Date: Tue, 30 Dec 2008 17:50:48 -0500
To: puptcrit-AT-puptcrit.org
Subject: Re: [Puptcrit] Woodworking: mallets and vises?


I have my father's old tool bench vise mounted on a 2" X 8" X 16"
board which I bolt tomy bench or remove to haul around.  You could
bolt your vice to a board and put some dense close cell foam under the
board and clamp it to your bench or put it on a sand bag on the
thebench or stoolk.  As long as you don't wail on it it would be
stable enough and quieter.  You vise has tobe kind of heavy for it to
work.  This one is about 40lbs.

On Tue, Dec 30, 2008 at 3:00 PM, Mathieu René <creaturiste-AT-primus.ca> wrote:
> Hi all.
> I am nearly complete getting a basic tool kit for starting my marionette.
>
> Although my philosophy is to work with what I have as much as possible,
> there is a minimal amount of tools one needs to learn a new technique.
> Simplification comes later.
>
> I am missing a mallet, and a way to make a more silent use of it while the
> wood is on a vise.
>
> For the mallet, so far, a large hardwood table leg (round) seems to do the
> trick. But I don't know how well it will turn out to be, over long work
> periods. It's a bit lightweight, which seems good for subtle work, but not
> as good for roughing in.  Any suggestions? What wood would you recommend for
> making a good mallet?
> Is a round mallet better than flat, or does each have its advantage?
> Would a rawhide mallet (sold as a leatherworking tool) work for wood
> carving?
>
> A friend of mine has an antique pure lead round mallet. It absorbs the shock
> like nothing else. I don't think you can get one of those nowadays. I'm not
> about to melt lead at home either.
>
>
> Vise:
> I have one, but it's installed on my workbench, and that's the problem.
>  My large workbench is all maple, and conducts the hammering sounds too
> well, into the appartment's hardwood floors, and probably disturbs the
> neighbors (never had complaints, I rarely work on it, and only daytime, for
> this reason). I'll try adding some rubber between the vise and the bench,
> and perhaps underneath the legs, if I can manage to lift that monster. It's
> all my fault, I asked my father, years ago, for a workbench that wouldn't
> budge. He got some scraps of massive maple and built me one. Thanfully, it
> can be dissasembled!
>
> I am thinking about installing my vise on something else, although I don't
> have another piece of appropriate furniture yet. Except my sculptor's
> trestle (the Mabef trestle I wrote about a few months back, I love it for
> modeling clay work)). It's not that much more silent when impacted, and I
> don't think it was designed for that kind of repeated impact. I'll check
> into it.
> In the meantime, I could find a second wooden speaker and screw it to the
> one I have, for a proper height.
> If I fill it with foam (which I have plenty of) and add a rubber padding
> underneath, it might just work.
>
> Another idea I had is to install the vise onto a board that would be
> designed to sit on my lap. I don't yet know how to stabilize that. Maybe a
> sand bag bottom?
>
> As usual, I'd appreciate any input.
>
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