USA made vise jaw pads

[Thesian]

Hi all

I am finishing a minor USA made vise restoration and was searching for some jaw pads. You know what I found…china,china,Taiwan,china. Ugh.

Anyway, looking further I found a little company called Friction Works who is proudly turning some out here. No clue on performance yet but look to be well done. I ordered a set.

Vise Jaws - magnetic bench vise soft jaws - Friction Works

Vise Jaws - magnetic bench vise soft jaws with N48 spec magnets and proprietary polymer set a new standard for vise jaws. Built to last in the USA by Frictionworks.

frictionworks.com

Go USA manufacturers!

Thanks,
Thesian

 

[RTM]

Hmm, wonder if a 4” can be cut down to 3-1/2” without the magnets falling out. My 5” pair are from brookstone, and I’m always knocking them off due to their wimpy magnets

 

[larry4406]

Nice! Follow up with a review please.

Member KMScott(?) here on the board used to make them. He made me a set for a Prentiss vise that are a work of art. I believe he no longer makes them but maybe there was a spin-off from him that does?

 

[KMScott]

Nice! Follow up with a review please.

Member KMScott(?) here on the board used to make them. He made me a set for a Prentiss vise that are a work of art. I believe he no longer makes them but maybe there was a spin-off from him that does?

Thanks Larry, yes I have retired and sold my jaw building business 2 years ago and since then they failed to make a go at it. I always said jaw building is easy since they are a rectangle with a couple holes placed in it and a little tuff to serrate the jaw faces. I moved from Colorado to a island in South Carolina and finally have my shop set up to restore the many vises I brought with me. Anyone needs a drawing of the Machinist vises I made jaws for just send me a message and I’ll send you a drawing.

 

[Thesian]

Thanks Larry, yes I have retired and sold my jaw building business 2 years ago and since then they failed to make a go at it. I always said jaw building is easy since they are a rectangle with a couple holes placed in it and a little tuff to serrate the jaw faces. I moved from Colorado to a island in South Carolina and finally have my shop set up to restore the many vises I brought with me. Anyone needs a drawing of the Machinist vises I made jaws for just send me a message and I’ll send you a drawing.

I would love to see your drawing sir!

I’m glad to support any USA tooling endeavors if within my means. I vote with my dollar.

I’ll post pics and opinion when I get them.

 

[paulsomlo]

Thanks Larry, yes I have retired and sold my jaw building business 2 years ago and since then they failed to make a go at it. I always said jaw building is easy since they are a rectangle with a couple holes placed in it and a little tuff to serrate the jaw faces. I moved from Colorado to a island in South Carolina and finally have my shop set up to restore the many vises I brought with me. Anyone needs a drawing of the Machinist vises I made jaws for just send me a message and I’ll send you a drawing.

What happened to the woman out here in Colorado that was going to make the jaws?

 

[Thesian]

Fit and finish looks really good. 8 magnets makes these pretty strong on 2 axis attachment. Lifetime warranty what’s not to love?

 

[Provincial]

On a different note, I ended up with some drop of .063 3003-0 (fully soft) aluminum sheet. I cut out blanks and form them over the jaws, with tabs on the two ends. I then bend the end pieces in a little do they apply some tension and help hold the soft jaws in place. I have a big piece of leather I bend in a U between the jaws when I want a softer grip.

 

[nadogail]

I once made, in 1982, Jaw Pads from soft wood (Fir) to handle polished parts.

 

[KMScott]

What happened to the woman out here in Colorado that was going to make the jaws?

She quit, I spent 30 days training her and driving three hours ever time then she quit before her first year. Now the owners are making a new website and trying to find a machinist that knows about vises and can run the shop by them self's. I am bummed about all the work I did creating the websites and hunting down all the jaw spec:s. They never reached out to me with questions while trying to keep up with inventory. Had over 230 products I kept up with.

 

[KMScott]

On a different note, I ended up with some drop of .063 3003-0 (fully soft) aluminum sheet. I cut out blanks and form them over the jaws, with tabs on the two ends. I then bend the end pieces in a little do they apply some tension and help hold the soft jaws in place. I have a big piece of leather I bend in a U between the jaws when I want a softer grip.

I did the same with Baby Wiltons. 3003 bends without cracking.

 

[Thesian]

I did the same with Baby Wiltons. 3003 bends without cracking.

Those are really sweet looking. Love how the curves match the baby bullet. It’s a classy small job setup!