mike60510

I have an old blacksmith vice that has a few features that i have not been able to identify the purpose. The vice was from my grandfather who worked for the railroads in Chicago from the 1920's to the 1950's The vice hand crank is mounted on a shaft that if the assembly is slid forward, it will rotate and close the vice jaws. If the assembly is slid back, the hand crank can rotate a set of gear that spins a cylinder below the vice jaws (see pics). The cylinder has a 0.50" bore, but is not lined up with a hole on the opposite side of the jaws. Any thoughts on the cylinder purpose? . Thanks in advance

Any thought on where to look for a patent number? I dont believe I've seen any markings on the assembly .

I have an old vice that I received from my grandfather. He worked for the railroad back in the 1930's and 1940's. The vice appears to have been used by a blacksmith. It has a hand cranked fan used to stoke a firebox that would have been on the end of the view. The vice has an accessory that’s always puzzled me. It includes a gear-driven cylinder with a 1/2 inch bore located underneath the clamp heads. The cylinder can be rotated by a hand crank on the front of the vice. The bore in the cylinder matches up with a hole that extends through the vice. I’m guessing it was for some sort of rod. Can anyone help me identify what the initial purpose of this accessory?

I decided to post full pictures of my old vice that I think was a blacksmith model. I have not been able to find any information about this and any help would be appreciated. I don't have the firebox that fits on the discharge of the stoker fan, I do have the vice handle, but I cant find it now. I posted other photos in a separate post. I'm trying to.determine what the purpose of the short cylindrical section that is approximately 2" below the bottom of the clamping area is for. The cylindrical section is connected by gears to the vice crank. Through a slip mechanism on the vice crank, you can rotate the cylindrical section.

Thanks, I never noticed the crack in the upper part of the handle. Ill update my profile. I was referred to this site by someone in the Garage Journal forum as a place that may be able to find out a little more information about my vice. Ill pull it out and take some better photos and post it in the vice forum.

I have what I think is an old blacksmith vice complete with a hand rank and fan to stoke a fire. I don't have the original "firebox" that fits at the discharge of the fan (wish I did). The vice has no markings as to the manufacturer. It was my grandfathers and I have no idea how old it may be. I know he worked on the railroad but who knows where he got it from But, my question is: The vice includes a short cylindrical section that is approximately 2" below the bottom of the clamping area. The cylindrical section is connected by gears to the vice crank. Through a slip mechanism on the vice crank, you can rotate the cylindrical section. Does anyone know what the cylindrical section was used for