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I Forge Iron

Iron City Post Vice


tlreif

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As posted in another thread I picked up my second Iron City Post vice this last weekend. I did not know it was an iron city vice until tonight when I was bead blasting the rust and crud off of it. This makes the second Iron City vice that I own.

I was wondering if anyone knew when Iron City stopped making these. And about how long the company was in business.

So this new one is a 100 pound 6 inch vice. and the other is a 60 pound 5 inch. And I also have a 40 pound 4 inch but I don't know who made that as there are no markings on it. Thanks

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Congrats on your new vise Todd. Six inches is a perfect size! :). I have a little 3" vise and a few top tools with the Iron City stamp on it, a six pointed star with the words "Iron City". Iron City was a nickname for Pittsburgh. My guess is that the star represents the Shield of David. I've always been curious about this tool mfr but I haven't been able to find much info. I found this from Frank Turley on another forum:

"The Iron City Tool Works made blacksmith tools including leg vises in Pittsburgh from 1854 to 1958. They also made hoes, picks, and railroad tools. I own two of their leg vises, a few of their top tools, and a double jack hand hammer. In 1958, the company was acquired by Warren Tool Corporation, Warren, Ohio. The Warren Corp kept using the interesting Iron City logo on their tools.

Atha Tool Company operated out of Newark, NJ, from 1884 to 1913. Their logo was an "A" within a horseshoe. The company was bought by the Stanley Rule and Level Company in 1913. Stanley retained the "A" and horseshoe symbol on farriers' tools, stoneworkers' tools, and blacksmiths' tools until Stanley dropped that line.

"
http://www.horseshoes.com/forums/showthread.php?t=10825


And this from another IFI thread :

"Bruce, Your info. about Lawrenceville led me to find out that Iron City forge was first established by German immigrants in the Pittsburgh area around 1859. They became Kloman & Co. in 1862, and during the civil war the business boomed and ended up merging with a company owned by Carnegie (of Carnegie Steel fame). "

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  • 9 years later...

Hi, I just bought an IRON CITY leg vice a few days ago and cleaned it up to be part of my blacksmith shop. As I was cleaning it I discovered the name in the star and the #65 on the back of the vice. It is in amazing condition, the jaws are crisp, straight and even have crosshatch lines in them. I can see all the forge welds and the screw is perfect. It appears that the main parts are wrought iron? I can see the grain lines up the sides of the vice clearly. I was not sure how old it was based on how good of condition it is in but with the dates posted here wrought iron is very possible. 

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