Jorgensen 10" wood vise - any good?

[Bay Area Dave]

I tried a cheap Shop Fox vise yesterday. didn't hold wood well.

Woodcraft 50 miles away is out of stock on Record (out of production, as I'm sure you all know). They have a Jorgensen for $145. Anyone have one of these? Does it hold stuff SUPER SECURELY??

dave

[Bay Area Dave]

[Mike in Mystic]

Hi Dave,

I was curious so I checked out amazon, too. I saw that they DO have the Record vises with free shipping and better prices than most anywhere else. The 53ED (10.5" width, 15" opening) is only $130. Sure, you'll have to wait a few days, maybe 10, to get it, but I think you'll be happier with it. The

52-1/2ED is only $110 if you have space limitations for the vise mounting.

I think the trigger-controlled quick release (on the Records) is an easier (perhaps more intuitive and obvious) way to have a quick-release than the Jorgensen, which requires half a turn counter-clockwise to disengage the screw.

Mike

[Bay Area Dave]

Mike, I CAN wait on this, as long as I know what I'm getting. I canceled a trip up north to look at the Jorgensen at $145. amazon sells it for $115, no tax. But the reviews are iffy as you can see.

So on the 52 1/2. Does it hold a board so tightly, with ease, that if you grab say a 3 foot long board and wiggle HARD, it won't move?

I'm inclined to get the Record like yours at this point...

dave

Mike > Hi Dave,

[Juergen Hannappel]

As i already wrote in another answer in another thread: No vise will hold a 3 foot board so that with the 3 foot lever arm you cannot get it to move, and if you come close to that thightness you crush the board. What you need is some support for the unclamped board end, in the form of a bench slave or peg in the bench leg so that the planes pressure on the board does not try to rotate it in the vise.

[Bay Area Dave]

so MAYBE I'm expecting too much from the vise after all. Guess I need to research "bench slave". Thanks, Juergen. I'll start combing the web. I looked in Woodcraft; nothing. I presume it's an easily adjustable bracket or rest that mounts on the front of the bench?

dave

Juergen Hannappel wrote:

[Bay Area Dave]

how about using a roller stand in lie of a bench slave? will that serve well enough?

dave

Juergen Hannappel wrote:

[Mike in Mystic]

Hi Dave,

I honestly haven't ever tried to do something like that, but as Juergen points out, that really isn't something you'd really want to do in practice anyway. If you are using a board longer than say 2x the vise width, you should support the free end rather than trying to fix it with increased clamping pressure. As I stated in my post about my workbench, I built board jack holes into the front legs of the bench which accept 3/4" bench dogs. I was able to clamp the 2.75" thick, 6" wide, 5' long hard maple board I was using in the front vise, support it with two bench dogs in the legs of the bench, and use a hold-down at the far end. Believe me when I say that the board was securely held in place and I really didn't have to clamp the vise down particularly hard.

Mike

[Juergen Hannappel]

Anything that holds up the end of the board will work. A bench slave is not a thing to buy but to build, it's just a post on a stand with an adjustable stop on which the board may rest.

shows a picture.

[Mike in Mystic]

Check this out dave:

is exactly the same bench that I made. I still have to assemble and attach the twin-screw end vise. If you click through to the third picture where you see the front of the bench, you can see somewhat what I'm talking about.

(this is the picture:

see the holes in the front edge of the bench? And the white rag is sitting on something stuck in the leg? Those holes allow you to put bench dogs or stops where you can support the far end of long pieces which are held in the front vise. That's the same vise in that picture I have, by the way.

Anyway, you should see what is meant by a board jack or bench dog, etc. etc. Just something to rest the far end of the board on.

Another key feature of this bench that I really liked is that the front edge of the bench is flush with the front face of the legs, as well as the front edge being the fixed clamping surface for the vise. This means that the boards you clamp in place are supported against the bench along their whole length.

Mike

[Bay Area Dave]

thanks for the clarification, Mike. I'll see how much room I have above the drawers for something like what you did. If not, I'll rig up something else.

I'm gonna go out in the shop and clean it up so I can get the drawers built for my desk! This vise thing preoccupied me yesterday so I didn't work on the desk. SWMBO is already talking about a small table for next to her favorite rocker... :)

dave

Mike > Hi Dave,

[skeezics]

hi dave. check out american woodworker #104 november 2003 page

20.might be helpful and inexpensive solution. skeez

[skeezics]

do you have a klingspore shop nearby? they have what looks to be a good bench vise for around $60.00. its no name but looks prety stout.

skeez

[Lawrence A. Ramsey]

[j]

How about the more expensive Shop Fox vise I think the 10" record knock off sells for about $65

[Bay Area Dave]

yes, I see what you are referring to. thanks! That looks way more convenient for getting around the work, but alas I don't have room for a bench away from the wall. I realized when I built mine that there would be some drawbacks, but it's gonna have to stay that way. However, for using the vise, I'll take your advice (and Juergen's) and use something to support a long board.

I've got 30 days to change my mind on the vise I bought yesterday, so I'll use it some more and order the Record if the cheapy bugs me too much.

dave

Mike > Check this out dave:

[Bay Area Dave]

thanks, but I just checked around and don't have that one. I subscribe to Wood and Fine Woodworking. Perhaps I should add that one to my list!

dave

[e-mail] wrote:

[Bay Area Dave]

the store does have those. I was tempted but picked up the cheaper one. With what Mike and Juergen have said, maybe I expect the vise to hold more securely than ANY of them will... It WOULD be nice to have a quick release though.

dave

j wrote:

[skeezics]

ok. i'll try to explain it.mount a 't' track to the leg of your bench. mount it in a board with a slot cut in it vertically. you want this to be flush with your bench top so pad it as needed. drill a hole in another board and use a threaded knob to hold this to the board with the 't' slot in it verticaly. use 2 knobs if ya want to. mount a hold down clamp to that board near the top so the hold down screw is above the end of the board.now you can lower or raise the support block to whatever height you desire. set your workpeice in the vise and accross the top of your support block and lock it there with the hold down clamp. hope you got akll that. i got pics here so its easier for me to understand!!! lol. the ol lady has a scanner but i dont know how to work it so i guess your SOL there. sorry. skeez

[Leon]

That trigger release sounds good as long as you dont have to turn the handle counter clockwise first to release the tension.. The trigger may have too much of a load if you dont back off on the clamp first. I personally do not know but I have a Zyless vise with a quick release to move the jaw in and out quickly and you have to release the tension before pressing the release. With that in mind the trigger release may be more trouble if you have to loosen the tension anyway. Something to check in to. I could be way off base on that though.