Wilton 4" Vise. $75 "Easy fix".
- Thread starter Roberts210
- Start date
cmccuist1
Well-known member
That is not an easy fix obviously.
I bought this one this weekend for $85 off of FB Marketplace. Just needs a new paint job. The stand is going into the dumpster.
I bought this one this weekend for $85 off of FB Marketplace. Just needs a new paint job. The stand is going into the dumpster.
mike93lx
ALLIANCE MEMBER
I love seeing "easy fix" in an ad.
Makes me know I should avoid it because it always isn't an easy fix
Makes me know I should avoid it because it always isn't an easy fix
Shiftless
Well-known member
Cleave
Well-known member
Get a non-Wilton that works for $75...
Shiftless
Well-known member
That’s my advice as well. That Wilton that 210 posted has been horribly abused and the “repairs” made on the poor thing are hardly repairs at all.
Once a guy learns about the high quality vintage vises that aren’t marked Wilton, he can often find a jewel for a reasonable price. Wilton bullets are priced relatively higher because of name recognition and the perhaps irrational appeal of the enclosed tubular slide design.
Grab an old Reed or Starrett or Athol or Morgan or Rock Island or half a dozen other lesser known brands and use it for the rest of your life.
Packard V8
Well-known member
"Easy fix" is guaranteed to be a difficult, expensive, sometimes impossible fix, or the seller would already have done it.
There was a fair condition Holland vise for sale for months on craigslist. "Just needs replacement jaws, easy fix, $25 on the internet." I wrote the guy, "Just put the new jaws on it and I'll give you $50 more than you're asking." Didn't get an answer.
jack vines
There was a fair condition Holland vise for sale for months on craigslist. "Just needs replacement jaws, easy fix, $25 on the internet." I wrote the guy, "Just put the new jaws on it and I'll give you $50 more than you're asking." Didn't get an answer.
jack vines
NORTON'S SHOP
Well-known member
Scrap the stand? That tire may have a mile or two left in it.That is not an easy fix obviously.
I bought this one this weekend for $85 off of FB Marketplace. Just needs a new paint job. The stand is going into the dumpster.
cmccuist1
Well-known member
That tire leaked rusty water all over my truck bed. Lol. Here’s the Wilton all broke down ready for Blast and paint.
NORTON'S SHOP
Well-known member
Looking forward to the transformation.That tire leaked rusty water all over my truck bed. Lol. Here’s the Wilton all broke down ready for Blast and paint.
Shiftless
Well-known member
Looking good so far.
BTW, what do you use to mask the machined parts like the screw and the slide when you media blast?
FJ 432
Well-known member
Is there anything better than breaking down a vise? Other than *** of course...
GettinJunkDone
Well-known member
Breaking down a ratchet?
Packard V8
Well-known member
On anything as rusty as that old dog, don't mask at all. When cleaned, shine up the machined surfaces with abrasives.
If it is a relatively rust free surface, wrap it with duct tape.
jack vines
Lookin4'67Galaxieconv
Well-known member
Every time I see 'easy fix' in an ad my first instinct is to think, if it's easy then why haven't you done it?
cmccuist1
Well-known member
Little bit of progress this weekend. Another day of blasting and wire wheeling 
and it will be ready for paint.
and it will be ready for paint.Catcher1984
Well-known member
Is it just the way your vise is pictured or is the base part rusted through where the swivel handles go?That is not an easy fix obviously.
I bought this one this weekend for $85 off of FB Marketplace. Just needs a new paint job. The stand is going into the dumpster.
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OP
Roberts210
Well-known member
It's not my vise, but I think the black area is from some oil the seller squirted around the swivel lockdowns.
Catcher1984
Well-known member
Aww my eyes play tricks on me lol.
OP
Roberts210
Well-known member
It looked like holes to me too until I blew the picture up.
JRC3
Well-known member
$75
+
=
"like new" Wilton vice for $80
+
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"like new" Wilton vice for $80
Catcher1984
Well-known member
Found a C1 locally and it looked good at first glance… but someone welded the back piece together and grinded off the “C1”
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crguy
Well-known member
That's why smart buyers are usually suspicious of vises, etc. with new paint. A lot of people have learned that lesson the hard way from unscrupulous sellers.
I bought this vise recently with multiple heavy coats of paint on it just from the picture. Couldn't be sure what the condition was until I got the paint off.
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Catcher1984
Well-known member
crguy
Well-known member
Hard to imagine why someone would weld that up.
Catcher1984
Well-known member
I know but Ive seen more than a few swivel jaw Prentiss vises that have been welded, probably for “stability”.
I think as long as the pins hold the spindle shaft nut in place/secure with the body you should be okay. The end support uses an interference fit along with the pins so it shouldn’t just fall off.
crguy
Well-known member
Hard to imagine a need for more stability. I regularly use my Reed 4" with a swivel jaw, with or without the jaw swiveled. Seems plenty stable to me. After you weld one, you've lost what made the vise "special".
Catcher1984
Well-known member
I agree, that’s just the most reasonable reason for welding it that I could think of? I think any welding on a vise shouldn’t be allowed expect for repair purposes.
That's actually fairly common damage caused by being dropped with the jaws at least partially open. The vise goes nose first into the ground and hits the spindle. The spindle pushes backwards on the nut and the pins break out the front of the tail cap assembly.
The best way I have found to fix them is to grind away the material that would normally be behind the pins (technically in front of the pins) and then TIG weld a large washer over that section (Inconel filler rod works best). I often have to change the washer OD and ID to match, but that's easy and it doesn't have to be perfect. I actually like the washer to be slightly smaller in outer diameter so there is a nice ridge I can use to weld along. If you just weld a washer in place without grinding down to the pin holes, the pins will move back and forth and they're supposed to be stationary.
After welding the washer in place I will reassemble the body of the vise with the nut and tail cap assembly, then put the whole thing is a very large vise using a length of round stock or a large socket to press the nut and tail cap assembly into position securely. If not, everything won't be lined up properly. I then re-drill the pin holes, normally going up a fraction...so from 1/4" to 5/16" or something similar. Remove it from the big vise, install the pins, smooth them with a flap disc and nobody will know the tail cap was ever damaged.
The first time I tried this I brazed the washer in place and it worked fine as well. The pins only come into play when you're opening the vise, so they don't see much of a load.
The first time I did this the tail cap assembly actually had very little material behind the pins, so I didn't have to remove much of anything before adding the washer. The pictures are the first time I tried it...flame cut the ID as you can see and then brazed it on the inside...not pretty, but it worked. Now I open the ID on the lathe and also make the OD smaller so I can weld on the outside...just a bit easier.
