The VISES of Garage Journal

[gman007]

I have seen that style of vise made by every manufacturer in the northeast. i can show you Athols that are nearly identical. It is interesting that so many makers used the same design. I always pass on them though, just no market for them up here....

Joe
I am guessing some brand started making one with these features and other competitors followed suite just to keep up their line up. Strangely all of sudden I am seeing several of these and was in fact wondering if they are worth anything, but based on your comment, I suppose not. Here is another one which I can not even figure out what brand it is.

May be we can call this one an UBO (a take on UFO) which stands for Unidentified Bullet Object

007

 

[Bobioz1]

What would happen if a Wilton and a Parker had a baby....something like this!

KMScott has mated a Wilton and a Parker. Really nice looking result too.

 

[mlisac]

What would happen if a Wilton and a Parker had a baby....something like this!

This may be blasphemy, but that might look pretty good all cleaned up.

 

[Joefriday]

Joefriday, it's ok to get off topic, you just have to post a pic of a vise to be (VISE) legal.

Anyway, with snakes as with Asian Carp and Snakeheads, you just have to eat your way out of the problem.


Keeping it legal.

Roger that grouseman!

Let me try again.

I hate snakes.

Rust-Oleum "Oregano". I like leaving some original character (patina) on the handle.

 

[G-ManBart]

KMScott has mated a Wilton and a Parker. Really nice looking result too.

I think I saw a picture of that. I know for certain he's done other brands with similar jaws when there really wasn't any good alternative, and it's been pretty amazing.

This may be blasphemy, but that might look pretty good all cleaned up.

It might, but it's also stuck closed. I'm going to get it unstuck, disassembled and see what I'm working with. It's really hard to tell much about those jaws the way it is right now. I have a shell of a C1 that's similar vintage that needs a bunch of parts to complete, so the two might get combined to make one useable vise. We'll see...

 

[chrisnazzy]

Roger that grouseman!

Let me try again.

I hate snakes.

Rust-Oleum "Oregano". I like leaving some original character (patina) on the handle.

Joe, I'm a newby to the vise thread (although I feel hooked already). This Parker is probably my favorite refurb I've seen so far. Well done sir. I'm hoping to find something like that for myself soon.

Sent from my SM-G930P using Tapatalk

 

[Joefriday]

Thank you. I'm new to this as well. I picked up my first vise a little over a month ago and while looking for information on it, came across this forum. I'm hooked and I'm 14 vises deep now.

I don't do the beautiful work that most on here do. I basically just try to clean them up while leaving as much evidence of their many years of service as I can.

Best,
Rob

 

[va.grouseman]

Now you are with the program, Joefriday.---Real nice job on the Parker.

 

[Bcom]

Can anyone tell me if there is an "off the shelf" brand like Rustoleum
or Hammerite spray paint that closely matches SnapOns color for a vise? Red ,green, or orange?

 

[j.t.d.]

What do we have here? At an estate sale today. I can't make it there.

 

[Outlawmws]

Bcom, could you speak up a little? I couldn't quite "hear" you...

JT, Someone is going to have at least a couple nice scores there!

 

[scooternut]

Can anyone tell me if there is an "off the shelf" brand like Rustoleum

or Hammerite spray paint that closely matches SnapOns color for a vise? Red ,green, or orange?

The "grabber green" looks really good in my opinion.



Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[G-ManBart]

The "grabber green" looks really good in my opinion.

Snap-On Extreme Green and the normal Grabber Green you can buy in stores are quite different when put next to one another. GG is quite a bit darker. That's not to say one is better than the other....just different. The GG was still a bit wet here, and got a touch darker when it dried. I'm holding the factory SO Extreme Green chip I made.

I really wish the forum could add the plugin to correct for rotated smart phone images

 

[zoomieport]

Zoomie, so what is it; Hollands Bike vise like VA mentioned, Prentiss, or something else?

Here you go, sorry for the delay...
Take care!
Mike

 

[FMC1959]

Joe
I am guessing some brand started making one with these features and other competitors followed suite just to keep up their line up. Strangely all of sudden I am seeing several of these and was in fact wondering if they are worth anything, but based on your comment, I suppose not. Here is another one which I can not even figure out what brand it is.

May be we can call this one an UBO (a take on UFO) which stands for Unidentified Bullet Object

007

Those vises were referred to as oval slides. Mostly made in the mid to late 1800's. By the early 1900's, I do not believe anyone was still manufacturing them.

As for, are they worth anything....some people like them, but like many vises, your region it might sell well or just sit. About the only sure thing is a Wilton bullet, they sell easy and bring in about double what other vises bring in.

