Fig. 82.
Fig. 83.
An iron vise is the proper thing for holding metal. There are many different kinds at various prices, but one of the simple patterns will probably answer every purpose. If you have room for only one bench this vise can be put at the back part of one end.
A small vise can be made of a hand-screw, the hand-screw itself being held in any desired position in the large bench-vise, but metal jaws are better for working on metal. You can make a rough sort of vise for metal-work with a piece of stout board or plank (Fig. 82). Find a couple of pieces of iron with screw holes, as you can probably do in a pile of waste iron junk, and screw them on the board and the bench to form metal jaws. The vise can be tightened or loosened by means of a big screw or bolt; or the board can be loosely fastened in the middle and tightened by wedging below (Fig. 83). A screw with a handle to turn it by and a nut for the thread is better, of course. Another form, such as you will find in use by leather-workers, can be easily made (Fig. 84), and works with the foot, the connection between the jaw and the treadle being made by a strap or rope. You can make a vise in some of these ways that will answer quite well for most of the metal-work you will have to do for some time, although such contrivances are less reliable and less convenient than a regular iron vise.
Fig. 84.
An anvil is often useful and is sometimes combined with a vise. It should have a flat steel surface and also a tapering rounded (conical) point. An old flat-iron does quite well. You can easily find some way to keep it in position on the filing-bench. You should have some sort of anvil, even if nothing better than a junk of old iron (which you can of course find somewhere), for you will be continually wanting to straighten nails, bend wire, and pound pieces of metal. Try to find a flat plate of thick sheet iron—¼" thick if you can—to fasten on the top of the filing-bench (Fig. 81). It is very handy for many anvil uses, straightening metal and nails, and for much pounding.
Finishing-Bench.—Have also a finishing-bench (Fig. 91) if possible,—if nothing more than a shelf or box,—to keep the regular work-bench neat and clean for its proper uses, for even a skilful workman can hardly avoid making a mess when it comes to using paint and varnish.