The VISES of Garage Journal

[Thrumcap]

Well, I was on vacation end of this week and elected to do some vise pickin' on the road.
So, I lined up some and set off.

First stop, Trois-Rivières, Quebec, 11 hours away.
Here we found a Hollands 14 4" vise. In great shape with good jaw serrations.

After the usual language translation issues and arm waving, a deal was made. Next stop, Mascouche, Quebec, a mere hour and a half away. Here, we found a Parker 827 vise with 7" jaws, 228 lbs.

Great condition! Good jaws, intact garter, and well oiled. It apparently came out of the CPR railway workshop in Montreal. It dismantled in two minutes into three pieces which was a blessing. $150 later, off I went to Ottawa, two hours away and that was the end to a good day.
On the way back, I stopped in St. John, New Brunswick where I had seen a $30 vise on kijiji that didn't resemble anything I'd seen before. This was a woodworking vise with a big single handle on the front.

After a bit of research, I found out this is called a Sheldon vise, early 1900s. It uses a cam and rack bar setup to do its clamping. No screw. So, it takes about a quarter turn to tighten. It works great, so in the cleanup queue it goes.

Thrumcap

 

[Mark in Indiana]

Vise alert.
Looks like a good one for the price. I don't have a dog in this race.



Craftsman 4" Vice
http://evansville.craigslist.org/tls/5155062075.html

 

[drivesitfar]

Mark: there's a couple chunks of the cast missing behind the removable jaws on that Craftsman. just an FYI to those looking for one to buy.

 

[va.grouseman]

Thrumcap, What pray-tell, did you give for the 827 Parker if you don't mind me asking?

 

[Outlawmws]

Thrumcap, What pray-tell, did you give for the 827 Parker if you don't mind me asking?

I'm not him but: "Great condition! Good jaws, intact garter, and well oiled. It apparently came out of the CPR railway workshop in Montreal. It dismantled in two minutes into three pieces which was a blessing. $150 "

 

[bagged89s10]

I'm trying to buy a Reed 204R but the guy want a little more than I really want to spend. Damn rusty vise prices.

 

[Outlawmws]

Vise alert.
Looks like a good one for the price. I don't have a dog in this race.



Craftsman 4" Vice
http://evansville.craigslist.org/tls/5155062075.html

Mark: there's a couple chunks of the cast missing behind the removable jaws on that Craftsman. just an FYI to those looking for one to buy.

Sand blasted too; I hate if when they do that...

 

[2jz4me]

Well, I was on vacation end of this week and elected to do some vise pickin' on the road.
So, I lined up some and set off.

Oh my gosh! Look at that Parker! I give up. I'll just leave garage journal and continue to dream of finding such a sweet vise.
Want to make a quick $50 on that parker?

 

[bagged89s10]

Sand blasted too; I hate if when they do that...

I don't like the sandblasted look on old vises either.

 

[bagged89s10]

Well, I was on vacation end of this week and elected to do some vise pickin' on the road.

So, I lined up some and set off.



First stop, Trois-Rivières, Quebec, 11 hours away.

Here we found a Hollands 14 4" vise. In great shape with good jaw serrations.

After the usual language translation issues and arm waving, a deal was made. Next stop, Mascouche, Quebec, a mere hour and a half away. Here, we found a Parker 237 vise with 7" jaws, 228 lbs.

Great condition! Good jaws, intact garter, and well oiled. It apparently came out of the CPR railway workshop in Montreal. It dismantled in two minutes into three pieces which was a blessing. $150 later, off I went to Ottawa, two hours away and that was the end to a good day.

On the way back, I stopped in St. John, New Brunswick where I had seen a $30 vise on kijiji that didn't resemble anything I'd seen before. This was a woodworking vise with a big single handle on the front.

After a bit of research, I found out this is called a Sheldon vise, early 1900s. It uses a cam and rack bar setup to do its clamping. No screw. So, it takes about a quarter turn to tighten. It works great, so in the cleanup queue it goes.



Thrumcap

Look how freakin big it is!

 

[joe.striper]

Look how freakin big it is!

Know how many times I've heard that???

 

[Thrumcap]

Hmmmm.... I had a choice to drive back home via the US or via Canada.
Everything kind of falls out of the woodwork all at once.
Anyone know anything about piano makers vises?

Thrumcap

 

[sstruckguy]

.... woodworking vise with a big single handle on the front.....

