Prentiss Vise (#54 Big Dog)

[bever911]

Prentiss Vise (#54 Big Dog) - Jaw Question

Reading the discussions here on vises made me think of the vise I picked up at my Great Grandpa's auction years back. I cleaned a little of the grime off of it to reveal some old red paint and that it was a Prentiss vise.

Anyone know what I can do to repair/place the jaws?

Thanks

 

[bever911]

Any help on the jaws?

Thanks,
Marc

 

[lauver]

I'm sure you can find some replacement jaws someplace or make your own from bar stock... we're talking bar stock scraps, a hacksaw, and an electric drill is all you need.

There are several Vise threads on this Forum with guys who know vises. Do a search of the General Tools Forum and you'll find more than you ever wanted to know about vises.

BTW--your vise says Bull Dog, not Big Dog.

 

[spongerich]

If you have access to a sand blaster, I'd start by bead blasting them. Once you get past the rust, you can better see what you're dealing with. I have a Bull Dog of similar vintage and the jaws are cast in as you can see here:

Replacing them would be major surgery. You'd probably have to cut them out and then weld or drill/tap/screw new custom made jaws in their place.

Your best bet is probably to clean them and carefully file them as flat and square as you can. You need to be careful not to remove too much material so they still close snugly.

Those Bull Dogs are excellent vises. I'm guessing mine is about 80 years old and after a little cleaning and lubrication, it's as smooth as silk and 100x better than just about anything you can buy new today.

 

[mjozefow]

Re: Prentiss Vise (#54 Big Dog) - Jaw Question

Reading the discussions here on vises made me think of the vise I picked up at my Great Grandpa's auction years back. I cleaned a little of the grime off of it to reveal some old red paint and that it was a Prentiss vise.

Anyone know what I can do to repair/place the jaws?

Thanks

For new vise jaws:

1. Drive to West Lafayette.
2. Drop vise off at my house
3. I'll make new pads for it.
4. Forget my name and address b/c I love it!

In seriousness any decent machine shop could make you jaw inserts. If you ever decide to part with that thing let me know.

 

[bever911]

BTW--your vise says Bull Dog, not Big Dog.

D'oh!

Gotta love an EBBK (error between brain and keyboard)

Thanks all for the advice.

 

[bever911]

some more pics:

does this mean anything?

 

[whelenfan]

that is one beautiful vise there! How wide are the jaws? How much does it weigh?