Tale of two Craftsman Vises....

[drivesitfar]

Maui: did you miss my post? the jaws on your vise and the style/look are clearly ROCK ISLAND made.

take a look at the REED date stamping thread and see if you can find 1 vise that looks like yours and here's the link:

https://www.garagejournal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=400156&highlight=reed+date+stamp

then go on the ROCK ISLAND HISTORY THREAD and see if your vise looks like any of those. here's that link:

https://www.garagejournal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=124285&highlight=rock+island+vise+history

actually I prefer your Rock Island Craftsman to a Reed made Craftsman that we call a REEDSMAN

 

[Poseidon89]

I had posted this in its own thread, but it seems relevant to the conversation here.

Its a 5154, dated July 1939:

https://www.garagejournal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=478651

 

[ed4banger]

Would the date stamp be on the same area for the craftsman 5152 vise?

Date stamp will be on the top of the slide.

 

[ViceRoy2030]

I think this might be a RI Craftsman: dated July 1942 (7 42) on the slide

And here is a Reed version (no date, that I have found)

 

[ed4banger]

I think this might be a RI Craftsman: dated July 1942 (7 42) on the slide

And here is a Reed version (no date, that I have found)

If there is a date on the Reed, it will be stamped on opposite side from that pictured on the dynamic. Sometimes very faint, not all are stamped.

 

[drivesitfar]

Vice: I love those two old Craftsman vises made by rock island and Reed. Nice find!!

 

[ViceRoy2030]

If there is a date on the Reed, it will be stamped on opposite side from that pictured on the dynamic. Sometimes very faint, not all are stamped.

I'll check that side real well tonight after work it must be faint, thanks ed4banger

 

[ViceRoy2030]

Vice: I love those two old Craftsman vises made by rock island and Reed. Nice find!!

I have to slow down my collecting but I won't be passing up many of the WWII era Craftsman, they're just plain cool!!!

 

[Shiftless]

I just found this thread and will be looking over my early Craftsman vises to see if I can add any examples with date markings or ???

 

[Shiftless]

For starters, here is my 5176
No obvious date marks…where should I look?
Looks to be a bit of original paint remaining.
What’s the story on this vise?

.

 

[ed4banger]

For starters, here is my 5176
No obvious date marks…where should I look?
Looks to be a bit of original paint remaining.
What’s the story on this vise?

No dates on these. This vise will be somewhere between '48 and '55, guessing later end of this range because of cast logo. They changed the shape of the slide in '56 to more rectangular. Paint remaining looks original. I'm convinced these are also RI made vises, but I can't back that up with solid evidence like the 519x vises.

 

[Shiftless]

Thanks ed
When that vise was new, I was in elementary school
Do you think it would be a good idea to clean it up preserving the original paint and do some scrubbing on the handle and horseshoe clip that bears the “model number 5176” ?
Just to remove rusty scum and not to achieve a mirror finish.

 

[ed4banger]

Thanks ed
When that vise was new, I was in elementary school
Do you think it would be a good idea to clean it up preserving the original paint and do some scrubbing on the handle and horseshoe clip that bears the “model number 5176” ?
Just to remove rusty scum and not to achieve a mirror finish.

Might just try soap and water or a degreaser with soft nylon brush to clean it up, see what it looks like after that. I would clean up the collar and spindle/handle to a nice matte finish. Scotch metal conditioning belts on a belt sander work wonders on these bits. JMO.

 

[DWise]

Any idea of a time frame for this RI vise? A restoration is on my long list of things to do this summer.

 

[drivesitfar]

That old craftsman made by rock island vise company left their factory pre WWII and most like early 1930’s, but it could be late 20’s. Nice find.

 

[RUSH55]

Been getting into the Craftsman vise thing a little myself, and have come across another model that I’ve found very few examples of - 5182. It looks to be a little brother of the 519x series, with a smaller but similar shaped and machined yoke.

I’ve found one for sale and have been looking at maybe picking it up. It’s a swivel base and seller says it’s missing a swivel lock. By the promo drawing I’ve found, they were all originally solid mount with a swivel base kit you could get, and only shows a single swivel lock in conjunction with a bolt coming up through the center.
Anyone have or seen one?

 

[drivesitfar]

I’ve got 1 or maybe 2 of those Crowntop craftsman vises and neither have swivel base. Yes before I found any 519x’s I thought I’d found one when this one popped up. It’s a great vise but no 519x.