I was looking on eBay for a small machinist vise to adapt to use as an engravers vise and found this Studebaker Hydraulic Vise up for auction. Now as a note to the administrators I am not suggesting that anyone buy this vise, I am merely put it up here for a suggestion as a very handy type of vise to have in the shop, so please don't go and move this to the Tailgate section, OK? There have been many times that things would have been so much easier to do if I had had a quick closing vise. Yes, I know that there are quick closing vises that one merely has to step on and a cam will close the jaw but they always seem to be very limited in the size of material that can be grasped, more for farrier work that for the sculptor and then there are the cam lock smaller bench top vises that some on the forum have and I have seen them on the forum and here again there are intended for smaller bench type work. However this Studebaker vise seems made for handling good sized pieces of work. I bet one could do some damage to one phalanges with this vise if one were not very careful!!

http://www.ebay.com/itm/VINTAGE-STUDEBAKER-HYDRAULIC-PNEUMATIC-MACHINIST-BENCH-VISE-5-INCH-JAW-/220856071187?pt=BI_Tool_Work_Holding&hash=item336c0c3413

Well, I still haven't set this one up, a Reed Hydraulic. The information in the above ad is not right; there is nothing pneumatic about it, it's foot powered like mine. It'll crush a 2 by 4, you know; that splintering sound.

Thats pretty cool ! I don't know if my girlfriend would understand if I came home with a vice instead of textbooks for school... hmmm

It's seriously cool! 8)

I don't like the way the Studebaker hangs way out all the time with the movable jaw in the back. The Reed also has a really stout swivel. Looks like the Studebaker has a "rapid" pedal and a power pedal, very cool that.

Bentiron I wonder if a bowling ball vise would do wot you are looking for. I did a bp on it bet i do not do well trying to find any of those. Or you can stop by here and I will show you one.

That bowling ball vise was one of the neatest re-purposing ideas I've seen in a long time, Rich. I hope the BP can be restored someday! :)

There was one of those in Emmert Studebaker's smithy. I saw it when SOFA used to meet there way back when.

i went to bid on it and the auction ended

Just wanted to add this picture before it disappears from Ebay:

That Studebaker vice looks like it would not be that hard to fab up and use an enerpac cylinder with it. Of course that one sold for less than an enerpac cylinder is worth.

One of the neat tools I saw in a production WWing shop up here was a series of pattern maker`s vises set up to open and close using dual action air cylinders and a rocker foot pedal.
What made it nice was that the pressure of the jaws could be adjusted thru a regulator on the post. Those things sure were fast and the fact that they made special wood jaws for different jobs made them versatile too. They used pattern maker`s vises because they would spin and tilt and the posts they were mounted on could be adjusted for height too. I was so impressed by their versatility that I made a copy of the post for my main metalworking vise.

I have a Studebaker Hydraulic vise that I would take $325 for. It is all there on a nice stand but I haven't cleaned it out and tried to make it work. I can send a photo tomorrow if anybody would like.

Here are some pictures of Studebaker Vise:It looks like it hasn't been used since Taft Hartley administration and I don't know how to rebuild it!!!

Nice looking vise! Probably the best way to rebuild if not working is to take photos as you take it apart and see if you can find replacement gaskets and "O" rings, hoses from current supplies. Good luck with the rebuild.

Has anyone had any luck finding info on these Studebaker? Trying a rebuild now. 

As I recall they had one in the Studebaker blacksmith shop at the Studebaker family farm in Tip City Ohio.  SOFA used to have meetings there when Emmert was still around.

Thanks Tom. Noticed your prob the only member on this post thats still active. To bad they're not still having them there still. Almost be worth the road trip to look it over. Can't find much anywhere else. 

Write to the Studebaker Family National Association about stopping by and looking at it next time you go to Quad-State.  Just about 30 to 40 minutes down the road from Quad-State in Tipp City and the association details can be found by a web search.  As I recall it was mounted on the same workbench as the large Fisher parallel jaw vise.

On May 1, 2017 at 10:17 PM, bryson489 said:

Has anyone had any luck finding info on these Studebaker? Trying a rebuild now. 

There is an older thread on Welding Web about restoring one that might be worth a look:

http://weldingweb.com/showthread.php?432041-Found-a-grail-and-restoring-(Studebaker-hydraulic-vise)