99ls1ss Posted January 9, 2019 Share Posted January 9, 2019 I recent got my first post vise and I have no idea how old it is or who might have made it. I've been trying to learn as much as I can about it but, I'm finding out that a lot of different people/companies made them and never put any identifying marks on them. I thought it would be worth a shot to ask here. It looks (to my untrained eye) to be hand forged so that makes me wonder if it was made around the mid to late 19th century. I also wonder if the screw and screw box might not be the original parts. I wonder about the screw box because the "duck tail" looking part on the back of each jaw looks like someone with skill made them but, the screw box looks like it was made by someone with a little less skill. When I got the vise apart I noticed that 4 of the pieces had 3 dots on them. So far, those are the only markings on the vise. When I got the screw box cleaned up some, I saw that it appears to have been brazed/welded with bronze or brass. You can see it in multiple places where it looks like it had seams that have been brazed/welded. Another thing that I haven't been able to figure out is the slot on one side of the pivot pin hole. I don't know if it was put there intentionally by whoever made it or if it was something someone else did by accident or after the fact. If I need to post more or different pictures to show different parts of the vise, let me know. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ThomasPowers Posted January 9, 2019 Share Posted January 9, 2019 Definitely some mixed signals there. The mounting plate is not a mortise and tenon set up so not too early; but the forge brazed screwbox is an earlier type. The pivot bolt with a locking protrusion often goes with an earlier style too especially when the bolt is wedged rather than a nut. You do realize that being made in a factory does not mean it can't be hand forged don't you? The 3 dots are to keep all the pieces together for a "fitted" assembly. I'm leaning towards a major replacement of the screwbox done by a smith in his smithy to a postvise that had a problem. As screws and screwboxes could be bought in the Sears and Roebuck catalogs it probably predated the 1890's or was in a backward area. As for maker---you haven't supplied a major factor LOCATION; If I was asking about a used car and said I was in Russia, a Lada might be a good guess; If I was in the USA a Lada would be a terrible guess while a Ford might be more likely. We have folks here from over 100 different countries so we generally suggest you edit your profile and add a generaL LOCATION. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
99ls1ss Posted January 9, 2019 Author Share Posted January 9, 2019 2 minutes ago, ThomasPowers said: Definitely some mixed signals there. The mounting plate is not a mortise and tenon set up so not too early; but the forge brazed screwbox is an earlier type. The pivot bolt with a locking protrusion often goes with an earlier style too especially when the bolt is wedged rather than a nut. You do realize that being made in a factory does not mean it can't be hand forged don't you? The 3 dots are to keep all the pieces together for a "fitted" assembly. I'm leaning towards a major replacement of the screwbox done by a smith in his smithy to a postvise that had a problem. As screws and screwboxes could be bought in the Sears and Roebuck catalogs it probably predated the 1890's or was in a backward area. As for maker---you haven't supplied a major factor LOCATION; If I was asking about a used car and said I was in Russia, a Lada might be a good guess; If I was in the USA a Lada would be a terrible guess while a Ford might be more likely. We have folks here from over 100 different countries so we generally suggest you edit your profile and add a generaL LOCATION. It didn't occur to me that being made in a factory could mean that it was still hand forged. Sorry about forgetting the location. I bought it in Greensboro, North Carolina. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marc1 Posted January 9, 2019 Share Posted January 9, 2019 I think it is an Alfa Romeo I like the hammer deflecting protrusions on the jaws. Usually on expensive vices. Clearly repaired or parts replaced at some stage, but not a Frankenstein vice. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ThomasPowers Posted January 9, 2019 Share Posted January 9, 2019 Aha; perhaps a repair from up in the hills during the great depression or even the reconstruction. I have an old vise: tenon mount, wedged pivot bolt (no screw threads) where the screwbox was built up of a bunch of pieces all forge brazed together. From what I can see that screwbox was a single piece and the threaded insert was made and brazed in it replacing the original threads. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Teddybo Posted January 23, 2019 Share Posted January 23, 2019 My vote is Peter Wright with new screw box Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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