Posted 9 years ago
Foofighter
(13 items)
I think that this is a vice of some sort. Not sure of the age, nice old tool though. If anybody can very it's age and what it is actually called, it would be appreciated. Thanks.
Antique Craftsman no. 5242 Vice ? | ||
| fhrjr2's loves1216 of 2043 |  |  |
Standard bench vice from Sears(Craftsman), looks to be a 6 inch vice, could be old but my thinking around 1960's-70's....but has a life-time guarantee beings it a Craftsman :-)
Also has the "bench swivel" feature. -- One thing I learned about Craftsman's guarantee, if you try to replace one they will try to give you the new version which are much more cheaply made. (Who want's a Made in China product in place of a Made in the U.S.A??) - I would definitely keep ALL those old tools.
Swivel bench vise but I believe this is a 4 inch model. I have basically the same vise on one of my benches although not sure of my model number. Good little vise for light work. Sears has archives where you can look up their products and research them. No value to speak of but a good unit and you can replace the jaws. Aghcollect is right about getting replacements. Always go for original just like you have. I went through that routine with their ratchets when one broke.
fhrjr2 - re: the ratchet - yeah, another trick they use is exchanging it for a "refurbished" one - I made them get me a brand spanking new one right off the shelf, and I broke that one too - cheap foreign made stuff.
According to the Craftsman number, the current 8242 is a 5 1/2" vise but they are now made in Jiangsu, China and they chopped off the bull-nose anvil part.
Mid to late 50's swivel bench vice. It isn't worth more than 125 dollars but a priceless tool.