The VISES of Garage Journal

[maddawg308]

Got this one today, total cost - FREE. It's a small one, though, Littlestown No. 3, jaws are about 2-1/4" wide. Bolted to a piece of steel I guess to make it portable. Too small for my uses, I'm going to clean it up and repaint, then eBay it. It will be my first vise resto, might as well start small.

It looks worse than it is, it's just oily and grimy.

 

[Catalyze]

Jason - very clean vise you have....jaw faces look good and crisp

Maddawg - everyone needs a smaller exposed screw vise....they are fun to clean up and work well
Craig

 

[EOC_Jason]

Okay, yesterday I took a wire wheel to get a majority of the old paint & rust off. Then I bead blasted the whole thing. Polished the jaws and sides to make them nice and shiny and ground off the few bits of welding splatter (on the top of the jaws).

Taped it up and painted it gloss black (Rustoleum Enamel). Just put the second coat on this morning. Tomorrow I should be able to assemble it all together.

I polished & deburred the lead screw nut. Then cold-galvanized it and the pin that hold the nut in.

Made another base... This time I took some 3" drops of round bar and welded them in the tube. Also put some in the base before filling with concrete. This sucker is heavy! Painted the base Hunter Green... The color didn't come out right in the picture because the base was halfway in the sun & shade. It's darker than pictured...

Haven't decided if I want to hand-paint the lettering white or not. Depends on how my week goes I guess.

Will post a couple more pics once it's re-assembled.

 

[jsokoly]

I got the new Reed 4C cleaned up and lubed. It is tight, no wobbles and moves smooth as butter. Now I need a suitable stand for it!
Some before and after shots:

 

[TreePointer]

Living right in the middle of the Rust Belt, it makes me proud (and a little emotional) to see those hunks of metal restored to the glory they deserve.

to you all!

 

[bigcaddy]

Just got a package in the mail from a fellow member, thanks Autopts! This Craftsman is really clean. It needs some paint and polish and it will be as good as new.

 

[bigcaddy]

And here is the other 3" Craftsman/Reed i picked up last week. Its been sitting in the shock bath for a few days. First picture shows it right after being pulled out and ready to be hosed off. The next few are the finished vise with just a coat of wax.

It seems that the Craftsman branded Reeds of this vintage were painted a Cobalt blue, similar to the same era Schwinn bicycles. I might end up painting this one but i'm not sure yet.

 

[jsokoly]

And here is the other 3" Craftsman/Reed i picked up last week. Its been sitting in the shock bath for a few days. First picture shows it right after being pulled out and ready to be hosed off. The next few are the finished vise with just a coat of wax.

It seems that the Craftsman branded Reeds of this vintage were painted a Cobalt blue, similar to the same era Schwinn bicycles. I might end up painting this one but i'm not sure yet.

That looks great! I really like the reed shape. Question though, are those voids in the casting or battle scars?

 

[bigcaddy]

That looks great! I really like the reed shape. Question though, are those voids in the casting or battle scars?

They are casting imperfections. I've noticed this is more common on on the smaller Reeds. The larger Reed i finished a few days ago has one small void in the casting.

It only has a few hammer dings on the jaw towers and a few flattened teeth. The rest is untouched from what i could see.

 

[ecally]

Thanks to everyone on garagejournal, my tool collection has gone from mediocre to some really nice tools. Many of them are older tools that I now recognize the value of. My Dad had given me some SK and New Britain ratchets many years ago, he always told me they were good, but I never really appreciated it until this forum. He passed away a few years ago. I never thought I'd be interested in Vise's, but I follow this thread. I knew my Dad had a cart with two vises attached to it, and about 2 months ago when at my Moms I looked to see what they were. One is a Reed, which I have since fixed up. I did the best job I can right now. I know it isn't a bright paint job, but I had brown primer and brown enamel in the garage. I found a 2 threads by gregthor on restoring two Reeds, and between the two tutorials I was able to figure out how to take it apart and fix it up.

.

I am having a problem with the dynamic jaw of this vice wobbling left and right when I screw it in. I can grab the jaw and wiggle it when it's open. I am not sure if it did this or not, before I took it apart and cleaned it up. What could be causing this, and what could I try to do to fix it? I'm pretty sure I put it all back together correctly. It could be wear. Thanks,

 

[EOC_Jason]

I got the new Reed 4C cleaned up and lubed. It is tight, no wobbles and moves smooth as butter. Now I need a suitable stand for it!
Some before and after shots:

Very nice, very nice... You still royally **** though...

