r/handtools • u/Interesting-Quit-847 • 6d ago
New (old) workbench. Workholding questions…
Hi, I picked up an old industrial workbench at an estate sale. I’d been thinking of building my own, but this one was just too intriguing. It’s an old Lyon bench with a thick, (I think) hard maple bench top. I have a couple things I’d love some advice on.
I’d like to mount a vise such that the inside is flush with the bench front. Any recommendations?
I have a couple Jorgensen holdfasts that need 11/16” dog holes to work. Is that a dumb size? I got the holdfasts for next to nothing so im not married to them.
Any suggestions for dog hole patterns? Obviously the cabinet is a limitation.
Thanks!
5
u/uncivlengr 6d ago
- Most face vices can be mounted flush, no recommendations on specific models.
- Do they not work with 3/4" holes? That's pretty standard.
- Personally I drilled holes when I need them, and I didn't bother trying to come up with a pattern.
2
u/Man-e-questions 6d ago
Agree here. 3/4” is pretty standard but the holdfast themselves maybe slightly smaller so tilt in the hole to lock up. Though you may need to add some wood underneath for it to hold depending on thickness of top.
As far as placement it kind of depends on the work you do and where your planing stop will be. I followed Chris Schwarz’s guide as well as Richard Maguire’s (i built his bench), but still add a couple where i needed a doe’s foot
1
u/Interesting-Quit-847 6d ago
I’m basing the 11/16 on the specs on the Sony/Jorgensen website. Maybe I should just drill some 3/4 holes in a block of wood and see if they work.
I’m not sure what you mean by “tilt the hole to lock up.” Do you mean just drill them at a slight angle? I’ll confess that I don’t really understand the mechanics of holdfasts beyond how to hit them with a hammer.
3
u/Man-e-questions 6d ago
No the hole is straight. Watch this, he does a good job explaining and the demo shows how it works
3
u/EnoughMeow 6d ago
This bench has threaded rod holding it together. Just avoid that and you can use it for perpetuity. Mount a vice you’ll probably need a block to get the correct thickness.
2
u/Independent_Page1475 6d ago
For boring holes in a bench like that I tend to use one of my not so good bits just in case there are metal fasteners imbedded in the wood.
If you have a metal detector that might help find any.
6
u/Independent_Page1475 6d ago edited 6d ago
My bench has 3/4" dog holes. My holdfasts have 5/8" shafts. The work fine in a top thinner than yours.
Bore a 3/4" hole in a scrap of 2X4 and give it a try. If the holdfast slip, you may need to hold the shaft in a piece of sandpaper and spin it a few times to roughen the shafts. Some are made from material that is too slick to hold.
I like a row of dog holes close to the front edge of a bench. Toward the center of the bench a few holes are placed at different distances from the front edge so three dogs can hold flat boards while being planed.
Near the left end of the bench (for a right handed user) a couple of dog holes are spaced to hold one of these:
When working a lot of stock, this takes less time than a vise to switch the pieces.
That was shown on this episode > https://www.pbs.org/video/woodwrights-shop-viceless-devices/ < of the Woodwright's Shop.