A woodworking vise was a tool with a screw mechanism attached to a workbench, which was used during woodwork classes at Hill Valley High School in 1985. The vise was supposed to be used to hold an object while it was being worked on during woodwork. However, principal Stanford S. Strickland preferred the tool as a means to crush and destroy any Walkmans he confiscated during detention for those foolish enough to bring such a thing into school — after which he would invite the owner of each unit to come up to the front of the room and claim the shattered remains.