price check Wilton C1

[arsco]

Hello All,

Is a lightly used newer Wilton C1 worth $350. one "near" me, guy says it a tradesman vice. I can see C1 cast into the side of it. C1 looks to be worth a lot more than the tradesman of the same jaw width.


This would be my first real vise other than the one I sold that was from one of the oldest BPOE lodges I know, vise had to be from the 1850

 

[arsco]

Just looking for a good deal on a strong vise. I like the enclosed spindle for some reason.

 

[Filson]

Just looking for a good deal on a strong vise. I like the enclosed spindle for some reason.

A lot of people do. Wilton's definitely have a cult following for vise collectors. They have a unique look compared to some of the other brands and people see them in snap on catalogs and such so there is some brand-recognition.

Having said that - there are some of us that strongly prefer other brands over Wiltons. Reed, Parker, Prentiss, Athol, Hollands, Columbian, Wilton... They're all good vises.

Take a little time, do 20 CL searches a day to see what comes up, and you'll find a good deal.

I've bought a few 100-175 lb vises for under $50 bucks this last summer. Much better deals are out there. If I were you - I'd pass. Hope this helps.

 

[Davefr]

Hello All,

Is a lightly used newer Wilton C1 worth $350. one "near" me, guy says it a tradesman vice. I can see C1 cast into the side of it. C1 looks to be worth a lot more than the tradesman of the same jaw width.


This would be my first real vise other than the one I sold that was from one of the oldest BPOE lodges I know, vise had to be from the 1850

Yes, a lightly used C1 is worth what he's asking. It's not a "you ****" price but it's fair unless you want to wait it out for a better deal that could take months, years or never.

However if it's a tradesman it's not worth that price. Can you post an image?

 

[oldldh]

You can find bigger, heavier, "as good or better" US made vises for a lot less money...

CL and Ebay are covered up with them...

 

[arsco]

been looking for a while not much pops up in New England. seen a few but nothin that grabs me

 

[Davefr]

You can find bigger, heavier, "as good or better" US made vises for a lot less money...

CL and Ebay are covered up with them...

Please post the examples.

 

[arsco]

then spend the $350.

that is likely what will happen. as long as you guys dont tell me im getting the screws. I wish I could find a "you **** " price

 

[Davefr]

I wish I could find a "you **** " price

You can. Just go to 100's of G-Sales, search CL hourly and be very patient (as measured by months or years).

Do you want a "you ****" price or do you want to do work. It's a trade off of cheap, quality and time. Pick your priorities.

 

[Davefr]

or, you.can put ONE ad on CL;


"big vise wanted"

And this is what he'll likely get to see after wasting tons of time and gas:

However nothing ventured/nothing gained. (time, quality or price - pick two priorities)

 

[justanengineer]

You can. Just go to 100's of G-Sales, search CL hourly and be very patient (as measured by months or years).

Do you want a "you ****" price or do you want to do work. It's a trade off of cheap, quality and time. Pick your priorities.

He's in New England, even at the overpriced antique shows like Brimfield or Bouckville they dont sell for anywhere near that much. JME, but Ive only ever seen Wiltons sell for those ridiculously high prices online, usually to "tool collectors."

+1 on opening your eyes to other brands. Dam near every garage, both private and professional have at least one, often old vise. Given the industry thats forever moving out of New England, Id suggest a shop or plant closing as being a cheap place to look.

 

[drivesitfar]

I do believe Wiltons do have a higher value and partly because of the name recognition, but mainly because you can still buy parts for these vises and keep them working for 50 more years of normal use.

I sold a C1 for $425 a few months ago that was a 1957 and fully restored and 100% original. I have never heard of a C1 in a tradesman style, but I haven't owned hundreds of these yet. pictures would help us help you if you have any, but if it is for sure a tradesman find out when it was made and i'd say tops if in great shape the $350 is a bit too high.

i'd love to shop at the store where these $30 Wilton bullet vises are sold and I wouldn't leave until I ran out of money. I don't think such a store exists even though I know some of the guys that search every angle can find them now and then. PM me if you have a $30 Wilton that you want to sell that has all it's parts and i'll pay the shipping across the US.

 

[gtermini]

I'd love to shop at the store where these $30 Wilton bullet vises are sold and I wouldn't leave until I ran out of money... PM me if you have a $30 Wilton that you want to sell that has all it's parts and i'll pay the shipping across the US.

Put me in 2nd on that mailing list!

Greyson

 

[bluebolt]

drivesitfar, as others have said it takes a lot of looking and luck to find a decent Wilton for reasonable. From my somewhat spotty memory over about 3 years.

