Showerthought: Mounting a vise straight is a test of patience

I got this heavy vise from a garage sale a while back. Finally tried to put it on my bench today. The bench is just an old door on saw horses, so it's not level. I marked the spots and drilled the holes. When I bolted it down, the whole thing leaned forward. I tried stacking pennies under one side, but then it shook. Now I have a vise that sits crooked no matter what I do. It holds stuff fine, but I can't stop staring at the gap under one corner.

2 comments

2 Comments

hart.reese1d ago

Disagree with that take. Mounting a vise straight isn't about patience, it's about accepting that nothing is perfect. I've put up a few vises on wobbly benches, and they all have a little lean. Your vise holds stuff fine, so the gap is just a reminder you did it yourself. Think of it as character, not a flaw. If it really bothers you, shim it with something stronger than pennies, but then you're just chasing level on an unlevel bench.

ross.logan1d ago

Spot on. Reminds me of how people will fix a tiny chip in their phone screen while ignoring the cracked foundation in their house. We all get stuck on the small, visible stuff... makes the bench feel a lot like life, honestly.