Once I finished mortising the leg for the crisscross, I could turn my attention to the chop. The chop is the movable part of the leg vise that holds half the crisscross and the handwheel.
I went through basically the same process as the leg - center the mortise and then route it out 1 7/8" deep. I also finished up the corners using a 1/2" chisel. As you can see in the photo below, I visited Random Roger Green's shop to drill some much-needed holes into both the leg and the chop.
Once these holes were drilled, I could work on recessing the handwheel mount, the hex nut that installs into the inside of the leg and the brass bushing in the leg.
After these were completed, I threaded the hardened screw through both to discover the top of the chop was about 1/4" short; it must be flush with the top of the bench. I suspect this happened when Random pointed out that I needed more space for the handwheel mount on the inside of the chop, so I moved it north without thinking about how it would affect the chop top. Another lesson learned. This mistake meant I needed to lengthen the top and the only way to do that was to glue another small piece onto the chop.
As you can see, it worked out, but I would have preferred a single piece for the entire chop. Perhaps I'll make a new one someday...perhaps not.
Until next time...
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