Padded Vise Jaw Idea

[Eric Krewson]

I have always used magnetic vise jaw pads in my bow making. They work great until the magnets start getting weak, then they have a bad habit of turning loose at the wrong time.

I bought a parrot vise to put on the opposite end of workbench so when I had my big vise tied up with an osage straightening or gluing job I could still do some light rasping and tillering in my other vise. The parrot vise came with some interesting jaw pads that will hold irregular shapes.

I decided to make some similar jaw pads for my big vise out of wood and found they work better than any pads I have used so far, very secure no matter how much pressure you put on a stave in the vise.

I used some popular boards I had in the shop and glued the leather on with barge cement. I put 3 drywall screws through the leather on the top facing portion of the board because the leather wanted to lift up in spite of the barge cement.

One more thing, if you look closely at the vise jaw you will see something strange" Made In USA". I broke 2 chinese vises before I wised up and bought the right one.

   

[b.glass]

Thanks for sharing. I think I will try that!

[Dano]

Nice idea Eric.

[Pat B]

Good idea, Eric. I usually use small pieces of luan plywood but they are not attached and quite the pain to deal with. I think I'll make up a set like yours.   Thanks!     Pat

[OkKeith]

Good looking idea Eric. How did you attach the boards to the vise? Or are they simply held in place by pressure fit?

OkKeith

[Eric Krewson]

The boards are not attached to the vise, the weight of the long feet keeps them in place, they are loosely fitted to the center rail of the vise. If you need the vise with metal jaws, just lift them out and set them aside.

[Glenn Newell]

That's a good idea Eric, I will make a set like that for my vise as my magnetic jaws as you say turn loose at the wrong time...Glenn...

[Pat B.]

What brand of USA Vice did you get and how much did it cost.. Sorry to be nosy but I've had some issues with the imports too..

[Jerry Jeffer]

Eric, really cool. I have rubberized vise jaws in the past, but like your idea.

[Coop]

That's a good idea. I have used wood before but I am not smart enough to cut them out like you did so they stand, LOL.

I have a friend that runs heavy equipment. He got my some thick rubber (I am not sure what they use it for) that I use for pads. I just fold it in a 'U' shape and slide it in when working on a bow.

[Eric Krewson]

I bought the vise at Lowe's several years ago. The el-cheapo Chinese models like this one cost $35, this one cost $70 and will out last me.

It says on the side, Columbian, D-45, M5