odd antique panel vise - score (?)

[hchinaski]

It was $2.50 at ReStore.

No markings other than "No. 3", and even though the clamping foot and one of the handles are cracked, it functions really well. There is a long lever that applies even pressure across the jaws, and another lever that lets the jaws tilt 90 degrees, from vertical to horizontal. It will be great for working on circuit boards but it clearly predates the printed circuit board by a few decades! Anyone have a guess as to what the original purpose for this thing was?

 

[RivennHewn]

Saw filer's vise

 

[Packard V8]

For holding hand saws to bench-file them. Yours has some broken levers and feet. I've seen at least a dozen different patterns of saw vises.

I'm old enough to remember when carpenters building a new home in a rural area cut all the framing with hand saws. If you're using saws all day, every day, you keep them sharp. At lunch break, they would always clamp a vise to to a saw horse and touch up their saw teeth.

A good carpenter would bring a couple of crosscut saws and a rip saw for the framing and then a couple of finer-tooth saws and a miter box and back saw for the finish work.

All the saw companies had several levels of quality and you could often tell the master carpenters by how much they spent on their saws. Disston, Winchester, Simmonds, were major manufacturers, but Craftsman also offered some high quality saws.

jack vines

 

[Stuart in MN]

Disston, Winchester, Simmonds, were major manufacturers, but Craftsman also offered some high quality saws.

jack vines

There were two saw companies that often get lumped together - Simonds, and Simmons Keen Kutter. Simonds is still around, my brother worked there for a number of years.

 

[justanengineer]

Its called a saw-set.

 

[demographic]

Its called a saw-set.

Not quite, a saw set is the tool you use to put a set on the teeth of the saw after sharpening. Usually looks like a set of pliers.

Thats a vice used to hold the saw while its being jointed, filed and set.

More info HERE