Screwdriver
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MattF
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This is why I refer to the old Swindens as having a mush only a mother could love.
Functional and sturdy they are, pretty and finely cast they aren't. 
brightspark
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most old castings are crap.even on lathes and milling machines. providing the working surfaces were ok they just filled and painted the other bits as its just cosmetic
Screwdriver
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Well since its in good mechanical order, I'll do a bit of filling with JBweld or some such before I paint it. Nothing fancy, I might even go for a NATO green and see if the military vehicle guys are interested.
S.
S.
MattF
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Swindens seem to have taken the functionality over form mentality to its limit though.
Few did rough and ready to the degree they did.
Screwdriver
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Having seen how poor some of the machining is on that failed one, I wonder if they haven't been over stretching their manufacturing capacity to fulfil huge MoD orders. The jaw faces had a machined 0.2mm step mismatch and the asymmetry in the jaws is so bad it's not even funny.
Its a great design though. I wonder if the company isn't simply trading on its past success. They recently offered a rotating base design thats worse than anything I would let out of my own shed. A hastily cobbled together, fundamentally flawed bodge. They took it down from the site recently saying they are working on a cast base design.
Claude Swinden is probably rotating in his grave...
S.
Its a great design though. I wonder if the company isn't simply trading on its past success. They recently offered a rotating base design thats worse than anything I would let out of my own shed. A hastily cobbled together, fundamentally flawed bodge. They took it down from the site recently saying they are working on a cast base design.
Claude Swinden is probably rotating in his grave...
S.
MattF
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I'd find out whether their preference is for original or slightly fancier before doing any filling or such. Even painting alone can severely limit your potential market, so best to figure out what they prefer first. The standard Swindens don't tend to command overly silly money even at the best of times, (there was one 'restored' one sat on Ebay for months at just under 200 notes. Not too badly done either, but I don't think it ever sold), but restoring it for the wrong market rather than the one you're aiming for would limit that even further.
Personally, if I were in your spot, I'd be contemplating flogging the newer one and keeping the old rather than vice versa. The newer ones may look a bit more cosmetically pleasing, and the fully enclosed slide is nice, but the older ones are better, IMHO. Simple things like the slide positioner on the newer version, for example. That's nowhere near as robust as the old design where the nut itself keeps the two jaws aligned. Plus, you have the simple fact that one has survived 70 years without damage and one couldn't even make it to 20 years without. I know which I'd hedge my bets on, just from that fact alone.
Was that swivel base the one which appeared to be made from steel plate? I caught vague mention of that months ago. What was wrong with that one? I only ever saw one photo, which didn't give much detail of it.
MattF
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Screwdriver
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The Doncaster lot wouldn't appreciate being classed as Derby folk.
Meh, up North somewhere.
Well it's a nice problem to have I guess with two to choose from. Whichever I keep is going to be sat on the welding bench, being used and abused.
The rotating base looked like four long bolts going through long standoffs into a circular plate. They would have to raise the height hugely because of course, the jaws still have to rotate. The patent part of the Swindens relates to it's incredible rigidity, stick that on a wobbly tower of bolts and it's going to lose all of that stiffness.
Personally, I think they are missing a really obvious trick. Just turn their existing design 90 degrees and have two rotating locking collars. From a production perspective, they cast the anvil section and machine it for the jaw mechanism anyway so its a simple case of rejiggingthe part to counterbore the base collar....
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CwazyWabbit
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Only just come across this thread, you did a nice rescue job on the broken Swindens there 
As the other fellow said Aluminium Bronze is the way to go for TIG brazing, makes a nice job but the rods are a bit pricey.
Pretty certain Swindens had a rotating base available many years ago .....
As the other fellow said Aluminium Bronze is the way to go for TIG brazing, makes a nice job but the rods are a bit pricey.Pretty certain Swindens had a rotating base available many years ago .....
CwazyWabbit
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There you go, another couple for you to look out for 
CwazyWabbit
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Was just thinking, this is the 2nd broken Swindens I've seen and both were the new style ..... perhaps the new castings are prettier and also a word that rhymes with prettier .....
Screwdriver
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This one showed all the signs of high speed manufacture. The step in the jaw mounting face is really disgraceful and is most likely the cause of the broken jaw.
CwazyWabbit
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Looks like I was mistaken about the other one, it was an older one that got animal-ed http://www.mig-welding.co.uk/forum/threads/swindens-vice.45390/page-10#post-525724
MattF
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It appears they are prone to damage on the rear where the nut is pegged, if the jaws aren't closed fully when transporting, if it gets a good whack etc. Screw' and Doubleboost both had problems in that area.