Then again, no vise has any great value. Look at true collectibles like cars, old baseball cards, coins & stamps, artwork and antiques; the rare ones bring in absurd money. Vises, if you are lucky, they bring in close to what a new one costs today....or much less.

No one is going to get rich on collecting or flipping vises. I have a collection of about 40 vises, 5 of them in use, the rest because I like them. None are going to bring me retirement money.

Here you go, sorry for the delay...
Take care!
Mike

Cool beans, thanks

 

[vintage nut]

Next in line when I finally have time for vises again. This will be quite a useful one

Sent from my MotoG3 using Tapatalk

 

[02superduty]

vintage nut, I just picked this one up today. It will be going up for sale.

 

[Mister J]

What do we have here? At an estate sale today. I can't make it there.

Looks just like my workbench about ten minutes after I tidy up, every time.

 

[Bcom]

Bcom, could you speak up a little? I couldn't quite "hear" you...

JT, Someone is going to have at least a couple nice scores there!

Yes i adjusted the fonts a litle bit. Sometimes when the forum is moving fast,alot of posts get overlooked that have no pictures so i bumped up the fonts a bit so i didnt get overlooked. It seems to have worked. Hey you need a new hat. How bout bunny ears?

 

[Bcom]

Thanks scooter and gman. Ive got some grabber green here but have never used it. There seems to be quite a difference between the GG on the EG. I may just try the GG but was really wanting to do a nice and shiny red that pops. Ive got a local guy that mixes up spray cans. Maybe i can get him go mix a ruby or dark red.

 

[CrotalusAtrox]

Thanks scooter and gman. Ive got some grabber green here but have never used it. There seems to be quite a difference between the GG on the EG. I may just try the GG but was really wanting to do a nice and shiny red that pops. Ive got a local guy that mixes up spray cans. Maybe i can get him go mix a ruby or dark red.

Rustoleum Sunrise Red

 

[Bcom]

Do you have a photo of a vise dressed in the sunrise?

 

[gman007]

Those vises were referred to as oval slides. Mostly made in the mid to late 1800's. By the early 1900's, I do not believe anyone was still manufacturing them.

As for, are they worth anything....some people like them, but like many vises, your region it might sell well or just sit. About the only sure thing is a Wilton bullet, they sell easy and bring in about double what other vises bring in.

Then again, no vise has any great value. Look at true collectibles like cars, old baseball cards, coins & stamps, artwork and antiques; the rare ones bring in absurd money. Vises, if you are lucky, they bring in close to what a new one costs today....or much less.

No one is going to get rich on collecting or flipping vises. I have a collection of about 40 vises, 5 of them in use, the rest because I like them. None are going to bring me retirement money.



Cool beans, thanks

FMC
No worries, my 401k plan (well in your case it might be RRSP) does not include a vise investment vehicle either . But like most, I do not like to overpay and I have no plans to sell anything either. Rather most likely after I am gone, my son will pay someone to hall away the useless dead weight that dad had for some strange reason collected .

Now here is my two cents on the subject of desirability of Wilton bullet vises that you mentioned.

Based on what I have learned (for most part) from this tread, the Wilton bullet vises value seems to drive not just form collectability stand point but also the fact they are great vises that are actually used a lot and that itself might be partly because the company that made them is still in business and still makes excellent vises (no I am not sponsored by Wilton and have no Wilton stocks )

So stating the obvious, many price conscience vise users and businesses might choose to buy a used Wilton bullet vise for much less than a new one and still have a great vise. Therefore for a good part, the demand is from people and businesses that actually intend to use the Wiltons and not just collect them or resell them. So they are like the currency of vise world and are always liquid.

This concludes the Wilton Bullet Sermon for today !
007

 

[Joefriday]

Good afternoon gents.

Picked these up in my spare time today. This is getting waaaay out of control.

The Craftsman is too new for my taste but was $50 with the table. I really just wanted the table to pile some vises on.

The Allied is Chinese but it's a beast and was a package deal with the American Scale.

Best,
Rob

 

[zktk01]

My first Vise paint job needs a little touch up still.
American Scale Red Seal 63N.

Hopefully I didn't ruin the pics with a Canadian beer on American Vise.

 

[Outlawmws]

Thanks scooter and gman. Ive got some grabber green here but have never used it. There seems to be quite a difference between the GG on the EG. I may just try the GG but was really wanting to do a nice and shiny red that pops. Ive got a local guy that mixes up spray cans. Maybe i can get him go mix a ruby or dark red.

Bcom, Try "Safety Red" from Rustolium. You can get it in quarts, and probably in rattle can. As nice as it seems to lay down, I'd go with the quart and brush it on. I've been using it quite a bit in the past year. It's a close match to my rig, which was supposedly painted Ferrari Red...

