Rockwell’s Jawhorse is a versatile 3-leg portable work support vise that is easy to use and provides strong clamping pressure. It folds down quickly for transport or storage, and multiple accessories are available that will increase its versatility further.
Right now on Amazon, there is a $25 coupon you can “clip” to get an instant discount. The final price of $125 ($149.99 – $25) is pretty darned good for what you get.
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This is the original Jawhorse, model RK9000.
The Craftsman Job Vise is another sturdy 3-leg portable work support vise, and is based on the vise design that preceded Rockwell’s Jawhorse. Craftsman differentiates the Job Vise from other similar designs on the market by bundling it with a jaw extension that allows it to clamp longer workpieces up to 55″ wide.
The Job Vise is currently on sale at Sears for $80, with your choice of free shipping or free in-store pickup.
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Sears considers this to be a Hot Buy, so additional coupon codes will not apply to your order.
Dennis
I love my Jawhorse. It’s an extremely useful tool. Works great. I wind up using it for all sorts of projects, the only thing that bugs me is that it can’t hold a standard sheet of plywood. Back when I got mine that capability didn’t exist, now they have the Plywood Jaw. It looks like the coupon is only for the original (37″ jaw opening) and not the newer Sheetmaster with 49″ jaw opening. To get the equivalent ability to clamp a 4 foot panel you would need the Jawhorse, and the Plywood jaw, another $73. So with coupon $198, as opposed to the Jawhorse Sheetmaster which is $185. I’ve never tried the Craftsman product, so I can’t speak to it’s quality or how well it functions. If you are buying a Jawhorse think about whether you would ever want to clamp a full sheet of plywood, if there is a chance that will come up, you’ll kick yourself for not getting the Sheetmaster.
Stuart
The Sheetmaster (ToolGuyd review) can clamp full 48″ sheets of plywood, but it is also pricier and heavier. I like the way the Sheetmaster folds up, but on certain terrain the two wheels now tend to wobble a bit, causing me to slow down.
The foldable plywood jaw isn’t too expensive at $58, and I like the idea of the space-saving design.
It’s a tough decision, but with the regular Jawhorse, one can always add on the plywood jaw later on. For frequent plywood clamping, the Sheetmaster would be the better option.
Javier
I’m interested in one of these. I do have a question though, if I used one of these to hold a piece of plywood to make a work table would it be stable? I’m sure the front would be but the rear only having one leg and tripod design seems like it would be un sturdy if I used as a table and put weight on the rear sides of the table.
Stuart
If you support it from underneath, either directly or with scrap wood, it *should* be stable enough. The tripod design is quite strong and secure.
The bigger concern would be placing anything on the plywood’s unsupported ends. You would need two Jawhorses, or one Jawhorse and several support brackets, to create a somewhat stable worksurface, and even then there are going to be better options for that kind of money.
If you’re talking about a 2′ x 4′ plywood sheet, it might work okay in a pinch, but still wouldn’t be ideal.