If you would like to kick that single handle to the curb, I promise you that it would continue its life in a woodworkers shop.(mine) I remember using an identical vise in shop class in 197.....long time ago. NICE find for sure !!

 

[topop101]

Well, I was on vacation end of this week and elected to do some vise pickin' on the road.
So, I lined up some and set off.

First stop, Trois-Rivières, Quebec, 11 hours away.
Here we found a Hollands 14 4" vise. In great shape with good jaw serrations.

After the usual language translation issues and arm waving, a deal was made. Next stop, Mascouche, Quebec, a mere hour and a half away. Here, we found a Parker 237 vise with 7" jaws, 228 lbs.

Great condition! Good jaws, intact garter, and well oiled. It apparently came out of the CPR railway workshop in Montreal. It dismantled in two minutes into three pieces which was a blessing. $150 later, off I went to Ottawa, two hours away and that was the end to a good day.
On the way back, I stopped in St. John, New Brunswick where I had seen a $30 vise on kijiji that didn't resemble anything I'd seen before. This was a woodworking vise with a big single handle on the front.

After a bit of research, I found out this is called a Sheldon vise, early 1900s. It uses a cam and rack bar setup to do its clamping. No screw. So, it takes about a quarter turn to tighten. It works great, so in the cleanup queue it goes.

Thrumcap

Massy used the same design as that Sheldon. worked well for a wood vise. Lube is key to the operation of it. And that Parker is

 

[torqueman2002]

Thrumcamp,

WOW! If you want to trade that big one for the red swivel jaw Parker, let me know. I know you had your eye on it.

And that Sheldon - I'm visiting my brother in central NY. I just walked out into his garage where our grandfather's woodworking bench and vise are.

Small world!

 

[basikdeath]

Craftsman 506 51801 restore (My first vise restoration)
Progress pictures:
Craigslist find for $20

But the jaws don't line up great... still trying to figure that out. Do I need wedges? What, if anything can I do? Or did I do something wrong?

 

[va.grouseman]

Basik, Did the jaws match when you first got it?---If so, then you need to keep flipping the jaws around till you find that right match again.---Could be that the bolt holes are not perfectly centered on one of the jaws.---Worth a try.

 

[AmericanMechanic]

Has anyone used both Bondo and JB Weld go repair hammer gouges in a vise? If so which is preferrable and why?

Thanks

 

[Outlawmws]

JB weld is preferred, This was just discussed in the Vise repair thread I think.

 

[va.grouseman]

I'm not him but: "Great condition! Good jaws, intact garter, and well oiled. It apparently came out of the CPR railway workshop in Montreal. It dismantled in two minutes into three pieces which was a blessing. $150 "

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Outlaw, I'm blind as a bat.---Read through it real fast and didn't even pay any attention to the 150,00.---I guess my mind dismissed it, because that couldn't possibly be the price.---That was a deal.

 

[basikdeath]

Basik, Did the jaws match when you first got it?---If so, then you need to keep flipping the jaws around till you find that right match again.---Could be that the bolt holes are not perfectly centered on one of the jaws.---Worth a try.

Honestly, I totally don't remember how aligned they were when I got it.
You were a bit right regarding the replaceable jaws. I swapped those around and it improved.

It's going to need some kind of shim though. If I wedge the end of a zip-tie on the low side everything lines up nice. Below are pictures with swapped jaws and wedge in place.

What is the best way for me to make a wedge for this? I feel like I've seen copper sheets before somewhere on here... Is that the preference?

 

[GETRIDAONE]

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Outlaw, I'm blind as a bat.---Read through it real fast and didn't even pay any attention to the 150,00.---I guess my mind dismissed it, because that couldn't possibly be the price.---That was a deal.

That works out to 66 cents a pound and nobody gave thrumcap You ****
All I got on vacation was a big bill from the charge card company

 

[PghJKB]

Honestly, I totally don't remember how aligned they were when I got it.
You were a bit right regarding the replaceable jaws. I swapped those around and it improved.

It's going to need some kind of shim though. If I wedge the end of a zip-tie on the low side everything lines up nice. Below are pictures with swapped jaws and wedge in place.


What is the best way for me to make a wedge for this? I feel like I've seen copper sheets before somewhere on here... Is that the preference?

basik
How about the main nut - is it seated correctly? Can you shim/shave the nut instead of adding metal to the slide?

