The VISES of Garage Journal

[Shiftless]

There's 134--stamped on the side--at a local junque shoppe. They're asking $250 for it and it's been there a while and likely will be for a long while.

No idea what it is.

I saw an old Athol laying on the floor at one of those “junque shoppes” out in a desert town in northern Nevada. No marked price. It was solid and undamaged except on the surface. Super discolored and flakey like it had been in a fire long ago. I asked the proprietor about it and he couldnt remember anything. I walked him over to the pile of **** merchandise there on the floor. He said something ridiculous like $100. I pulled out $35 cash and said no credit card no receipt needed. He accepted my offer.

 

[bulletpruf]

This popped up for sale on FBMP near Houston - Ridge Tool Company - said to be 8" vise. Asking $700.

 

[Shiftless]

This popped up for sale on FBMP near Houston - Ridge Tool Company - said to be 8" vise. Asking $700.

Looks like a model 81 which would have 8 inch wide jaws.
There is an 81P listed on the master vise spreadsheet.

Looks like a very beefy stand. All in all, not a bad price for a super heavy duty vise.
Set it up next to the fireplace in your living room and use it to crack open walnuts while you are relaxing next to the fire.

 

[bulletpruf]

Looks like a model 81 which would have 8 inch wide jaws.
There is an 81P listed on the master vise spreadsheet.

Looks like a very beefy stand. All in all, not a bad price for a super heavy duty vise.
Set it up next to the fireplace in your living room and use it to crack open walnuts while you are relaxing next to the fire.

Yeah, I figured it wasn't a bad price, especially with the stand.

But I'm full up on vises and have a few more than need to be refurbished and no place to put them, so I'm going to pass.

 

[1Bad55Chevy]

This popped up for sale on FBMP near Houston - Ridge Tool Company - said to be 8" vise. Asking $700.

I use that same vise for cell phone repairs. Its a little light duty for an android so you have to be careful with it.

 

[KMScott]

Wish there was a pic of the other side. Love to see the model number. Bullet, did they provide spec:s? One in the spreadsheet is stationary.

 

[bulletpruf]

Wish there was a pic of the other side. Love to see the model number. Bullet, did they provide spec:s? One in the spreadsheet is stationary.

I can ask for a pic. No specs provided.

 

[Shiftless]

Wish there was a pic of the other side. Love to see the model number. Bullet, did they provide spec:s? One in the spreadsheet is stationary.

I played around with one of those pics and got this. 81 C OR G. P. M. ????

 

[KMScott]

Thank shift and Bullet. 81 CPN is the model number. Well worth $700 bucks.

 

[Shiftless]

Thank shift and Bullet. 81 CPN is the model number. Well worth $700 bucks.

You’re welcome
8 inch vises in decent shape without stands have been selling for over $1000

 

[bulletpruf]

You’re welcome
8 inch vises in decent shape without stands have been selling for over $1000

The seller has edited the listing; now he's saying it's a 6" vise.

 

[CRSINMICH]

Over the summer I managed to acquire and spiff up a number of small clamp ons. I fell behind in posting them so I'll have to do it in batches. Here's the first installment - two Champion style vises.

There's a hole in the front jaw of the #118. I decided to leave it when I noticed that it's threaded. Someone must have attached a jig or fixture.

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[Shiftless]

The seller has edited the listing; now he's saying it's a 6" vise.

Interesting!
The Ridgid model 81 listed on the big vise spreadsheet shows 8 inch wide jaws.
Maybe contact the seller directly and ask them to measure the jaw width. Something doesn’t make sense here…

 

[elmer]

Here is a 5" wilton I picked up the other day.

 

[ChefRex]

Here is a 5" wilton I picked the other day.

Here is a 5" wilton I picked the other day.

That's beautiful, is that your shop?

 

[elmer]

That's beautiful, is that your shop?

That's my shop. Mess and all.

 

[Shiftless]

Here is a 5" wilton I picked up the other day.

Nice find!
That vise is bigger than most viewers think. I had that model as my user vise on my 30x72 workbench. It took up almost the entire depth of the bench and was WAY overqualified for what I needed to get done in my far more modest workshop/corner of our 2 gar garage. I put it away on a shelf after I picked up a Wilton C1 which, because of its pipe jaws, is more useful for my situation.

