The VISES of Garage Journal

[Renegade1LI]

I have to get rid of this nice old maple work benches with vises and grinder as part of our contact, I love when there is actually good stuff to remove, my problem is running out of space. Can't say no to 2 old USA made vises, it wouldn't be right. They're not in bad shape and I think they will clean up nice, plus the bench, which needs work, but it's all there.

 

[RBarnes]

so why would anyone pay good money for old English American (POlish, German) vises when you could buy something like these, new?

I think the broken vise in the far right of your photo sort of answers this question?

 

[PierceA]

I am afraid to, she might sell them off next time I am out of town and get back a day or two later than expected!

RBarnes; that is classic! I hear the same thing from antique car collectors: they say they hide the titles to their cars so that their wives won't sell one or two when they are out of town !!

My favorite comment from an avid car collector: Nope not for sale, you can buy it from my widow or from my estate.. I enjoy owning it too much to sell it, regardless of price or profit..

PierceA

 

[Posi]

I think the broken vise in the far right of your photo sort of answers this question?

I'm thinking that was a joke. Check the photo again, they're all broken.

 

[akasrick]

Been a bit of a dry spell for me, but I found these 3 Sun. at 2 different flea markets. Nothing real exciting, a Parker No. 32 oval slide, a Fulton 5190 little 3" home owners vise, and the little unmarked "I" beam clamp on vise, 1-3/8" jaws and the distinctive tee shaped main handle. Anybody recognize that one?

Another distinctive tee shaped handle, close but no cigar compared to yours.

akasrick

 

[dannyr]

I'm thinking that was a joke. Check the photo again, they're all broken.

korrekt (dry English irony?)

difficult to believe how poor those castings are - the vises have barely been used, tommy bars not even bent - I just bought 'em to show - they're off for scrap now - minus a few bits

sizes 6in, 5in, 4 in, 3.5in jaw width - don't know their history

 

[CrotalusAtrox]

Fier: when I quit drinking beer like it was water I actually care what kind I buy now even though I drink very little and i'll have to buy and try some of those when I go to that huge TOTAL WINE STORE (glad they didn't have it when I was younger).

anyway I thought maybe you slept at a HOLIDAY INN at the outside and nice call.

ALL: I've been picking up a vise here and there the last year or so but i'm almost to the point that it really has to be somewhat rare now cause i've discovered other things to spend any extra cash on. that said this little REED 403.5 showed up and even with the handle that looks like a horseshoe it followed me home.

anybody else have other ways of straightening a little handle other than in a vise or a press do tell otherwise I'll figure it out cause i'm not going to cut it off and replace it AND i'm not in a hurry to fix it either.

hope you all are enjoying this great spring weather.

If you have anvil or something hard to lay it on. Hold the bent end up and smash with a 3 pound sledge. Did a few that way never had any issues

 

[Shiftless]

If you have anvil or something hard to lay it on. Hold the bent end up and smash with a 3 pound sledge. Did a few that way never had any issues

That’s how I do it too. I don’t have room for a press so I bang them out straight using a 3 pound hammer and a short length of train rail.

 

[Smitty]

It was a good week for finding Wilton vises. The 2” baby bullet is in beautiful shape for its 11/48 stamp date, somebody really took care of it over the years. The 2-1/2” toddler has a deep rich coco brown patina and spent its like in a machine shop since its 12/3/63 stamp date. The 600 had been well used but a fresh set of jaws, a thorough cleaning and some handle straightening brought it back to life.




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[Shiftless]

Smitty scores again! Nice haul.

 

[Smitty]

Thanks Shift, I had to put on quite a few miles but I was happy to find them

 

[Shiftless]

Thanks Shift, I had to put on quite a few miles but I was happy to find them

I am somehow reminded of the old ad cigarette ad campaign that I bet some of you guys remember.

“I’d drive a hundred miles for a baby bullet”. (and a toddler and a 600 with the old style jaw screws coming in from the back.)


