Tony in Tasmania wrote: 

> When I look at photos of immaculate, unmarked 
> benches I admire them but  I wonder how their owners do it. 

Very simple:  I have a "dirty bench" (my old bench) and a "clean bench" (my new
bench). I don't show off pictures of my dirty bench. :-) Also, I use sacrificial
scraps of wood to protect the surface of the clean bench when needed. But maybe
that's just because the clean bench is still new.

BTW, my vote is for a tail vise. Besides the usual function of a tail vise or
wagon vise, I get a lot of use out of the tail vise opening on the front of the
bench for holding small work. You don't get that from a wagon vise, and an end
vise seems a bit out of the way to me. YMMV.

Cheers, 
Chuck Taylor 
north of Seattle, USA