Record look-alike vises

[aqualex]

Any thoughts/recommendations on the Record look-alike woodworking vises?

It seems there's quite some variation in their quality, most are far-east made, one of them still made in Europe (?!)? How do you actually tell them apart?

I've tried to get a 52 1/2 "good old one" on ebay, not much luck yet.

Best whishes,
Alex

PS I hope I'm not off-forum, vises are not power tools for sure, but do they qualify as handtools? :-k

 

[Paul Chapman]

Try second-hand tool shops - I often see plenty of old Record vices for sale. But not sure about the situation in the Netherlands :?

Cheers :ho2

Paul

 

[Scrit]

Amersfoort? Well you're not far off my old stomping grounds, there. Unfortunately I can't recall any secondhand tool places in Gelderland or Overijssel, although I do recall seeing woodwoking tools on flea markets from time to time. When I lived in the Netherlands I did visit a number of joiners/furniture maker's shops and I was surprised at the benches. Many of them were the German pattern with wooden jaws and only a few were of the English Record/Paramo/Parkinson/Rededa pattern (they were the 4 main manufacturers here, although Woden vices also turn up from time to time), possibly because Ulmia, Sjobergs and ECE Emmerich were readily available in your country. I recall two of my three local tool merchants in Apeldoorn sold Ulmia and Sjobergs and respectively (in the early 1980s). I just wondered if you'd had the same experience? This all-metal pattern of vice is very definitely a British practice and not too common in the rest of Europe

Personally I'm still a bit wary of Far Eastern or Indian cast-iron vices. Maybe that's bias borne of problems in the past and I'd be interested to hear comments from any users of these low-cost imported vices myself.

Scrit

 

[aqualex]

Scrit,

You could be right, I don't know very many pro makers in the Netherlands that are not heavily into power tools, but that's probably me.
Of the few hand tools buffs, the ones using a Record woodworking vise are the ones having built their own benches. The others are indeed using Ulmia, Sjoberg, Dieffenbach etc benches, with metal screws/wooden jaws.

The same goes for the planes, half of them use wooden bench planes, half the English metal patterns. It also probably depends on whom you've been taught by.

Best,
Alex