 

[KMScott]

Outlaw, is that the red Oldie likes? He calls it arrest me red. I wonder what Big Caddy used on his Craftsman's.

 

[Outlawmws]

Pretty much. Its any shade of red that will get you a speeding ticket in a parked car painted that color!

EDIT: my rig: it hasn't been washed in a month, so may not be quite as bright...

 

[MissileBear]

Pretty much. Its any shade of red that will get you a speeding ticket in a parked car painted that color!

That's the color of my Civic. It attracts a bit too much attention...not exactly what you'd call "inconspicuous".

Finally got the end section removed from that Wilton 350S; turns out there was a whole bunch of grease/metal filings/paper(?) that was wedged between the cap and the body. The castings were rough in areas, so I spent the morning grinding off some of the flashing, cleaning everything, taping off the machined areas, and painting it Rustoleum Hammered Verde Green (this is funny to me, as "verde" is the Spanish word for "green").

I wish all the vises I found were as clean as this one....it was used very little in it's life.

 

[Joefriday]

My first Vise paint job needs a little touch up still.
American Scale Red Seal 63N.

Hopefully I didn't ruin the pics with a Canadian beer on American Vise.

Looks great to my rookie eyes.. Nice job.

Best,
Rob

 

[Joefriday]

Good afternoon gents.

You guys created a monster here.

Picked up two more RI's today.

I originally went to see the 143. After a little research I knew that it was missing the base and although the pictures were bad, the dynamic jaw looked a bit out of whack so I suspected there may have been an issue with that. It was in the price range that with some haggling it would be worth it just for the pipe jaws to replace the missing pipe jaws on my RI 542.

Sure enough the dynamic jaw was broke in two. He had just recently purchased it for like $10 and didn't know that the jaw was broke.

Long story short, the guy also had the RI 573 which he offered me for a sweet price if I would take the 143 with me so he didn't have to carry it to the scrap yard.

Win/win there.

Turns out the pipe jaws are 3 1/4 inches and the opening for the jaws on my 542 is around 2 3/4. The size difference surprised me since the size of the vises seem pretty comparable.

Anyway.. I'm going to get the 143 welded up and use it for a door stopper.

Best,
Rob

 

[FMC1959]

FMC
No worries, my 401k plan (well in your case it might be RRSP) does not include a vise investment vehicle either . But like most, I do not like to overpay and I have no plans to sell anything either. Rather most likely after I am gone, my son will pay someone to hall away the useless dead weight that dad had for some strange reason collected .

Now here is my two cents on the subject of desirability of Wilton bullet vises that you mentioned.

Based on what I have learned (for most part) from this tread, the Wilton bullet vises value seems to drive not just form collectability stand point but also the fact they are great vises that are actually used a lot and that itself might be partly because the company that made them is still in business and still makes excellent vises (no I am not sponsored by Wilton and have no Wilton stocks )

So stating the obvious, many price conscience vise users and businesses might choose to buy a used Wilton bullet vise for much less than a new one and still have a great vise. Therefore for a good part, the demand is from people and businesses that actually intend to use the Wiltons and not just collect them or resell them. So they are like the currency of vise world and are always liquid.

This concludes the Wilton Bullet Sermon for today !
007

Personally I think the appeal has to do with they are different and cool. I got the bug for vises when I was watching o HGTV or DIY, the show Cool Tools. They featured a Wilton Tradesman and I had to know more about them. Do any kind of Google searches on vises, and invariably there will be some GJ posts....and the sickness had set in.

Quality is a whole other can of worms. I know of many that find them to be very good, others find them mediocre. The whole round slide, as much as it makes them different (and cool looking), is considered by some to be a weaker slide than a traditional square slide.

Whatever the reason, Wilton's do bring in more than the others

 

[gman007]

Personally I think the appeal has to do with they are different and cool. I got the bug for vises when I was watching o HGTV or DIY, the show Cool Tools. They featured a Wilton Tradesman and I had to know more about them. Do any kind of Google searches on vises, and invariably there will be some GJ posts....and the sickness had set in.

Quality is a whole other can of worms. I know of many that find them to be very good, others find them mediocre. The whole round slide, as much as it makes them different (and cool looking), is considered by some to be a weaker slide than a traditional square slide.

Whatever the reason, Wilton's do bring in more than the others

It seems (at least to me) that in general the pool of real end users of vises is a lot bigger than limited collector community and logically the demand from former should outpace demand from latter. Now I suppose if someone was wanting to acquire a vise for actual use, they might also go for cooler looking of the available choices but then again price always also being a factor (and Wiltons are not super cheap) will have a bearing on buyer's choice.

