Which vise to paint/mount?

[jkrswld]

So I've got these two vises and I'm pretty torn on which to actually mount. My bench came with the big dawn vise (6" jaw) and my uncle gave me the made in USA 4" one. Both appear to work just fine, especially for me as an average joe homeowner. I think I've got enough workspace for either, and honestly I'm not planning to get rid of either so whichever i don't mount will hang out in the basement for later

The big red Dawn was purchased from the same guy i got the benches and cabinets from - his story was it came from the nuclear plant near by when they were remodelling or something. Said he and his fab buddies went and the nuke plant was selling stuff for a few cents a pound.

I'm thinking of wirewheeling the big one and then seeing how it looks - if it looks neat i might shoot some clear at it (which is what I did for my metal bench tops) or maybe do a hammered rustoleum grey of some kind?

What do you guys think?

 

[zkling]

The red one. IIRC Dawn is a pretty good company out of Australia or NZ. Not only it is larger and more robust, you won't have to worry about the screw.

 

[rsanter]

The big one on the vise
The smaller on on a mobile stand that is about 2 ft off the ground and will fit under the bench

Bob

 

[oldldh]

The big one is a serious clamper...

The little one is a nice "little" vise...

The Dawn 6", in a restored condition, painted "Really Red" gets my vote...

Post the restoration, with photos, on the "The Vises of Garage Journal" thread...

 

[jkrswld]

thanks guys!

Progress so far - just used some aircraft remover and a little wirebrush/scraper by hand. Baby was asleep so wirewheel will have to wait.

Cleaned up pretty good though - but I'm still not certain on paint color. I was thinking the safety red maybe to match the toolbox/accessories i have around, or a totally different hammered gray to set it off. but, then again, i'm not sure it'll be the color setting this oversized beast off

I do think i'll mount this one for default and can always change it out later to the little guy. I also like the idea of keeping him around on some form of a mobile stand. Right now its on one of my old school push carts.

What kind of grease do you guys suggest for the screw?

 

[zkling]

That is a beefy vise. Did you see a COO anywhere on it? Get the cup brush going to finish it off.

I use Lucas Red N Tacky for my general shop grease.

 

[jkrswld]

Coo?

 

[Carla]

thanks guys!

Progress so far - just used some aircraft remover and a little wirebrush/scraper by hand. Baby was asleep so wirewheel will have to wait.

Cleaned up pretty good though - but I'm still not certain on paint color. I was thinking the safety red maybe to match the toolbox/accessories i have around, or a totally different hammered gray to set it off. but, then again, i'm not sure it'll be the color setting this oversized beast off

I do think i'll mount this one for default and can always change it out later to the little guy. I also like the idea of keeping him around on some form of a mobile stand. Right now its on one of my old school push carts.

What kind of grease do you guys suggest for the screw?

A vise screw may see 'extreme pressure' in use, so, one must have an 'extreme pressure' lubricant.

There are fancy expensive varieties, for higher speed loadings, but for a vise screw, a 'stiff mixture' of machine oil (DTE or 'hydraulic' oil) and ultra-fine graphite (the variety sold for locks) will be adequate.

One of the 'Never-seez' or similar anti-sieze products, in a similar 'stiff mixture' with oil, may be even better.

These, or any grease, will collect shop dust and filings, so, every 'X' many months, you really must clean and relubricate the screw and nut,

Years ago, one could simply replace a worn vise screw/nut assembly with 'off-the-shelf' parts from a local supply house, and this was commonly done.

Now, one must carefully preserve the original parts, as replacement parts are no longer available for almost all makes. (the Dawn make might be an exception.....find out whether they are still in production, and, if so, ask about spares.)

Any graphite/oil mix, or any grease, will turn into an abrasive material resembling old-style coarse valve grinding paste, (are you old enough to remember the little green duplex cans of 'Clover brand' valve grinding compound?) if run long enough without cleaning and relubricating with fresh graphite/oil.

This is easily seen on all too many older vises, with the threads in the cast iron nut worn thin.

cheers

Carla

 

[jkrswld]

Ok I was thinking of just using some simple green and a cloth to clean up the stuff on the screw and guide now and then going back with maybe some of that Lucas red n tacky as mentioned above. I totally understand that while it is a lubricant it will also catch and hold any filings or junk that come in contact with it. I don't foresee myself using this a ton but I'll be sure to check on it every year or so - more frequently as usage increases.

Googled the green Clover valve grinding compound - never seen one before but those are neat cans

 

[theknurl]

Carla;
I guess if you have a vise with an exposed screw you might worry about grit


my Father bought 2 used Athol vises in '31
he had the 615 and used it until just before he died in '01
I've been using my 614 1/2 since '75.....

both were only lubed once by me, I doubt my Father lubed his
you can spin the handle with 1 finger against the screw all the way in or out

and they both have been USED HARD

 

[jkrswld]

Well, here she is all painted up! Im not head over heels with the way the color turned out, but i do love having it cleaned up and ready to roll...

 

[zkling]

Good job, I like how it matches the rest of your shop, even your drink. You might regret painting those sliding surfaces though.

 

[back2class]

You really need to mount a vise like that to something more substantial. Kind of like putting racing tires on a Chevette. Can't get near the potential of what that can do when what it is attached to would fly across the garage doing what a vise that size is made to do. Maybe a smaller vise that takes up less space would be more ideal.

 

[jkrswld]

thanks for the feedback! I'll be (soonish) welding up a "bottom" for the benches and once that's done, they're getting bolted to wall studs. I thought about the paint on the slide and the base where it rotates - but since I know I won't use it that much I wasn't worried. Although i'd love to be in the garage doing more, the truth is i'm 28 years old and have a 5 month old - so my free time's pretty limited between work and usual house/family stuff. I think for now this beast will be a bit more of a decoration/conversation piece than the workhorse it should be.