The VISES of Garage Journal

[Mark in Indiana]

Vise Opportunity - a department that is co-located with mine recently replaced their "too small but unbroken" vise with the biggest one they could find at a local "Farm Store". Then they added a cheater bar. Now they are looking for a better vise.

I offered to suggest a few things - ranging from - "buy a good one" to "lets get a good old one from CL or FB and fix it". Not sure they want my advice though.

Employee stated he was glad he was wearing eye protection as what ever broke off went flying past his head.

An owner of a local heavy truck service shop bought a 70 year old Parker vise, at a premium price from me because he was tired of replacing the Asian vises that his employees kept breaking.

 

[Roo19]

Thanks for responding, I'm located in El Pass, Texas an American vise would be music to my ears!!

 

[MrSurly]

Repeat after me:”I am not a vise collector”, I am not a vise collector”,
After reading so much about the darn things here, a CL listing caught my eye.
Now, let’s stipulate that I don’t know diddly about vices. But I saw this and thought the Rock Island looked interesting. Met up and started thinking the Craftsman, with its Art Deco/Flash Gordon styling might be even more interesting.
What do y’all think, fellas?



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[drivesitfar]

Surly: ordinarily the Rock Island would be the HANDS DOWN WINNER of the two, but yours might have some pieces of it's cast missing behind it's dynamic jaw. either vise will do fine in most shops and i've seen that smaller Craftsman vise on many a handy person's bench.

if you don't understand what i mean by missing part of your dynamic jaw just ask and i'll try to describe it better.

ROO: most any pre 1950 or 1960 US or English made vise (vice) would do you well cause even the old 3.5 and 4 inch vises dwarf the new ones and rarely if ever have i seen the dynamic jaw snap under normal use for what it's designed for. a vise is NOT A PRESS and shouldn't be hit hard with a hammer or sledge hammer.

good luck in your search cause we know of a couple members in your part of the world that are avid collectors that scoop up a lot of those old vises if you are not quick.

TJ: I love the picture with the baby prentiss sitting on your 98's slide. I know i'm preaching to the chior, but i hope you are going to bolt down the heavy stand you built (nice looking BTW) so that huge 98 doesn't tip if you open the jaws to have it hold something big like a car or something like that.

Get: yep i agree you did an amazing job on those monsters. WELL DONE!!

 

[MrSurly]

Yes, I saw that the jaw piece has been tack welded. I assumed that there are a couple of broken studs involved.
I took a couple of quick phone pics. It has two chipped off pieces of the “land” behind the jaw face. No broken studs but I’d bet the threads are stripped, of course.



Any of those help?


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[thederbyengineer]

Y'all are like black holes. Sucking everyone into your singularity lol. I'm going to look at 2 more vices tomorrow. One is supposed to be a smaller Parker. He was a little vague on the specifics. The other one is a Ridge Tool Co No. 31 by advice from KMScott, thanks again by the way, that seems to be a great acquisition if everything checks out. I was supposed to go look at the Ridge today but things came up and we had to reschedule.

On a "You ****" note, I'm getting a late model Chas Parker 974 1/2-A which is a swivel base for nothing but the gas to pick it up.

 

[drivesitfar]

Surly: are you a welder? there are a few different fixes that members have done for that busted off jaw so check out this thread and ask if you need help. here's the link to the VISE REPAIR 101 thread and yes that old Rock Island is worth saving or making better if you have the time and skills to do so.

https://www.garagejournal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=252830

Derby: sounds like you are already finding the right vises and at the RIGHT PRICES TOO so best of luck.

beware of the VICE FOR VISES cause it's hard to stop buying them once you get started, but the FREE ones will definitely make up for the ones you might have paid too much for or found damage when you took one apart.

WELCOME TO GJ!!

 

[gman007]

Y'all are like black holes. Sucking everyone into your singularity lol. I'm going to look at 2 more vices tomorrow. One is supposed to be a smaller Parker. He was a little vague on the specifics. The other one is a Ridge Tool Co No. 31 by advice from KMScott, thanks again by the way, that seems to be a great acquisition if everything checks out. I was supposed to go look at the Ridge today but things came up and we had to reschedule.

