Columbian D44 restoration info?

[land]

My grandfather gave me this D44 he no longer used, and I'm going to try and clean it up. I want to get some new jaws for it, but I haven't been able to find any online. Does anyone know where I can get some new jaws for a Columbian D44?

I do not collect vises and I have never restored one. I have read through countless vice threads and I think I have enough information to get me into trouble, but If anyone could share any tips about restoring a D44 I would be very grateful.

 

[drivesitfar]

Your vise also has many other brand names attached to it as you may already know. That is a fairly common old US made vise design. I have several on my shelf that I need to spiff up so I will be watching your thread to learn and help if I can.

Wanted to let you know that I wouldn't replace the jaws because even though the grooves may be worn they will still work especially if you clean them up and get some soft jaw covers like copper or aluminum.

Good luck

 

[taumac]

I have one... I havnt looked for any new jaws yet. I suggest you look up electrolysis on YouTube. After that I would heat, propane torch it to remove water since it will flash rust. Prim it and paint it.



Have a good one, Gerard

The 5 Stitches Garage part 1 http://www.garagejournal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=142100

The 5 Stitches Garage part2 http://www.garagejournal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=211899

 

[jakemac]

Those jaws look salvageable to me, but it may just be the photos. Columbian made many vises for Craftsman, perhaps there is a match that you can find on searspartsdirect.com with jaws still available.

 

[taumac]

Those jaws look salvageable to me, but it may just be the photos. Columbian made many vises for Craftsman, perhaps there is a match that you can find on searspartsdirect.com with jaws still available.

I agree.
When I got mind from friend mine looked like this. I tried cleaning up groves but didn't help much. My thinking is that these vises didn't come with deep grooved jaws.



Have a good one, Gerard

The 5 Stitches Garage part 1 http://www.garagejournal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=142100

The 5 Stitches Garage part2 http://www.garagejournal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=211899

 

[larry4406]

I have two of these D44's as well and am also in need of new jaw inserts for one of them.

Attached is a sketch I made of the inserts that are on the one vise. I contacted our resident vise guru KM Scott and he does not support this vise.

However, the link below is for a set of inserts that appear to have the same hole pattern and offset holes, slightly thicker, but are longer. I plan on buying this set and cutting the excess of each end.

http://www.viseparts.com/PhotoGallery.asp?ProductCode=BA-D541

For fun, attached are pictures of my before and after.

 

[land]

Guys thanks for the info so far. It looks like it might be more difficult than I thought to get replacement jaw inserts. I may end up just using the ones I've got.

Taumac - Great restoration, your vise looks like the same D44 variation as mine.

Larry4406 - Man that is one nice vise stand you built, and your vise looks great too. Thanks for the Schematics on the inserts, it will help my search.

I will keep this thread update with my restoration and let you guys know if I ever find any drop-in replacement inserts.

 

[1982fxr]

I had one of those a while back, not a bad vise

 

[EOC_Jason]

You can either use a wire-wheel on a bench grinder, or a wire cup on an angle grinder if you want instant gratification. The slow way would be electrolysis but equally effective.

I would agree with others. Clean off the crud first and see what you have to work with. Those jaws don't look too worn to me and I probably wouldn't replace them.

If you remove the slide out all the way, you should be able to see underneath a clip that hold the mainscrew in there and all that. Easy enough to get apart.

When in doubt, take pictures before taking things apart so you know how it goes back together.

Be sure to put plenty of grease on the screw and the faces where any thing turns against something else.

If you want to line up the lock-down on the side so it's parallel to the vise, you can experiment with different washers between the lockdown & the body.

 

[jkwilson]

I have the very same vise though in better original shape. The jaws aren't very deeply cut.

Mine still has the hardy, which is pretty amazing since I dropped it twice bringing it home before I finally put it in my pocket to keep from losing it.