The VISES of Garage Journal

[Bcom]

What strikes me as odd is how the jaws and cast metal portion are wore down the same, I think it was a more mechanical way of wear.

Mechanical way? As in what type of mechanical way do you think?

 

[NC Rick]

This poor guy stopped at my house today and wanted a new set of jaws for his 9500 Wilton he just bought for $20 at an auction. Look at the beating this thing has taken to wear away both jaw sides in where it makes a huge dip into the iron and jaws. This vise would have had to have been beaten on for decades for this to happen. Even the jaw supports under each jaw were worn away and not really supporting anything. I told him the vise was scrap and sold him an old 4.5" Tradesman with newer 5" oversize jaws for $70 to ease his pain. He could use the Tradesman as is or take the oversize 5" jaws off the Tradesman and weld/fit them to his 9500 if he wanted.





This is what I sold him. Would be perfect for him. He needs to mount it on a utility bed of his truck. Its sealed,got good jaws, usa made, and not nice enough to worry about theft.

I think that old Wilton is pretty cool for some of the stories it tells. I can only imagine the amount of “projects” which have been held in its jaws. Thanks for posting! I think I would plant it I’m my garden

 

[wrenchr]

Mechanical way? As in what type of mechanical way do you think?

Not sure but since the jaws and the vise body are made of different kinds of metal and also different hardness, I do not see how they would wear the same from sandblasting.

 

[gman007]

Dear Reed Experts
I have a new "remote" vise friend who I have never met! But got to talk to him through CL as he had a CP 976 and a CP 726 Trojan vise for sale.

He had bought a bunch of vises including these CPs as well as a Reed 406 for his workshop.

Unfortunately for him and me both CP vises had been abused and have major jaw issues, so we did not make the transaction but have been chatting about vises ever since.

In any case at least he got lucky and part of the purchase he also bought a nice Reed 406 (which he said was the main vise that he was after). He is very fond of his 406 and wants to know more information about it and in particular what year this Reed 406 would have been manufactured (see photos). Since the jaws are solid (not replaceable) and screw nose is round , I am assuming this an earlier Reed but how early? 1920-1930??

Thank you in advance for the help
Ed

PS
I just looked back at the Reed catalog that was posted by scooternut on page 3008 post #60157 and it looks like this vise could have been made as early as 1912 but what about upper bound year?

 

[BeardedOne]

If you are there on a sat or sun stop in Grand Prarie at Traders Village. That's where I always go and make a good score.

Thank you. We'll have to do that.

I've been watching some CL ads for Dallas and Austin and found a few cool pieces so there might be some buying that way as well.

Definitely going to have some fun on this trip.

 

[twertsy]

Simple answer: yes. “Lehigh” as a line of Bonney vises suggests to me that they were made after the company moved from Philadelphia to Allentown (along the Lehigh River).
CSBonney patented and manufactured a number of things from the 1870s on. In the 1890s, I think the story gets complicated with ownership, management, & manufacturing. CSBonney seems to have continued working on improvements for some time after selling(?) his company. Differing combinations of “Bonney” show up in advertising and announcements in trade journals, and it seems to me these may be related, but seperate, entities. By mid-century, this is sorted out into one company, but then it gets complicated again through expansion of facilities, relocation of headquarters, and corporate purchases. I keep reading on GJ that Bonney is gone, but it isn’t. The name lives on and forging is still the business, though the manufacture of tools is no longer the focus.

The first use for the trademark "Lehigh" is 1915. C. S. Bonney sold out in 1885, and never had anything to do with the company afterwards. He did have other ventures, such as the Bonney Rapid Vise Company and Bonney-Vehlsage(sp?). Bonney was owned by Armstead O. Bills from 1891 to 1907 when the Durham family bought him out.

 

[454ragtop]

Good vise picking this morning. Found all 3 at one stop, total spent $105. All 3 are cosmetically challenged, but the Reed and Parker are pretty minty, jaws almost look new.

 

[gman007]

Good vise picking this morning. Found all 3 at one stop, total spent $105. All 3 are cosmetically challenged, but the Reed and Parker are pretty minty, jaws almost look new.

rag
This was indeed a great score and as you said they look to be in great shape too. Even the pipe jaws on the CP are in place and looking good. congrats
007

 

[Bcom]

Good vise picking this morning. Found all 3 at one stop, total spent $105. All 3 are cosmetically challenged, but the Reed and Parker are pretty minty, jaws almost look new.

