Outdoor work bench

[royce]

Got a call from a buddy saying he had a line on a table with a vise, I asked what condition it was in and he said good.
I've been in need of a small outside table, so I said grab it.

Went and picked it up, 3/8"thick x 38"wide x 49"long x 30" tall with 3" pipe legs and a 6" fixed base Morgan vise bolted to it.

Of course the slide was frozen and after freeing it up, I could see there was no jaw screws in it at all, 4 of them sheared off and 2 missing.
It had also been ground on a gob, but the good news is the screw and nut are in good condition and with new jaws will be a fine outside vise.

Now then, the table has no framing and is not flat, not to mention too short also.
I have some 4"x4"x 3/8" angle to flatten the top and provide stiffness.
Going to mount the vise coming off one corner at 45 degrees.
Also going to make the vise mount, vertically adjustable, to be able to lower it flush with the table top.
It's going to take a bit of head scratching, but I'll mount two 3-1/2" pipe legs on the corner with 4" pipe sleeves over them, to mount the vise to.
Now let's see if it pans out or not!

Royce

 

[royce]

Looks like I posted this on the wrong forum, can anybody tell me how to move it to the fabrication forum?
Thanks
Royce

 

[Wamsutta]

I'm going build something similar someday but it's going to be a full 4X8' with 4X4 inch square steel legs.

 

[The Cobbler]

Looks like I posted this on the wrong forum, can anybody tell me how to move it to the fabrication forum?

moved for you. in the future, if you hit the report tab and ask for it to be moved it will happen quicker.

 

[royce]

moved for you. in the future, if you hit the report tab and ask for it to be moved it will happen quicker.

Thank you kindly Cobbler

 

[royce]

Pleased to say that the jaw screws welded out on the first try and the threads are fine, hooray!
Royce

 

[royce]

Rather than off the corner, decided to mount the vise off the side of the table and make the table 3 legged.
Worked on the layout for the adjustable mount today.

Royce

 

[royce]

Fabbed up the wye for the vise mount today and found a counterspring too.

Royce

 

[royce]

Got the vise mounting plate tacked to the vertical slide today, also cut the corners off the table top.

Royce

 

[royce]

Made some headway today,
Welded out vise mount plate,
Counter spring mounts complete,
Drilled and tapped column sleeves for grease zerks,
Made column friction locks,
Lastly, started table framing.

Royce

 

[MoonRise]

Kroil to the rescue!

Any reason you decided to go three-legged? Just because, 3 legs will not rock/wobble (much), other?

 

[royce]

Kroil to the rescue!

Any reason you decided to go three-legged? Just because, 3 legs will not rock/wobble (much), other?

Yes and 25 percent less work!!!

Got top framed and the rear legs on today.

Royce

 

[larry4406]

Very cool Royce!

Can't wait to see it complete. Still curious on the spring mounted vice setup for vertical positioning.

 

[royce]

Very cool Royce!

Can't wait to see it complete. Still curious on the spring mounted vice setup for vertical positioning.

Thanks Larry,
The thought is having the vise not interfere with a full sheet of plywood when needed but still raise up for a more comfortable working height.

Royce

 

[royce]

Built a shelf, finished up the welding and slopped some ospho on today.

Royce

 

[royce]

Primed and painted this morning, new Cat yellow.
After lunch I'll cut a shelf from some 1/2" laminate, salvaged from a bowling lane.

Royce

 

[captain14]

Royce

You always have a cool and interesting projects going on.

 

[royce]

Royce

You always have a cool and interesting projects going on.

Thanks Captain,
Got the shelf cut and vise painted.

Royce

 

[royce]

Also added some pin stripes, not hotrod quality but plenty good enough for a work bench.

Royce

 

[senlow]

The bench turned out great!

Funny little story about Caterpillar yellow. . . I visited Peoria, Il. about 40 years ago. It was interesting to see that quite a few houses in the less affluent neighborhoods were painted Caterpillar yellow. I was told that people would steel paint from the Caterpillar plant and paint their houses with it. I'm sure you didn't acquire your paint that way.

 

[royce]

The bench turned out great!

Funny little story about Caterpillar yellow. . . I visited Peoria, Il. about 40 years ago. It was interesting to see that quite a few houses in the less affluent neighborhoods were painted Caterpillar yellow. I was told that people would steel paint from the Caterpillar plant and paint their houses with it. I'm sure you didn't acquire your paint that way.

Thanks Senlow,
I came across this paint by responding to a free craigslist ad, 5 gallons of yellow primer and 5 gallons of top coat.
Lucky I am!

Royce

 

[royce]

Highlighted the vise lettering and mounted it this morning.
Short of replacing the jaws, this project is complete.

Royce

 

[larry4406]

Nice job Royce!

How will that plywood shelf hold up outdoors? I am thinking expanded metal might be a better choice.

 

[royce]

Thanks Larry,
Actually the shelf is made from 1/2" phenolic sheet from a bowling lane.
Tough and weather proof.

Royce

 

[rocksnstumps]

Nice build and all those angled cuts on piping and welding looks great but does **** up some time.

If that had been a Morgan Chicago 50 vise could have sold you a set of new replacement jaws super cheap. But of course yours are 6" instead of 5". Was going to rework the 5" to fit on their Star model 5 vise but later just sent out the old ones to be reconditioned by Logan Kendricks.

