Moxon Vise
Because of the design of my assembly table/workbench, I don’t really have an easy way to stand work up on its end to work on it. A standard woodworker’s vise isn’t really viable for my situation, plus I’d need the vise to be detachable so it isn’t in the way. I saw one of Jay Bates’ older videos where he made this type of vise called a moxon vise and I liked the idea, but not so much the construction of the one he made. Then, as if right on cue, Jay made another moxon vise using some templates from Jonathan Katz-Moses (LINK). Jay made this new moxon vise completely out of hardwood and with some decent hardware that really caught my eye. I watched the video that Jonathan made for the moxon vise and I was all in. I bought a set of his templates and I bought all of the hardware based on the recommendations made by Jay in the article on his website. I had plenty of hardwood on hand, but a lot of it was already set aside for other future projects. I had some Baltic birch scraps leftover from the previous three projects, so I opted for that instead.
The Router...Me No Likey
The entire build was more or less just following what Jay did step by step. This, for the most part, was the best course of action. I deviated slightly at one point (not on purpose, trust me) and did a couple of things out of order, but it all worked out in the end. I started by laying out all of the plywood scraps I had and seeing which pieces would fit best for each of the two templates. I got those sorted and then cut them to rough size. I glued the pieces together, not really trying to get them perfectly lined up as I would be flush trimming everything with the templates later.
Speaking of the templates, these things are absolutely wonderful. They are laser cut and the precision is impeccable. I could still smell the burned material when I opened the package. The template for the vise jaw has a set of witness marks on each hole in order to properly align the mini-template (not pictured) to ensure proper placement when drilling. These were definitely a worthwhile investment.
Along with the hardware Jay recommended for this build, I also picked up the router bit he used for this project. It’s a Whiteside UDP9112 Ultimate Plunge/Pattern bit that I got from Bits & Bits. This bit includes the Bits & Bits proprietary Astra coating to prolong the life of the bit. Given that I was going to be chewing up a lot of Baltic birch plywood, I didn’t want to rely on my old (and likely dull) router bits. This would be a wise choice.
Now that the glue was dried, I scraped off what I could and then headed over to my router table to begin the process of flushing trimming to the template. First, I attached the templates to the blanks with some double-sided tape (also recommended by Jay). I set the router to its lowest speed setting of 10,000 RPM. With this much material being removed, I didn’t want to risk going faster. I made sure to get a good grip on the pieces before easing my way onto the router bit. This was a huge hunk of carbide spinning REALLY fast and I didn’t want to lose control of anything. I took my time going along the template, making sure that I was going INTO the rotation of the router bit. The bit grabbed the pieces a couple of times when I was trying to go around some corners, and yanked it away from one of my hands. I stepped back, took a second to collect myself and went back at it.
I made a couple of passes to get the first half of the blank flush with the template. I needed to remove one of the bearings from the bit to finish flushing up the rest of the blank to the template. The hardest part to route was the tight curve of the “ears” on the piece that would be clamped to the assembly table. That took me quite a few passes to get that done. I tried to clean up the bulk of the material on the band saw before routing, but I couldn’t get as much removed from some parts because I had a 3/4” blade on my band saw. I just didn’t feel like changing the blade for this one task (yes, I’m that lazy).
The routing was finally done, and I was glad to be done with that. Of all of the tools in the workshop, the router (either handheld or router table) is probably number one on the list of tools that scare the crap out of me. Even after my accident at the jointer, I still fear the router most of all. I’m always as careful as can be at the router, but it’s just such a powerful tool that can do a lot of damage if not given the proper amount of respect. Anyway, back to the build.
From Routes to Nuts
Now that the blanks were at their final shapes, it was time to lay out for the holes. I more or less followed Jay’s lead on these. I had gotten some new Fisch forstner bits a few months prior to this build and I was eager to try them out on this Baltic birch plywood. I’ve gotta say that I was thoroughly impressed with the cut quality. My old forstner bits were just a bargain basement set from the home center and simply could not compare.
Next came the part I was looking forward to the least, and that was cutting the Acme threaded rod to length. I needed two pieces at the length I wanted, based on my vises thickness. Since mine was three layers of Baltic birch plywood, its thickness was a bit off from Jay’s or Jonathan’s. I screwed the large nuts onto the rod on either side of the cuts I needed to make. This would allow me to reform the threads when I took off the nuts. I still had to file the ends of the threads a little bit, but nothing too drastic.
This was pretty much the end of the cutting. I took two of the large nuts and hammered them into the holes previously drilled on the back of the vice. I threaded the rod through and jammed it in place with another nut on the back. The rod went in a little hard, but I think I might have been just slightly off when I hammered in the nuts.
Next I cut a piece of cork rubber from Andy Kline to size for the face of the vise and secured it in place with some double-sided tape. I slid the vise face onto the threaded rods and screwed on the handles. The handles squeak a bit (still needs some lubricant) but work just fine otherwise.
I tried my new vise out with a piece of plywood and it holds like a champ. With the amount of torque that can be applied with the handles coupled with the grip provided by the cork rubber, nothing can slip from the vise’s grasp.
One of the best features of this moxon vise is that it was designed to allow the clamping of irregularly shaped objects. The holes drilled into the face coupled with the special washers used allows the face to pivot while still giving a solid grip. I don’t anticipate using this feature much right now, but it’s nice to know it’s there.
This was a great and much need project. I’ve gotten the chance only recently (August 2020) to finally bust out the moxon vise for use. I had a handful of picture frames that needed their edges sanded. Last time I sanded the edges of a frame with only a random orbit sander, I rounded them a bit. Using the vise and a sanding pad gave me much better control and I was able to keep the sides flat. I know I say it after almost every project, but this one was a big win. I gained more experience with the router table and I made a tool that will come in handy on many future projects.
***UPDATE: March 2023***
It’s been closing in on three years since I made the moxon vice. I’m happy to say that it’s still in use in the shop, albeit on a sporadic basis. I simply don’t do enough hand tool work (other than sanding) to make use of the vice more often.
It’s quite possible that I might revisit this project again some time in the future. I’d like an opportunity to remake it, possibly with some hardwood like hard maple, instead of the Baltic birch plywood I used for this version. I’ll DEFINITELY need some much sharper chisels for that, as just hammering in the nuts into the holes isn’t likely to work on the maple like it did for the plywood.
In addition to making it out of different material, I’d like to construct an overall better vice in general. I didn’t do the greatest job on this one, although it does function just fine. I’ve learned a bit since some three years ago.
