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I am going to acquire one of the workbenches in my late father-in-laws garage for use as my second bench. This will replace a hollow core door on saw horses. The new bench is several layers of plywood on steel legs. It has been in the garage since the early 70's and is very substantial. I would like to attach a Wilton woodworkers vise to this bench. The bench is 30x84 and will be accessible on all 4 sides. I am left handed. Where is the best location for this vise? other than dog holes to match the vise, what other features should I consider to add to a primarily hand tool bench? I would appreciate any suggestions you might have. Since I have more free time now, I might as well plan out what to do with this bench. Thanks.
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I would say mount the vises where it is most comfortable for you. Place the vises on the table top and see how that would work for you and they the corners or middle or in from the sides or even (Just thinking here) have a thick board that slides out from the table that is very secure and easy to move.
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There will be many great suggestions.
My go-to accessory is a removable shooting board which also serves as a stopping block for hand-sawing. I made this accessory into a "cap" which fits right over my workbench, although I hardly ever remove it.
Enjoy!
Chris
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I have no idea why I located my vices, but could not imagine a better configuration. One on the left front and second on the right end toward the front. Good luck and have fun.
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Generally lefties will want the face vise on the right front corner of the bench, the end vise would be on the left side. However, it seems to me that it depends on the work you do and tools you use. For instance a Stanley 45/55 or 78 are designed for working right handed at least when you are doing the decorative stuff, dados are ambidexterous.
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Thanks for the information. I was planning on putting the vise on the right front corner as that is the recommendation for lefties. I do not have any of the planes mentioned so that is not a factor. I am not sure of what work I will be doing on the bench besides learning how to do dovetails at this point. I am still trying to transition to woodworking from home repairs, so any advise would be appreciated. This bench will also see some benchtop power tool rebuilding, since I inherited / purchased a bunch of "sad bastards".
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If you're hand planing edges, the right front location is optimal for a leftie. As you plane a board, some vibration happens. If you're planing toward the vise, the part of the board held in the vise dampens the vibration, and it's not a problem; if you're planing away, you can wind up trying to plane a board whose free end is wiggling all over the place.
Also, for smaller work, a vise on the right front means you can reach with your left hand for tools you put on the bench.
