Brought this up from California when hauling the grandkids back and forth.
Parker Vise.jpg
For those who know vises, this is a Parker No. 106.
Finally had some time to install it. The front has part of the casting under the base so a portion of the bench front needed to be cut out. One thing I didn't figure happening was the low clearance at the back for the nut on the bolt. It is mounted with 2X5/8" carriage bolts. My preference was to use acorn nuts for appearance and to avoid losing skin if the get brushed by my hand when working. Turns out the clearance in the back didn't have enough room for an acorn nut. One of the first jobs for this vise was to cut the top off of on of the nuts. The bolts, washers and nuts had to be ordered since the locals only stock up to 1/2".
A bit more work had to be done to the nut since there is barely enough clearance for a standard nut when used with just a flat washer and my desire was to include a lock washer.
This vise was on my father's bench he made in the late 1940s or early 1950s. The bench is now in a friends garage in California. It is still a strong and sturdy bench. Small car engines, VW, have been taken apart and rebuilt on top of that bench. My friend found an old aluminum highway sign at a recycling place and bought it to cover the top. At least I have first right of refusal if he decides he doesn't want it any more.
From what is on line about this vise, the nose was changed from the ball front to a cylinder front in about 1936. I watched my father repair a lot of washing machine transmissions and other things using this vise. Heck I used it a lot in my younger years, now I get to use it againd.
jtk
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Originally Posted by Jim Neeley
