An Interesting Vice

[Parm]

Does anyone recognise this type of vice? Could it be home made ?

 

[julianthegypsy]

Could be, it looks like it was made by a fabricator, no casting!

 

[CRB]

Bigdint in the back of the fixed jaw from a press brake.

Probably perfectly adequate for a lot of light duty large things.

Presumably the screw is from a brken vice of a similar size.

 

[Parm]

Just a bit of additional background, I found this at Europes largest nickel refinery in Swansea last week, factory has been there since 1902 and not much has changed since!

This was in a yard used by some contractors.

Jaws and screw look like they came off and old vice and everything else looks very much home made. Chap there told me its sat outside for as long as he can remember.

There were some other quite interesting home made solutions too but I wasn't allowed to use a camera due to explosion risk

 

[Parm]

@MattF, bet you ain't got one of these

 

[CRB]

Tell him some line about rare, prototype vices and he will be offering you pennies.....literally.

 

[Parm]

Tell him some line about rare, prototype vices and he will be offering you pennies.....literally.

I did enquire if I could rescue this and give it a loving home but I was told that this is part of the site heritage and gotta stay put

 

[MattF]

@MattF, bet you ain't got one of these

Nope. That one looks to be quite nicely made. I noticed they've welded the swivel base up though.

 

[brightspark]

it looks weedy .theres no support under the front bottom edge and a lot of overhang

 

[MattF]

it looks weedy .theres no support under the front bottom edge and a lot of overhang

The welded steel ones are apparently easier to get away with things like that though and them still be quite usable, from what I hear.

 

[Kent]

could have been made from bits of a broken one OR it was made to hold an unusual shaped object (not it has extra clearance under the jaws). Certainly a one off and we will likely never know for sure why. Apprentices were often given some crazy stuff to make "just for the experience" it beats making square blocks and then turning them into balls with hand tools only! Toolmakers nearly always made their tool box and a lot of the stuff that went into it, not a bad idea IMO. Its not like you can always afford for them too mess up on paying work. Remember not that long back the parents of the apprentice actually paid for them to work at a place and learn their skills

 

[sardine]

I doubt it would never be a money saver to fabricate a big vice, but if it was designed right to take into account the soft mild steel it could work. If you have a spare acme thread bar ?

 

[vwmark]

One the same on ebay at moment - says its a clarke vice

 

[brightspark]

One the same on ebay at moment - says its a clarke vice

it will be sh....ite then