Have you ever gotten a tool and wondered how you ever got along without it?
Well if you don’t have holdfasts for your bench, do yourself a favor and get some! I received two of the Gramercy holdfasts yesterday. They are very reasonably priced. I have some of another brand that have never worked right - I think it is because my top is too thick for that design. I decided to try again after seeing a video of Franz Klaus and Roy Underhill cutting dovetails.
As soon as I got the package I ran out and tried them. What a revelation. Whack! and the board is down really tight. Whack! and the board is loose and repositioned. I took a ¾” x 4” board clamped on edge and cut a ¼” mortise in the edge with everything nice and solid. This is going to improve and speed up any number of operations.