A man had a I.C. post vise at he flea market last weekend. I looked at it and am thinking about making him an offer this weekend. Vise looked good. It is a 6", not tweaked, no cracks, screw looks good, and weighs around 75-85 lbs. Only thing I am wondering, if someone can tell me is this. I have never had an Iron City and it has some sort of shield over the screw that looks like it is worn pretty bad, especially on one side. Is this a problem? All my other post vises have no such shield or whatever it is. If everyone thinks this is not a problem I will make him an offer on it. Thanks

The "shield" was probably there to protect the screw and screw box from debris and dirt.  The grit getting into the threads is what wears them out.  Dirt + grease/oil = lapping compound.

Do all Iron city vise's have this shield?

Probably not.  None of the three IC vise I have owned had one.  Probably homemade.

Can you describe it a bit better? If it's worn the previous user probably needed it for how he worked!

All my vises just have the screw box extension to provide some protection to the screw---and some of those are a might bedraggled and could have used a replaceable cover. (and some are pretty short like the Columbians IIRC)

Thomas it is not an extension. It actually somewhat covers the screw directly below the jaws. But it does also have a extension as you stated. Also, not that this has anything to do with the question, he is asking $150.00 for it. Way more than I have ever gave for one but if he will negotiate I am definitely interested. Thanks.

I went and googled iron city post vise images. I guess you are right Thomas, that part I was describing must be the extension that you are talking about. If that part is worn out and there is no damage to the screw or screwbox then that should not be a problem. Right?

I went and googled iron city post vise images. I guess you are right Thomas, that part I was describing must be the extension that you are talking about. If that part is worn out and there is no damage to the screw or screwbox then that should not be a problem. Right?

Check to make sure that it's not part of the screwbox in use! By worn out what exactly do you mean? I've had ones that the very end was cracked due to over tightening the vise---a 6" vise may have seen some heavy use; but that is a good price for a 6" vise these days

I am not sure. I wish I had looked at it closer. It looked like it was just worn thin.

I own two Iron Citys, and I have no idea what y'all are talking about. I'll buy it if nobody wants it. lol

The screwbox extension, the part that goes through the hole in the back leg and out in the space between the legs does taper toward the open end in most of my vices. If the screwthreads are still nice and square and not worn rounded or sharp then you are most likely in good shape and a good price for a 6" jaw vice.

Iron City tools were made in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.  I believe they merged or went out of business in the late 1950's.  All IC products that I have seen are very well made.  As long as there are no breaks or severe damage to the vise frame, just inspect the screw threads and make your assessment of the vise.  The easiest way to to back out the screw all of the way from the screw box and visually look at the condition of the screw threads, and the matching threads inside the screw box.  Take a flashlight to really see inside.  Dirty oil and grease can be a good thing; they have protected the screw from rust.

 

On any post vise I get, I always take screw and box apart, thoroughly clean them of all old crud, and apply modern grease to the threads.  It make them work very well.  Then keep them lubed with light oil, and keep crud out of the threads.  Clean when needed, and you will add a long life to the vise.

Thanks to all for the help. I will give it a good look over and let you know what happens.

If you buy the vise, post pictures please.

Will do.