The VISES of Garage Journal

[zoomieport]

Thank you! Yes, it has been a METEOROIC rise in my vise ownership, LOL!
I, like Outlaw, balane, Nick (Autopts), Kevin (The DR.) and several others don't like to "look back" or "count", LOL!
It's not a defineable number...
I've got lots of stuff, that can hold other stuff... Fair enough? HAHA!


ZOOM

 

[bagged89s10]

I continued with the teardown, cleanup of the Wilton C1 today.
drivesitfar and 454ragtop were correct in that the pipe jaws were retained by spring clips on the back of them.
I got those out, and decided to stop fooling around with the jaw screws.
It is times like this that having a mill makes things soooo much easier.
I mounted the vise body on the mill table, selected an end mill that was just the diameter of the head on the cap screws retaining the jaws, and bored the heads off the screws.

This makes it possible to pop off the jaws, grab the screw shanks with vise grips, and get them out easily:

With all the jaws off, I blasted the parts, cleaned up the torch and grinder gouges in the vise, and milled off the anvil surface to clean it up:

The end cap was pretty beat up, dented and had a nasty crease in it, but at least it was still there.
I took a hammer and some shaping tools to it, and got it as close to original dome shape as I could:

Then I sanded it and buffed it, and it came out surprisingly well:

With warm weather forecast for this weekend, I should be able to get the body painted and ready for re-assembly.

Nice work on that wilton! And I'm so jealous of the milling machine. One day I'll have one.


~Veeps

 

[bagged89s10]

For a size comparison... HA!

That's quite a collection. I guess you can't get to those back shelves.


~Veeps

 

[KMScott]

I continued with the teardown, cleanup of the Wilton C1 today.
drivesitfar and 454ragtop were correct in that the pipe jaws were retained by spring clips on the back of them.
I got those out, and decided to stop fooling around with the jaw screws.
It is times like this that having a mill makes things soooo much easier.
I mounted the vise body on the mill table, selected an end mill that was just the diameter of the head on the cap screws retaining the jaws, and bored the heads off the screws..

I know what you mean Steevo, I do the same, much safer and the setup is not that bad either. I also do not screw around with straightness the handles, it was taking me longer to straighten and clean then just making a new one. Even the big guys like this 7" Hollands. Nice clean shop you have, mines a mess this week.

 

[loudog212]

Damn you GJ. I've only been here for 2 months and i just bought my 3rd vise. Found a CL ad for a garage sale. I asked if they had a vise and the person said they were clearing out their moms house and thought there may be a bench vise. The said to stop by the day before the garage sale.

I picked up this Emmert Tiger 40 and an old Craftsman, US drill bit set. Drill bits looked new and in a metal case. I offered $20 and they said ok. The vise isn't perfect, its cracked/broken and missing the swivel base. I looks very used!

 

[bagged89s10]

I know what you mean Steevo, I do the same, much safer and the setup is not that bad either. I also do not screw around with straightness the handles, it was taking me longer to straighten and clean then just making a new one. Even the big guys like this 7" Hollands. Nice clean shop you have, mines a mess this week.

That's a piece of art. Very nice handles.


~Veeps

 

[bagged89s10]

Here is the Oswego No. 88 vise. The wrench says patented December 10th 1867.










~Veeps

 

[bagged89s10]

Here is the Oswego No. 88 vise. The wrench says patented December 10th 1867.










~Veeps

And the jaws






~Veeps

 

[topop101]

Pick this stuff up tonight at a small sale. The #4 is pretty clean but no date. Paid 60 for every thing. Not sure what the two handled tool is? Some kind of rivet set? any help out there?

 

[bagged89s10]

Pick this stuff up tonight at a small sale. The #4 is pretty clean but no date. Paid 60 for every thing. Not sure what the two handled tool is? Some kind of rivet set? any help out there?

That's a you **** deal! YOU ****! nice score!

How big is the #4 wilton?


~Veeps

 

[topop101]

That's a you **** deal! YOU ****! nice score!

How big is the #4 wilton?


~Veeps

4 inch. Those deals are far and few between. maybe once every 6 months or so. But they are nice when they happen

 

[vintage nut]

The little tool looks to me to be a saw set. Used for setting the teeth on a handsaw after sharpening.

you can never have too many tools

 

[topop101]

The little tool looks to me to be a saw set. Used for setting the teeth on a handsaw after sharpening.

you can never have too many tools

Very cool THANKS! Maybe I'll pair it up with a saw sharping vise!

 

[Craptain]

Pick this stuff up tonight at a small sale. The #4 is pretty clean but no date. Paid 60 for every thing.[emoji106] Not sure what the two handled tool is? Some kind of rivet set? any help out there?

The tool looks like a saw set. Picture is not great on my phone but that is my best guess.