Wilton 3" bullet, don't remember the price but it was probably in the $40 range
Wilton 3.5 swivel base bullet $50 in decent shape at estate sale.
Wilton 4" bullet, no swivel base, $45 at last day of Pate swap meet
Wilton 5" swivel base bullet $10, 1947, frozen slide, has serious corrosion, needs new jaws and broken screws removed from one jaw. Main screw missing handle and has lots of corrosion. Needs swivel locks. It is now unfrozen though!
Wilton C1 swivel base parts vise $10, missing jaw inserts, badly broken jaw towers and the jaw ledges were totally broken off PLUS the front jaw was loose on the tube. Used some parts (main screw with nice handle and swivel locks) for the 1947 5" bullet.
Wilton 6" swivel base bullet $50 at farm auction. Frozen slide and has been relegated to the "someday" pile LOL.
Wilton Cadet, bought for $20 at flea market and sold for $40 at Pate swap meet. Decent shape except the jaw inserts were welded on.
Wilton 1750 Tradesman $35 at flea market, needs new jaw inserts but otherwise in decent shape.
Gas for all these acquisitions probably around $300 LOL. (not counting Pate swap meet)

 

[balane]

I've been lucky in the past. I work hard at finding vises though. I'm always on CL, always at estate sales, etc. If I don't see a vise I'll ask if there happens to be one. I've had an estate sale company tell me that if it's bolted down then it isn't for sale. I kept pestering and finally got him to call the owner and ask, I ended up walking away with a nice vise for cheap. You have to work at it, you have to ask questions, you always have to be looking.. They're out there, they just might not be hanging right in front of your face.

Here's a great example. I was responding to a Craig's List ad for some hand tools for sale. I bought a bunch of stuff. I look over and see a nice bullet mounted to his bench. I ask him if the vise is for sale. He says, yes but that's a $20 vise. I couldn't hand him the money fast enough. Here's a pic of it after I was done with it. I have lots of stories like this. I think most vises I've purchased, and I bet that's easily over a hundred now, would be classified as a you **** price.

I'm not saying this to brag but to let you know the deals are out there if you're willing to put in the time and track them down. Good luck.

.

 

[drivesitfar]

Gentleman: I did mention that you can find a Wilton or any old US made vise for a YS price if you scour the ads, online bidding, estates, garage sales and just get the word out to everybody you know. I'm pretty sure one or both of you has not found a working $30 Wilton vise with all it's parts (no jaw replacement necessary) in the last week or a lot longer. by the way most $30 vises need several hours of cleaning too or most likely parts to fix them.

not everybody wants to make a full time job or hobby out of chasing down these vises or the restored vises wouldn't sell for $150 and more. I mentioned that I sold a fully restored C1 from 1957 for $425 and as I was handing it over the guy I was kicking myself because it will be a long time before I see another one so I even offered to buy it back a couple days later and he already had it mounted and was using it happily. that said I probably owned 5 other wiltons at that time and several other quality ones.

good vises are hard to find and if you want to spend $300 or $1000 to get the one you want it is similar to a guy spending $10,000 on a tool box or $100,000 on a car. if it makes you happy and you can afford it then do a little research and buy it if it isn't totally out of line. by the way i'm not sure your C1 is a tradesman so pictures would help if you are still watching your thread. the new tradesman is $599 and might be made in China so a date of birth and pictures would help us help you.

 

[Davefr]

Dave, I know you want to win this, and I
know you want the whole wilton-as-a-pog thing to continue,

but this is his first vise, has never had use enough to need one, amd you suggest a boutique piece over common sense.

yes, they're pretty.
no they aren't worth a penny more than any other vise of the same hollow quality.

There's no winning or loosing here. The OP wanted an opinion on a Wilton C1 and got an earful from all sides. If he wants a lightly used Wilton Machinist vise he'll have to pay a lot. (either time spent looking, money or both) The market places very high value on Wiltons. (deserving or not)

Now if the OP wants a decent vise in the short term then there are many non Wilton vises that can be had much cheaper.

It's his time, need and money. He can make the tradeoffs.

Yes, I've found some killer deals on Wiltons at G-sales but it's taken a lot of time and a lot of luck being at the right place at the right time.

I'd be committing "GJ malpractice" if I suggested the OP could simply glance at CL or waltz into one or two G-sales and get a Wilton for <$50.

P.S. New Wilton C-1's cost $1059 on Amazon. Lightly used for 33% of new doesn't seem too bad.