New guy with old Parker 973 b

[letlevski]

Hi Guys,
I picked up Parker vise 973 B in excellent shape however the swivel was welded to the base of the wise. I ground of the welding seams and separated the swivel from Base. I realized that I am missing some kind of split ring with the pin inside and the spreading bolt. I am not sure if I am naming things correctly since it is not the area of my expertise. Could you, please, advice on where I can obtain the parts to make my swivel base functional.
Thanks in advance. letlevski

 

[chrisnazzy]

Welcome to Garage Journal. You've come to the right place with your vise questions. Myself or many others here can help but we will need pics!

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[letlevski]

Thank you for reminding I attached three pictures. Please, let me know if they are sufficient for the diagnosis. letlevski

 

[chrisnazzy]

Thank you for reminding I attached three pictures. Please, let me know if they are sufficient for the diagnosis. letlevski

Your 973B is actually one of the last of the Parkers after they became Union Parker. I have a 433 1/2 A and while it is still technically a Charles Parker, it shares many of the design features/changes that occured in the latter years of the companies vise production.

Two of the most notable design changes found in the "A" & "B" designation vises are the jaw shape and the swivel base centering and attachment method. Instead of a shoulder bolt that threaded up into the main body of the vise that gave the swivel base a machined surface to rotate on, these Parkers have a "peg" protruding from the bottom of the main body and a corresponding groove for a large clip to fit into once the swivel base is installed. When I rebuilt mine I ended up replacing the factory clip with an "e-clip". If you're only missing this part you can experiment with any number of different style clips and you can also add a washer if need be to sung everything up.

If you are also missing the "brake shoe" parts that sit in the swivel base and the corresponding pin, wedge and lockdown you are going to need to scour ebay for replacements or a donor vise. That may be incredibly difficult to determine if advertised parts will actually be a fit for your swivel base so hopefully you have them even though your pic doesn't show them.

It's crazy to think that since your vise was welded to its swivel base, it's very likely it became separated and loose at some point and instead of unbolting it from the bench to diagnose what had failed, the prevoius owner may have just decided to weld it together.



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[letlevski]

Thank you so much. I will be looking for original clamp system. It is so well made. letlevski