Workbench Design visa-vie Veritas Twin Screw Vice

[Dave Novak]

I appreciate everyone's patience with what I'm sure most here would agree are the dumbest questions in the forum, but until I gain experience or get kicked out I'm going to keep asking them. I planning a workbench; Nodin adjust-a-bench legs and top constructed of face-glued 8/4 hard maple about 3-1/2" thick, about 30" deep and 7' long. I picked 3-1/2" for the thickness as that's roughly the height of a pretty nice Paramo #152 quick release vice I plan to mount on the front. I didn't plan or contemplate adding any kind of "skirt" around the perimeter as I didn't really see the need. In researching vices to mount on the end, I gravitated toward the Veritas twin screw, but in researching the installation I'm concerned that my design should be adjusted. As I understand it, the entire vice mounts to the jaw closest to the bench, and that jaw is screwed into the end of the top. Will this create a problem with seasonal wood movement, kind of like glueing a breadboard end on a table top?

[Joe Cowan]

I just installed the twin screw vise on my bench. Although I installed mine on the side of the bench, as opposed to the end, I had face glued my maple and was not worried about any expansion as the movement would be more in the vertical plane and opposed to side to side.

[John Donofrio]

Hi Dave.

I just finished a bench with a twin screw vise on the end and posted about it here on how I did it. It's only been in service for a few weeks but I believe it will hold up well over time. Maybe something similar will work for you,

[Dave Novak]

Thanks guys, and John, thanks for taking the time to document your build; great thread, great bench.

[Alan Schaffter]

The Lee Valley/Veritas twin screw vise threaded flanges do not mount to the underside of the bench and must be mounted to a vertical surface (bench apron) so you might want reconsider adding aprons.

I have 5" wide hard maple aprons around my 2.5" thick bench top and think they are great! They (1) allow me to have 5" wide jaw faces which not only look good but provide plenty of clamping surface, (2) flow nicely around the bench, (3) provide a place for dog holes on the sides of the bench and (4) just make the bench look more substantial and nicer!!

I figured out a way to attach the cross-grain end aprons so that there are no visible bolts, no plugged countersunk bolt holes, no worry about seasonal movement, and so that I can be tightened them if necessary. I first milled the end of the bench and apron as you would a breadboard end with a wide tongue on the end of the laminated top and groove in then apron that keeps them flush. Then I drilled 3 -4 holes for threaded cross dowels up through the bottom edge of the apron. I drilled holes through the groove in the back of the apron that intersect with the cross dowel holes allow all thread rods to be threaded into the cross dowels. I drill enlarged (to allow seasonal movement) holes through the tongue and into the bench for a few inches. These holes terminate in elongated recesses for washers and nuts and allow just enough room for a box wrench. The apron can be snugged up at any time. The attachment method is out of sight and works fantastically!!

The end aprons attach to the side aprons via dovetails that are not glued to allow for seasonal movement.

I also buried the vise bearing flanges, sprockets and chains in a routed recess in the movable jaw. I made a neat, low profile cover from 1/4" ply, painted it black, and installed a spare decal sent to me by Robin Lee.

If you are handy you can also save yourself about a lot of money- instead of spending almost $500 on a Noden leg set and S&H, build a simple indexing jig so you can easily make a set of my adjustable legs on your tablesaw. My legs cost about $20 in hardware store bolts, nuts, etc. plus whatever hardwood required. They allow me to adjust my bench from too low to too high in 1" increments. It is incredibly stable at all heights. Check out the video tour of my bench and photos below:

End apron attachment viewed from the underside. Cross dowel hole on the left and threaded rod, washer, and nut in pocket on the right:



Bench full down:



Bench full up:



Bearing flanges, sprockets and chain buried: