Wilton 300S vise restore 1991

Alexbn921 · Nov 6, 2013

Wilton 300S vise restore
3 inch jaws and 26ish lb’s.
I picked this up on Craigslist for $110. It’s in pretty good shape to start and it is not missing any parts.

The action is a little sticky and it has been used outside for most of its life.

To start, I completely disassembled the vise.

Then I took a wire brush in a drill to most of the parts. The rust is not that bad and most of it came off with little effort.
I’m going to uses Permatex type anti-seize on all the threads. Super lube on the main slides and for a protector on the non-painted areas like the bottom clamp. Paint will be Rust-Oleum Hammered Metal Finish Spray, Verde Green.
I have some questions for the Wilton experts.
Is it worth doing a Molasses soak to get every last bit of rust or am I fighting a losing battle?
The center pin has markings on one side; do the markings go up or down?
Can you flip the jaws? Mine seen to be fitted/bent and only fit one way.
What’s the best way to clean off the rust on the horseshoe washer and handles?

G20-Budo · Nov 6, 2013

Great find!! I'd love to pick one of these up in the future. Keep us updated on your progress.

balane · Nov 6, 2013

Is it worth doing a Molasses soak to get every last bit of rust or am I fighting a losing battle?

It's not a losing battle to try and get the vise down to being absolutely clean if that's what you wish to do. How much effort you want to put into it is completely yours. If you're going to keep this vise for a very long time then that extra effort will certainly pay off with longer lasting paint. I use a combination of wire wheel, electrolysis, media blasting and good, old-fashion scrubbing with a wire hand-held brush and solvent.

The center pin has markings on one side; do the markings go up or down?

I'm not entirely certain what part you're referring to here. Are you talking about the nut, the long, threaded female tube? If so, the flat spot faces downward when installed.

Can you flip the jaws? Mine seen to be fitted/bent and only fit one way.

Hit or miss on this. If it works then it works. Sometimes I'm able to do this easily, sometimes they just won't line up correctly. I just finished up a 1965 4" 9400 and, when the jaws were flipped to have the nice side up, they were both offset by 1/8" in the same direction so I couldn't do it. That was disappointing.

What’s the best way to clean off the rust on the horseshoe washer and handles?

I just wire wheel these parts. The wheel does a nice job, doesn't hurt anything and is easy.

Nice vise and deal. Good luck with it.

Alexbn921 · Nov 6, 2013

Thanks for the feedback. I plan on keeping the vise forever, so I guess that answers my own question on how clean it should be.
Here is the center pin. It seems to fit snugly with the marks down.

balane · Nov 6, 2013

Ah, right. I've never actually removed that pin before. I would probably put the nicest, smoothest looking side up... if there is one.

Alexbn921 · Nov 7, 2013

Making some progress.
I wire wheeled everything except for the base last night and it is looking good. Paint should be here by the weekend.

G20-Budo · Nov 7, 2013

It's coming along very nicely. It will look great once you paint it.

Alexbn921 · Nov 7, 2013

I'm having trouble deciding if I want to paint the end cap and pins. I like to look of an polished end cap, but don't want to mess up the paint putting it back together. I will most likely pre assembled and tape everything but the end cap, jaws and handle.

G20-Budo · Nov 7, 2013

That sounds like a good idea.. so it all looks clean AND painted.

Gert · Nov 7, 2013

Looking good :thumbup:

balane · Nov 7, 2013

To help you decide here's two 4" Wiltons I recently completed. One with a painted cap & pins, one without. My personal rule of thumb is to only paint them when they're not in nice shape. I prefer the contrast if they look good.

.

gilbo · Nov 7, 2013

very nicely done, keep us posted

Alexbn921 · Nov 9, 2013

One step closer to done. Cleaned everything for the last time and prepped for paint. Lube/coated all bare metal parts with Superlube and assembled. Taped then acetone wiped and primed. Pins are in and are going to be painted. Endcap, handles and jaws will be polished and waxed.

Alexbn921 · Nov 16, 2013

Paint is done. Still waiting on a deburring wheel to finnish off the handle and other small parts.

Burgerkong · Nov 16, 2013

I am LOVING the tricolor USA, may have to steal that one!

G20-Budo · Nov 16, 2013

GREAT job!! Damn, almost looks nice! You must be happy. :bounce:

Alexbn921 · Nov 16, 2013

Thanks guys :beer:

Paint turned out better than I expected. I used a toothpick for the red and blue, but that was a pain in the ***. Then I cut down a super small hobby brush for the white. For the recessed numbers you have to paint one then wipe it off or it makes a mess. I wanted to do the letters in white and I have blue and red so I thought Merica F#@ Yeah. It is almost to nice to be a working vise. First time I chip the paint will bring a tear to my eye. :dunno:

Todd.Brock · Nov 16, 2013

Verde green looks good. I did my Wilton with off the shelf green hammertone and I hate it....seeing your,s make me hate it even more....nice vise!

tedsters · Nov 16, 2013

you did a great job on the vise the detailing on the paint really catches your eye the red, white, and blue on the USA is awesome :thumbup:

Alexbn921 · Nov 17, 2013

Deburring wheel showed up last night so I was able to finish everything up. Now I need to find a spot for it.
Start.

Finished product glamer shoots.

gilbo · Nov 17, 2013

very nicely done !!!!!

Hingebird · Jan 26, 2014

Hi,

I picked a Wilton and a Columbian vise and I am planning to restore them -they are rough. Where did you buy you Permatex and Superlube? Thank you.

-Hingrbird

Alexbn921 · Jan 27, 2014

Hi Hingebird
I got everything off Amazon. Good luck with the restore. Post a link, I would like to follow along.
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B000AAJTXY/?tag=atomicindus08-20
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B000XBH9HI/?tag=atomicindus08-20

cclfn · Jan 27, 2014

Looks great and I love the USA
Wes

Hyster Gareth · Jan 28, 2014

Vise look great a really nice job. Enjoying using it.

cagullett1 · Jan 28, 2014

For anyone looking for Super Lube, I bought a tube at Harbor Freight a few weeks ago. It was surprisingly cheaper than Amazon without any coupons.

Trey T · Jan 28, 2014

Very nice

gbsmithy08 · Jun 12, 2014

Nice attention to detail and a lot of pride went into your build. Awesome vise, would love to use that daily for small projects. Great job

Alexbn921 · Jun 13, 2014

Thanks Smithy. I'm working on some copper jaws for it and trying to figure out a place to mount it. Jaws are cut into blanks, but are on the back burner until my bench is finished and the DP is up and running.
Alex

RCsGarage · Apr 20, 2017

Alexbn921 said:

Nice job Alexbn921!

Where did you get the end stops for the handle?

Scout3918 · Apr 20, 2017

awesome job. well done and great job on the lettering too. Thanks for sharing.

MattN03 · Apr 20, 2017

Alex, what type of deburring wheel did you use on the handle?

HanShotFirst · Apr 20, 2017

Here's a tip for de-greasing and paint removal.

Go to the dollar store and buy a general home cleaner called "Awesome"; typically costs about a buck or two. Buy several bottles, fill a bucket enough to submerge the parts and just let them soak overnight. When you come out in the morning, all the grease and all the paint is gone. Take it out, wash it off, dry and prep for paint.

exmaxima1 · Apr 21, 2017

MattN03 said:
Alex, what type of deburring wheel did you use on the handle?

+1
What is the "deburring tool" used?

MattN03 · Apr 21, 2017

HanShotFirst said:
Here's a tip for de-greasing and paint removal.

Go to the dollar store and buy a general home cleaner called "Awesome"; typically costs about a buck or two. Buy several bottles, fill a bucket enough to submerge the parts and just let them soak overnight. When you come out in the morning, all the grease and all the paint is gone. Take it out, wash it off, dry and prep for paint.

Great, thanks! If I used it on the chrome handles, would it harm the finish?

Alexbn921 · Apr 26, 2017

MattN03 said:
Alex, what type of deburring wheel did you use on the handle?

Hey Matt
I used a Scotch-Brite EXL Deburring Wheel, Silicon Carbide,6000 rpm, 6 Diameter, 1 Arbor, 8S Fine Grit
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B004VTQOII/?tag=atomicindus08-20
It works wonders on almost any metal surface.
WEAR A MASK! You don't want to breath the fibers that come off the wheel.

Scout3918 said:
awesome job. well done and great job on the lettering too. Thanks for sharing.

Thanks. Love this little vise.

RCsGarage said:
Nice job Alexbn921!

Where did you get the end stops for the handle?

Thanks. The end stops are factory Wilton pieces.

Wilton 300S vise restore 1991

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