Looks like it is missing the set screw in the front that holds the retaining ring in place?

The guy locally with a Reed 104R won't budge from his price. Sad thing is I can get one on eBay for less and have it shipped to my door...

Tomorrow I'll be putting my Ridgid back together. I polished the slide and ways today. Just giving the paint a full 24hrs to dry before I bolt it all back together. She's a beaut... I think I'm going to try and paint the lettering white, I have some model paint and tiny brushes...

 

[C.BRAXMAIER]

Another restore for the colection, this is my Reed 104 that i picked up for $50.00 I think i found a new favorite love the desine of the split nut this thing is smooth...

 

[C.BRAXMAIER]

Another restore for the colection, this is my Reed 104 that i picked up for $50.00 I think i found a new favorite love the desine of the split nut this thing is smooth...

some more

 

[jsokoly]

Very nice, very nice... You still royally **** though...

Looks like it is missing the set screw in the front that holds the retaining ring in place?

The guy locally with a Reed 104R won't budge from his price. Sad thing is I can get one on eBay for less and have it shipped to my door...

Tomorrow I'll be putting my Ridgid back together. I polished the slide and ways today. Just giving the paint a full 24hrs to dry before I bolt it all back together. She's a beaut... I think I'm going to try and paint the lettering white, I have some model paint and tiny brushes...

The set screw is in there. I guess it's just shorter than most that I see on here.
I could really get hooked on Reeds.
An easier way to do the lettering is to go to Michael's craft store and get a paint pen.

 

[SHOOTIST357]

Finally got the jaws off the Columbian 504 1/2 -- Dynamic jaw was a piece of cake compared to the static jaw.

Now it is off to the electrolysis bath for a 24 hour soak ....

SHOOT

 

[coolreed]

That is a unique Craftsman Vise Big Caddy. Nice find.

...You ****!!!

 

[EOC_Jason]

Okay, just assembled my Ridge Tool #43 vise back together this morning and got it mounted on the stand. It really spanks the poor little Craftsman 3-1/2 that is sitting next to it... lol.

Vise weighs about 55-56 lbs... Stand weighs about 212 lbs... Bolts weigh another 1.5 lbs... All together together it's just a hair under 270 lbs...

EDIT - Added a couple before pics...

 

[jsokoly]

Great work Jason!

 

[bluebolt]

Okay, just assembled my Ridge Tool #43 vise back together this morning and got it mounted on the stand. It really spanks the poor little Craftsman 3-1/2 that is sitting next to it... lol.

Vise weighs about 55-56 lbs... Stand weighs about 212 lbs... Bolts weigh another 1.5 lbs... All together together it's just a hair under 270 lbs...

EDIT - Added a couple before pics...

Whoa, that vise says Simplex on one side and Ridge on the other! That confirms who made the Ridgid vises of that style!

 

[bluebolt]

Thats a good call Blue but I'm not sure Desmond ever used "T" style jaws did they?

Hey Autopts EOC JASON now has two Ridgid vises and his new 43 has Simplex on the static jaw on the opposite side of the Ridge lettering! A little more info to help us all out!

 

[EOC_Jason]

I have a PDF of some desmond simplex models, but they are only with the swivel base, so I'm not really sure.

My 41 with the swivel base weighs a solid 57 lbs... The desmond is listed as only 46 lbs.

My 43 without a base weighs 55.2 lbs... The desmond WITH a base weighs 70 lbs...

I don't know what the huge discrepancy could be unless the Desmond's 41 had hollow castings (like a Columbian) then stepped up to solid castings with the 43 and up???

I think the Ridge Tool Works (and later Ridgid) cast their own, but just copied the same design and model numbers.

Like the vise FAQ says, if you get one with the "T" jaws, you can't go wrong. But if you want to be picky, pay attention to the weight.

 

[WallynSC]

Pulled out of a dumpster today.

View media item 22711
View media item 22710

 

[EOC_Jason]

What were you doing digging through a dumpster?!!?!

Nice find though.

 

[nine4gmc]

What were you doing digging through a dumpster?!!?!

what do you mean, what was he doing?!?!?! I don't go out dumpster diving on a mission, but if I'm near a dumpster, I'm at least looking in and more than likely going balls out in that mofo after something...

