Quick question about saw vise setup

I finally got around to setting up my vintage saw vise and in the larger of the two jaws (the side facing away from the bench) there is a 1/4 wide groove that is about 1/16 deep running down the middle of the jaw face. The previous owner had put some sort of neoprene type material in here and on the other jaw, but it had swelled, or for some other reason was not flush with the face, causing the saw plate to flex slightly when clamped. I removed the neoprene stuff, which was flaky and brittle, but do I need to replace it with some sort of padding? Is that customary? I have never used a saw vise before, so I don't have much to compare to.

The groove sort of looks like it once contained a magnetic strip. Would it be worthwhile to try to source another magnetic strip to fit in it?

If you file a saw in a vise with a magnetic strip, the filing will stick to the magnet but if this do not bother you , the magnet will help to hold the saw until you can tighter the vise

A magnetic saw vise would be major PITA. File shavings all over the vise and the saws will get magnetic, too. Horror.

Do you really need to fill the gap? Does the vise lamps the saws well?

Some use Leather as inlay for saw vises, but I don't like anything soft. I would try with metal. Brass or aluminium comes to my mind. Or silver solder?

Cheers Pedder

I lay a piece of synthetic chamois (for car cleaning) on the back side of the clamp, to catch filings and act as an insulator.
The noise reduction was dramatic.

The old Wentworth's had a rubber strip in a groove that was supposed to dampen the sound. Mine was long gone when I got it. I put apiece of thin leather over the jaw to tighten up the vise more than anything.

I just put some blue tape on mine to dampen the sound.

In the future I may try laying a thin piece of cord in the groove.

jtk

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Originally Posted by Mike Siemsen

The old Wentworth's had a rubber strip in a groove that was supposed to dampen the sound. Mine was long gone when I got it. I put apiece of thin leather over the jaw to tighten up the vise more than anything.

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It sounds like that is the case on mine, and I think mine is a Wentworth. I will snap a picture when i get home this evening.

Is that strip of rubber supposed to protrude beyond the vise face? This strip certainly was, probably by almost a 1/16 inch. Perhaps was it softer at some point and would compress with clamping pressure, thus not distorting the saw plate?

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Is that strip of rubber supposed to protrude beyond the vise face? This strip certainly was, probably by almost a 1/16 inch. Perhaps was it softer at some point and would compress with clamping pressure, thus not distorting the saw plate?

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This brings to mind the little rubber tubing that holds screens in place on door frames and windows. I wonder if that is available in short pieces for use in a saw vise.

jtk

I used some soft leather in a maple vise. In the maple I have three rare earth magnets from Lee Valley. The magnets help keep the saw in while I adjust the jaws. Before, the saw was all falling down and more difficult to adjust. The magnets are close to the top of the jaws, so some of the filings collect there, but also on the jaw linings. I don't find the magnet/filings combo to be any more of a nuisance than regular filings, and I haven't found the saws to be magnetized, though I don't have a flux capacitor gaussmeter to compare findings, and the sawdust doesn't know the difference. They don't pick up nails or stick to refrigerators, so . . .

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Originally Posted by Jim Koepke

This brings to mind the little rubber tubing that holds screens in place on door frames and windows. I wonder if that is available in short pieces for use in a saw vise.

jtk

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If you are referring to screen spline then yes, it is available and in fact I believe I have some. Good idea. Thanks.

Attachment 210561This is the saw vise. The jaws do not quite meet completely in the middle--I'd say there is maybe 1/32 of an inch gap. Should I disassemble it and lap the jaws, or should I attach some leather or similar material and get on with life?

The jaws on vises like that are often constructed such that there's a little spring along the length, and when you clamp a saw in it, the gap will close. Try it with a saw, with some paper wrapped in the jaws, maybe there's some foam left over from a window air conditioner or adhesive-backed window sealing, maybe an old belt.

I did try it with a saw and the saw is not tight in the middle.

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Originally Posted by Jonathan McCullough

The jaws on vises like that are often constructed such that there's a little spring along the length, and when you clamp a saw in it, the gap will close. Try it with a saw, with some paper wrapped in the jaws, maybe there's some foam left over from a window air conditioner or adhesive-backed window sealing, maybe an old belt.

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You might be able to shim up the cam mechanism so it clamps tighter to close up the gap, or use the jaw liners mentioned above to close the gap as well as dampen the vibrations from sharpening. There's also no rule that says you can't taper your vise jaws a bit from thin to thick to thin again to accommodate jaws that are too springy.

Zach, I think it's common to put a piece of leather like a boot lace on saw vise jaws. An old vise I used to have had a hole in the end of the front jaw to tie the leather onto.
Paul