 

[elmer]

Nice find!
That vise is bigger than most viewers think. I had that model as my user vise on my 30x72 workbench. It took up almost the entire depth of the bench and was WAY overqualified for what I needed to get done in my far more modest workshop/corner of our 2 gar garage. I put it away on a shelf after I picked up a Wilton C1 which, because of its pipe jaws, is more useful for my situation.

I think you are write, its hard to tell size with nothing in the picture for scale. This ones about 20" long. For me bigger is better.

 

[JustVicingIt]

Anyone recognize this logo?

 

[micahd1997]

This may be the gnarliest piece I’ve ever owned…But when you’re on the hunt for the oldest Prentiss vises, I guess beggars can’t be choosers. This is the oldest known Prentiss woodworker’s vise. It bears the rarely-seen “dog” style spindle lock, discontinued by Prentiss no later than 1891. Though few and far between, I’m certain there are other “dog” style Prentiss vises out there going unnoticed, so take this opportunity to check the undercarriage of YOUR vise to see if a dog stares back.

Now, for the obvious…this vise has some serious issues. As my dad used to say, “Even Ray Charles can see that”. However, the repair has to be one of the neatest I’ve ever seen. At some point in its life, the dovetail of the swivel jaw housing broke. But get this - it was repaired with a hand forged, hot-riveted steel bracket and filed cleanly to, once again, accept the swivel jaw. A repair like this tells of a time when tools weren’t cheap but skill and patience were a more common commodity. The blacksmith (presumably) who fixed this vise did so with care, and I’m sure it would butter his biscuits to know that it survived over 135 years of American history because of his patient toil.

 

[Shiftless]

Thats an incredible find. Thanks for posting the back story too.
(Picture saved to my files)

 

[micahd1997]

Thats an incredible find. Thanks for posting the back story too.
(Picture saved to files)

Thanks a bunch, Shiftless! Thanks for saving the picture to the files. I sure hope more of them pop up.

 

[Shiftless]

Thanks a bunch, Shiftless! Thanks for saving the picture to the files. I sure hope more of them pop up.

You’re welcome but when I said saved to files, I should have added saved to my private personal files. I have a pretty large vise album on my iPad.

 

[lardy1]

This is in a local auction with no description. I'm not sure if it's worth anything but am sharing it because I thought others may like seeing it.

 

[CRSINMICH]

From a 1920 Rock Island catalog and the patent drawing

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[682bear]

I have one very similar to that...



I don't know what it's worth... I bought it off FBM a couple of years ago. I think I paid $100, but will admit that may have been too much... or may have been a screaming deal. IDK...

-Bear

 

[JustVicingIt]

Asked above but maybe a better photo will help. Any ID on this one?

 

[RTM]

Asked above but maybe a better photo will help. Any ID on this one?

With that giant 6, and the sorta Wilton bullet shape up front, I’m gonna guess Asian ancestory. Surprised it has any marks other than the 6, usually they have a sticker for ID, as a single mfgr can make them for a dozen retailers that way.

 

[RTM]

Going to Google Lens for "help". ( In English that means Lies). I zoomed in on the logo, told it Vise Manufacturer Logo.


The logo on the vintage vise in the image appears to feature a "T" with an arrow pointing through it, alongside the number "66". This is the trademark for the Tokyo Vise Co., Ltd..
The company, also known as Tokyo Vise or T.V.C., is a manufacturer of machine vises and other workholding equipment. Vises made by the company are known for their quality and durability and are often discussed in online forums for machinists and tool collectors.

Needless to say, googling "Tokyo Vise" co. Brought up no results, offered me a TV show called Tokyo Vice

Persistence sometimes finds stuff, so I used Google translate to get the character for this phrase in Japanese.


東京バイス

Thus gave me six book results, 1983 and newer. All results translated back to Vice when prompted to show the English.
Regular google returned lots of Tokyo Vice show again


Forcing translate to use Vise got the word Manriki, which again got me nowhere. Another productive afternoon, too tired to do yard work. And AI didn’t save the day, again.