.

 

[Smitty]

Abc


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[txlonghorn1989]

Dang Smitty! Nice! Do you offer a class in Vise Pickin'?

 

[Smitty]

Tex, it’s just luck. I might not see another one for months. I went on a Starrett streak last year and now I haven’t seen one in ages.

 

[Smitty]

I went the extra mile cleaning the Wilton 600 up.


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[RBarnes]

I'm thinking that was a joke. Check the photo again, they're all broken.

That's what I get for looking at this sites photos on my little cell phome.

 

[dkroth]

HA! YES! So that's what's in there!

I was looking at an older C2 a couple years ago. The dynamic was loose on the slide and I couldn't figure out what was going on. It scared me off.

Now I'll know for the next time.







.

 

[1982fxr]

Never knew those were threaded on. Are Tradesmans too?

 

[kwhunter]

I went the extra mile cleaning the Wilton 600 up.

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How is the pipe secured in place so that the key way is properly positioned with respect to the jaw?

 

[wbarnes1001]

My 974.5 Parker vise restoration is finally complete! I finished lettering it this week with a black Sharpie paint marker (fine tip). Perfect for the job and I would recommend using it rather than trying to letter it with a brush. I used anti-seize on the large bolt that connects the swivel base as well as the one that engages the brake shoes. The rest of the movement areas had Mobil 1 synthetic grease applied. Last step, I drilled the bench and mounted the vise.

 

[Mr. Wonderful]

I went the extra mile cleaning the Wilton 600 up.

THOSE ARE THREADED ON?????

 

[Mr. Wonderful]

I finished the C3 refurbish for a friend. It really kind of spoils you spending money that's not yours on parts, I could get used to working on a pristine vise for a change. This C3 was in fantastic shape. The new owner bought a set of jaws from wiltonviseparts. He had ordered the wrong style by mistake and they took care of his return and got him the correct set right away. The swivel locks are from Autopts ebay store. The paint is Rustoleum Ford Red high temp engine paint. It's really going to hurt letting this one go.

 

[wbarnes1001]

Very nice! Nice to be able to switch out jaws like that. No such luxury with Parkers. Gotta find ones with excellent jaws to start with to restore.

 

[Smitty]

I spoke with Autopts and he mentioned that the larger Wilton vises started threading the slides in the mid 70’s. If you remove the collar there is a larger hole where the securing pin is tapped in to align the slide to the dynamic.

 

[Old Radar]

My 974.5 Parker vise restoration is finally complete! I finished lettering it this week with a black Sharpie paint marker (fine tip). Perfect for the job and I would recommend using it rather than trying to letter it with a brush. I used anti-seize on the large bolt that connects the swivel base as well as the one that engages the brake shoes. The rest of the movement areas had Mobil 1 synthetic grease applied. Last step, I drilled the bench and mounted the vise.

Nice job! It's your vise on your bench for your use, of course, but mounted as it is you limit your ability to hold longer pieces vertically. If you mount it so the static jaw is just past the plane of the bench edge, you can clamp longer/larger work pieces with the bulk hanging below the level of the bench top. Just something to consider.

 

[Onator]

Onator: You have a Morgan Utility Streamliner which has more than a passing resemblance to this Jordan No.4 Special.

I'll say that's more than a passing resemblance! Thanks for that. $14.50 back in the day..! Any clue what year it is? I'm thinking mid 50's??

 

[Smitty]

Mr. W: you did a beautiful job on that C3.

 

[KMScott]

wbarnes and Mr Wonderful you both did a excellent job on your vises. I am assuming both vises has good serrations on the jaw faces.

 

[Smitty]

What were the odds. There’s only one town in America named Prentiss and their high school football team is the Prentiss Bulldogs. As a Prentiss collector I had to have a team hat.