Sent from my LG-D801 using Tapatalk

 

[topop101]

The tool looks like a saw set. Picture is not great on my phone but that is my best guess.

Sent from my LG-D801 using Tapatalk

Thank you... I believe you are right ! GJ never lets me down!

 

[joe.striper]

Pick this stuff up tonight at a small sale. The #4 is pretty clean but no date. Paid 60 for every thing. Not sure what the two handled tool is? Some kind of rivet set? any help out there?

Wish I could find deals like that!!! Damn!

 

[drivesitfar]

Joe: i can't see the crack in the slide you and others are mentioning, but if you see one then it looks like it was repaired by a pro. i do like the stop on the dynamic, but taking that vise apart and get the vise nut out will be a bit more of a challenge. nice chain on the vise pin is a great idea and i just picked up a box of brass chain i wasn't sure i wanted or what i'd use it for and glad i own it now.

Steevo: Awesome job with the Wilton C1 and are you planning on making new jaws or having KMScott whip you up a pair?

Bagged: so working full time and i think you still managed to pick up a few vises and blocks this week. check for cracks and welds on that old Oswego, but nice to see it has its pipe jaws and seems like a fair price.

Zoomie: if you ever want to clean your Wilton bullets and add to our amazing data base trying to find out how Wilton stamp dated their vises that would be awesome. i think there are 160 vises in the data that Bluebolt found on this thread and a few other sources and it looks like your inventory would double our data base's count. nice Sawyer double swivelers too.

ALL: so i moved a few tons of steel today from a client's warehouse without one vise and i finally sat down after hanging on my inversion table. i think there might have been 50 new posts today. gotta love those vises.

 

[drivesitfar]

TP: nice find on the bullet and when you get a chance maybe post up the slide with the date stamp on this thread.

http://www.garagejournal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=269079&highlight=wilton+date+stamp

 

[BFBOB]

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------


BFBOB,---Those cast pipe jaws were easily lost or misplaced since most just sat on the screw and were set aside when not needed.---you probably wouldn't have found them if you had of looked.---Even vises with the ones that were pined and set-screwed in were taken off and misplaced.---Cast pipe jaws are more for a selling point than working tools anyway.---They are just not hard enough to grip with out bradding out.---But if you are like me you want them back to original.---I have bought several sets off E-bay over the years.---They are not usually too high.---Here's a set but they are a little higher than I have paid in the past.


http://www.ebay.com/itm/VINTAGE-BEN...584?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item339e937380

Put them on your followed searches and be patient.---They come up right often.

Thanks, Grouseman

As you say, pricey, and not Shop King anyway. The only reason I want them is to make the vise complete - I have better ways of clamping down on pipe!

There's probably a website or few devoted to backyard foundries - turning out a few replicas should be a quick and easy project, but not something I'm interested in getting into myself.

 

[vintage nut]

I'm wondering what you guy's favorite way to clean up a vise for restoration is? I'm a fan of fire myself. Either cutting torch, or a fire. Burns off every trace of paint and grease. Just give it a good wire brushing, and its ready for paint

you can never have too many tools

 

[vintage nut]

Also use a roloc on the die grinder to smooth out rough spots and to remove weld spatter

you can never have too many tools

 

[Craptain]

I would be. A little nervous using fire. My personal choice is electrolysis and wire wheel. But I also use media blasting on occasion. Heat is good before painting, and gentle heat to bake on the paint and cure it.

Sent from my LG-D801 using Tapatalk

 

[zkling]

Combination of pressure washer, parts washer tank (kerosene), electrolysis tank, cup brush, flap wheels, bench grinder wire wheel, buffing wheels, chemical paint stripper.

 

[joe.striper]

I'm wondering what you guy's favorite way to clean up a vise for restoration is? I'm a fan of fire myself. Either cutting torch, or a fire. Burns off every trace of paint and grease. Just give it a good wire brushing, and its ready for paint

you can never have too many tools

1 hp grinder, 12" heavy wire wheel, 18lb Milwaukee angle grinder w 7" heavy cup brush and me, 6' 6" and 370 lbs of gravity. I almost never use chemical strippers. I finish with smaller wheels on hand held drills.

 

[trijeff]

Best laugh of the week:

http://sacramento.craigslist.org/tls/4950952756.html

Hi, I have a vintage Wilton tilt and swivel vise for sale... my asking price is $500 and it's pretty firm, since good quality tilt vises of any design or brand tend to run in the hundreds, and over a $1000+ for a modern day, US made multi-axis Wilton.

Good stuff

 

[zoomieport]

It's got damn near $500 in Rustoleum on it...
Pretty good deal, if you ask me!

 

[oldldh]

It's got damn near $500 in Rustoleum on it...
Pretty good deal, if you ask me!

The name of that paint is---


Ickem Stickem Slickem...


Very serious stuff...

