Blacksmith Bench Vise Chas Parker No 200 Meriden CT Antique Vintage Old Shop For Sale

Up for sale is a legendary piece of American industrial history: a vintage Charles Parker Co. No. 200 fixed-base bench vise, proudly forged in Meriden, Connecticut.

If you are the kind of craftsman or collector who looks at a tool and appreciates the story it tells, this is your vise. This powerhouse has spent well over a century in the trenches of an American workshop. It wears decades of honest "knocking, banging, and years of love" directly on its sleeve.

This isn't a shiny, freshly repainted reproduction—this is raw, un-restored history with an incredible, rich patina. Hints of its original factory green/blue paint still peek through the seasoned iron, proving it has spent the last hundred-plus years doing its job admirably and surviving the test of time.

Built for Uncompromising Strength: The "Saddle Mount" Advantage

This No. 200 model was engineered during an era when tools were built without a single compromise. It features a classic saddle-style (or lip-mount) base casting and a direct-bolt, non-swivel design.

Unlike modern, weaker vises that simply sit flat on top of a table, this heavy-duty tank requires you to cut a small notch out of the edge of your workbench to mount it. By doing so, the integrated cast-iron saddle hooks tightly below and against the table frame. When you strike a piece of metal in these jaws, the violent shearing force is transferred directly into the bones of your workbench rather than snapping your mounting bolts. Later-era vises removed this feature to make installation "easier," but they sacrificed a massive amount of structural integrity to do so.

Product Specifications & Features:

• Brand: Charles Parker Co.

• Model: No. 200 (Fixed Base, Ultra-Strong Saddle Mount)

• Jaw Width: 4 inches

• Max Opening Capacity: 7 inches

• Origin: Meriden, CT, USA

• Weight: Approx. 43 lbs of heavy-duty American iron

Condition Notes:

This vise works exactly as it should. It has been thoroughly inspected, and crucially, there are no cracks and no welds anywhere in the cast iron. The massive screw mechanism turns smoothly, the jaws are solid, and the frame is completely structurally sound. It has spent the last 100 years working hard, and it is entirely ready to bolt down, notch into your bench, and give you another century of flawless service.

This device is very heavy and will need to be placed in a wooden box for shipping so shipping charges reflect this if for some reason you live very close I will refund any extra money after I find out what shipping is.. if it is more, I will eat the additional cost.. thank you for looking…