Loving the videos you’ve been putting out. Getting ready to try my hand at my very first chair soon!
Since I have a tail vice I guess I will need a new bench. Hehe
My vise came in on Friday, I am going to mount it tomorrow afternoon. I am going to put it on that end of the bench but I think I am going to center it width wise since I have aprons on both sides of my bench. 3 1/2 inches from the end sounds about right.
I agree. When I was a younger man I would go anywhere there was hole.
Most of the time I get along with my Wilton woodworkers vice that resides on a bench corner. Being loathe to drill my workbench, I have a couple of other vices mounted on T-shaped “sub-bases” that I simply insert into the Wilton when needed. Being somewhat space limited this interchangeable vice process seems to work okay for me despite the sometimes inconvenient vice moving. The sub-base mounted vices can also go on a Workmate or some other bench-like device. Mr. Schwarz has now got me lusting after one of these cool carver’s vices so I guess another sub-base is in order. By the way, thanks for all the extra stuff you Lost Art folks do for us out here in shopland.
I am currently without a proper bench and am using a fairly solid kitchen table as a stand-in. A piece of plywood 1 1/2″ thick (2 layers laminated) clamped to the table serves as a work surface, and with a hole drilled in one corner I can cantilever the plywood off the table’s edge and mount my carving vise there. I find it so convenient that when I build a bench I will probably use Mr. Roy’s “sub-base” idea to hold the carving vise when I need it.
I already had a hole in my bench at the location Chris advocates. Mounts a green woodcraft version there a couple of months ago, after Chris first mentioned this type vise as a good alternative to the high vise. Love it; works like a charm, and I have some space/clearance restrictions.
I just got that vise from Woodcraft a few weeks ago after I got an email from them about a sale. My workbench is one that was on the cover of Woodsmith in 2001 or so. The top is two pieces of 3/4″ MDF rimmed by 2×4 vertical grain Doug Fir. It sits on a timber-framed base and overhangs a few inches all around. I can’t put the vise close to the corner (or the edges) because the wing nut arms run into the 2×4 rim and top of the base. Dang! If only The Anarchist’s Workbench existed when I built my bench. Anyway, I drilled a new hole a few inches in from the front edge and that works well. I’ll drill another as close as I can get to the corner.
If you have the Nicholson knock down bench the hole needs to farther in so the big washer with balls can spin. Don’t ask how I know lol