 

[macgee]

This is a Wilton 645 vise made in 1976. 5" jaws, 44 Pounds. The color is hammered dark green. I decided to smooth the rough cast iron on the nose piece instead of painting it. This took a long time and a few sanding belts but I think it was worth the effort. Had to put new jaws on this vise because one was snapped in two.

.

Hey Balane,
I recently redid a vise like yours but mine is not as nice as yours. When I stripped the paint, the cast was so rough that I also had to put a sander to it and I get just kept going. Spent way too much time on a vise like this and is a little too flashy for my taste but just wanted to play with it and see what happens.

 

[danstead]

Reed 104 Set Screw / spindle nut pin.

Trijeff, image for your set screw, it does have a point.


Can anyone tell me why I can't attach an image when trying to send a PM?? Attachment icon doesn't appear!

Thanks all.

 

[danstead]

Very fine looking Wilton!

 

[balane]

That vise looks great Macgee. You obviously put a lot of time into that one and it shows. Very, very nice. Do you happen to know the year of manufacture on yours? Should be stamped on top of the slide.

I got around to taking some outdoor shots later in the day.

.

 

[macgee]

That vise looks great Macgee. You obviously put a lot of time into that one and it shows. Very, very nice. Do you happen to know the year of manufacture on yours? Should be stamped on top of the slide.

I got around to taking some outdoor shots later in the day.

.

Thanks Balane for the compliment.

There were no markings on the slide and I couldn't find a date anywhere, I think it may be from the mass production days of the 80's and the owner thinks he bought it new in the early 90's. Your's definitely looks older and a much better made vise.

To be honest, this vise wasn't Wilton's best work. It was full of casting flaws but I bought it for $15. I was going polish the slide but it had lots of slop so I painted it in hopes tightening it up which it did but it won't look great after use.

Just used this vise to experiment on painting, sanding and polishing raw iron. Surprisingly the sanding and polishing didn't take too long because I think this vise had softer iron. The Wilton C0 I have right now is much tougher iron to work on.

The one thing I learned about painting this vise with hammerite is using really thick wet coats instead of thin coats like I use to do. You get a much better glossy vibrant finish. The trick was making sure the surface being sprayed was horizontal (not always practical) to avoid drips and encourage pooling. Having the vise around 100 degrees really helped.

 

[joe.striper]

Thanks Balane for the compliment.

There were no markings on the slide and I couldn't find a date anywhere, I think it may be from the mass production days of the 80's and the owner thinks he bought it new in the early 90's. Your's definitely looks older and a much better made vise.

To be honest, this vise wasn't Wilton's best work. It was full of casting flaws but I bought it for $15. I was going polish the slide but it had lots of slop so I painted it in hopes tightening it up which it did but it won't look great after use.

Just used this vise to experiment on painting, sanding and polishing raw iron. Surprisingly the sanding and polishing didn't take too long because I think this vise had softer iron. The Wilton C0 I have right now is much tougher iron to work on.

The one thing I learned about painting this vise with hammerite is using really thick wet coats instead of thin coats like I use to do. You get a much better glossy vibrant finish. The trick was making sure the surface being sprayed was horizontal (not always practical) to avoid drips and encourage pooling. Having the vise around 100 degrees really helped.

Great restoration McGee, just super! I always encourage guys who want to restore to start on a vise like that one. Isnt that Hammerite paint awesome??!!! I came to the exact same conclusion as you as to application, but experiment with it. Sometimes I encourage that and I get awesome fire patterns in the finish.

 

[topop101]

TP: nice find on the bullet and when you get a chance maybe post up the slide with the date stamp on this thread.

http://www.garagejournal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=269079&highlight=wilton+date+stamp

drivesThere's no date on the slide of this one or I would. I'm not sure any of these fish hook style did I've never owned one that did. Have you? or any one else seen one with a date on it?

 

[bagged89s10]

Joe: i can't see the crack in the slide you and others are mentioning, but if you see one then it looks like it was repaired by a pro. i do like the stop on the dynamic, but taking that vise apart and get the vise nut out will be a bit more of a challenge. nice chain on the vise pin is a great idea and i just picked up a box of brass chain i wasn't sure i wanted or what i'd use it for and glad i own it now.



Steevo: Awesome job with the Wilton C1 and are you planning on making new jaws or having KMScott whip you up a pair?



Bagged: so working full time and i think you still managed to pick up a few vises and blocks this week. check for cracks and welds on that old Oswego, but nice to see it has its pipe jaws and seems like a fair price.



Zoomie: if you ever want to clean your Wilton bullets and add to our amazing data base trying to find out how Wilton stamp dated their vises that would be awesome. i think there are 160 vises in the data that Bluebolt found on this thread and a few other sources and it looks like your inventory would double our data base's count. nice Sawyer double swivelers too.



