Here is how I modified this heavy-duty vise to work for sculpture and carving.
 

Here is what the vise looks like as it comes from the factory. I got my vise from Stewart-MacDonald (www.stewmac.com); their product #1820, now (2012) costs about $65.

Handles - One of the first things I did was replace the original metal handles with the round maple knob and maple locking lever handle shown at left. Although not strictly necessary, I like the feel of the wood better than the metal parts. The vice is quieter too - no rattling handles.

Vice Faces -I made up the maple faces by first drilling a hole slightly larger* than the outside diameter of the pipe nipple (next step). The block was sized and shaped to replace the original metal faces and then cut in half.

*The inside of the curved surfaces are lined with leather belting to increase holding power.

Base Assembly -At left is the rotating base assembly made up of (top-to-bottom):

- 2" Cast Iron Floor Flange
- 2" Pipe Nipple
- Fabricated Metal 'Keeper Plate'

The pipe nipple, which was 4" long, was screwed tightly into the flange; the threads were coated with epoxy (JB-Weld) to ensure tightness. I then cut the pipe to length to match vise face block thickness. I also polished the pipe up a bit with sandpaper to keep it turning smoothly without abrading the leather jaw liner material.

The metal base or 'Keeper' plate is shaped to allow the rotating unit to be removed when the  unit is carefully aligned with the opened vice faces.

Its main function is to keep the base unit from lifting or falling out of the vise. This is especially important when the vise is tilted.

A flat-headed bolt goes from bottom to top where it is secured by a large fender washer and nut.

Sub-Base - In use, I usually make up a sub-base board to create a solid, flat surface to fasten the bowl blank to. The outer holes in the 'wings' in the photo align with the bottoms of the four 'feet' of the bowl. The rotating base unit is fastened to the sub-base with 1" #10 screws.