oleballcoach
Bearcat
Over Christmas, my wife and I traveled back to eastern NC to where we call "home." Her home is New Bern and mine is Snow Hill. My grandfather has owned an auto garage for 40 plus years and give me one of his old bench vises to put on my workbench. To give you some back ground on the bench vise, he told me that a guy found it beside the road and took it up to his shop in the early 80's where he put it on one of his work benches and used until about 2 years ago. Two years ago he was fixing a tractor and started the tractor and him and the tractor went through the back wall of his shop. He built a new wall for his shop but just left the vise attached to the bench outside behind his shop. After Christmas dinner at the grandparents house he told me where it was and to go get it. After doing some prior research on a bench vise, I had come across the Wilton bench vise numerous times. When I recognized that the vise was a Wilton it really excited me. The next day I went over and put the entire bench on the bed of the golf cart and hauled it around to the shop. The bottom of the Wilton vise had been welded to a square steel brace and attached with 2 square U bolts with about an inch of washers underneath the bench and a square nut locking them down.
Before we get to the pics, let me say that I am mad at myself for not taking the proper before pics to show this project to the forum. Halfway through scrubbing off the old paint and rust and grease, it hit me that I should take pics this project and that I did not take before pics.
After taking the vise off we sprayed it with nearly a full can of PB inside and out and let it soak overnight. The next day we wiped all of the excess grease and gunk off of it.
I grinded the entire vise with a bench grinder that held a wire brush wheel. It took about 2 hours of grinding to get it down to the bare material. It looked like it had been painted blue and yellow at some point in its lifetime. The back housing has been welded closed and the jaw inserts have been welded permanently on.
This is the base of the Wilton vise and the square steel brace that it is welded to. The grey color is spray Primer from Ace Hardware.
This is a picture of the dynamic jaw, static jaw and the base while painting. The green is a Safety Green from Ace Hardware also. I was trying for the traditional color of the Wilton vise but this is the closest I could come. I would like for it to have a bit more blue in it but I am satisfied. The three chunks of metal are hanging from a cherry picker with some welding wire - did not think it would hold such a heavy object but grandad was sure it would and I will never question him again. Many more years wiser than myself.
Dynamic Jaw.
Finished product. Already got my greasy hands all over the fresh paint. Shouldn't have touched it so soon, the paint was a tad sticky.
For those of you that are interested in the markings on the Wilton vise: on the right side looking from the Dynamic Jaw it has Wilton, Schiller Pk. Ill, USA and 835 under the jaw.
On the left side it says Wilton, Schiller Pk. Ill, USA and 101020 under the jaw.
The date underneath the slide is 174. From what I understand that may mean it was manufactured in January of 1974. Someone please confirm this if possible as I am interested.
The number on the T handle screw is 900004. The only thing wrong with the vise is the handle is rusted stiff so it will not slide through the screw but is not a bad problem to have.
Can not wait to get it attached to my workbench and put it to use getting the mower blades sharpened for the spring time. Having a Wilton bench vise is great, but being able to do it in your grandad's shop with his tools and him looking over your shoulder being the foreman one more time at Christmas was the greatest present I got this year.
Before we get to the pics, let me say that I am mad at myself for not taking the proper before pics to show this project to the forum. Halfway through scrubbing off the old paint and rust and grease, it hit me that I should take pics this project and that I did not take before pics.
After taking the vise off we sprayed it with nearly a full can of PB inside and out and let it soak overnight. The next day we wiped all of the excess grease and gunk off of it.
I grinded the entire vise with a bench grinder that held a wire brush wheel. It took about 2 hours of grinding to get it down to the bare material. It looked like it had been painted blue and yellow at some point in its lifetime. The back housing has been welded closed and the jaw inserts have been welded permanently on.
This is the base of the Wilton vise and the square steel brace that it is welded to. The grey color is spray Primer from Ace Hardware.
This is a picture of the dynamic jaw, static jaw and the base while painting. The green is a Safety Green from Ace Hardware also. I was trying for the traditional color of the Wilton vise but this is the closest I could come. I would like for it to have a bit more blue in it but I am satisfied. The three chunks of metal are hanging from a cherry picker with some welding wire - did not think it would hold such a heavy object but grandad was sure it would and I will never question him again. Many more years wiser than myself.
Dynamic Jaw.
Finished product. Already got my greasy hands all over the fresh paint. Shouldn't have touched it so soon, the paint was a tad sticky.
For those of you that are interested in the markings on the Wilton vise: on the right side looking from the Dynamic Jaw it has Wilton, Schiller Pk. Ill, USA and 835 under the jaw.
On the left side it says Wilton, Schiller Pk. Ill, USA and 101020 under the jaw.
The date underneath the slide is 174. From what I understand that may mean it was manufactured in January of 1974. Someone please confirm this if possible as I am interested.
The number on the T handle screw is 900004. The only thing wrong with the vise is the handle is rusted stiff so it will not slide through the screw but is not a bad problem to have.
Can not wait to get it attached to my workbench and put it to use getting the mower blades sharpened for the spring time. Having a Wilton bench vise is great, but being able to do it in your grandad's shop with his tools and him looking over your shoulder being the foreman one more time at Christmas was the greatest present I got this year.