Heck people are getting $50 just for an original Parker wrench on ebay. You did real good on that score!

 

[Bcom]

My new Wilton 1755 with Bash Hammer came in the mail today. Let me tell ya, Wiltons packaging is terrible. The box had 2 large rips in it and the box was filled with newspaper and the hammer was wrapped in some cheesey blue baggy. Definitely dosent look very professional. Luckily only a few scratches were on the vise and only a few scuffs on the end cap.

 

[KMScott]

Working on vises that fit in your palm. About done with four small Jewler vises all with Parker machined copied base's. Fun project but believe me smaller vise parts take twice as long to make then the big guys. I can make a 8" Wilton jaw quicker then the small 1-1/2 inch jaws for the #4 Athol. Also made a couple swivel pins for the small Prentiss vises. Prentiss baby's have two different size pins.

 

[Bcom]

Working on vises that fit in your palm. About done with four small Jewler vises all with Parker machined copied base's. Fun project but believe me smaller vise parts take twice as long to make then the big guys. I can make a 8" Wilton jaw quicker then the small 1-1/2 inch jaws for the #4 Athol. Also made a couple swivel pins for the small Prentiss vises. Prentiss baby's have two different size pins.

Let me tell ya Kevin, I'm gonna have to come to Colorado so you can teach me some of your magic in machine work. Your projects are always over the top man!

 

[gman007]

Working on vises that fit in your palm. About done with four small Jewler vises all with Parker machined copied base's. Fun project but believe me smaller vise parts take twice as long to make then the big guys. I can make a 8" Wilton jaw quicker then the small 1-1/2 inch jaws for the #4 Athol. Also made a couple swivel pins for the small Prentiss vises. Prentiss baby's have two different size pins.

Master Scott
These intricate parts are truly work of art and even Parker company might have been hard pressed manufacturing such detailed and delicate parts ( had they attempted to do so).

As per usual hats off
007

 

[G-ManBart]

I just looked back at the Reed catalog that was posted by scooternut on page 3008 post #60157 and it looks like this vise could have been made as early as 1912 but what about upper bound year?

Likely 1938 or so when they changed over to the split collar and adjustable nut stop and filed for a patent. Going off memory the patent was applied for in 1938 and awarded a year later give or take. I may be slightly off, but in that ballpark.

 

[gman007]

Likely 1938 or so when they changed over to the split collar and adjustable nut stop and filed for a patent. Going off memory the patent was applied for in 1938 and awarded a year later give or take. I may be slightly off, but in that ballpark.

Thank you very much for the detailed information.

 

[mlisac]

Working on vises that fit in your palm. About done with four small Jewler vises all with Parker machined copied base's. Fun project but believe me smaller vise parts take twice as long to make then the big guys. I can make a 8" Wilton jaw quicker then the small 1-1/2 inch jaws for the #4 Athol. Also made a couple swivel pins for the small Prentiss vises. Prentiss baby's have two different size pins.

amazing work, sir

 

[ALLFAST]

Kevin needs to hold some vise machining/repair "camps" for the common man.....he could make a small fortune running groups of vise nuts through his little courses!

What do you think?

 

[Fretters]

Vice nuts & camp Kevin. There's a glut of double entendres in the offing there. Sid James would have had a field day with that suggestion.

 

[oldldh]

I got's to does it!!!

YA DUN GUD, REV KEV!!!

 

[Thru-hika]

Here are a few small vises I've picked up lately.

 

[KMScott]

Thanks guys for your kind words, I wish I could teach someone some of these vise repairs that I have learned over the years. I have 4 of these small guys almost ready for finishing and will show them when I am done. They will be a useful tool for a jeweler of small work for hobbyist but not cheap.

 

[Shiftless]

Thru:
Those little guys are jewels!
Wanna trade for some big guys? I tire easily from pushing around those 100+ pounders...

KMS:
More examples of your excellent custom work. ......
You ARE teaching us via your excellent descriptions and photography.

 

[TinkTinkForge]

Couple new ones.

