New Jaws for Bench Vise Made From an Old File

[WmRMeyers]

This is a record No. 6 vice, an heirloom from my grandfather. The jaws had become cracked over years of use. I have a collection of lots of old files and reckoned they would be ideal for making replacement jaws. Files are made from hardened and tempered steel, and have slanted, ridged teeth which I reckoned would be excellent for gripping stuff in a vice. I cut out rectangular sections of the correct dimensions using an angle grinder. The steel was too hard to drill, so I had to anneal it by heating to a red heat with a blow torch in the vicinity of the mounting holes and allowed it to cool slowly. Once the holes were drilled, they were countersinked.

I don't know if that is sacrilege, or genius. I'll go for genius! I don't have any files large enough to do that to either of my large vises. I may have to give it a try with the Panavise and Wilton that's similar to a Panavise, and now I need to start looking for some larger files, too.

Bill

[mklotz]

I don't know if that is sacrilege, or genius. I'll go for genius! I don't have any files large enough to do that to either of my large vises. I may have to give it a try with the Panavise and Wilton that's similar to a Panavise, and now I need to start looking for some larger files, too.

Are you really sure you want vise jaws that are brittle, very difficult to machine and leave marks in anything clamped?

I replaced the jaws on my vise with ordinary steel into which I had milled a variety of V-grooves, both horizontal and vertical. Putting vertical holes to accommodate pins allows clamping odd shapes as is done with jewelers' clamps.

A similar prismatic jaw for the Panavise removes the need to mount and dismount jaws for different jobs...

Prismatic jaw for Panavise

[Toolmaker51]

Are you really sure you want vise jaws that are brittle, very difficult to machine and leave marks in anything clamped?

I replaced the jaws on my vise with ordinary steel into which I had milled a variety of V-grooves, both horizontal and vertical. Putting vertical holes to accommodate pins allows clamping odd shapes as is done with jewelers' clamps.

A similar prismatic jaw for the Panavise removes the need to mount and dismount jaws for different jobs...

Prismatic jaw for Panavise

I agree. Serious vises have serrated jaws yes, 2 or 3 times thickness of a typical file. Unless the jaw 'beds' are dang near perfectly flat, and perfectly seated flat-head screws [not actually possible, cone section are rarely concentric with body of screw], brittleness of a file will be on verge of breaking. Not braking, lol. Thicker material and socket heads front or back are common in good vises. I'd guess hardened jaws don't need a Rc above 45 something. A lot of them are coarsely face milled with flat serrations, and satisfactory in my book.

[WmRMeyers]

Are you really sure you want vise jaws that are brittle, very difficult to machine and leave marks in anything clamped?

I replaced the jaws on my vise with ordinary steel into which I had milled a variety of V-grooves, both horizontal and vertical. Putting vertical holes to accommodate pins allows clamping odd shapes as is done with jewelers' clamps.

A similar prismatic jaw for the Panavise removes the need to mount and dismount jaws for different jobs...

Prismatic jaw for Panavise

For some things, yes. Not for everything, of course. I have soft plastic jaws with magnets to hold them on like the prismatic jaws in your link. I have bent aluminum sheet jaws, and wood jaws. Hard jaws can be good for hard and very hard materials. Which I sometimes have had to deal with. And I have material here for various other kinds and types of jaws. I also have multiple vises, in sizes from 1" to 6", and also made of several materials. Variety requires and includes versatility.

Bill

[Toolmaker51]

Best thing about this entire discussion, and typical throughout our site;
a] truths are evident,
b] each of us have different parameters,
c] a few mere sentences usually dilute the features we try to expound.

YMMV