Vise info - Wilton machinest or Simplex 500

[aaronrkelly]

Can anyone clue me in on this vise.

Advertised as vintage 4" jaw - opens to 5 1/2"

Is it old? Is it American made? Good vise for general home mechanic use?

Also looking at this one here.....Simplex 500 refurbed by owner. 5" jaw

Either one having a glaring advantage over the other.

 

[drivesitfar]

can you post a picture of the other side of the Wilton so we can see if it says made in the USA on the other side? if not or if seller didn't mention it i'd lean toward the Desmond if only the 2 choices for a nice medium duty vise. both are good vises and if Wilton made in USA it is probably worth a little more. do they both cost the same. Desmond was made in the US if that matters to you and they are good vises.

by the way there is a little cutter type hardy they made for that hole on the back of the desmond that is usually missing like yours seems to be and heres's what it looks like. I wouldn't use that part of any vise for much anvil type work or hitting with a hammer and would have a small piece of RR track on the bench for hitting on.

other vises had the same design so here is the little cutter that was in one of the other brands so you can see one.

good luck

 

[aaronrkelly]

Im guessing Id have about $100 to $150 in the Wilton. The Simplex about $100 to $125.

I think Id rather have the Wilton.....but the way its going to work is I have to bite on the Simplex first......and if it passes and I dont get the Wilton.....Im gonna kick myself.

 

[aaronrkelly]

My buddy has an old vice I use alot (no idea what brand) and it has 5" jaw with 5" opening.....so Im shooting for that general size.

I dont think Id be giving up much with the 4" jaws on the Wilton for the type of work I do.....but then I could be wrong.

That Simplex sure is pretty.....someone did a good job with it.

 

[drivesitfar]

now i'd lean towards the Wilton because it does say USA. where are you located? I was going to say for that style vise you should be able to find one in your price range if you are a little patient either on Craigs or Ebay.

PM me if you are in the Pacific NW and i'll see what I have ready to restore you can buy as is or wait until the weather warms up and i'll have one painted for you if you miss both of these.

 

[aaronrkelly]

Not in the Pacific NW......midwest. There is nothing but junk on CL in my area at the moment.

I may just buy both of these if the price is right and peddle the one I dont want......dang decisions.

 

[EOC_Jason]

I would probably tip a little more towards the Wilton, but they are probably pretty equal in their capabilities.

 

[drivesitfar]

Both are decent vises and it sounds like you have been looking for a while. you can take a gander at the vise thread and see if anybody on there is close to you which I think there are a few and PM them to see if they have anything. if you are handy one of them might have one sitting on a shelf that is bigger and older that they can sell you as is condition and you'll have a bigger better old US vise.

if these are the size you need then you are ok with one of these and I like your idea of buying both, giving them a test run and selling the one you like the least.

good luck and it looks like you are a new member to Garage Journal so welcome to the gang. enjoy reading and learning and post anything you want to comment on or that you know of that can help others.

 

[aaronrkelly]

Both are decent vises and it sounds like you have been looking for a while. you can take a gander at the vise thread and see if anybody on there is close to you which I think there are a few and PM them to see if they have anything. if you are handy one of them might have one sitting on a shelf that is bigger and older that they can sell you as is condition and you'll have a bigger better old US vise.

if these are the size you need then you are ok with one of these and I like your idea of buying both, giving them a test run and selling the one you like the least.

good luck and it looks like you are a new member to Garage Journal so welcome to the gang. enjoy reading and learning and post anything you want to comment on or that you know of that can help others.

The problem is I dont really know what size I need.

My buddys vise has 5" jaws and opens 5" - I ran over and measured it. I have no idea what it weighs.....its older and heavy.

Im shooting for that - its always done what I needed.

General mechanic repair on cars, motorcycles, mowers etc is the use.....Im not a builder or a professional. Ive got a decently equipped garage and I tinker.....

I cant image Id be giving up much with the 4" jaws on the Wilton.....it opens plenty enough and thats where I think Id be concerned more with any limitations.

Im trying to come up with a situation where a 4" jaw wouldnt do what a 5" jaw would in my uses.....and I cant really see one.

 

[EOC_Jason]

Somehow I managed to survive with a little 3.5" Craftsman until I came to this forum... lol.

 

[exmaxima]

Not in the Pacific NW......midwest. There is nothing but junk on CL in my area at the moment.
.

Can you be a bit more specific---what CITY in the Midwest?

 

[aaronrkelly]

Can you be a bit more specific---what CITY in the Midwest?

I live in a Moravia, IA....about 1 1/2 hours southeast of Des Moines.

 

[exmaxima]

Im guessing Id have about $100 to $150 in the Wilton.

That seems like a lot for that Wilton. Keep in mind that contrary to the eBay description it is NOT a Machinist vise. It's a Utility model vise with cheap U-channel construction---a far cry from a Machinist "Bullet" vise.

 

[exmaxima]

I live in a Moravia, IA....about 1 1/2 hours southeast of Des Moines.

Wow. I'd imagine everything you buy comes via UPS/Fedex/USPS.

Good Luck!

