Our friend Perry brought in an antique post vise recently that was pretty interesting – especially since it is in such nice condition.  A post vise is a blacksmith’s vise and it is special for several reasons.  For one it is forged and it is built to take quite a bit of abuse, unlike a smaller, cheaper vise.  For another, it has a long leg to give it stability and support from the floor or a post.

Back in the days of the horse and carriage, when every town had a blacksmith, every blacksmith shop had at least one of these post vises.  For that reason, almost none of these sturdy tools were branded by the manufacturer with their name or any other identifying mark.  Post vises were actually sold by the pound, which was what distinguished one from the next.  In other words, they went by heaviness, rather than size in inches.