On a "You ****" note, I'm getting a late model Chas Parker 974 1/2-A which is a swivel base for nothing but the gas to pick it up.

Derby
Let’s face it most of us (including yours truly) had the caught the bug before getting sucked in the black hole and in fact quite the contrary to being sucked in , were seeking the black hole and hurled ourselves into the the black hole without needing encouragement.

What the black hole does though is that it refines the vise addiction and makes one a more sophisticated vise addict/nut. Case in point when I arrived here as a vise novice I thought a Wilton shop king was ancient alien astronauts gift to man kind. But now that I have been vise educated and more vise sophisticated, I have come to understand that this was not the case, all mechanics vises were in fact made by man but rather all 8" machinist vises were indeed gifts to mankind from same ancient alien who build the pyramids! I mean who else could have build such massive tools

007

 

[MrSurly]

Surly: are you a welder? there are a few different fixes that members have done for that busted off jaw so check out this thread and ask if you need help. here's the link to the VISE REPAIR 101 thread and yes that old Rock Island is worth saving or making better if you have the time and skills to do so.

https://www.garagejournal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=252830

I will definitely be repairing it. I will follow the link and read all I can around here. DANG!! I did NOT need another project(!)
Btw: I paid 100 for the RI and 30 for the Crafty. I wasn’t planning to buy the Crafty but the rocket ship styling Made me think
That it might be fairly old, perhaps from the fifties like me.


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[chrisnazzy]

I will definitely be repairing it. I will follow the link and read all I can around here. DANG!! I did NOT need another project(!)
Btw: I paid 100 for the RI and 30 for the Crafty. I wasn’t planning to buy the Crafty but the rocket ship styling Made me think
That it might be fairly old, perhaps from the fifties like me.


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For a little added fun close the RI all the way and put a wire wheel to the top of the slide just behind the main body of the vise. You are sure to find a production month and year stamp.

If you decide to clean the vise up the Birtman Electric metal tag on the side can sometimes be removed fairly easily by lightly prying out the 2 pins but be careful to not bend the tag itself. Don't pry behind the tag or use the tag as leverage as you'll just tear through the holes. If you take it slow the tag can be cleaned up and reused like this.

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[Firewire]

If you decide to clean the vise up the Birtman Electric metal tag on the side can sometimes be removed fairly easily by lightly prying out the 2 pins but be careful to not bend the tag itself. Don't pry behind the tag or use the tag as leverage as you'll just tear through the holes. If you take it slow the tag can be cleaned up and reused like this.

Thanks for the tip, I was wondering what to do if I decide to wire brush my RI 572 as I didn't want to damage the Britman tag.

 

[va.grouseman]

Anybody want to tell me what is a fair price to pay for a 6" Wilton 150-OS offset vise in good condition?

Bcom, we haven't seen many of those for sale because I don't think Dawn made many of those for Wilton.---Saw one on EBay about a year ago for $1400.00, BIN.---I don't recall it ever selling though.---So at least for my part, there isn't much precedent to go by.---Autopts might have a better angle on it, he is the resident Wilton Guru.

 

[va.grouseman]

Vise Opportunity - a department that is co-located with mine recently replaced their "too small but unbroken" vise with the biggest one they could find at a local "Farm Store". Then they added a cheater bar. Now they are looking for a better vise.

I offered to suggest a few things - ranging from - "buy a good one" to "lets get a good old one from CL or FB and fix it". Not sure they want my advice though.

Employee stated he was glad he was wearing eye protection as what ever broke off went flying past his head.

I know I shouldn't laugh at other's misfortune but that's right funny.---But in the operators defense, looking at the pic, I'd say he or she was a chain smoker and had the work-space so fogged up to the point that they couldn't tell that his/her new vise just couldn't bear the strain.---It just wasn't no Daisy.