 

[JustVicingIt]

Going to Google Lens for "help". ( In English that means Lies). I zoomed in on the logo, told it Vise Manufacturer Logo.


The logo on the vintage vise in the image appears to feature a "T" with an arrow pointing through it, alongside the number "66". This is the trademark for the Tokyo Vise Co., Ltd..
The company, also known as Tokyo Vise or T.V.C., is a manufacturer of machine vises and other workholding equipment. Vises made by the company are known for their quality and durability and are often discussed in online forums for machinists and tool collectors.

Needless to say, googling "Tokyo Vise" co. Brought up no results, offered me a TV show called Tokyo Vice

Persistence sometimes finds stuff, so I used Google translate to get the character for this phrase in Japanese.


東京バイス

Thus gave me six book results, 1983 and newer. All results translated back to Vice when prompted to show the English.
Regular google returned lots of Tokyo Vice show again


Forcing translate to use Vise got the word Manriki, which again got me nowhere. Another productive afternoon, too tired to do yard work. And AI didn’t save the day, again.

Masterful

 

[Parzival09]

Just got this bad boy at our shop… it’s a KVice with a 14” jaw opening and 8” wide jaws- would definitely recommend if you want a fireball without the price tag

 

[hyenaz]

How’s it going guys! I’m reaching out to see if anyone happens to have a CAD model on replacement jaws for Wilton early Chicago C1 (1945) Dimensions are 4-1/2” x 1” x 5/8” (2-3/8”) C-C mounting holes

Thank you in advance to anyone that chimes in

 

[KMScott]

How’s it going guys! I’m reaching out to see if anyone happens to have a CAD model on replacement jaws for Wilton early Chicago C1 (1945) Dimensions are 4-1/2” x 1” x 5/8” (2-3/8”) C-C mounting holes

Thank you in advance to anyone that chimes in

Looks like you have all the spec:s you need except for Wilton used 5/16 screws (.343 dia. thru x .5 dia x .370 deep counter bore.). And the serrations are cut tilting the jaw at 30 degrees with a .125 pitch X roughly .025 deep with a 90 degree cutter.

 

[682bear]

I just acquired a 'new' Chas. Parker...











It's a 383½... in pretty good condition...

-Bear

 

[hyenaz]

Looks like you have all the spec:s you need except for Wilton used 5/16 screws (.343 dia. thru x .5 dia x .370 deep counter bore.). And the serrations are cut tilting the jaw at 30 degrees with a .125 pitch X roughly .025 deep with a 90 degree cutter.

You just helped me complete the last puzzle piece! That was the only info I was missing to complete an order to get a set machined. Thank you, I owe you one

 

[wrenchr]

A good tack weld on the bolt to nut solves that for the most part, or at least makes the removal process far more noisy/obvious...

Back more than 55 years ago (parents were still married, I was barely in HS) someone tired to steal the 10,000 lb winch of my dads's international (former house mover's truck...). I found broken wrenches in front of the truck... Winch was still there, but the power cables had been cut.

Damn thieves. Get a job.

 

[M.Brane]

So everybody's been posting up their big old awesome, and rare vises. Say hello to my little friend:



I've had this thing so long I don't even remember where I got it from. I've repaired it more times than I can remember as well as the screw head is secured by a roll pin which has broken many times while cranking on it much harder than I should. It keeps on truckin' though. One of my most used tools. I have bigger vises now so it's life has gotten easier, but it's still my go-to most of the time.

 

[nmeyer414]

I have a new 5 1/2" reversible wilton



And a roughly 60 year old olympia 5" multi-purpose bench vise.

 

[KMScott]

Building a set of jaws for my Bonney 160. Jaws are 5-1/4” wide. Parker style jaws. I tell you what, these jaws are identical to ones I’ve made for Parker’s. Pretty close to a negative 20 degrees undercut.

Thinking Parker supplied or actually cut the jaws and jaw supports. Only difference is Bonney used three pins per jaw instead of 2 pins. Pretty cool vise. Gotta figure out with Royce’s help on how to repair anvil area. Seems Bonny skimped on wall thickness around the horn. I’ll post finished pics next year.

 

[Outlawmws]

I would have thought Bonney contracted the whole vise out to Parker. They were a hand tool Co, not vises and anvils.