Any suggestions for mounting/installation a Toles No. 20 Quick Release bench vise?

[Ken Taylor]

I inherited this Toles No. 20 vise from my grandfather and am trying to figure out the best options for mounting to my yet-to-be completed bench.

The bench top is 3.5 inch thick laminated southern yellow pine 2x4's. I plan on mortising the rear plate into the benchtop front, but there are only two screw holes in the rear plate which are countersunk on its outer face (see photo 1)suggesting they are to be used to secure the rear face directly into the table top. This don't seem hospitable to facing it with a hardwood (see the photos). Is it OK to leave the rear plate without a wood cover with it mortised flush with the table top front?


IMG_2285.JPGIMG_2282.jpgIMG_2287.jpg

Thanks for any suggestions.

[Keith Weber]

That is a bit of a weird mounting situation that you've got there. I would probably, as you said, mount it with the rear face morticed flush with the front of the bench. Then, if you so desired, you could glue leather to both front and rear jaw faces. You could also mount wooden jaws if you liked in this way. The front face mount would be as you would expect -- screwed in from the front of the metal jaw. I'd use a wooden jaw wider than the metal one. Then, on the rear, you could put a similar-width wooden jaw, but screw it into the table top on either side of the rear, metal jaw. I hope that made sense to you.

Keith

[Ken Taylor]

It does Keith. The front face is setup to mount a hardwood face with 4 screws so no issue there (I'll probably use maple and a couple inches wider than the iron face). But I'm afraid of dishing by the rear piece of wood either into the large countersunk holes or, as in your suggestion of mounting the rear face to the table edge instead of the rear iron plate. Leather for the rear face may be the best option.

[Charlie Kocourek]

That is a very cool looking vise! My personal preference is also to have the rear jaw of the vise flush with the side of the bench top. I like Keith's idea of making the jaw wider than the vise. You could also drill and countersink holes in the rear jaw that line up with the holes in the vise.

That might look like this:
Record mortised flush to bench top.jpg

Or maybe like this:
Record mortised into bench top.jpg

Another cool way to get the back of the vise flush to the bench top is to build it right into the bench.
Maybe like this:
Record flush onto bench top.jpg

[Dave Richards]

An alternative to use with Charlie's second idea is to insert hanger bolts into the bench over which the rear jaw of the vise and a drilled and counterbored hardwood vise pad is slipped on and secured with hex nuts. I know of a workbench by a professional woodworker that uses that method.

[Keith Weber]

I thought about the idea Charlie showed in his 3rd pic, too, but the problem with this setup, is that if you use the horizontal screws to attach the vise to the top, then the screws would be trapped when you glued the front board on. If your vise ever broke or needed to be removed, you'd need some fairly major demolition to remove the vise from the top. You could use this method if you eliminated the horizontal screws, but I'm not sure how much rigidity that you'd lose in the vise.

I probably wouldn't worry too much about a couple of bolt holes within the vise jaws marking your workpiece. You wouldn't need to clamp it that tight that it leaves a mark.

Keith

[Charlie Kocourek]

Dave is absolutely right!! Definitely bolt the bottom of the vise through the bench top. My drawings only showed bolts going through the back of the vise because Ken's original question was about how to secure the rear plate. My drawing should have included the bolts that secure the bottom of the vise to the bench.

Something like this!
Record mortised flush to bench top w bolts.jpg

[Ken Taylor]

My concern is there are only two screw holes in the bottom. The two other elongated holes each have a guide rail/pipe directly beneath them. Not sure if I could get a nut in there to accept a bolt. So, Tow screws in the front and two on the underside should hold the vise securely. Without the two screws on the face of the rear plate I don't think it would be secure enough. Of, course if I totally disassembled the vise and removed the guide rails, it might work. Prefer not to put holes through the top of the bench either.