ALL: so i moved a few tons of steel today from a client's warehouse without one vise and i finally sat down after hanging on my inversion table. i think there might have been 50 new posts today. gotta love those vises.

Thanks. I can only do It because I'm in sales and can pull over anywhere there is wifi and do work. This vise I picked up after work and it was only 10 min away so that was easy.
I didn't have a chance to look too closely at the Oswego but it doesn't seem to have cracks. It's really dirty so the pictures make it look worse than it is. I might have to experiment with electrolysis on this one.

Now I have 3 untouched vise. Have start tearing them apart! I might have to get back on track and finish my workbench first.


~Veeps

 

[GETRIDAONE]

I posted earlier about a similar combo vise ? that shared the same model number as Parker. Your Oswego is one of those types. I have a Parker with the old bottom swivel and handle with the same Dec. 10 1875 Pat. date. I wonder if Parker was rebranding for other vise companies with slight changes. There seems to be an increase in the combination type vises at this time period. I think maybe this was the start of indoor plumbing and gas piping so pipe vises would be handy for contractors.
I might be wrong but just a thought.

 

[FMC1959]

Best laugh of the week:

http://sacramento.craigslist.org/tls/4950952756.html

Hi, I have a vintage Wilton tilt and swivel vise for sale... my asking price is $500 and it's pretty firm, since good quality tilt vises of any design or brand tend to run in the hundreds, and over a $1000+ for a modern day, US made multi-axis Wilton.

Good stuff

Hilarious!

Hey Balane,
I recently redid a vise like yours but mine is not as nice as yours. When I stripped the paint, the cast was so rough that I also had to put a sander to it and I get just kept going. Spent way too much time on a vise like this and is a little too flashy for my taste but just wanted to play with it and see what happens.

Very nice. Simple, very clean, and beautiful finish all over

I posted earlier about a similar combo vise ? that shared the same model number as Parker. Your Oswego is one of those types. I have a Parker with the old bottom swivel and handle with the same Dec. 10 1875 Pat. date. I wonder if Parker was rebranding for other vise companies with slight changes. There seems to be an increase in the combination type vises at this time period. I think maybe this was the start of indoor plumbing and gas piping so pipe vises would be handy for contractors.
I might be wrong but just a thought.

I agree, till Wrenchguy said Oswego, I was sure it was a Parker. The overall design, but of particular note, the Jaws, the front screw retainer, the screw adjustment in the ball to hold the handle from sliding; these are all classic Parker attributes

 

[Mark in Indiana]

I continued with the teardown, cleanup of the Wilton C1 today.
drivesitfar and 454ragtop were correct in that the pipe jaws were retained by spring clips on the back of them.
I got those out, and decided to stop fooling around with the jaw screws.
It is times like this that having a mill makes things soooo much easier.
I mounted the vise body on the mill table, selected an end mill that was just the diameter of the head on the cap screws retaining the jaws, and bored the heads off the screws.

This makes it possible to pop off the jaws, grab the screw shanks with vise grips, and get them out easily:

With all the jaws off, I blasted the parts, cleaned up the torch and grinder gouges in the vise, and milled off the anvil surface to clean it up:

The end cap was pretty beat up, dented and had a nasty crease in it, but at least it was still there.
I took a hammer and some shaping tools to it, and got it as close to original dome shape as I could:

Then I sanded it and buffed it, and it came out surprisingly well:

With warm weather forecast for this weekend, I should be able to get the body painted and ready for re-assembly.

Steevo,
Nice work on your Wilton. Nice looking mill. Can you post a full image?

 

[drivesitfar]

McGee: Wow what a nice job restoring that vise. very impressive. any idea how many actual hours you spent on it? also if you wouldn't mind would you post over on the vise repair 101 thread and mention all the technique that you used to do such a fantastic job?

TP: yes a lot of those older bullets have no dates and we are finding out that they were probably made for the government from 1941-1945 so it will still help our if you can post it over there. some of those style vises also have stamps in the late 40's as you'll see in that thread. you might want to take a look at what Bluebolt's data he gathered from this vise thread and a few other sources has started to turn up.

Bagged: we did a great electrolysis thread with lots of information and if you need help just ask on this thread. some of the guys like Fretters has something in their tank almost 24/7.

http://www.garagejournal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=237752&highlight=homemade+electrolysis

ALL: since we are talking about how Parker vises look so close to other vises can any of you say whether Morgan or Parker made their model #88 first and who copied who and why? maybe a worker at Parker started Morgan and was able to make a similar vise before Parker secured a patent?

I was reading something a while back about Fulton vises and i think Fulton married the daughter of the Massey vise company owner so it was a fairly close group back in the late 1800's and early 1900's in the vise making industry.

 

[CwazyWabbit]

I was looking through an old tool catalogue and saw a Parker 260X listed, can't find any pictures of one. Have any of the collectors on here got a 260X? At 351lb it'll be a hard one to miss