Tabletop Swivel Vise:

This vise clamps to the edge of your table and offers a wide array of positioning for holding your jewelry while you work.

This is a great option for a portable vise!  The jaws are lined with rubber so they won’t mar your metals.  The ball joint allows for a wide array of positions.  And they are fairly inexpensive.

A portable vise can be very useful for a jewelry maker…

There is a wide array of vises on the market.  In a traditional jewelry studio, you would find a bench vise bolted to a bench for maximum durability, but my focus on this site is to keep the tools portable and inexpensive.  Plus, even though I have a bench vise, I still love my tabletop swivel vise!

I use my vise most often for weaving with wire, but it’s also great for holding your pieces while you work.

The clamp can secure to a surface up to about 2” thick.  I have set mine up on my work table, the edge of a counter, my patio table outside, my coffee table…  You get the picture; it’s pretty flexible where you can use this vise.

The best thing about using a vise is that you can still use both your hands.  It’s a great way to hold your piece for filing, especially when you are striving for precision.  And the rubber jaws won’t mar the surface of your metals.

While these vises are great little work horses, the rubber can wear out if you are too aggressive with how you use them.  But let’s face it, as a beginner, you probably aren’t at risk for this, and they aren’t very expensive to replace.