Another "What's this Wilton worth" thread

[live311]

The new guy here again. Now that I finished my Parker 973 I'm looking for another project. I found an ad on craigslist for 2 Wilton vises.

I'm more interested in the 950, which looks to be earlier and rarer than the 4 inch. I have a couple concerns. For one, neither has its swivel base, but that probably just means that neither were originally sold with one. Second, the jaws look pretty beat up, especially on the 950, but if they're salvageable I'll keep the jaws. My plan is to flip these and sell them for at least twice what I paid; actually, I might keep the 950 I'd like some expert opinions on whether or not it's worth it to grab them at this price. Will they be harder to flip without the swivels? Do you think it would be a good idea to replace the jaws, assuming I could recover the cost if I flip them? I've never even seen a Wilton bullet in person since I'm new to the world of vintage vises, but I can see their appeal with collectors and look forward to the challenge of fixing one.

The seller already dropped the price once, so I think now is the time to strike. Thanks, all.

 

[meatsis]

Yeah those have been on CL for a while now.

For future reference, If you see something on CL that you're interested in, I wouldn't post the actual link to the ad on here. Too many snipers out there.

 

[1982fxr]

Not much room for profit st that price.

I’d pay $150 for the 5” to use as my own

 

[live311]

I removed the link per your recommendation. So what do you think? I might keep the 5" anyway, but not sure I'm in at $150 each.

 

[454ragtop]

As was already mentioned, they've been on CL for quite a while with no takers. Why do you think you can flip them for twice as much?

 

[meatsis]

I wouldn't buy those at that price. If you're looking for a 5" bullet you'd be better off with this one. Price is high, but it looks really clean.


https://hudsonvalley.craigslist.org/tls/d/huge-wilton-bullet-machinist/6321187105.html

 

[exmaxima1]

I removed the link per your recommendation. So what do you think? I might keep the 5" anyway, but not sure I'm in at $150 each.

Neither vise looks like $150 to me. I agree the 5-inch is rarer, but it is also the weakest generation, has a bent handle, and has no swivel base. Doubtful you could even recoup your costs, let alone time, on that one.

 

[live311]

Thank you for the feedback. I guess I'm still kicking myself for sitting on a dirt cheap Athol for too long. There will be others...

 

[thehorse13]

I've never run into a CL sniping issue on here. It's always been a team sport where other members help you out but maybe I was just lucky.

Without links or pictures, no one else can chime in.

 

[1982fxr]

I removed the link per your recommendation. So what do you think? I might keep the 5" anyway, but not sure I'm in at $150 each.

$150 is way too much for the 4”. Even though the swivel doesn’t get used much or even ever by a lot of people, it kills the price when doing flips.

 

[live311]

https://newlondon.craigslist.org/tls/d/2-wilton-bullet-vise-4-and-5/6329376392.html

Here’s the link again. Considering that it’s been out there for a while and most members here are aware of it anyway, there’s no harm. Besides, maybe somebody will buy them off this poor guy for the price he wants.

 

[wrenchr]

Those look rough, for that money I'd stay away.

 

[G-ManBart]

Those could be cleaned up and made beautiful, but you likely won't make money on them at that price. Fixed-base Wiltons don't sell very well at all, and adding a swivel base will cost you nearly $150 each and that's before you factor in jaws and the handle.

To really make money on a vise they need to have a decent handle, decent jaws, and no damage other than minor dents/dings. That means you either have to buy a really clean one at a fair price, or an ugly one really cheap so you can buy replacement parts and still make money.

A clean 4" HD model like that goes for around $300 if it's done nicely. The 5" restored would bring a bit more, but probably won't even get to $400 since it's an older version that isn't as robust as later models.