Larry Jaques writes:

On 29 Nov 2017 03:36:37 -0400, Mike Spencer
wrote:

Larry Jaques writes:

8" leg? That's a huge vise.

Just so. I saw three in the maintainance shop at the old underground
coal mine in Stellarton. The guy who bought the biz bulldozed the
entire shop and sent it for scrap when he couldn't get urban collector
price for for the old gear -- asked $250K IIRC. They used the vices
to hold the ancient pneumatic drills that kept failing. (See the 1910
Brittanica under coal mining for pics of such drills in use.)

Drawing and quartering for that new buyer, methinks.

Yes. He wasn't the only one like that. The next to last manager of a
shipyard & foundry in Liverpool, NS, would smash any gear they were
disposing of before putting it out by the rail spur to go for scrap.
Saw a perfectly good 25# Little Giant/Jardine hammer that had been
intentionally smashed before scrapping. I'm guessing the idea, left
over from pre-WW I notions of sharp business practice, was that it
would prevent anyone, perhaps especially their own employees, from
getting a leg up on competing with them.

(The good news there was that the dickhead retired (or, one can hope,
was unceremoniously ****canned by the owners) before they disposed of
the 300# Beaudry and his replacement, the last manager before the biz
closed, did sell it to another blacksmith in good working order. It's
still in use over in the Annapolis Valley.)

Yes, half-hanged, drawn & quartered.

--
Mike Spencer Nova Scotia, Canada