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[PeteA]

I came across this Parker model No. 449 vise and was hoping someone might have some info on it. Thanks Pete

 

[gman007]

I came across this Parker model No. 449 vise and was hoping someone might have some info on it. Thanks Pete

Pete
Very nice find. Your vise is included in FMC's vise spread sheet
https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1sHFRfY_DFXMz6bFeeYI7UKRpUd3aheAE86KBQRBGb9s/edit#gid=666157805

(you can see the link above in KMSCOTT's signature area a couple posts above your post)

There are some discussions about this and other similar model Parkers on the following pages

https://www.garagejournal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=246095

https://www.garagejournal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=228090

007

 

[gman007]

Couple new ones.
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Tink
It looks like as usual you have found more nice and interesting vises.

The 622 1/4 is Athol/Starrett right? In the vise spread sheet the jaw width is listed as 2 1/4" which I guess makes sense with model being 622 1/4, but there is no weight or jaw opening.

Hartmann 4 1/2 entry also has no detail for weight and opening.

It would be nice if you could provide this info to update the spread sheet.
007

 

[CRSINMICH]

Pete: Good find! Here are two catalog pages showing that vise. One is from 1883 and the other is from 1946. They both have different model numbers than yours but the 1946 is close. They're both grainy and hard to read. Judging from the patent date on yours, Parker must have made a change between 1883 and 1946.

 

[CRSINMICH]

Pete: Here is the 1906 patent drawing for a vise slide. It was noted as being assigned to Parker and manufactured by them, Welcome to the vise thread.

 

[TinkTinkForge]

I’ll have to weight them this weekend. Yea it’s 1 1/4” jaw.

 

[rusty65]

I came across this Parker model No. 449 vise and was hoping someone might have some info on it. Thanks Pete

Very nice find indeed there were only a hand full or so of companies who made a rotating head vise so that makes it a very popular use often selling over $250 at the low end. I personally don’t have one but I do have a Flexicorp version I snagged on the net at 2 am in the morning that i refinished to about how I think it came from the factory.

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[ALLFAST]

All of these additions are just sweet!

And yes, all joking aside, Kevin and the other creative minds around here definitely inspire me to put on that thinking cap to overcome problems.

 

[ALLFAST]

Rusty65,

That is one o my favorite vises. I saved a random net photo of one. What color and brand is your blue. It looks semi gloss brushed on ? That is a beautiful blue.

Shawn

 

[GETRIDAONE]

That one had a base coat of Pontiac blue metallic and a light over spray of a slightly darker blue. I wanted to get a spatter pattern on it and it came nice when you see it up close.

 

[PeteA]

Thank you for all the info I look forward to checking it out.

 

[Robert058]

Thanks G-ManBart for referring me to this forum -

Looking for any information on this very fine vise:
No markings whatsoever.

 

[bl00]

It looks like one of these: https://www.google.com/patents/US2658415

 

[Daemione]

Hi everyone! Just rescued this Parker 372 from my grandparent's estate, I'm pretty happy with it. I can't believe it's in as good a shape as it is, it's been in an extremely humid/ flooded dirt floor basement for the last ~50 years. Wasn't able to find any other pictures of this particular model on the interweb, so here we go! A couple quick shots of it before cleaning or anything:

For whatever it's worth, it actually weighs 57.5 pounds (vs. 57 pounds in the catalog).

And I haven't done much of anything yet, just a little cleaning & brushing. Took it apart & regreased the screw, although it hardly needed it.

Haven't been able to free up the pin for the swivel jaw (correct nomenclature?), but I'm working on it.

I understand it's super hard to date these things... my understanding is the shape of the front nose piece means older than 1930s? And it doesn't have any other patent #'s or info cast into it.


edit - ugh, this forum require X number of posts before I can link to a picture?

 

[Shiftless]

Pictures don't show up for me.
Try attaching them using the paper clip icon at the top of the reply window.
Let GJ host your pics, not a 3rd party.

 

[Daemione]

Attached, I guess. I was hoping to have them available for someone stumbling on the site without them needing to register. I had problems with the site letting me register here at first.

 

[Robert058]

It looks like one of these: https://www.google.com/patents/US2658415

Thanks b100, and your link led me to this site with a snip from the October 1964 Popular Science, by way of the Directory of American Tool and Machinery Patents:

http://www.datamp.org/patents/displayPatent.php?id=51493

Robert Taylor