Still can order a set from Morgan Milwaukee as they have inventory that fits the older style vises (except their Star models...bummer) Andy is a nice fella to talk with and has been working there over 51 yrs!

 

[royce]

Nice build and all those angled cuts on piping and welding looks great but does **** up some time.

If that had been a Morgan Chicago 50 vise could have sold you a set of new replacement jaws super cheap. But of course yours are 6" instead of 5". Was going to rework the 5" to fit on their Star model 5 vise but later just sent out the old ones to be reconditioned by Logan Kendricks.

Still can order a set from Morgan Milwaukee as they have inventory that fits the older style vises (except their Star models...bummer) Andy is a nice fella to talk with and has been working there over 51 yrs!

Thanks Rock,
Don't mind the time it takes, if the form and function work out.

I think I got a line on some jaws from my buddy.

Royce

 

[LXCam]

Well ain’t that the cats meow, another stellar project Royce.

 

[royce]

Well ain’t that the cats meow, another stellar project Royce.

Thanks Cam, been wanting for an outside table for awhile.
Royce

 

[royce]

Measured up the vise and sent them to the jaw maker and the decision to true up the faces was made.
After chasing my tail for a few hours, finally got it set up and started cutting.

Royce

 

[VOH]

WOW!

I think the coolest part is the adjustable height mechanism. The spring certainly helps, but how much effort is needed to either lower it or raise it? I'm guessing it favors raising, but not certain.

VOH

 

[LXCam]

Royce, how do you true up the dynamic jaw mating surface where the jaws mount too?. How do you keep it true and not moving around in relation to the static side?.

 

[senlow]

Hey Cam, I've recut the jaw mating surfaces on a few vises and also milled out cast in jaws to convert to replaceable jaws. I've used a couple of different methods.

When cleaning up the mating surfaces on a vise that has a reasonably precise slide assembly, I slide some very thin shim stock between the sliding surfaces to center them as best I can. Then I clamp a piece of scrap metal just below the jaw surface to prevent movement and mill to clean.

I like demand precision. Most vintage vises have a very loose sliding assembly. In that case, I typically rework the sliding surfaces as best I can. For me, this is usually hand work with files and stones. This removes material and makes the fit even looser that before. That could be counterproductive, except that I then drill and tap the static jaw housing and install adjusting screws with lock nuts and bronze friction buttons. I then use the adjusting screws to remove all clearance, clamp a piece of scrap metal just below the jaw surface to prevent movement and mill to clean.

I'm just an amateur. I'd like to learn how Royce does this operation. Also, @KMScott is an expert on this subject. I would sure like to hear his thoughts.

 

[royce]

WOW!

I think the coolest part is the adjustable height mechanism. The spring certainly helps, but how much effort is needed to either lower it or raise it? I'm guessing it favors raising, but not certain.

VOH

VOH,
I would guess 20 lbs to raise all the way and 100 lbs to lower all the way.

Royce

 

[royce]

Royce, how do you true up the dynamic jaw mating surface where the jaws mount too?. How do you keep it true and not moving around in relation to the static side?.

Cam,
The jaws for this vise are channel shaped, so on the vise, there is three surfaces that need cut on both the static and dynamic.

The top and face are cut with an end mill and the bottom is cut with a t-slot cutter.

So then the slide is set up parallel and perpendicular to the machine table, then the slide is shimmed horizontally and equally in the static to take up the slack. then the vise is closed on a block below the jaw surfaces with enough space for the t-cutter to freely pass.
This locks the two together so the static and dynamic are both cut on the same setup.

I had to have Kevin talk me through the set up, I was all tangled up trying to compensate for the wear on the slide support.
Hope that make sense.

Royce

 

[royce]

Hey Cam, I've recut the jaw mating surfaces on a few vises and also milled out cast in jaws to convert to replaceable jaws. I've used a couple of different methods.

When cleaning up the mating surfaces on a vise that has a reasonably precise slide assembly, I slide some very thin shim stock between the sliding surfaces to center them as best I can. Then I clamp a piece of scrap metal just below the jaw surface to prevent movement and mill to clean.

I like demand precision. Most vintage vises have a very loose sliding assembly. In that case, I typically rework the sliding surfaces as best I can. For me, this is usually hand work with files and stones. This removes material and makes the fit even looser that before. That could be counterproductive, except that I then drill and tap the static jaw housing and install adjusting screws with lock nuts and bronze friction buttons. I then use the adjusting screws to remove all clearance, clamp a piece of scrap metal just below the jaw surface to prevent movement and mill to clean.

I'm just an amateur. I'd like to learn how Royce does this operation. Also, @KMScott is an expert on this subject. I would sure like to hear his thoughts.

Senlow,
Sounds like we set up the same way, which is what Kevin steered me to.
Royce

 

[senlow]

Senlow,
Sounds like we set up the same way, which is what Kevin steered me to.
Royce

Thanks for describing your process. Your description added some detail that I left out.

 

[WoodsTruck]

Hey, has anyone seen Royce since he got his sailboat water tight?
Seems like we are missing out on some fabulous Christmas fab project.
Kind of getting withdrawals over here.

 

[royce]

Hey, has anyone seen Royce since he got his sailboat water tight?
Seems like we are missing out on some fabulous Christmas fab project.
Kind of getting withdrawals over here.

Hey Woods,
Been laying low, sorry no Christmas fab.
Been working on an aluminum utility bed for a 2024 F-350, lately.

Royce