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I try to add one new tool to the shop during each successive build. This time, I'd be delighted to have a troji so I can securely locate the guitar body while I'm sanding the rim.

And no joy.

I'd love to be pointed towards a set of plans for one. Anyone know of any?

Thanks!

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Peter Havriluk

See the link in this thread. It still works.

http://www.luthiersforum.com/forum/view ... hp?t=26915

Although not a troji, here is a handy vise for holding guitar bodies. It was inspired by a more substantial one that was made with pipe clamps and plywood made by someone on the OLF. I just knocked it together with a couple of cheap HF clamps and some MCP and it works O.K. It gets clamped to the bench and is easily removed and put away, so it takes up less space than a troji. A narrow board can be placed on the clamps to avoid the guitar accidently slipping through the clamp when desired.

My body holder/troji is a permanent installation built with two bench screws and is so critical to how I work for both build and repair that I’m not sure how I functioned without it.

I considered making it free-standing but bench integrated works better for me as with the mass of the bench I can clamp a body and apply a lot of force to the neck joint during resets without anything budging. The coarser thread pitch on the bench screws is also key compared to the finer pitch thread on the pipe clamps I used as a prototype. It allows quick adjustment, just a few turns, to fit any body depth and taper. Both jaws are removable 3/4” plywood with dense closed cell urethane foam padding. They drop in from the top with grooves that sit over the screws. Not visible in the pic is a web of straps connecting the bottom of each jaw that will catch an instrument should it accidentally fall when the vice is opened due to operator error.

Also not present in the picture is some leather padding that normally sits over the exposed portion of the vice screws.

I cannot recall the exact distance between screws but it’s somewhere around 32-36”.

I have a non-padded set of jaws too which allows this to be used as a large and powerful moxon vice which can hold large fixtures and tooling absolutely immobile. When screwed totally shut with the jaws removed it is very low-profile which is important in my small shop.

It is installed on the “rear” face of my bench and so a guitar in this vice leaves the main bench surface free. Often I will be performing some repair on the guitar in the troji and while waiting for a drop fill to cure or glue to dry I can still use the main bench to proceed with setup work etc

I use a Veritas twin screw vise with the exact type of foam Josh’s photo shows, but thicker. I bandsawed a curve into the foam, so that it grabs the edges of the guitar and doesn’t put any pressure on the plates. It works really well. The heavier duty foam has a good balance between rigidity and give.

I am toying with the idea of building something like it, but smaller and a bit lighter, and mounting it on something that will tilt, so as to avoid having to bend over to work on the sides. My back seems to complain more about the bending over as I get older. But if that’s not an issue, the twin screw end vise approach (handmade or store bought) is a good alternative to a stand alone Troji.

Instead of installing a hammock underneath, I just put a shop stool under the open bottom to keep a guitar from falling through.

I like the idea of using a web of straps or hammock in place of the board I am presently using - a better safety net. Thanks Josh and Don.

No worries, Clay. Instead of a stool, a person could just put a large dog bed under the vise. Or install the strap. Lots of ways to protect the guitar from a fall through the open bottom.

Here is the thread where I showed my setup. The relevant post is near the bottom of the thread.

viewtopic.php?f=10101&t=54264&p=712727&hilit=adams+buffer#p712727

Peter if you want any other ideas and examples you can see a bit of ours on the right side of the photo. I'm home today but the next time I'm at our city shop I'll take pics for you if you want me to?

We had a great location too which is a huge part of what makes these things so useful. As always a walk-through of how you intend to use it often reveal opportunities to make it better or that there are issues with the original plan.

We had bench-mounted and the bar-clamp-based free-standing versions, and it was just quicker and easier to use the free-standing floor version if there was available space in the shop. Ours were not fastened to the concrete floor... the oversized 3/4" plywood base (with well-chamfered edges) allowed body weight to be used where necessary to keep things in place. Easy enough to slide the trojy around to whatever space was open when we had 3-4 people working.

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For the times they are a changin'

- Bob Dylan

Here ya go. I thought I remembered that the OLF had plans available at one time and that Rod True had something to do with it way back then: http://www.luthiersforum.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=10117&t=26915&p=722357&hilit=troji#p722357

There's more threads too just search "troll" in the video and whatever plans forum.

I see someone already posted the link to the True thread.

The OLF used to have plans available and lots of us built them from the OLF plan. Maybe PM Lance and see if he has any more laying around he can let go of?

Anyone else notice that the Troji and the leg vise are basically the same tool?

I didn't but you make a great point Steven.

A few differences but basically a squeeze play in action.

Here is a link to the Troji Plan that I used:
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1CWNzQv ... sp=sharing

Thanks for that link Rob,

I had those plans and was going to build one a while back but somehow lost them. Well they may be on one of my hard drives but couldn't seem to find them. That is what happens when you have 4 terabytes of hard drive space on your PC and 5 terabyte backup drive... Yea, I"m a computer geek...

So thanks for posting those.

Cheers,
Bob

The one I bought from Canadian Luther Supply is bang on to that plan. Maybe it’s the same plan? Rod is from BC right?

That thing is ripe for someone to bang out a bunch on the CNC. I’m not offering, just an observation.


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I just bought mine… don’t remember what I paid but it’s a great tool!


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Thanks, folks. I didn't forget you, life intruded. I'm gonna have fun with this!

_________________
Peter Havriluk

In case you opt for a mounted vise instead of the stand-alone Troji, here are photos of the Veritas twin screw vise I mentioned above, with the closed cell foam (bandsawed curves) and the stool to prevent a guitar falling through:





Sorry, that second photo has some glare. The shop gets a lot of sunlight in the morning. As mentioned, this setup works really well for me. I am going to see about building something that tilts (to minimize bending over), but this vise excels at its job.

As you can see, I put small bits of pipe insulation over the screws of the vise in order to protect the guitar.

I have the same Veritas vice - on a slightly narrower bench - and it works great. Mine is narrow enough that an OM cannot slip through between the vice screws. I have pieces of an old exercise mat on the jaws, about 1 inch thick closed cell foam, and pipe insulation over the screws. You do have to be careful tightening the vise - it could easily crush the box.

The vice can also skew a little, making it nice to clamp a tapered object like a neck.

For sure, it has the oomph. That’s why I think the right foam (closed cell) and cutting arcs in the foam is important for this particular setup.

I’ll have to try shaped foam pads like yours. Looks safer and more secure. Thanks.

Clay,

here's something similar to your holder but a little more elaborate. From ANZLF, Shoulder Holder Guitar Vise

Hi Steve,
That is an interesting variation, and I would encourage people to follow the link you posted to see the entire post which explains it better.
I like the idea of the flexible jaw. His clamp looks a bit more fussy to set up, but stores away more compactly.
I use removable foam padding as shown and have made 4 smaller foam pads (not shown) that slip over top of the jaws that can be positioned so the sides of the guitar body are clamped firmly but the back and front are only clamped at the edges. The flexible jaw and a shaped foam caul ( like Don uses) if installed on the other jaw, might allow the entire surface to conform to the guitar body and better distribute the clamping pressure.