Hello Guys. I just scored this beast off of Ebay. It is the strangest 1760 vise I have ever seen. There is no "Made in The USA" anywhere on it. It has a 4x1 3/8 rectangular cutout on either side with some glue residue. It has a build date on the bottom of the slide of 9/83. There is a number on the side 121033. It is also red and it looks factory because I cannot find any overspray. This makes me think it is a Snap On since Wilton never painted their vices red. Any thoughts? Also, the pipe jaws are removable, not cast in.
Wilton/Snap On 1760 Tradesman Vise
- Thread starter tshaw4536
- Start date
Tradesman had removable pipe jaws. Lots had both sides blank for badges, although I didn't think 1983 was one of those years.
Red doesn't look original to me, but hard to tell. How much was it if you don't mind me asking?
Red doesn't look original to me, but hard to tell. How much was it if you don't mind me asking?
mike93lx
ALLIANCE MEMBER
That vise has seen some ****. What are your plans for it?
$280 but I got gouged on the shipping. $119 for shipping
mike93lx
ALLIANCE MEMBER
I dont think I'd necessarily say thays gouged. We have just been ruined by free shipping on so much. I bet it wasn't cheap to send that
It is in somewhat rough shape but I figured it was cheaper to buy and restore than buying one finished. I am going to powder coat it Snap On Red and find some parts for it such as the missing swivel handles and broken cleat on the bottom. I was going to replace the jaws but when I flipped them over they just needed some wire brushing. I got an estimate for powder coating at $130-$175, which didn't sound to bad. Thanks.
I think $280 for a Tradesman model with broken clamp, missing jaws, and missing hold down handles is seriously high. But compared to some of the other ridiculous sales on the auction site, the price seems average. Hell, someone paid $1000 plus shipping for a 1740 painted to look like a Snap On!
I wouldn't bother with powder coat for a working vise.
I wouldn't bother with powder coat for a working vise.
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Probably not but you are right about free shipping spoiling us.
My apologies, I should have made it clear but the jaws are not missing. I took them off to flip them to the other side. They are in good shape just need a little wire brushing. I have priced the swivel handles with the cleats at $80 on Ebay. I have a price of $130-$175 for powder coating. Since this one is a keeper I am going with powder coating. If I was flipping it I would go with paint.
Wilton only used red paint on their tradesman vise's that were made for Snap On. Unfortunately, there is no specific part number that identifies a Tradesman vise as a Snap On other than the red paint and Snap On badges.
Sorry, I didn't see the pipe jaws and thought they were missing. They would have set you back around $50. So $280, plus shipping is about $400. Plus the handles gets you to $475. Plus powder coat gets to about $600. Doubtful you could flip it at that point and make it worthwhile. Congrats on the fine Wilton vise
Maui
Well-known member
Be careful with the replaceable jaws on that vise. They are quite easy to crack/break.
His might be old enough that it has the better ones.
Thanks
Thanks
Maui
Well-known member
I have a Wilton 1780 that came with those crappy sintered jaws. They were broken when I got them, and the vise had some other issues too so I performed a complete restoration and machined a new set of replacable jaws out of A2 tool steel. They were heat treated to about 56 HRC. A friend surface ground the diamond pattern into the jaws after heat treating and they turned out beautiful. They look like a piece of jewelry.
1780 didn't come out until like the 2000s though right? So that era would for sure have the lesser ones.
Some of the old mechanics vises had hard steel jaws too.