The parts of a Sjoberg end vice ready to be converted into a wagon vice like Veritas's new Inset Vise
There is an ad in the latest issue of Popular Woodworking for a Veritas Inset Vise. This is particularly timely because I’ve been developing exactly the same idea for a simple Sjoberg bench, to replace the end vice. I was impressed by the moving stop Richard Maguire is incorporating into his workbenches, but would prefer if the handle was removable so that you can use the right-hand end of the bench both for planing and crosscutting.
As yet Richard isn’t offering what he calls a ‘wagon vice’ as a kit for existing benches, and the Veritas model costs $89. We’re not sure if it’s available in the UK yet. My upgrade of the Sjoberg bench, as you will discover in the next issue of British Woodworking (out at the end of January), costs nothing, and takes a couple of hours to complete (and probably a few more to perfect).
Dismantling the underframe of the Sjoberg bench to incorporate a wagon vice
I am transforming a bench that costs a few hundred pounds (and which gets a novice going) into a tip-top workstation for more advanced woodworkers. And me!
Hi Nick,
I wish now that I’d give some consideration to a wagon vice when I built my workbench in 2009… With my end vices, I’ve come to dislike the way they move out away from the end of the ‘bench as you unwind them. In a small space, it’s an inconvenience that means I never use them!
Of course, another argument is that you don’t ‘need’ a second vice as long as you have dog holes, thanks to Veritas and their extensive range of Wonder Dogs and other accessories.
I still agree that being able to saw the end off a board is an advantage. But also, even as right-hander, I now think that an end, tail or wagon vice would be better suited to the right-hand end (though, that could also be because I have a huge bandsaw at the left-hand end!). Most sources recommend that it is better to plane towards the dogs and away from the vice itself.
Look forward to seeing the new article and, in particular, how easy it is to retro-fit your device to an existing workbench.
Olly.
It was surprisingly easy to retro-fit the Sjoberg, using only the parts from the tail vice itself. I agree that the tail vice should be at the right-hand end of the vice, because you should be planing against a dog or stop rather than the vice itself. The wagon or inset vice replaces the endvice, but with a removable handle you still have access to the right-hand end of the bench for crosscutting and other actions.
I suspect this isn’t seen as an issue in the USA where workshops tend to be much larger. In the UK, though, many home and even professional woodworkers have more limited space, and can’t use both ends of the bench freely. That is why I have moved my bench vice to the middle of the bench (away from the left-hand end) and make greater use of the right-hand end with the inset vice. It is still only in its prototype stages, but the indications are that it will work really well.