build a vise?

[Greg Schlitt]

Has anyone managed to build a woodworking vise
for themselves? I've tried to put things together
using 2" x 6" boards for the jaws (about a foot long), a pipe clamp
mounted below as the screw, and large (1 1/4") dowels
running through the faces of both jaws to keep them parallel
to each other. One face would be screwed to my bench.

Didn't work worth a damn. It's very hard to keep
the faces of the jaws parallel when they're put under the pressure of clamping! Obvious in retrospect, I guess.

Should I just buy one?

thanks for any tips, G.

[Mike Harris, London]

http://store.yahoo.com/backissuesstore/sn007.html

Check this out I built this bench, complete with front and tail vise for about $350, Approx $100 for both vises. I got back issue from Busy Bee.I'm quite pleased with the way they work.

Mike

[Vlad]

A valiant effort. For fun you can keep trying, as I always do with my planes and you'll be rewarded tenfold. Try the latest issue of FWW and look at Dunbar's vise. Simply yet effective like yours. All you need is some screws (LV) and voila! Aside from that if you don't have the time or inclination buy the large LV vise (add your own wood). It's a beaut!

Cheers

Vlad (who's trying to figure out how to use a laptop)