Another Swindens

[doubleboost]

Nearly done. Need to make up a set of jaws and fixings. Looks good tho.

Lettering is unbelievably crisp for this vintage.

I think I will leave it in its raw state.

Or I could paint it white....

It looks great the way it is now I would not be without mine now

 

[arther dailey]

Agree, mines as is, just prefer it to be a work tool,so darn usefull eh

 

[Screwdriver]

I'm hoping to keep it but you never know. Plan is to make up some solid copper jaws and dedicate it to the welding bench. I already have a decent Swindens, the one I had to make up a new jaw for.

I certainly wouldn't be without one!

This one wont get painted, the last one needed so much work, I had almost had to paint it.

 

[arther dailey]

understand that, bit like the old slurry tractors to wrecked for original resto so full resto and paint, interesting you say about copper jaws, I used thin copper plates on my "normal " vice for lots of stuff,v usefull not damaging threads etc., would like to get the next size up swinden some wheres along the line but dont see many, tig on here promised me first shout on his...but maybes someone else crept in there

 

[Screwdriver]

It wasn't that bad and I never hide damage, it's just that I had to do a fair bit of machining and it would never have looked original anyway after so much rust damage. As for Tiggys Swindens, I don't creep about. If someone has a damaged repairable item, I'll offer to buy it unless I see someone else has asked first.

I lucked out on a huge bar of copper that turned up in a job lot. It's the perfect size for jaws. It's over half a metre long, and about 20mm x 50mm so I am waiting as long as possible before I hack it up. Meantime I pop out to the workshop every now and then to polish it....

 

[Screwdriver]

Sorry didnt realise , I geunuinly thought you put stuff on here to show how to do it properly!presumed you sell through ebay or similar. Dont worry if I sell stuff I just put it in the for sale column.
either way dont paint it !

I post these threads because I genuinely enjoy the process of restoration. I don't know about showing people how to do it properly but I'm happy to show you all how I do it and how it can go wrong! I do sell my stuff on eBay when I need to make money but this thread is not an advert and that's why I object to someone trying to use my thread to sell their stuff.

 

[Richard.]

Sorry, didnt realise this forum was your private advertising lot.....ha, joking aside like the finish,Dont paint it! to much original stuff gets ruined by over renovation destroying all the character of a piece,irrespective of what it is.

Sorry didnt realise , I geunuinly thought you put stuff on here to show how to do it properly!presumed you sell through ebay or similar. Dont worry if I sell stuff I just put it in the for sale column.
either way dont paint it !

Screwd, he's apologised twice.
Let it go!

 

[Screwdriver]

 

[Richard.]

I'm sure if you ask art nicely he'd have no problems having that post deleted.
He's a decent fella.

 

[Screwdriver]

I'm sure if you ask art nicely he'd have no problems having that post deleted.
He's a decent fella.

Nah. It's a bit of fun that's all. There's a fair few of us Swindens supporters now. A good cheap one is getting difficult to find! I actually prefer to find broken or seized ones not just because that's all I can afford but for the sense of achievement when you can restore it to full function.

 

[Richard.]

I'm glad you prefer to buy the refurbers over good ones. It makes interesting reading, watching you bring them back to life.

 

[arther dailey]

Yup delete the thread

 

[Screwdriver]

Yup delete the thread

I will not.

 

[EddyP]

I've been watching eBay for a couple of years for a Swindens now and very rarely when they do come up they're pretty knackered and still ridiculously expensive.

Where do you manage to find them?!

 

[arther dailey]

I meant the post I put in actually, not that up on forum lingo.

 

[Screwdriver]

I've been watching eBay for a couple of years for a Swindens now and very rarely when they do come up they're pretty knackered and still ridiculously expensive.

Where do you manage to find them?!

They now have a name for themselves and the supply is drying up. It's still worth trying to find one though, they are superb vices. Like I said, I don't mind the knackered ones and sometimes one pops up like this one which is in a lot better condition than I first thought.

 

[Screwdriver]

Actually didn't take too long once I got around to it...

Soft jaws made out of aluminium because I'm always using aluminium inserts in my regular vices! And it's easier to work.

After fitting I dressed them with a file to level them out to match and fitted a 1mm spacer behind so they close fully same time as the opposite side (here shown slightly open.)

It didn't have a back cap which protects the end of the screw and seals against the grease. Hammered a sheet of aluminium (again) to form a bowl inside a bearing shell using a ball pein.

I assumed the first one would be a disposable test piece but it actually worked...

So I fitted it up and filed to suit.

Typically for a Swindens, nothing is symmetrical. Screw holes are off, everything is a bit offset but, heck, its a vice. Big handsome thing it is too.

Oh yeah, its a BIG one. Five inches makes my regular size Record look tiny.

It's substantially bigger than my "big" vice.

I have hesitated finishing this off because I'm flat broke and will have to sell it

(Mods: I will place an advert in the for sale section first but since I will be asking top dollar, it will be going on eBay once everyone here has had a chance to moan about greedy sellers asking waaay to much... )

 

[slim_boy_fat]

It didn't have a back cap which protects the end of the screw and seals against the grease. Hammered a sheet of aluminium (again) to form a bowl inside a bearing shell using a ball pein.

If you have no objection , I might use that idea/method to shape an adjustable air intake for the BBQ I'm [very slowly ] making.

 

[Screwdriver]

Sure, I don't think I invented the idea. I have been collecting old bearing shells since they are dead handy objects to have around the workshop, They are precision items so a matching pair is a set of parallels. Not after you've been smacking them with a hammer I guess. All I did was roughly mark it out and gaffer tape a smaller shell to the back side, then gave it a few taps with a big ball pein on the anvil. Didn't take that much hammering and the shell stayed put since the first part of the deformation tends to retain it. Like I say, I was expecting the first one to go a lot more wrong but it worked out ok on the first attempt.

 

[slim_boy_fat]

@Screwdriver Excellent , I won't need much curve - just to match the bottle. I have something like this in mind, with fewer holes - say, 3 or four.