Shop Tips
Workshop Tip: Improvised vise uses common clamps
Mar 14, 2019
When I’m away from my workshop with a minimal tool kit, I use this improvised vise to hold workpieces tightly for joinery and other tasks. The wide rear jaw can be clamped to a tabletop or screwed to a workbench, and the front jaw is kept in alignment by two F-style clamps, which also provide the clamping pressure.
—Donald Miner, Sturgeon Bay, Wis.
Drawings: Dan Thornton
From Fine Woodworking #274
Fine Woodworking Recommended Products
Rockler Deluxe Panel Clamp
These clamps can handle glue-ups between 10 in. and 36 in. wide, and boards up to 3 in. thick. Sliding feet attach to the lower bars with magnets, letting you position them quickly for stability on any surface. The spring-loaded jaws adjust easily, dropping into notches along the bars. And the powerful clamp handles clear the benchtop.
Hedgehog featherboards
The Hedgehog's unique spiral shape and single knob make it easy to set up and fast to adjust.
Dubuque Clamp Works Bar Clamps - 4 pack
These clamps are as premium as their price is, but they're worth every penny. A few staffers have a small collection and they're almost always the first clamp they reach for.
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Comments
One idea can lead to another, Put two boards together and made this tip part of my woodbench tools.
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