I miss my vise

[Flivver250]

At my home in the states I have a huge 8" Tradesman Snap-On vise made in America by Wilton. Well over 100 lbs. The vise is probably one of the more important shop tools you can own, and no expense should be spared by buying a cheap one. I was doing some wrenching this weekend in the UAE, and got stymied by lack of vise. Simple task = trip to commercial shop. It pays to watch Craigslist and local ads for a good deal on a vise. A good one can easily pass a grand, a good deal for a perfect one can be a couple hundred bucks. I got my vise from the wife of a retired SO dealer. Still in the crate for just over 200 bucks. I only have a pix from my old shop, but know the post is worthless without pics. (Mama's bike, not mine)

 

[AndyG]

Nice.

 

[jgaz]

Nice vise!

I wanted a Wilton real bad.
Looked for several years and never could find one.

Finally found this Columbian in need of a deep cleaning and restoration for $80.

I’m very happy with it.
You’re right though, a good, solidly mounted vise is a very important part of a shop.

FYI: Since I bought my vise about (12 years ago) I’ve come across TWO Wiltons, for a decent price and I wasn’t even looking for them!

 

[jgaz]

After you find your vise, starting looking for jaw covers to make it more useful.
In my above pic you can see my DIY, sacrificial, wooden covers that are held in place with a couple of rare earth magnets. When they get too scarred up I make a new pair.

I bought these covers a while back for holding round material.
TRISENSE 4" Vise Jaws with Strong Magnetic, Universal Vice Jaws Covers, Multi-Purpose Protector for Any Metal Vice,2 pcs https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07DJD14HW/?tag=wranglerorg-20

Well worth the $9 I paid for them

This set of brass jaws were an old garage sale find.

I also have a DIY set of jaw covers for bending sheet metal but don’t have a picture now. They were made from heavy angle iron with a couple different radius machined on the edges.

 

[Sea Cot]

I picked this up a couple weeks ago. Still haven't figured out if I'm going to leave it as-is or clean it up and sell it.

 

[Tranz Zam]

Yup, a good vise is priceless!

 

[L J]

the $400 (at the time) cost was hard to justify but it's one of my best tool investments and it'll last a few lifetimes

 

[jeepins]

Found out there are people who collect vises. Some of the older ones still go for big bucks.

If there ever was such a thing, here is worthy vise porn to watch:

 

[Flivver250]

I just ordered a cheaper Wilton 6" and will build a work bench for my apartment's parking garage. I'll park it out behind the Jeep. Nobody steals here, I have my jacks and stands there in a common area. Best I can do in a pinch. Old American vises are the best.

 

[jgaz]

I love that you can leave things out without fear of them being stolen.

I rigged up this set up on an old Black and Decker Workmate so I can work outside behind my gate.
I use it mostly for cutting something messy or when my main shop is dirty with sawdust and wood shavings.
It’s almost always used when I fire up the torch.
You can’t really reef on something but for cutting it works well for me.

The vise is a 4”, late 70s vintage Craftsman. It was my only vise for many years. (But not my only vice)
It’s so much better quality than many inexpensive vises that they sell today.