JKB

 

[JZiggy]

Honestly, I totally don't remember how aligned they were when I got it.
You were a bit right regarding the replaceable jaws. I swapped those around and it improved.

It's going to need some kind of shim though. If I wedge the end of a zip-tie on the low side everything lines up nice. Below are pictures with swapped jaws and wedge in place.

What is the best way for me to make a wedge for this? I feel like I've seen copper sheets before somewhere on here... Is that the preference?

I have some older vises with slack in the slide, and it always bugs me when they slop around side to side as the handle spins. I have had luck using flat brass shim stock (available on McMaster in all kinds of thicknesses) to space things out, and make a softer wear surface. That might work for your issue here.

 

[basikdeath]

basik
How about the main nut - is it seated correctly? Can you shim/shave the nut instead of adding metal to the slide?

JKB

Hadn't thought of that... I did try flipping the nut around once to see if it was better one way vs the other and it wasn't really any different. There is some play in there so that's not a bad idea... And if I can make that work, a lot more discreet looking. Thanks!

 

[va.grouseman]

Basik, I had a little vise that needed a thin shim to jack up the Dynamic jaw a smidge to make the jaws match.---It was mostly due to wear.---I used a stainless steel shim that worked real good.---But I would think a copper or a brass or bronze shim would work just fine as long as it's greased good.---Actually brass/bronze has a kind of friction resistance quality about it even without grease.---That's why brass is favored for bushings.---But grease it anyway.---I used the stainless because it happened to be the exact gauge I needed.

 

[bagged89s10]

Another cracked vise for sale in CT.

 

[Mark in Indiana]

Outlaw & Bagged,
I don't mind sand blasting as long as they don't use Black Beauty as the blast media. I even used sand blasting to remove rust on several parts of a 1979 Honda Hawk that I restored about 15 years ago. Places that I had access to a blaster in the past used 10mil. glass bead which did a good job without being too aggressive. Also, an untrained guy (like the wrong media) can do a lot of damage to a work piece.
I no longer have access to a sand blaster, I use the e-tank and/or wire wheels.

 

[bagged89s10]

Outlaw & Bagged,
I don't mind sand blasting as long as they don't use Black Beauty as the blast media. I even used sand blasting to remove rust on several parts of a 1979 Honda Hawk that I restored about 15 years ago. Places that I had access to a blaster in the past used 10mil. glass bead which did a good job without being too aggressive. Also, an untrained guy (like the wrong media) can do a lot of damage to a work piece.
I no longer have access to a sand blaster, I use the e-tank and/or wire wheels.

I prefer the e tank as well.

I have a vise cooking in my new tank right now.


This thing is rough. All the flat head screw heads are shot.

Hopefully after round two in the tank I can free them. I tried to chisel in new screw head slots. Might work or I will just drill them out like I had to do on the main screw collar ring.





This no54 had a decent size main screw


Anyone have an American scale No. 54?

 

[Mark in Indiana]

Mark: there's a couple chunks of the cast missing behind the removable jaws on that Craftsman. just an FYI to those looking for one to buy.

Drives,
Good catch. I didn't look closely at all of the pictures because I'm not in the market for one like that.

 

[btrnuthatch]

I posted these 9350 triplets mid July (page 1675) and said I'd post again after I cleaned them up a bit. I'm tired of dealing with them now after e-bathing/wire brushing them and doing some welding experiments as a result of guidance from the exalted KMScott (and buying a set of his pristine jaws).

I'll post them in the classifieds with more images when I get a chance. It would be great and easy if someone in the SF Bay Area wanted one so shipping would not be an issue. Either way, PM me if interested. They are ready for finish work/painting and lube job.

I didn't take the main nut pins out of Mr. Left. For a new owner, I'll leave the pins out of Mr. Middle (new jaws/lipstick on that pig) and Mr. Right as they are a pain to get out. Mr. Right's end cap was gashed into so I quickly (crudely) welded it closed. Mr. Left has the dynamic's deepest divots welded (image shows start of the TIG weld) and sanded though you can see blemishes still exist. Mr. Right's stationary also has some blemish welds including the top of the worn jaw.

All three bases are in great shape. As you can see on Mr. Middle, the new jaws don't line up perfectly.

Again, thanks to KMScott for sharing his welding knowledge.

 

[CwazyWabbit]

Unusual make of wood vice I got in my last batch









Quite ornate in design, doesn't appear to have a rear jaw ......

