Bench Vices Jaws,Quick change

[RobWilson]

Morning Chaps ,


I thought I would share my 6 inch bench vices jaw improvements.(well I think so lol ) Over the passed 40 years I have put up with the standard mark the hell out of anything and everything you place in the vice type jaws .




And yes I have tried just about every type of jaw cover , they either fall off as soon as you look at them , bend or iron filings get stuck into the surface .





They dont hold work evenly .




You get the picture

So I decided to do something about it , Quick change vice jaws.





I replaced the original jaw fixings with top hat type screws .






So now the new jaws just drop in , a nice snug fit .




The plane jaws are hardened and ground , so they dont mar the work .



And can grip very thin work .




Round stock is gripped securely in the horizontal and vertical vee jaws , great for threading and sawing .





The Vee jaws have a step to hold work wile say driving out a pin .






I also made a set of pin jaws for odd shaped work .



Pins are height adjustable.











I have been using these jaws for the passed three years and I would never go back to standard jaws . Jaw change out takes seconds , Work is held securely ,no more excessive force applied to the job as the jaws fit the work , no more jaw marks on finished parts , all round vice work has become much more pleasurable . OH and no more bending down to pick up the loose jaw cover that has just fallen off lol .


So with these jaws and my wee instrument makers vices I have a good grip on most things ,,,,,,,,,,,,except reality ha ha ha !





Regards Rob

 

[mechman48]

Nice work Rob; multi use solution.

George

 

[Nick Hulme]

Very nice Rob!
If you went into production I think they'd sell to a discerning section of the market!

- Nick

 

[DJP]

I noticed the 'copyright' on your pictures and the well planned lighting for small parts photography. You must have a light box.

It's another skill that you are sharing with those of us with similar interest.

Your vise jaws are wonderful however I use my big Record vice for bending and pounding so the original jaws are just perfect. As in your first few pictures I still use aluminium angles to cover the jaws to prevent marring of a surface. The old way still suits my needs but I am impressed with your vise jaws.

 

[RobWilson]

Hi George and Nick , thanks for the comments :thumbup:

DJP

I noticed the 'copyright' on your pictures and the well planned lighting for small parts photography. You must have a light box.

It's another skill that you are sharing with those of us with similar interest.

Your vise jaws are wonderful however I use my big Record vice for bending and pounding so the original jaws are just perfect. As in your first few pictures I still use aluminium angles to cover the jaws to prevent marring of a surface. The old way still suits my needs but I am impressed with your vise jaws.

Hi DJP

The copyright mark is just there because I have in the passed had my photos used by others , sad I no .
Light box ? nope but I will look into getting one if it would make my photos better , JasonB always posts clear/sharp photos of his engine parts . Me I am more point and shoot ,rushed at the end of the day photographer .

I have other vices ,like this Record #25 that I use a lot for heavier work ,bending and whacking things into submission .



It spends its time either on this stand or bolted to my welding bench .


Thanks again for the interest .

Cheers Rob

 

[DJP]

This may be a little off topic but I wonder what will happen to these wonderful tools and machines once we are gone. I don't see many (none) young persons pounding steel into submission on a big vise. I recently taught my grandson to stick weld and he proudly showed his first bead to his parents. We cut out a section of plate that he practised on and polished it up as a 'keeper'. However, I doubt that any of his peers will ever know how to make a welder work.

3D printing may be in their future which is a good thing but my 1940s machine shop equipment is probably doomed to a metal recycling bin.

Oh well.

 

[BaronJ]

Very nice Rob!
If you went into production I think they'd sell to a discerning section of the market!

- Nick

Hi Rob,
I agree with Nick, these are very nice. I particularly like the ones with adjustable pins, they would be very useful.

One to put on the "too do" list. Thanks for showing them.

 

[DJP]

Everyone needs a vise for pounding and one for precision and careful clamping. I solved this a while back when a milling vice was deep discounted at a clearance sale. It turned out to be too big for my mill so I mounted it on a table that had a T slot. It could have just as easily been bolted to a bench. It rotates and has lots of holding power with smooth jaws. For $50 it was an easy purchase justification.

Making extra jaws to convert my pounding vice to a precision vice and back again wasn't necessary but I do envy the special holding options.