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[dkroth]

I spoke with Autopts and he mentioned that the larger Wilton vises started threading the slides in the mid 70’s. If you remove the collar there is a larger hole where the securing pin is tapped in to align the slide to the dynamic.

Reference my earlier post.

Had I know that at the time, I would have bid the hell out of that C2. I don't recall what it sold for but I do recall the frustration of that loose dynamic.






.

 

[Smitty]

The loose dynamic is definitely a repairable situation on the later models. It’s a shame you missed out on the C2, they make great daily users.

 

[Old Radar]

What were the odds. There’s only one town in America named Prentiss and their high school football team is the Prentiss Bulldogs. As a Prentiss collector I had to have a team hat.

Outstanding!! I going to ask if there was any relationship between the school and the company or if it was all just a big coincidence--but then I looked up the school and saw they rolled up their tents in 2018, so how did you get the hat???

 

[Smitty]

Old Radar: Prentiss is a small town in Mississippi with around 1,200 residents. It’s quite possible that there were some vise aficionados on the staff when they named the football team. I saw the hat on eBay and the seller was in Arizona, I’m happy to have it.

 

[rk_tek]

I finished the C3 refurbish for a friend. It really kind of spoils you spending money that's not yours on parts, I could get used to working on a pristine vise for a change. This C3 was in fantastic shape. The new owner bought a set of jaws from wiltonviseparts. He had ordered the wrong style by mistake and they took care of his return and got him the correct set right away. The swivel locks are from Autopts ebay store. The paint is Rustoleum Ford Red high temp engine paint. It's really going to hurt letting this one go.

I’m getting a much worse for wear C3 back to functional and have a question about reassembly. The nut slides into the back cap and has 2 ears that lock into the back cap to prevent rotation, but there is nothing to keep the nut from pushing out the back when opening the dynamic. The (missing) rear cover doesn’t seem like it will be enough to keep the nut in place. Am I missing something here? I still have to pin the back cap as those pins were gone when I bought it, but they won’t contact the nut and hold it in place either.

Btw: the restoration of your C3 is beautiful.

 

[pdibartolo]

my 5176

 

[Mr. Wonderful]

I’m getting a much worse for wear C3 back to functional and have a question about reassembly. The nut slides into the back cap and has 2 ears that lock into the back cap to prevent rotation, but there is nothing to keep the nut from pushing out the back when opening the dynamic. The (missing) rear cover doesn’t seem like it will be enough to keep the nut in place. Am I missing something here? I still have to pin the back cap as those pins were gone when I bought it, but they won’t contact the nut and hold it in place either.

Btw: the restoration of your C3 is beautiful.

I am far from the wilton bullet expert here. I am sure the others will chime in. But it sounds like you are missing the two pins on either side of the body that hold the drive nut in place. They should be at the 3 and 9 oclock position about an inch or two from the back of the vise. And thanks!

 

[Fred Knox]

Would any of you know anything about this style Big-baby Wilton 925 vise? I had never seen anything like it, although one just popped up on eBay. It has a 4" extension that I originally thought was just a user adaptation. The eBay one looks remarkably similar, although it is a different model. Does anyone know what this extension if used for, or if it was original? I was thinking of restoring the vise and getting a replacement screw of normal length, but I thought I would double-check with the GJ OGs first.

 

[Hoorn]

Picked up this 204R. Am quite surprised at how crisp the knurling on the jaws are.

Of note, this is the second Reed I have owned where the word OIL was not cast above the dynamic jaw oil hole, but rather stamped. The other is on my 5181 Craftsman. This vise is dated December 1942, the first year for the R models. What has me hooked though is the brass tag from the United States defense plant corporation during World War II.

Was part of the Fisher aircraft division who made a very fast climbing fighter called the P-75 "eagle" but it was ultimately shelved for the P-51 mustang and the P-38 Lightning.

 

[Old Radar]

Wow! A great piece of history and a great conversation piece. Hopefully this won't be your daily driver!