We had holdfasts in woodshop in the 60s. I've always loved them. Great tip I saw is to get a bicycle inner tube and cut it for slipping on the holdfast to protect the work piece.
Great videos. To protect wood from being marred by holdfasts and the like I cut slices off wine bottle corks then glue them to the holdfasts, clamps, etc.
I had been afraid to smack my L-N holdfasts with a metal hammer for fear of eventually cracking them, but you've calmed my fears (a little). May I suggest a follow-up video showing several examples using holdfasts while you work on a board with another tool....in other words, a "what can you do with these things" video.
Enjoyed the video Joshua. That was interesting. I look forward to your future videos on work benches. Thanks for taking the time to produce the videos. Y'all stay well and God bless.
I have the Gramercy tools holdfasts, they have good reviews. I can hardly wait to try them in my Moravian workbench. Trying to be patient so I don't ruin all my hard work...
how faster do they elongate the hole if you are using a softer wood for your table top ? of course i know every proper woodworker would only use rock-hard woods for their workbench tops, but sometimes finances get in the way and we have to settle for laminated 2x4's like i'm using ;-)
There are some holdfasts available now that are a cross between the traditional and the f-clamp, whereby there is a horizontal bar and an adjustable screw at the end of that bar for locking the wood down. Are they any good? Can't find any traditional options here in Thailand!
Hey Joshua, first want to say Wood and Shop is my go to... be it the tool guides, joinery how-to's, just all the knowledge....it's indispensable for this junior cub woodworker. Big thanx. Question; is there any logic to hole placement on the bench top? Just built a grubby Roubo-esque split top and haven't yet drilled any holes for dogs or holdfasts. There's not a lot of info on the web about this. Thanx again.
I feel like you should use hearing protection if you're using a metal hammer. Someone at my work developed tinnitus doing a test that was a loud piece of metal colliding with another loud piece of metal. Protect your hearing! Instead of a joiners mallet, maybe a dead blow hammer would be more ideal. Less rustic looking, but probably better.
@@ivancho5854 I'd like to add that I actually have tinnitus, and once you have it, you have it for life. I've had it my whole life, but I made it worse not protecting my hearing adequately. Stuff like banging hammers is actually extremely loud, to where you should be wearing hearing protection. I actually find banging hammers to be getting close to on par with shooting a .22 without hearing protection.
@@hellomate639 I feel for you. Tinnitus never stops. I hope that you have found ways to counter it. My hearing has reduced noticeably over the years and I find myself needing to lip read and I'm not 60 yet. I can remember laughing at a good friend in my 20s who said that he couldn't hear me without his glasses on and I now wonder if he was doing the same. Hearing problems are an invisible disability which impacts socialising profoundly. I don't want to go anywhere like a pub or a concert anymore. All the best mate. 👍
I’m presuming over time, the holdfast hole in my new bench will distort. What are your thoughts about installing a recessed bushing at the top inch of each holdfast hole (same ID as the hole in the bench) to help reduce the damage to the bench caused by setting the holdfast?
Trace and cut out a piece of leather the size of the holdfast end. Epoxy it on and it will last 10 years or so. That leather piece is big enough to do all yours.
WOOD AND SHOP, I have an antique bench that instead of round stops has slots in the bench for small inserts of spring steel with teeth on them. Do you know what they were used for? The iron work says Columbus Ohio Tool Company. Can Email pics if needed. Thanks, Tim.
Nice video Joshua, thanks for making and sharing it. I think Chris Schwarz claims the forged holdfasts he sells hold well in thick bench tops because they have thicker shanks (use 1” hole rather than 3/4” hole or something like that). Do you have any experience with thicker shanked holdfasts? -Jim
Not for a long time...as in, I've never experienced this on 10 workbenches that I own. But I'm sure it eventually will, but fortunately you can bore more holdfast holes!
I've been using holdfasts for years on my main bench (made out of beech) and no sign of the hole changing shape. The holes are a bit oversized due to the drying of the bench. I plan to drill them out to 7/8 inch and filling them with a dowel. But they still work for holdfasts most of the time.
@@WoodAndShop `True because if the holes are round, then dog holes and holdfast holes are the same--- right? In any case, good idea, just drill a few 3/4 in holes!
@@vulcanville In my case, my holdfast holes are 3/4", and on most of my workbenches, the dog holes are also 3/4". One bench has 1" round dog holes. But I don't use holdfasts in my dog holes, in case it stretches the holes out.
I'm not an expert but in my opinion it depends on the holdfast. I just built a bench with a 4" thick top and I have those $20 Gramercy holdfasts and I had to really rough them up to get them to work and they are still inconsistent. Gramercy does say they are for 3.5" max bench top thickness and if greater to counter bore the underside like this video mentioned. I also have a 1" thick Nicholson side skirt and they work flawless on that. I've seen that the hand forged traditional holdfasts work much better in 4" and thicker benchtops, so I probably will be buying a pair of those.
With some work, the holdfasts will be fine with most thicknesses. I've used Gramercy holdfasts on bench tops between 3.5" and about 5". Like Rod said, you just need to sand the shaft, and then counterbore if needed.
becoming VERY difficult to find non-cast holdfasts Gramercy has been out of stick for quite awhile. All other offerings found are either cast (poorly) and/or very pricey. !!
These wouldnt work so well on pine benches? I built my bench out of pine all over and im guessing you'll need the strength of hardwood for durability? im mid process of my bench and im wanting holdfasts' for workholding but feel like.ive have to revert to bench dogs
Solid Snake Yeah, I made that bench about 10 years ago...1. Because i needed a bench, 2. Because it was cheap, 3. Because it was easy, 4. Because I needed the practice, and 5. Because I really needed a bench........All this time later, I haven’t needed to build another, it is rock solid.
Definitely use a metal hammer. You aren’t messing up the function of a holdfast by marring and dinging it. You will ruin the function of a wood mallet by banging it against metal at speed.
Thanks, but you seemed very nervous in front of the camera, there is no reason for it because you know your stuff and you want to spread it. You can skip the euh by the way. Thanks for sharing.
