Modern Roubo Woodworking Workbench with crisscross scissor arm leg vise

grabcad

This woodworking workbench is my concept of a modern bench with classic parts. A popular mechanism for maintaining parallelism in vise jaws began to surface in the American patent record in the mid 19th century. There are also documented sources of this mechanism in the La Forge Royale catalog, Paris, late 19th to early 20th c. This device is basically two pieces or "arms" of metal or wood, equal in length, joined in the middle to create a pivot. The upper ends of the arms (also on pivots) are joined to the bench’s leg and the chop. The resulting mechanism not only maintains a parallel opening, but also supports the weight of itself, the vise screw, and the chop. The beauty of the mechanism is its simplicity. In modern times this mechanism has become known as the "St. Andrew Cross" that was crucified on an "X"-shaped cross.