Holding a wooden patchbox lid for carving.

[LehighBrad]

What's a good way to hold my wooden patchbox lid solidly so I can attempt to do some relief carving on it? I was just going to clamp it in my bench vise but I'm afraid the jaws would crush the dove tail angles I worked so hard to get right. Is there some sort of jig I could make to do this?

[mark esterly]

glue it to another block of wood with a piece paper in between. then you can clamp the other piece of wood in your vise. it will separate easily when finished as the paper will give and can easily be scraped or sanded off.

[Acer Saccharum]

I complete patchbox dovetails, fit them to the gun.

Then I have some wooden jaws for my vise that have dovetails cut in them to hold the lid while working on the topside. Shaping and carving are no problem. I have a picture....somewhere....

A plane I made to cut the dovetails:

[LehighBrad]

Thanks Acer.....I was thinking I could use some scrap pieces of wood for my vise jaws and cut angled grooves in them to fit the angled dove tails. Seems easiest to me. Plus I'll have the wood jaw clamps for future wooden patchbox lids! Thanks for the responses guys!!

[blunderbuss]

Nice plane

[alyce-james]

Acer; Thanks for posting a picture and sharing your method of working on wooden patch boxes. Great thinking. AJ

[Jim Kibler]

Leather in the vise jaws will allow the lid to be held without being damaged.  The vise I use has a jaw that swivels so it can match the lid taper.  Tighten it enough to hold it, but not damage it. 

[Habu]

In the words of Homer Simpson, "D'OH!"  I use a dovetail plane to make the lid, I can use the same plane to make vise adapters (instead of roughing out the adapter with a saw, and cleaning it up with a chisel). 

Probably about as fast, but it will give me another excuse to use the dovetail plane!

[rich pierce]

I thought everybody carves them on the gun.  Learned something mew.

[Mike Gahagan]

I have always held mine by putting a couple of small screws in the bottom where the patchbox spring will go.I use a #6x 3/8" long panhead sheet metal screw and screw them in about 1/8"-3/16" deep leaving enough sticking out to hold it in the vise jaws.I can both shape and carve the box that way.

[Birddog6]

I get it fitted, finished to size, & on the rifle, then carve it while on the rifle.  This retains it well, & you can see exactly how it is going to look on the rifle as you carve it.

Keith Lisle

[fm tim]

Rich Hujsa suggests cutting a dovetail opening in a scrap, then making a saw cut down the length of the scrap piece.  Place the lid in between the pieces and clamp it in a vise.  The pieces will compress on the lid dovetail and hold it tightly.  If made in two separate pieces, it will fit almost any lid and can be reused as needed

[heinz]

The plane is awesome! A curly maple dovetail shooting board :-)

[blunderbuss]

 
Here is something I forgot to mention I examined an original Jaeger once and have seen it on at least two wheelocks that the bottom part (dove tails) were glued on. The under part was shaped and glued and clamped . I saw a lock mortise done that way on a wheelock as well I would never have known it but a portion of the mortise was broken off and exposed the glued section
On all my Jaegers I glued and clamped the back section on the lid One of the Jaegers was made in the late 70's another in 1983 have been drug over $#*!'s half acre in rain, freezing weather and hot and held up very well .I used no special glue probally Elmer's.

[t.caster]

I use the same method as Rich Huesja, although I came up with it on my own.

[smshea]

Rich Hujsa suggests cutting a dovetail opening in a scrap, then making a saw cut down the length of the scrap piece.  Place the lid in between the pieces and clamp it in a vise.  The pieces will compress on the lid dovetail and hold it tightly.  If made in two separate pieces, it will fit almost any lid and can be reused as needed

That is how I do it.

[Acer Saccharum]

Eureeka! (or.... I found it!)

Wooden jaw inserts for your regular vise. Works for me.

[LehighBrad]

Wow......that looks suprisingly similar to what I made after your advice Acer!! Thanks again.