Dog hole placement

[smithgl12]

I posted this question below in "woodworking" and got zero responses. Maybe more of a hand tool question. See my thread there for pics of the bench. Front section will be 15" wide back will be 9" with 6" split top between:

For my 21st century workbench. I'm ordering one of the Eclipse vises from amazon. They have 7, 9, and 10" wide. I'm leaning for the 10" but that will push the front dog holes from 3.5" on Bob's design to 5". Is there an ideal for dog hole placement?

1.5" seems a trivial detail as I type it but don't want to regret it. Am I missing something? Is 5 inches too far back for front dog holes with planing and other work holding dog hole functions.

[Pat Zabrocki]

I'm tempted to say, dog holes should be in the backyard, most likely near a fence post or in a flower bed

Seriously, my Sojberg has the dog holes 1 1/4 in from the edge and I love them right there. I've seen plenty of designs that have the dog holes 1 board in so that you can rout square holes before gluing on the last board. Lastly, I wouldn't put a dog hole 5 inches in as I would feel I'm reaching to far to plane.
Pat

[Phil S.]

Here's some thought from CS on the subject.

[GeorgeV]

I spaced my dog holes every 10" from the end vice and from the face vice and they are in two rows. As you can see the one row lines up with the dog in the end vice.











http://s971.photobucket.com/user/k3gv/me...?sort=3&o=0

[cwarner]

Make yourself a wooden chop to line the moving jaw of your vise. I made mine 8/4. Drill a dog hole however far from the edge you want in the chop and bobs your uncle. You could also do the twin row as shown above and two dogs in the vise chop for boards wide enough.

[WoodTinker]

1.5 inches from the front of the workbench is where you would want them when using a hand plane.

I hear often from woodnet members that they wish they placed their dog holes closer to the front. I have never heard anyone wish them farther back.

[Jonathan S]

WoodTinker said:

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1.5 inches from the front of the workbench is where you would want them when using a hand plane.

I hear often from woodnet members that they wish they placed their dog holes closer to the front. I have never heard anyone wish them farther back.

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+1 especially if your are dogging down stock and using a fenced plane such as a plow or filletster. You want the fence to clear the bench on really narrow stock.

Jonathan

[Yetloh]

+1 for a double row of dog holes, but my rows are only about 2.5" apart. They make clamping irregular shapes so much easier and much more secure for square stuff.

Jim

[Guest]

I agree with the recommendations to put your dog holes close to the front edge of your bench. I wouldn't want dog holes further than 2" from the front edge. I gather you are concerned about lining the dog holes up with the center screw on your vise. While this placement would be ideal, I think the location of the dog holes in relation to the edge of your bench is more important. Take Chris Warner's advice and add a stout wooden chop to the moving jaw of your vise. Drill it for a dog that lines up with the ones in your bench. The hole will be off center a couple of inches and you may get a little skewing of your vise jaw, but it should be minimal. You actually need very little vise pressure to secure stock to your bench top between the dogs, especially with thin stock. Too much pressure will bow your work piece and cause grief.

[henrypig]

Line them up with your vise(s), yes, but also consider your holdfasts (they should also reach the bench front).



Too many holes is also a pain (small part traps). I had to fill in 2/3 of the ones on my new-to-me bench. You don't need zillions apart from a front line associated with your end vise/wagon vise etc. IMO.



As to racking, make yourself one of these out of some paint stir sticks: