The VISES of Garage Journal

[AndrewH]

Here's one for the Journal. I'm sure its not the first. Its a 288 1/2 Parker. It might be the heaviest 4 1/2" combo made. It comes in at 119 lbs and for its age, its nice. It even has that 3rd long pipe jaw that always seems to get lost.

You bought that from CL Chicago, I was going to pick it up on Saturday if it was still available. Nice score!

 

[master Zoda]

I still don't know that much about this vise but my new experience with this wonderful site inspired me to rush this project. Got this vise for free when I saved it from becoming scrap when my neighbor was cleaning up her garage. It is missing a few parts and I could not get the rear jaw to swivel but I am really happy with it.

 

[drivesitfar]

RMSG:it was a good thing you held off on the new Wilton purchase. i would buy all the $28 Polish vises the guy is selling. the static jaw is the front one in case you didn't already try it. nice find. those are not the vise that the Wilton was but heck you can buy 7 of them for the same price. wishing you lived closer to me an again nice score.

Master Z:awesome job on that old Prentiss. the back swivel jaw might release if you squirt in a little Kroil every so often and give it a little pop with a rubber mallet. it looks like the swivel pin is missing which can easily be made in case you do get it to move. i love those Coachmaker's vise jaws.

Norton:Everyone should have an Anvil tree in their shop. thanks for sharing the picture you posted on the Anvil thread that i didn't know existed.

 

[rmsg0040]

^^ Thanks, I had my eye on about 3 vises: Polish, Record 5, and the Rock River Wilton knock off

Once confirmed that the Rock River was not a Wilton, but an offshore make, I skipped on it. Already have a Record 5, so I skipped on that even though it was for $30. Which left me with the Polish vise. I would have or should have grabbed the other Polish he had but I already dropped 7 bills yesterday on a scissors lift. Hopefully another member gets it. I might tuck it away for another 30 years as my Record vises are operational, LOL

 

[balane]

Today's find.......I think I did good because it was free!

I think those are really cool. Is that a 3.5" model or bigger? That's a you **** score for sure!

 

[balane]

Here's a 1988 C1 I just finished. It's Italian Olive in color and this vise has seen exceptionally little use. We all know the specs but it has 4 1/2" jaws, pipe jaws, 74 pounds and is quite large.

.

 

[oldldh]

4 1/2" inch vises range from light to real heavy...

That thing almost weighs as much as a Craftsman 5197...

Almost...

Close, but no cigar...

The 5197's 77 pounds reigns supreme...

Now, if I could just find one...

(That's a nice Wilton...Ya Dun Gud, Bubba!!!)

I've gotta get me a stump!!!

 

[KMScott]

Here are two interesting vises, built in Germany possibly during Hitlers reign. These vises are called HEUER D.R.P. , HEUER is basically Wilton in Germany . DRP is Deutsch Reich Patent made for the Germany army prior 1940 also know as the Germany Empire Vise. the black one is 6 inch (150mm) and the gray one is 5 inch (125mm), they are very stream line made from forged steel and the dynamic jaws is the opposite from American vises. The company is now know as Brockhause Heuer.

Just wanted to share these interesting vises sent to me from Tom, a good friend that lives in Texas.

 

[Outlawmws]

I'm not recognizing this one: styling has an English flavor, and I'm pretty certain it's not Asian...

Probably not Record, possibly Woden or Paramo?

Anyone?


The good news it is free; the bad news is the bench has to go with it...

Probably not a happening thing right now...

 

[AndrewH]

Well guys, here's a Reed 104 1/2 that I bought a couple months ago, it's been sitting because I couldn't get the paint off of it. Until now, I recently bought a bottle of paint stripper from Walmart thinking it wouldn't do much, well this stuff is a miracle product, it bubbles the paint right off in less than 5 seconds. I created a fast system, brush on the paint stripper, wait 1 minute, wipe it all off and hit it with the wire wheel. It's amazing the progress I made in 2 hours.

Now I just have to decide on a paint scheme. As much as I hate red, this Reed is begging for it!

I shall never fear buying a painted vise ever again!

Outlawmws: I'm pretty sure that's a Paramo though I could be wrong, it looks like every picture of one that I've seen.

 

[drivesitfar]

Andrew:Your Reed looks great naked and thanks for sharing your find on how to remove old paint fairly easily. in case you are thinking red JasonEOC painted that exact vise a few months ago (or it was a Reed and maybe a different jaw size) arrest me red. he also filled in the well around the Reed name on the side in white. it looked pretty cool if you want to see what yours might look like without having to paint it first.

Mark:nice job restoring your Reed which sounded like you saved it from the scrap yard. looking good now.

Outlaw:that double swivel base and those lines scream one of the English names or might be their Japanese counterpart Eron.

if you don't need the bench and it has to be in the package deal do you need me to loan you my battery operated sawsall?

Edit: does this vise look like the one you have in your picture sitting on a bench? the guy that has this one wants $100 for it.

 

[va.grouseman]

Previously posted by Master Zoda[/

I still don't know that much about this vise but my new experience with this wonderful site inspired me to rush this project. Got this vise for free when I saved it from becoming scrap when my neighbor was cleaning up her garage. It is missing a few parts and I could not get the rear jaw to swivel but I am really happy with it.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Zoda, you've done a beautiful job on the vise, but that thing is going to haunt you till you see that back jaw swivel and see how it is put together. You can do it if you just take your time, don't get in a hurry. You can always repair the paint job later. I have a Morgan with a swivel jaw that took me a year to unfreeze simply because I would piddle with it a while and get frustrated and set it back, but not before dousing with penetrating oil. The fellow that owned it had used it for 35 years and didn't know the jaw would swivel. Well finally the pin loosened up enough that I could punch it out and then with the tapping back and forth on the back of the swivel with a hard rubber hammer, she came loose. Vibration is your friend, vibration is as good a lubricant as is made, used gingerly of course. I want to see that thing freed up also, so do it for me.

 

[Fretters]

I'm not recognizing this one: styling has an English flavor, and I'm pretty certain it's not Asian...

Probably not Record, possibly Woden or Paramo?

Possibly Record/Paramo. I think their mechanic range of vices had that short stubby style base, (I'm ignoring the swivel mount in that description), though I will honestly say that I personally don't think it's one of the old English brands. It just has a cheesy look about it which I can't quite put my finger on.

 

[Trey T]

Balance:

Nice Wilton C1

 

[robmack]

This is my latest acquisition from Her Majesty's stores of surplus Crown Assets, a Wilton 500S, requiring very little of my after-tax earnings to buy:

It's my first Wilton so, to satisfy my own interest, I am trying to figure out its age. The stamp on the keyway of the round barrel says "4 93":

Does this mean the vise was manufactured in 1993 (month-year of manufacture) or 1988 (month-year of 5 year warranty expiration)?

 

[RedVise]

here's a Simplex 41 P I finished cleaning up. A little grease on the slides and screw and it's smooth as can be.
Time to send it down the road to a new home.

Used a paint pen for the first time, I like those !!

Brian

 

[AndrewH]

Andrew:Your Reed looks great naked and thanks for sharing your find on how to remove old paint fairly easily. in case you are thinking red JasonEOC painted that exact vise a few months ago (or it was a Reed and maybe a different jaw size) arrest me red. he also filled in the well around the Reed name on the side in white. it looked pretty cool if you want to see what yours might look like without having to paint it first.

I stopped by the store on my way to work, decided on Rustoleum Professional Regal Red, I'm sure others have used it as well so I'm hoping it turns out good. I haven't decided however if I'm going to do the raised letters in white or black yet!

 

[Filson]

Here's a 1988 C1 I just finished. It's Italian Olive in color and this vise has seen exceptionally little use. We all know the specs but it has 4 1/2" jaws, pipe jaws, 74 pounds and is quite large.

.

Now that is a Wilton I'd actually want to buy.

 

[AndrewH]

Now that is a Wilton I'd actually want to buy.

It'll be on eBay in no time, if it's not already

 

[Jan-Sietze]

Heuer vise is the most common in Europe,
very good quality and virtually indestructible.

http://www.schraubstock.de/en/welcome/

 

[balane]

It'll be on eBay in no time, if it's not already

It will be posted on eBay Sunday evening starting at $0.99 with no reserve.

 

[taumac]

here's a Simplex 41 P I finished cleaning up. A little grease on the slides and screw and it's smooth as can be.
Time to send it down the road to a new home.

Used a paint pen for the first time, I like those !!

Brian

Yep I've seen it posted on CL. Nice vise

Have a good one, Gerard

Florida GJers ( FGJ)
http://www.garagejournal.com/forum/group.php?groupid=117
The 5 Stitches Garage
http://www.garagejournal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=211899

 

[KMScott]

Heuer vise is the most common in Europe,
very good quality and virtually indestructible.

http://www.schraubstock.de/en/welcome/

They have changed some since the 40's and possible to the better. They are well built, in fact who is building a better quality vise today in the USA? Just do not see many of these in the States. The biggest they make is a 180mm ( over 7 inches) But only weights 63lbs with out the swivel base.

 

[Monte]

Here are two interesting vises, built in Germany possibly during Hitlers reign. These vises are called HEUER D.R.P. , HEUER is basically Wilton in Germany . DRP is Deutsch Reich Patent made for the Germany army prior 1940 also know as the Germany Empire Vise. the black one is 6 inch (150mm) and the gray one is 5 inch (125mm), they are very stream line made from forged steel and the dynamic jaws is the opposite from American vises. The company is now know as Brockhause Heuer.
Just wanted to share these interesting vises sent to me from Tom, a good friend that lives in Texas.

here´s a video of how Heuer vises were made in the past:

<iframe width="640" height="480" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/dNWsR3BnAAI" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>

 

[Mark in Indiana]

Mark:nice job restoring your Reed which sounded like you saved it from the scrap yard. looking good now.

Thank you for your kind words. Like most of us, I'm passionate about the value of quality of vintage tools & equipment. Unfortunately there is too much power given to the bean counters
That short quality for profit...sorry, enough of my rant.

 

[Mark in Indiana]

Thanks Mark, I couldn't make out what my 204-1/2 said, but yours clears it up. It just says Pat Nov 3, 1908 none of the other patents. I am guessing that makes mine a shade older.

I got the swivel base freed up today

Here are some pics of the $10 beauty

Glad my information helped. BTW: I'm jealous. I paid $12 for mine.

 

[Mark in Indiana]

OK friends. I wanted to post this lesson that I learned. This morning I went to an estate sale and bought tools. Among my pick was a small, exposed screw Littlestown vise. While I was picking, I set vise down in a place set aside by the owner so I could pick some more stuff. While I was shopping, some "pond scum" stole my vise.

Now, I'm not crying. This was totally my fault. I'm posting this to advise those who go to auctions and sales to guard your picks by having a spotter watch your stuff or get it to your truck before you let it out of your sight. Fortunately the big profit items didn't get nabbed

 

[KMScott]

Thanks Monte, I enjoyed the video, especially how they penned the handles knob together. Wish I had one of those hammer punch machines.

 

[Outlawmws]

Cool Vid Monte! I even caught onto a few of the words!

 

[balane]

Das flim war unglaublich.

 

[Outlawmws]

Outlaw:that double swivel base and those lines scream one of the English names or might be their Japanese counterpart Eron.

if you don't need the bench and it has to be in the package deal do you need me to loan you my battery operated sawsall?

Edit: does this vise look like the one you have in your picture sitting on a bench? the guy that has this one wants $100 for it.

Woden was another brand I should have remembered Eron is another possibility.

That one you posted doesn't map to the one I did other than superficially, so still not solid link... base and other details are different.

Actually the bench doesn't look half bad, but @ 36" high, 36 wide and 8 ft long it ain't happening here. and I just don't wan't to deal with scrapping it out.

I missed on a nice looking Pattern Vise by a day last night also...

 

[Outlawmws]

Possibly Record/Paramo. I think their mechanic range of vices had that short stubby style base, (I'm ignoring the swivel mount in that description), though I will honestly say that I personally don't think it's one of the old English brands. It just has a cheesy look about it which I can't quite put my finger on.

Not sure what connotation "cheesy" has over there, but I'm guessing its negative... It's a tough one for sure...

 

[jakemac]

Actually the bench doesn't look half bad, but @ 36" high, 36 wide and 8 ft long it ain't happening here. and I just don't wan't to deal with scrapping it out.

Outside bench !

 

[Fretters]

Not sure what connotation "cheesy" has over there, but I'm guessing its negative...

Aye, it's not generally good. Can definitely see English style characteristics, but it looks like some half hearted attempt. Things like the definition on the bracing usually have well defined curves and some meat about them, whereas that one looks a bit flat and skimpy, and where the third bolt hole under the rear of the slide generally goes looks to be either broken short or practically nonexistent. Plus, that 3 on the front jaw. The likes of Woden did change their designations somewhat, but even the short version would have been something like B3 or suchlike, not just a 3, judging from all of the ones I can recall seeing. If I had to guess, I'd be 95% sure on that one likely being an import copy. Of course, I could be completely and utterly wrong, but it just doesn't look right, IMHO.