 

[joe.striper]

My Boston minion got me these. 5" Desmond, little machinist vise, damaged antique SOB with all for 30 total. Don't know if the old one is repairable.

 

[topop101]

I prefer the e tank as well.

I have a vise cooking in my new tank right now.


This thing is rough. All the flat head screw heads are shot.

Hopefully after round two in the tank I can free them. I tried to chisel in new screw head slots. Might work or I will just drill them out like I had to do on the main screw collar ring.





This no54 had a decent size main screw


Anyone have an American scale No. 54?

I have a 54.

 

[mickey dink]

Found at a local estate sale. Lady said it was her Grandfather's and may have come over from Sweden. It only works on quick release. The shaft has a piece of thread bolted to it that goes about 1/2 way around. There is another 1/2 round piece of thread bolted to the top. When you turn the handle and disengage these the jaws slide open, you put the piece to be clamped in and slide it shut. You then have about 1/2 turn to tighten the jaws down. I buy and sell used vises and this is a first for me. The only markings i can find is the word patent on the top of one jaw. The top and bottom bolt together and the top back screw holds one set of threads and the front screw may hold the works in. Weighs about 70 lbs.

 

[bagged89s10]

I have a 54.

Any idea what size thread the set screw is on the collar ring that holds the main screw in. I had to drill mine out.

Is yours restored? If so please share a picture.

 

[KMScott]

Again, thanks to KMScott for sharing his welding knowledge.

Thanks btrnuthatch, you did all the welding I just made suggestions and supplied a few rods. I can not wait to see the finished vise. The weld will never chip off like the two part puddy others have used.

I just repaired a Parker 974 swivel base brake set up today and wanted to share this repair since few repairs shown lately were not welded. It is really not to hard especially if you have a TIG welder and the correct rod. Arc rod can be purchased from Eutectic but it is much easier with TIG. The rod I like using is Eutectic Castolin 224, great rod for cast repairs. My TIG machine cost me under $300 from a Denver auction so these machines are out there and the old ones are cheap. Yea the bottle rental, new torch and cooler will run some bucks but well worth it. TIG welding is about the easiest welding out there next to wire. You bring the work to a table, get real comfortable and weld.

I dropped the 974 brake shoe a while back and I threw the set up aside until a member here was asking about a 973-1/2 base he was looking for and pulled this guy out just in case it would work for him. It was the wrong size but decided to finish the repair. I like to groove out as much of the casting as possible, the break still fits accurately for the 9/16 pin. I heat first then tack weld, heat again then tack and so on. Heating the aluminum and adding a leather blanket (my heat treating gloves) along with other gloves to cool slowly, about a good 45 minutes. I flip the piece over, heat and finish welding. Heat and cover again. Really not to tuff. The welding setup and repair only took 20 minutes but all the time really is in annealing the weld. I mounted the piece on a 1/2 piece of aluminum to act like a heat block. Some have mentioned heating up sand or putting the welded piece into a oven but I believe that is a little over kill at least in my experience for these type of repairs. I have not failed yet. The 224 rod goes on real nice and sanded off pretty easy. Just my 2 cents.

 

[Gazedo]

Just restored Reed 204 r
Columbian autocrat 415 at home.
Columbian 604 m3 beater buy my layout table.
Baby USA Yost 250

 

[chilly460]

New one I picked up today. It's a 4", weighs 43lbs. Sorry for the crappy pics, still had mounting bolts in it so I couldn't just sit on the table for some horizontal pics.

Absolutely no stampings of any sort that I can see. Looks to be a Prentiss to me, maybe a Parker before they used the front retainer clip??

Nice square jaws and not beat on, but it does have some casting flaws as you can barely see the void in the side of the jaw in the first pic, it's the same on the other side and in part of the dynamic jaw.

It has pointed mounting tabs, the deep reliefs in the jaws, and the "brow" over the main screw. I've seen this look on other Prentiss which is why I think that's what it is, but I'm a newbie so definitely could be wrong.

It has the "scalloped" shape to the slide support, thought that may be a clue too.

 

[bagged89s10]

Just restored Reed 204 r

Columbian autocrat 415 at home.

Columbian 604 m3 beater buy my layout table.

Baby USA Yost 250

Nice job!
I really like reeds. I'm debating wether it's worth spending $125 on a Reed 204r or not. So I want to sell my Reed 104r? Too many vise decisions. Lol