As far as quality no matter what web site I have checked, the reviews (albeit these reviews are for new Wiltons) are always in high 4.5/5 or 90% etc or higher. Coolness can only go so far, specially given the relatively sizeable prices (for a vise) of US made Bullet Wiltons in explaining why buyers are happy with Wiltons. In fact if I would imagine, a buyer who paid good chunk of money for something and quality was not there, they would be even more upset than when the quality was bad for a cheaper choice.

May be the Wilton Magnet (gman) who has a lot of personal experience with Wilton buyers might be able to help shed more light on the "Whatever the reason" for popularity and type of buyer for Wilton Bullet vises.

Have a great weekend

 

[vintage nut]

One thing that comes to mind is size. Wilton's are solid, yet compact. I have a 3" American scale, and my dad a 3" bullet. The American scale is nearly twice the weight and physical size.
Of course the American scale will be a lot stronger vise, but if you have a super cramped bench like I do, a couple inches off the vise can be the difference between a bunch of wasted space behind it, or being able to fit something else there

Sent from my MotoG3 using Tapatalk

 

[vintage nut]

I have a feeling this thread, and one particular YouTube channel contributed to it a lot as well. If you ever watch oxtoolco videos, you'll see he has Wilton bullets all over the shop. That combined with his 15-20 part series on building a baby bullet from scratch can't have helped eBay prices any

Sent from my MotoG3 using Tapatalk

 

[TinkTinkForge]

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[G-ManBart]

It seems (at least to me) that in general the pool of real end users of vises is a lot bigger than limited collector community and logically the demand from former should outpace demand from latter. Now I suppose if someone was wanting to acquire a vise for actual use, they might also go for cooler looking of the available choices but then again price always also being a factor (and Wiltons are not super cheap) will have a bearing on buyer's choice.

As far as quality no matter what web site I have checked, the reviews (albeit these reviews are for new Wiltons) are always in high 4.5/5 or 90% etc or higher. Coolness can only go so far, specially given the relatively sizeable prices (for a vise) of US made Bullet Wiltons in explaining why buyers are happy with Wiltons. In fact if I would imagine, a buyer who paid good chunk of money for something and quality was not there, they would be even more upset than when the quality was bad for a cheaper choice.

May be the Wilton Magnet (gman) who has a lot of personal experience with Wilton buyers might be able to help shed more light on the "Whatever the reason" for popularity and type of buyer for Wilton Bullet vises.

Have a great weekend

I'm certainly no authority, but I've moved a fair number of Wiltons recently, and a few of most every other common brand.

I'm sure there is some cool factor, and styling that enters into the demand, but I think the prices are largely driven by something different.

Of all the quality vises out there, Wilton is the only one really selling the same basic product they've been selling for decades. Sure, there have been some slight changes over time, but most are subtle enough you have to point them out to people.

Because of that, people can look online and see that something like a new 500S goes for just under $1K from reputable places like Amazon. Then they see a nicely restored, or clean original, 500S listed on eBay or Craigslist for less than half of that and decide it's reasonable. I've actually had a guy tell me his wife balked when he told her he was going to buy a 500S from me for $450. He showed her the Amazon page and then showed her pictures of the vise I was selling....that sealed the deal. He got a great vise, in excellent condition, and kept $500 more in his pocket than if he'd bought new. That sort of math is hard to argue with.

Obviously, there will always be people who see what good vises are going for and ask ridiculous prices for vises that are beat up, or damaged, but there's really nothing anybody can do about that. That's part of the reason why I wrote the blog post about evaluating a used vise...hopefully it saves a few folks some trouble dealing with people who don't know, or don't care, about what they're selling.

I guess I should add one caveat....the 2" baby bullets. There aren't too many folks actually using them for anything, and I'm convinced the inflated prices are almost entirely due the cool/cute factor and the fact they haven't made them in decades. I have a guy coming over tomorrow to buy one, but he makes small metal parts on a mill and lathe and has plans to use the baby to hold those parts for fine detail filing work...much like a jeweler would. For that guy, I get it, but he's in the minority. My baby sits on my desk and smiles at me

 

[Outlawmws]

That's a cool one TT! what make? Not familiar...

 

[TinkTinkForge]

That's a cool one TT! what make? Not familiar...

Not yet. I've seen them before but bigger. I was thinking Hanson.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[vintage nut]

The baby bullets definitely have two sorts of buyers. The guys who want them for desk decorations, and the guys like me who want one to use.

Sent from my MotoG3 using Tapatalk