Robert Weber wrote:
> Having only observed face and shoulder vises being used, I have a question.
> (The only vise I have ever used personally is my WorkMutt).
> 
> I guess that I cannot see the advantages of a standard face (or worse yet,
> metal like a Record) vise over a shoulder vise. It would appear to have
> limited depth, and be terribly subject to racking without various offsetting
> gymnastics. By contrast, there is no racking with a shoulder vise and you
> can clamp anywhere behind the screw.

Yep. But you have to work over the screw. You also need
a support for the screw strong enough to hold it,
which normally means around 2" of hardwood.
Even a shoulder vise with 8" of travel thus has
2" + 8" of screw between you and a thin workpiece,
which I don't like.

A Record #53, OTOH, will open (quickly!) to a full 15".

You can also hold a long item (e.g. 3') centrally
in a face vise, where a shoulder vise only open to
one side or the other.

However, racking, vertical workpiece holding,
and DT are better addressed by a shoulder vice.

If one vice type were *without disclaimer* better
than the others, there wouldn't *be* any others.

   BugBear
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