Weird trick with my old vise that saved a project

I was trying to hold a tricky scroll for filing and my regular bench vise just wouldn't grip it right without marring, so I grabbed a scrap of that thick leather from an old apron and wrapped it around the jaws. The grip was way better than I expected and it left zero marks on the finished piece. Anyone have other soft jaw hacks that don't involve buying the fancy copper ones?

3 comments

3 Comments

thomas1053mo ago

That leather trick is brilliant! I've used old bicycle inner tubes for the same thing, just cut a section and slip it over the vise jaws. The rubber gives a crazy good grip on round stock and it's basically free if you have a flat tire to patch.

abby_henderson23d ago

Oh man, I totally need to try thomas105's inner tube trick, my bike's got a flat in the garage right now just waiting to be useful! I'm the queen of misplacing the fancy copper jaw inserts I bought, so free fixes are basically my specialty.

miles2773mo ago

My buddy used strips cut from an old conveyor belt in his shop vise. That stuff is thick and grippy enough to hold almost anything without a scratch. He swears by it for any delicate metalwork now.