 

[Fretters]

Now I just have to decide on a paint scheme. As much as I hate red, this Reed is begging for it!

Looking at that, that honestly looks just too nice as is to paint it. I'd be tempted to use a method someone suggested to me and make a paste up for that one from Linseed Oil and graphite powder and just rub that on. It'll give it protection whilst enhancing the current look. IMHO, that honestly looks **** as is.

 

[Outlawmws]

Well guys, here's a Reed 104 1/2 that I bought a couple months ago, it's been sitting because I couldn't get the paint off of it. Until now, I recently bought a bottle of paint stripper from Walmart thinking it wouldn't do much, well this stuff is a miracle product, it bubbles the paint right off in less than 5 seconds. I created a fast system, brush on the paint stripper, wait 1 minute, wipe it all off and hit it with the wire wheel. It's amazing the progress I made in 2 hours.

Now I just have to decide on a paint scheme. As much as I hate red, this Reed is begging for it!

I shall never fear buying a painted vise ever again!

Outlawmws: I'm pretty sure that's a Paramo though I could be wrong, it looks like every picture of one that I've seen.

Andrew, so what is the name of this miracle stripper?

I've got two Paramo's (and a Woden but not a single Record... ), and its, not like any of them...

 

[cptn_zippy]

Can anyone explain what the "R" means for Reed vises? I thought it meant it was a later version with the blunt ball on the screw, but CPTN ZIPPY's vise clearly has a full ball on the screw.

Well, I think I can answer this. When I bought the vise, I did some research and found this thread, here on GJ.

http://www.garagejournal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=131601

It shows a 204, with the lead screw and a retaining collar on the underside. Mine is a 204R, and it has a "split-nut" that threads into the dynamic jaw. (See attached pictures)

That split nut is a crazy thing…I assumed it was broken, but then I realized that there was no way for it to be installed without it being split.

Third pic is the vise, after being disassembled and cleaned…I really want to strip and repaint it, but I have no sandblasting tools/electrolysis setup at my disposal.

J

 

[Filson]

OK friends. I wanted to post this lesson that I learned. This morning I went to an estate sale and bought tools. Among my pick was a small, exposed screw Littlestown vise. While I was picking, I set vise down in a place set aside by the owner so I could pick some more stuff. While I was shopping, some "pond scum" stole my vise.

Now, I'm not crying. This was totally my fault. I'm posting this to advise those who go to auctions and sales to guard your picks by having a spotter watch your stuff or get it to your truck before you let it out of your sight. Fortunately the big profit items didn't get nabbed

Mark,

Dang that ***** man. =/

If it's something big/heavy enough I can't comfortably carry for a few minutes while I look at the rest of the stuff, I'll give them the money, and take it to my truck, than I head back to the sale to look around.

Now to add an additional point on that idea, I would also recommend you do it if you get something valuable at a real steal. I bought a box full (maybe 12-15) of excellent condition hunting books for $3 bucks. As I wandered out of the sale slowly, looking at a few more things on the way out (and trying not to smile at my score), someone in the middle of the sale loudly said "Are all of those new Craig Boddington books? Those run like $30 to $50 bucks each!" right in front of the person running the sale. It made for an awkward moment that I would have rather avoided.

When you find something nice, buy it, take it straight to your truck, than return.

 

[sgs236]

Never seen a vise like this one and the price looks decent for the size. I wonder if it is really a railroad vise?

http://pittsburgh.craigslist.org/tls/4508224791.html

 

[AndrewH]

Mark,

Dang that ***** man. =/

If it's something big/heavy enough I can't comfortably carry for a few minutes while I look at the rest of the stuff, I'll give them the money, and take it to my truck, than I head back to the sale to look around.

Now to add an additional point on that idea, I would also recommend you do it if you get something valuable at a real steal. I bought a box full (maybe 12-15) of excellent condition hunting books for $3 bucks. As I wandered out of the sale slowly, looking at a few more things on the way out (and trying not to smile at my score), someone in the middle of the sale loudly said "Are all of those new Craig Boddington books? Those run like $30 to $50 bucks each!" right in front of the person running the sale. It made for an awkward moment that I would have rather avoided.

When you find something nice, buy it, take it straight to your truck, than return.

Jeez, why does everyone assume all of us on here drive trucks!? My little Jetta has picked up many vises and successfully hauled them home, oh and not to mention all while doing it at 38 mpg!