Congrats! I am considering buying one. What are your thoughts?
my thoughts are that (FUNCTIONALY) buying the craftsman pro vise is alot like finding a used 1745 in good working condition, with new jaws and bad surface paint, for $100. Of course, that is, if you can accept that this vise is a Chinese copy of an imported Wilton
. make no mistake -- this is not U.S. iron; its just a good impersonation. Anyway, I'm still in the process of becoming "one" with mine, but so far the form, fitment, and function are all very good -- only the surface is substandard.
buyers of this one will probably want to restore the finish within a few short years because there is no primer under that red paint and it shows signs of early failure right out of the box (at least mine did). just inspect closely and you will immediately see this. other points of wisdom I have found here and for myself:
1. take off the jaws and apply anti-sieze to the screw threads. I can't even get mine off with a conventional philips screwdriver and elbow greese... so this step is pretty important
2. take off the dynamic jaw and lead screw (just unscrew and it will fall off) and shine a flashlight into the "bullet". look for dry surfaces and rust, esp on the outer surface of the internal screw assembly (what the lead screw goes into).
3. at purchase time, check out the play/wobble in the lead screw where it mates up to the dynamic jaw casting. the first copy I inspected at Sears had too much slop in it, so I picked a different one to purchase.
4. use it for a while until the paint really starts to peel, and then restore it. then you will have the closest thing to a $400 vise, for $150 tops, including restoration materials. Well, it won't be a U.S. Wilton but it will be better than a Chinese copy of an imported Wilton! Thanks
kythri for the example and inspiration!
5. watch sears sales until the price drops below $100. Lately, the price has jumped around between $130, $107, and $101 and then suddenly on 1/8 it appeared at $99. In addition, I found a generic 5% discount coupon for on-line purchases and selected in-store pickup, droping the price to $94.
Attached is a photo from Slip_Kid -- of his 1745 parts, where I have added text to describe what I mean in (3) above.
