nikkormat42

Looks a lot like my vise. http://www.iforgeiron.com/topic/18434-1826-ids-post-vise/

Hah, the same scenerio played out in my head as well. I'm sure its reality is probably less romantic. I was looking at it more closely and found these markings. XXX|• Any idea what it means? Jon

Thanks again Frank! Your helpful search tip produced some interesting finds. Defintaley see what you are talking about with the German characteristics. The mount, though its not a tenon, looks to be of the same style. Also the body appears to share the same features. The first two are German. The last two are French examples. I like how the French one has a swivel mount.

Ah! Thanks Frank. Never considered Germany but it makes sense. Do you have any photos of yours that you could post? Jon

Right, this will only see light duty. I have a heavier one for whomp'n on. I just have never seen one of this style and was curious as to it's possible history. I like to think of what stories some of my 'junk' could tell and what all they helped produce.

Need some help with identification on this. It's an old post vise that dates back to what I believe is 1826 possibly. There is a stamp on it with that number. Under that is possibly '1 Z'? Also there are four stamps with IDS on the 'waist'. One leg looks to be badly forge welded. The whole thing is crudely made. Would anyone be able to offer any clues as to it's manufacture or origin? I wonder if Mr. Postman will be publishing a post vise book in the future? It still works great! 3 3/4" jaws approx. 32 lbs. overall length 33 1/2" Thanks! Jon

Swage Block Gallery

Need help identifying this hunk-o-steel with no clear visible markings. The seller wants $600 for it. He says that he originally purchased it from a General Mills Supply Catalog in 1949. There may be markings on under the rust and paint but its currently 200 miles away so all I have to go on are these photos. No picture of the right hand side. The line along the footing is a distinctive trait that looks very similar to the Kohlswa shape. Its 32 inches long, 13 inches tall, 5 inch wide face, and a 1 1/4 hardy hole. Its also been welded to the base.

I have used my Red Ram bib apron for years. I consider it an essential tool in the shop. You can use it to carry 'warm' items from workspace to workspace. I don't lose my scribe now that it stays in the bib after use! The other day I was using the angle grinder on a piece firmly held in the post vise. I removed it and saw one little spot that needed a touch up. Yep, you guessed it. Holding it not so firmly in my hand I tried to hit one lick and the grinder got away from me and nicked my thumb and gouged out nice little impression on my bib. I got off easy thanks to the hide of a dead critter. Also, the 38100 Red Ram Leather Cape mates up nicely with the bib apron for arm and neck protection for welding. The apron was about $20 and the cape was $30. Jon

Thanks, Glad I didn't buy it!

As best I can tell it says McQueeny and has ***PLEX on one side. The other side says SF1. The fan housing is the same size of a Champion 400. :)

I see you got it but I'll post this for posterity. Number 19 of the attached Fig. 2 shows you the machined screws mentioned. Number 18 is the "hidden screw". Its inside the housing.

Don't know about the color but you can find an interesting cut-away view of the Champion 400 Blower Patent 804860 at Google Patents. BTW, my personal experience for maintenance is to NOT grease the lower ball bearings(shaft for the fan). Packing it with the thinnest lithium grease only made it drag. Once I got all the grease free it ran much smoother. Just let a ounce or two of lightweight motor oil sit in the in the bottom. The large cog will pick up enough from the worm gear to sufficiently oil everything else. You may want to un-screw the upper 4 grease cups and clean out the old "petrified" grease debris and lightly apply new grease. I know that helped performance on my Champion and it will now spin freely for about 2 and a half turns after cranking.

The stuff I got from Dixie Gun is 1/2 hard SS. It works great. Here is a tutorial that I did. Joe Keesler's Demo Another demo from the ABS Fall Hammer In 2006