 

[Outlawmws]

Brings new meeting to "you'll put your eye out kid!"

 

[mgmlvks]

Brings new meeting to "you'll put your eye out kid!"

This is a receiver hitch mounted set-up. 10,000 oil field trucks cannot be wrong and both our head mechanic and myself recommended a real vise and a Wilton 4.5" would be a good place to start. I suggested Tradesman for the pipe jaws, he suggested Machinists.

And - the ashtray is communal and outside and annoying.

And - Vise was headed for the scrap pile, I said to put it up on the gov't surplus site we use as there is surely "someone" out there that can use the spare parts for "something"

 

[slothfryk]

And - Vise was headed for the scrap pile, I said to put it up on the gov't surplus site we use as there is surely "someone" out there that can use the spare parts for "something"

So... What's the name of that surplus site?

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[twertsy]

Did some more work on the vise catalog link page this morning. Now links to over 115 catalogs containing vises. I even saw a Reed 109.

http://toolarchives.com/Vise_Catalogs

 

[drivesitfar]

Twertsy: thanks for finding and putting all that vise information on your cool tool website. speaking of vises do you have a family picture maybe of the vises you've added to your own personal tool collection to share?

Surly: most likely I think the old Craftsman is probably vintage 1970's which even if you were like me and graduated from High School in the early 70's it's still better quality than today's low to mid range priced vises.

best of luck with the Rock Island and like i say if you don't already know the best way to fix it just post up more pictures of it on the vise repair 101 thread and maybe one of the welders or machinists or others handier than I am will help you figure it out.

Bcom: i've yet to find an OFFSET VISE close to me, but a few years ago i could have driven 5 hours to pick up one for a couple Benjamins, but i didn't make that trip. seeing what VA posted maybe i should have, but since it was a DAWN maybe it wouldn't command the money that the Wilton name does. any pictures to post of the one you are looking at now or maybe post a few after you buy them?

 

[BMR24]

Does anyone have a photo of a Rock Island 232 vise? I have one that is unmarked that I'm trying to identify, this seems to be the only comparable one on the spreadsheet but there is no photo attached. Image search isn't bringing up the 232 specifically.
Thanks again

 

[drivesitfar]

BMR: sorry i don't, but maybe a picture of yours might help if you have one or more to post. I can't recall ever seeing or hearing of Rock Island #'s starting with a 2 either.

 

[BMR24]

https://www.garagejournal.com/forum/showthread.php?p=6758739#post6758739
It's this vise still. However when reading my old post I found out that it weighed in at 60 pounds 4 ounces not 64 pounds. I'll have to look over the spreadsheet again and see if anything else fits the specs

 

[Bcom]

Drives and VA--- Thanks for the insight on the Wilton offset. I do have a picture of the vise in question but im saving it to post a little closer toward Christmas time. The photo I used above of the Wilton offset i stole off the internet. The vise im looking at is a bit more used. However I now have a photo of the Wilton offset that I'm gonna post here soon. Its more of Christmas vise type of photo so ill post it tomorrow maybe. After you see the photos, you'll understand.

 

[Bcom]

Derby
Let’s face it most of us (including yours truly) had the caught the bug before getting sucked in the black hole and in fact quite the contrary to being sucked in , were seeking the black hole and hurled ourselves into the the black hole without needing encouragement.

What the black hole does though is that it refines the vise addiction and makes one a more sophisticated vise addict/nut. Case in point when I arrived here as a vise novice I thought a Wilton shop king was ancient alien astronauts gift to man kind. But now that I have been vise educated and more vise sophisticated, I have come to understand that this was not the case, all mechanics vises were in fact made by man but rather all 8" machinist vises were indeed gifts to mankind from same ancient alien who build the pyramids! I mean who else could have build such massive tools

007

Thank you for posting that. It made me giggle a little bit

 

[mgmlvks]

So... What's the name of that surplus site?

