Show us your bench vice(s)

[123hotchef]

five aka the baby

 

[123hotchef]

i got a new one today from my neighbour like I need it but he wanted it to go to a good home so I couldnot resist pics to follow

this is the baby from another angle

 

[slim_boy_fat]

Looks like Screwdriver's got competition.

 

[Screwdriver]

I have five vices on just one of my benches...

There are four work spaces in that shed with a selection of vices on each.

Obviously there are various piles tucked away waiting to be restored. I dread to think how many I must have.

 

[123hotchef]

ha ha I cant put them all on 1 bench too much crap on them

 

[atconut]

Hey up Matt how's things? I've had this for a while now it's a beast 6" jaws in very good nick. I fancy doing something really special with it maybe powder coat or what i fancy is spending ages with flappy wheels and the die grinder and getting it chromed what do you think

 

[Screwdriver]

Looks good as-is. Like a little puppy. LOL

 

[atconut]

just imagine it all smooth and shiny with copper jaws. i love vices but i simply havent got the room to have a large collecton so i just have a few nice ones that i use. you would'nt call it a little puppy if you had to pick it up more like a great dane

 

[MattF]

Very nice. A 150? I'd say any of your possible choices would work well with that. The quality of their casting is generally very good, so you have a good surface to work with for any finish. I will say though, that paint they use seems to be some of the toughest paint to remove I've come across. Be prepared for a good bit of effort in shifting that stuff if you strip it.

Btw, how's the project coming along? Any further progress of late? Was just thinking about you the other day. Meant to do a search for your thread and ask how things were progressing. How are you keeping, btw. All well and good I hope?

 

[Screwdriver]

just imagine it all smooth and shiny with copper jaws. i love vices but i simply havent got the room to have a large collecton so i just have a few nice ones that i use. you would'nt call it a little puppy if you had to pick it up more like a great dane

Haha, I bet. No I think it really looks handsome as it is now and if that is the original finish, it would almost be a shame to strip and paint it.

 

[Member 66061]

I like the grimey look. Its not neglect, thats not rust on my vice, its a genuine layer of grime and it develops slightly polished areas from use.
Takes a very long time to nurture such a finish, let it develop, lovely.

 

[MattF]

one

Any chance of a front shot of that one?

four

Is that an import or a native?

 

[atconut]

I'll blast the paint off no probs but to chrome it needs to be nice and smooth so a lot of sanding. not decided yet i keep looking at it and rubbing my chin. Yes matt the lathe is coming together slowly. strange when you have been used to using the same lathe for so long and you get another one it takes some getting used to like getting a new car. your still looking for all the right buttons. as for the dozer build i've not touched it for a while it's too cold roll on summer it won't be long my daffys are poking up. hope all is well with you matt. i don't always log on but keep up with the vice thread

 

[Member 66061]

I should say that the 34 i have that is just lying in another shed is starting to show signs of neglect. Its not being used so has gone rusty, thats neglect. I dont mind wire brushing and painting that because i dont see it as brushing away the history of the vice. I need to get my finger out and sort it out before it gets too far gone.

 

[atconut]

Don't know how can you tell i'll got take a snap

 

[atconut]

no wonder the neigbours look at me sideways. camera flashes in the garage at this time

 

[atconut]

How can you tell if it's a native or import? It's all your fault Matt i said i always fancied a wilton bullet and you said a york was the closest thing

 

[MattF]

Aye, definitely a 150. That is in good nick. One of the newer old style too, where they beefed up the jaws a tad.

I'll blast the paint off no probs but to chrome it needs to be nice and smooth so a lot of sanding. not decided yet i keep looking at it and rubbing my chin.

Horrible when you're in that indecisive period, isn't it. I just generally leave things to one side when I'm like that. It'll usually just come to you one day then, exactly what you want to do with it.

Yes matt the lathe is coming together slowly. strange when you have been used to using the same lathe for so long and you get another one it takes some getting used to like getting a new car. your still looking for all the right buttons.

It's amazing just how familiar you become with certain pieces of equipment, isn't it. Lathes probably more than most other things, with the amount of time and work both spent and done with them. As you say, much like getting used to a new vehicle.

as for the dozer build i've not touched it for a while it's too cold roll on summer it won't be long my daffys are poking up.

I think the plants are lulling us into a false sense of security this year. I've had the trees and some bulbs just about to burst forth for a while now. It's like they can't make their mind up whether to bud/sprout or not. On the plus side, at least now I know I didn't kill the Rowan off when I shifted it. Plenty of photo's when you start back on with that, I hope.

hope all is well with you matt. i don't always log on but keep up with the vice thread

Aye, all good at this end too. Glad to see you about again.

 

[MattF]

How can you tell if it's a native or import? It's all your fault Matt i said i always fancied a wilton bullet and you said a york was the closest thing

Ah, sorry for the confusion. I was enquiring of Hotchef with that question. Your's is definitely European. Czechoslovakian are the Yorks. Don't know if they still did it with the later ones, but it should be stamped with country of origin on top of one of the jaws. Very helpful company to deal with too, are York, if you ever need to contact them for any reason.

The York's are better than a Wilton, IMHO. They are, after all, the origin of their American counterpart.

 

[Screwdriver]

Just in case anyone is labouring under the misapprehension that I don't have a Wilton.

I most certainly do!