gatewaysysop
Well-known member
Evening, fellow vise enthusiasts!
As many will remember, some time ago, I posted the tale of acquiring my greatest find to date, an Athol 628, the 8", 300 lb. monster that I didn't even know existed. I never thought I'd find another vise that came even remotely close, but I was proven wrong not once, but twice this week.
Background first, as always. My old man had been dealing with a guy in Tucson that had some odds and ends in storage, mostly old machinery, safes and the like. Because of experience, we both know to always, always ask if they have any vises, even though there were none specified in the ad. As it happens, this gentleman tells my dad that, why yes, he does have vises. Lots of vises, one of them quite big. Probably an exaggeration, but again, I've learned not to judge until I see for myself. My father asked if I thought it was worth popping over there to check out the supposedly big vise and, as any true GJ'er would, I emphatically told him "Hell yes!"
Next day, he hits the place, a rather large storage locker, and plods through the assortment of auction acquired, vintage stuffs. The guy has not one, not two, but THREE medium sized vises, all Parker 974 1/2, intact and barely used. Over priced, by a mile, but never the less, he had the goods. More importantly, he also had the big'un that he spoke of. Twas not a 5", nor a 6" and not even a 7", but indeed, a barely-used Parker 978! Another 8", 298 lb. monster that I HAD to have.
Strangely, the same guy that over-priced the 4.5" vises managed to under-price the 8" one, so I only had to pay an arm, not an arm and a leg. One must find the silver lining, yes? 
Now, I did say that I was proven wrong not once but twice, and that's where the tale continues in another part of the state. The very same day, there was a CL ad posted for Prescott, which claimed an 8" Parker vise. In fact, the very same Parker 978. What the hell are the odds, I ask you?
Sadly, the ad had a disconnected phone # and no response to my email about the issue. Stymied and frustrated, I had a brainstorm and started searching for similar phrasing and partial phone #s in other ads, hoping to get a match with the proper phone number. As luck would have it, I found him, because he had one other item for sale in a separate listing. The number had been off by one digit in the vise ad, but the devil is always in the details.
Apparently being the only interested party (thank you, vise Gods!
) I got into contact with the seller the next morning (today) and arranged a trip, post-haste, to Prescott, cash in hand. Took some work and disassembly on site, as always, but I loaded up yet another Parker 978 and brought her home to roost with the other monsters. Only had to pay a little over a $1/lb., which sure as hell beat the price I paid for the first one in Tucson. Although, admittedly (and as seen), the Tucson one is in far better shape.
So there you have it, a tale of not one but two 8" Parker vises in less than 48 hours. I'm still in disbelief!
I guess lightning does strike twice, even out here in the desert and long before Monsoon season. And beating out the local vise flippers and snagging a pair of vises they'd give their first born for? That's icing on the cake.
As always, the hunt for big game is never ending, but I like to think I've thinned out the herd pretty well this season!
Enjoy the pics, only have one CL photo of the second one, but will update with more later:
edit: More pics here.
As many will remember, some time ago, I posted the tale of acquiring my greatest find to date, an Athol 628, the 8", 300 lb. monster that I didn't even know existed. I never thought I'd find another vise that came even remotely close, but I was proven wrong not once, but twice this week.
Background first, as always. My old man had been dealing with a guy in Tucson that had some odds and ends in storage, mostly old machinery, safes and the like. Because of experience, we both know to always, always ask if they have any vises, even though there were none specified in the ad. As it happens, this gentleman tells my dad that, why yes, he does have vises. Lots of vises, one of them quite big. Probably an exaggeration, but again, I've learned not to judge until I see for myself. My father asked if I thought it was worth popping over there to check out the supposedly big vise and, as any true GJ'er would, I emphatically told him "Hell yes!"
Next day, he hits the place, a rather large storage locker, and plods through the assortment of auction acquired, vintage stuffs. The guy has not one, not two, but THREE medium sized vises, all Parker 974 1/2, intact and barely used. Over priced, by a mile, but never the less, he had the goods. More importantly, he also had the big'un that he spoke of. Twas not a 5", nor a 6" and not even a 7", but indeed, a barely-used Parker 978! Another 8", 298 lb. monster that I HAD to have.
Strangely, the same guy that over-priced the 4.5" vises managed to under-price the 8" one, so I only had to pay an arm, not an arm and a leg. One must find the silver lining, yes? Now, I did say that I was proven wrong not once but twice, and that's where the tale continues in another part of the state. The very same day, there was a CL ad posted for Prescott, which claimed an 8" Parker vise. In fact, the very same Parker 978. What the hell are the odds, I ask you?
Sadly, the ad had a disconnected phone # and no response to my email about the issue. Stymied and frustrated, I had a brainstorm and started searching for similar phrasing and partial phone #s in other ads, hoping to get a match with the proper phone number. As luck would have it, I found him, because he had one other item for sale in a separate listing. The number had been off by one digit in the vise ad, but the devil is always in the details.
Apparently being the only interested party (thank you, vise Gods!
) I got into contact with the seller the next morning (today) and arranged a trip, post-haste, to Prescott, cash in hand. Took some work and disassembly on site, as always, but I loaded up yet another Parker 978 and brought her home to roost with the other monsters. Only had to pay a little over a $1/lb., which sure as hell beat the price I paid for the first one in Tucson. Although, admittedly (and as seen), the Tucson one is in far better shape. So there you have it, a tale of not one but two 8" Parker vises in less than 48 hours. I'm still in disbelief!
I guess lightning does strike twice, even out here in the desert and long before Monsoon season. And beating out the local vise flippers and snagging a pair of vises they'd give their first born for? That's icing on the cake. As always, the hunt for big game is never ending, but I like to think I've thinned out the herd pretty well this season!
Enjoy the pics, only have one CL photo of the second one, but will update with more later:
edit: More pics here.
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!!! Nice scores
!!