 

[WallynSC]

What were you doing digging through a dumpster?!!?!

Nice find though.

Neighbor moved and I thought I would look, dropped my wife at home and grabbed a hoe and back to the dumpster.

 

[bigcaddy]

Cool dumpster find!! I wish my neighbors would throw away vises for me to find.

Did he have some kind of shop or was this his home use vise? I really find it odd when i see a pipe specific vise, as opposed to a bench vise, in someones home, unless they are in the plumbing trade.

The only time it didn't seem out of place at this old Italian guy that lives down the street from me. He had a huge garden and made up what seemed like miles of sprinkler lines to water everything. When he changed the garden with the seasons, so did the sprinkler lines. He didn't need a standard machinist/bench vise since he only made up 1/2" and 3/4" pipes.

 

[WallynSC]

Cool dumpster find!! I wish my neighbors would throw away vises for me to find.

Did he have some kind of shop or was this his home use vise?

I'm guessing that the pipe vise was acquired from their parents or grandparents and did not fit on a golf cart so in the dumpster.

Any clue on age of the pipe vise?

 

[bigcaddy]

Hard to tell since they were really mass produced. I have a ton of those laying around my office along with a ton of other dated sprinkler pipe installation tools.

The square nuts date to the 50's/60's but that doesn't mean it was brand new when being bolted down. Rigid tool co started in the 1920's

 

[jeffmoss26]

I have one of those sitting in my basement. I will get a pic tonight.

 

[EOC_Jason]

Did he have some kind of shop or was this his home use vise? I really find it odd when i see a pipe specific vise, as opposed to a bench vise, in someones home, unless they are in the plumbing trade.

My grandfather had one, but then again they had a small farm so they had lots of things that you wouldn't find in your average suburban garage.

Okay, I'll admit I do at least glance in a dumpster around here at work because you never know what people will throw out. Usually though I just grab anything big with metal to put in the pile for the scrap metal guy.

 

[bluebolt]

I have a PDF of some desmond simplex models, but they are only with the swivel base, so I'm not really sure.

My 41 with the swivel base weighs a solid 57 lbs... The desmond is listed as only 46 lbs.

My 43 without a base weighs 55.2 lbs... The desmond WITH a base weighs 70 lbs...

I don't know what the huge discrepancy could be unless the Desmond's 41 had hollow castings (like a Columbian) then stepped up to solid castings with the 43 and up???

I think the Ridge Tool Works (and later Ridgid) cast their own, but just copied the same design and model numbers.

Like the vise FAQ says, if you get one with the "T" jaws, you can't go wrong. But if you want to be picky, pay attention to the weight.

10 pounds is a lot of weight difference. After looking at too many pictures of Desmond vises I notice your 41 has the extra tang under the back of the slide for a third bolt for mounting without the swivel and the swivel base seems thicker than the normal Desmond vise. It would be interesting to get your 41 next to a Desmond 41 and compare them piece by piece.

 

[EOC_Jason]

Maybe one day I'll have a desmond...

Yeah, both of them the bases can be mounted with or without the swivel. I don't know if the 43 I got originally had a swivel base or not. It has a threaded hole in the bottom, and I'm about 99% sure I could put it on my 41 base.

I know the Colombians the non-swivel base models they do not drill the center threaded hole.

 

[SHOOTIST357]

gotta love the electrolysis bath...

Before and after -- 24 hour soak....

SHOOT

 

[bigcaddy]

Well i went to an estate sale today that had a ton of tools/ other good stuff and feel lucky to have walked away with all of my limbs intact. It was an insane frenzy of tools being grabbed but i was the only guy that was interested in the bench vise.


My first Morgan and its in pretty nice condition. Just a few saw marks on the jaw towers, no cracks or chips and the inserts are in good shape.


Does anybody have more info on Morgans? I did some reading on here and "Chicago" predates 1947 but i didn't find much else.

 

[billp603]

I've had a 4½” Columbian which I bought in the early 90’s that has suited my needs fine.

Then I joined and started reading GJ… So…

Here is one I picked up on CL a couple of weeks ago. It was listed without pictures but the description was intriguing, something like: Craftsman 4” vise, older, solid, they don’t make them like this anymore. $40 So I sent a reply and asked for some pictures or any text in the casting and ended up picking it up the next day on my way home from work. It’s a Craftsman 5202 with 4” jaws that open to 7.5” and it weighs 45lbs.

