Tap-’n-lock vise
To secure a board to your workbench without a standard vise, all you need is a pair of round dogs (in matching dog holes, of course) and a wooden wedge. Place your board between the two dogs, insert the wedge, and give the end a light tap. As it’s driven in, the wedge will rotate the adjacent dog to redirect pressure against the end of your stock and lock the board to your bench.
You can easily make wedges of different widths and thicknesses as needed to suit different lengths and thicknesses of stock. The taper angle isn’t critical, but I find that a shallow angle works best.
—Alejandro Balbis, Longueuil, Quebec