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Purplewave.com

Will be a while before this shows up

 

[Shiftless]

re: Purple Wave
Here is a vise on a vintage wheel stand up for bid in Kansas. Currently at $12.50 bundled together with an air compressor tank and an old saw that looks good for scrap value only.
Not too exciting...
I don't recognize this vise.

 

[slothfryk]

Purplewave.com

Will be a while before this shows up

Thanks! With a name like that, I never would have found it!

BTW, love the black hole analogy. Truth in that.

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[mgmlvks]

re: Purple Wave
Here is a vise on a vintage wheel stand up for bid in Kansas. Currently at $12.50 bundled together with an air compressor tank and an old saw that looks good for scrap value only.
Not too exciting...
I don't recognize this vise.

Search for vice too

 

[mgmlvks]

Some of the rural locations are pretty remote, which can lead to interesting bidding results - for example - the vise on the stand is in Paradise, Kansas. That is pretty remote even for me (who likes to drive to odd places) as it is not on the way to anywhere. While interesting in its own right - you really have to want to go there.

 

[KMScott]

Some of the rural locations are pretty remote, which can lead to interesting bidding results - for example - the vise on the stand is in Paradise, Kansas. That is pretty remote even for me (who likes to drive to odd places) as it is not on the way to anywhere. While interesting in its own right - you really have to want to go there.

That is Demoman's territory right there.

 

[Outlawmws]

re: Purple Wave
Here is a vise on a vintage wheel stand up for bid in Kansas. Currently at $12.50 bundled together with an air compressor tank and an old saw that looks good for scrap value only.
Not too exciting...
I don't recognize this vise.

Me either, but that stand is cool!

 

[Bcom]

MERRY CHRISTMAS AND HAPPY NEW YEAR TO EVERYONE IN GARAGE JOURNAL!!!o

 

[gman007]

MERRY CHRISTMAS AND HAPPY NEW YEAR TO EVERYONE IN GARAGE JOURNAL!!!o

Bcom

Best Christmas tree ever! And I see that the next generation already appreciates a fine vise.

Merry Christmas and Happy new you and your family too!
007

 

[thederbyengineer]

Merry Christmas to all!!

Does anyone know why a Craftsman 5163 would have 74-C cast into the underside of the swivel base?

 

[Sudsy]

Just dug this one out of a corner of my shop that hasn't seen the light of day in years. Completely forgot about it and went and got myself a Reed (doh!).

Anyone have any info on this make? Amco made in Althos mass. Great quality, very close tolerances and very tight.
I particularly like the fleur-de-lis shaped base

 

[drivesitfar]

Sudsy: not surprised your Athol has tight tolerances cause Athol was owned by Starrett and they made a very nice quality vise.

Derby: yep cause Rock Island vise company made those Craftsmans and that was their numbering for they swivel bases.

Bcom: very festive Wilton vise tree holder. looks like a Christmas card quality picture too.

 

[Sudsy]

Sudsy: not surprised your Athol has tight tolerances cause Athol was owned by Starrett and they made a very nice quality vise.

Ah, but it's not made by Athol, it's made in Athol Massachusetts
The make is Amco
I made the same mistake when i tried to find info on it

 

[MrSurly]

Tell me if there is any value in a big ol’ Reed that’s has a busted slide(?)



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[trijeff]

Ah, but it's not made by Athol, it's made in Athol Massachusetts
The make is Amco
I made the same mistake when i tried to find info on it

It's an Athol. AMCO stands for Athol Machine Company.

 

[Sudsy]

Get outa town !!
That explains why I can't find anything on it
Thanks !

Athol Machine Co / Amco - yeah I feel stupid

 

[gman007]

Tell me if there is any value in a big ol’ Reed that’s has a busted slide(?)



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I would imagine it has some value as far as the parts that are good such as screw, retaining nut, bolt , static jaw and body but as a functioning vise it might be of limited use.

If the price is low you might get it for its good parts and either trade them or hope to find another exact model that might need some of these parts. Personally I find the later to be a long shot.