I’ve been reading all the great historical threads on here, especially a couple by Outlawmws and mjozefow, and learned a bunch but could not come up with much history on this one. It is one of those odd 52xx series numbers that appear to be in the gap of missing Craftsman catalogs during the WW2 era. With the Craftsman text in the casting rotated vertically but not arched it seems to be a unique one. I am 99% sure that it’s a Rock Island as all the geometric features match. It also has a “50” stamped in the bottom of the dynamic jaw.

Other than the multiple paint jobs it was in great working condition, so I disassembled it and stripped all the paint with a wire wheel to give it a nice clean paint job. I know the catalogs of that era listed blue enamel as the original color, but this one just “spoke” to me that it should be a charcoal grey. (Is that a sign that I’m hooked when I’m “hearing” a hunk of metal talking?!?!) So I picked up some Rustoleum Carbon Mist which gave me just the look I was after, even though it dried with a little bit of black spatter. It was not something I really needed but now I’ll have one for the garage and one in the basement, and the quality and “old American iron” heft of this is very cool!

 

[Cameronl]

My Reed 203 1/2. Came with the house when I purchased it about 6 years ago. It was mounted in the basement, but I have more use for it in the garage, so I finally mounted it there. It's thick with paint. I'll have to restore it one day.

I'm surprised how bent the handle is.

Restoration came soon than expected! I was messing around with sand blasting, getting the hang of it, and said, "what the hey" and grabbed the vise. It cleaned up nice and I gave it a shiny blue coat of paint.

...it was a little brighter than I thought it would come out, but I like it:

BTW, what's the significance of "1/2" in many of the Reed model numbers?

 

[dayid]

Well i went to an estate sale today that had a ton of tools/ other good stuff and feel lucky to have walked away with all of my limbs intact. It was an insane frenzy of tools being grabbed but i was the only guy that was interested in the bench vise.


My first Morgan and its in pretty nice condition. Just a few saw marks on the jaw towers, no cracks or chips and the inserts are in good shape.


Does anybody have more info on Morgans? I did some reading on here and "Chicago" predates 1947 but i didn't find much else.

Neat that yours is a fixed/cornered one - the other on here, from ZRX61 is a swivel, yet both marked the same otherwise...

The entirety of what I've found about Morgan (although w/o too much effort on my part) is this:

• Milwaukee Tool & Equipment Company Est. 1877
• Still around/online today: http://www.milwmal.com/
• Morgan Co. was founded in 1929 (1922?) (Morgan Chicago) (Catalogs dating 1921 and earlier have Morgan Chicago, so this can't be right.)
• Morgan CO. moved to Aurora around 1947 (Morgan Aurora)
• Morgan Co, Chicago was purchased by Milwaukee Tool & Equipment Co in 1970 (Morgan Milwaukee)

BTW, what's the significance of "1/2" in many of the Reed model numbers?

Generally, the extra 1/2" of jaw width.

e.g., Reed 103 = 3" jaw, Reed 103.5 = 3.5" jaw.

It is one of those odd 52xx series numbers that appear to be in the gap of missing Craftsman catalogs during the WW2 era. With the Craftsman text in the casting rotated vertically but not arched it seems to be a unique one. I am 99% sure that it’s a Rock Island as all the geometric features match. It also has a “50” stamped in the bottom of the dynamic jaw.

I would agree, it looks most like a Rock Island No 93 to me, but may be closer in real measurements to another. I've seen more Craftsman that were from Reed than Rock Island, but autopts can confirm that some definitely are Rock Islands

 

[dmw56]

Just bought this today at an estate sale for $60. Wilton A9450

 

[autopts]

Hey Autopts EOC JASON now has two Ridgid vises and his new 43 has Simplex on the static jaw on the opposite side of the Ridge lettering! A little more info to help us all out!

Yep, at one time I guess they did have "T" style jaws. There is a big Ridge/Simplex on Ebay right now. Maybe the same vintage. Another give-a- way is that Parker style front collar. They made one hel of a vise!

 

[autopts]

Just bought this today at an estate sale for $60. Wilton A9450

Thats nice! I have new jaws if they need replacing!! I like that style over the newer 450S by far.