 

[aaronrkelly]

That seems like a lot for that Wilton. Keep in mind that contrary to the eBay description it is NOT a Machinist vise. It's a Utility model vise with cheap U-channel construction---a far cry from a Machinist "Bullet" vise.

Yeah I know better and noticed that right off.

I'm sure it'll do what I need.

In your opinion what's the stronger of the two vises?

 

[exmaxima]

In your opinion what's the stronger of the two vises?

The Wilton is more massive and would be my choice. I still would not pay $100 for a utility grade vise....if you were in my neck of the woods, you could buy my Record 23 for that much!

 

[drivesitfar]

both vises will both do the job of clamping, but i'd lean to the Wilton because you can still buy any parts if something non fatal breaks.

I have several better vises for you that are 3.5 to 4.5 inch jaws and weigh about 50 pounds for that price range that are Morgan, Reed, Prentiss and I heard shipping these isn't that expensive if you want something a little bigger and older.

 

[aaronrkelly]

both vises will both do the job of clamping, but i'd lean to the Wilton because you can still buy any parts if something non fatal breaks.

I have several better vises for you that are 3.5 to 4.5 inch jaws and weigh about 50 pounds for that price range that are Morgan, Reed, Prentiss and I heard shipping these isn't that expensive if you want something a little bigger and older.

Yeah everyone i talks to sticks them in a large usps flat rate box because they are good up to something like 75lbs.

What do you have available?

 

[Kevin54]

You can't beat a Wilton, but then again too, a Simplex is a good vise. Also you will not find any new Desmond Stephens vises as they sold a number of years ago, so that may help to make them a collectors vise.

I posted a few months back in this forum about Desmond Stephens and their vises, and the letter I received from them telling who they sold out to. Desmond Stephens is only a couple miles from my house. IIRC, Desmond sold all of their vise works to Rigid, i think. I would have to go back through here and do a search. I have a Desmond Stephens and I love it. I think mine was called a Pattern Makers vise or something like that.

I'll find the article and post the link on here in a few.

 

[drivesitfar]

here's a few I had a few pictures of

 

[Kevin54]

Here is the link where I posted the info up on the Desmond vise. They sold out to Ridge Tool Company which os now Emerson Electric http://www.garagejournal.com/forum/showthread.php?p=3191832&highlight=Kevin54#post3191832

Look at post # 8729 for the info on Desmond Stephens, and look at Post # 8738 and you can see my vise after I finished it. And mine is a Pattern makers vise.

 

[X1 Mike]

I just recently purchased a Simplex vise for $60 and it is a great piece, the thing is probably the smoothest vise I have ever used.

 

[aaronrkelly]

Well I bought the Simplex.....gave $65 for it.....and $45 shipping. So depends on how you look at it.....I gave $65 or $110.

Not sure if its going to be the vise for me.....but its on the way and if I dont like it I can recoup some of my money.

Still thinking of going about the same money on the Wilton and seeing what pans out.....maybe $10 higher.

 

[dumper]

here's a few I had a few pictures of

is that a 4" Craftsman? How much are you asking for that, as is? With PNW discount, of course! Hahahaha.

 

[drivesitfar]

I can't remember if it's a 3.5 or 4 inch. after I posted that I thought i'd better keep that one because I just picked up an almost new Craftsman crown top grinder that will be sitting next to it. sorry.

now where in PNW do you live and any of the others appeal to you? I would have had them all spiffed up but I don't have any heat in my garage shop so didn't want to clean them all up just to have them rust until the weather warms up at night. I might just have to put an oven in the shop or better yet just a good gas heater.

that little craftsman is a pretty sweet vise. i'm not sure how many vises I have to restore when I have some time, but just PM me if you are looking for something decent in a US made brand and I can give you an non you **** price that you might be able to live with.

 

[1982fxr]

Well I bought the Simplex.....gave $65 for it.....and $45 shipping. So depends on how you look at it.....I gave $65 or $110.

Not sure if its going to be the vise for me.....but its on the way and if I dont like it I can recoup some of my money.

Still thinking of going about the same money on the Wilton and seeing what pans out.....maybe $10 higher.

$110 ain't too bad for that. I refurbed one identical to it and sold for $175 on local craig's last year. Good vise. imo it's pointless now for you to buy that particular wilton. That's not the vise they made their name on and if it's any better than the Desmond it won't be by much, if at all.

The Desmond is a good old school quality general use vise. If you want to step up from that, you need to start looking at real Bullets, reed, etc.

Paid $90 after tax when i bought it...

 

[aaronrkelly]

I ended up getting the Wilton too.....had an autobidder setup and forgot about it...oops.

Gave $60 for it and $42 shipping......again depends on how you look at it.

So I went from having no vices to two. Ill piddle with them, keep the best for me and sell the other one.

 

[aaronrkelly]

$110 ain't too bad for that. I refurbed one identical to it and sold for $175 on local craig's last year. Good vise. imo it's pointless now for you to buy that particular wilton. That's not the vise they made their name on and if it's any better than the Desmond it won't be by much, if at all.

The Desmond is a good old school quality general use vise. If you want to step up from that, you need to start looking at real Bullets, reed, etc.

Paid $90 after tax when i bought it...

That turned out beautiful....I love the contrast of the white letters. I may have to do that.....did you just brush the high spots.