Squaring up a vice?

[TobyB]

I have a Hofmann & Hammer workbench I acquired a few years ago ... very solid and stable, compact for my small workshop, but it has 2 end and 2 side vices which works well for me as it lies in the centre of the room ...

Problem is, the main side vice I use has developed a considerable degree of skew in the last couple of years. If I close it up, when the right-hand corner of the jaws just touch, there's a 4mm gap at the left-hand corner ... cramp it up REALLY tight and it holds fairly evenly ... but ... not great ...

This vice is a "conventional" central metal screw with two parallel guide rods either side compressing two solid wooden jaws ... don't know the make, seems to be German, perhaps "GS" ...

Is the best way of correcting the skew to mark the angular difference on the outer jaw, then take the vice apart, plane down the outer jaw (i.e. take a triangle off, 4 mm on the right down to zero on the left) to balance it? Or should I be trying to work out right-angles to the metal hardware and align inner and outer faces to these perpendiculars? Or what?

Is this likely to be a one-off "fix", or a "regular maintenance" issue if wood moves and moves ...

 

[xy mosian]

Sounds to me as if the bench mounted end of the vice may have moved on/in its mountings. However instead of all that planing how about just packing the wooden face of the outer jaw?
Bit of a 'quick fix' but it would get you up and running.

xy

 

[Alf]

Well I dunno, but it sounds like a classic wracking problem to me. Been holding stuff a lot on just one side of the vice, by any chance? Time for a few spacers, or better still this adjustable version from a tip in FWW a few years ago:

Stack of pieces of hardboard loosely held together with a bolt; s'not difficult but it is useful. Even if it's not the problem you have with your vice now, using spacers will save you further trouble later.

 

[DTR]

Well I dunno, but it sounds like a classic wracking problem to me. Been holding stuff a lot on just one side of the vice, by any chance? Time for a few spacers, or better still this adjustable version from a tip in FWW a few years ago:

Stack of pieces of hardboard loosely held together with a bolt; s'not difficult but it is useful. Even if it's not the problem you have with your vice now, using spacers will save you further trouble later.

This is genius, thanks for posting it!