20th Century Colour Add Vise. Fitted it! (Finally).

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Bm101

Lean into the Curve
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Herts.
See what I did there? Glorious.
A few weeks ago I was lucky enough to pick up a free vise courtesy of a very kind member Blurk99 (James).
It's unusual/rare/lovely enough that this thread will be a bit picture heavy. No apologies.
Two other relevant threads related to this vise and its maker for those interested who haven't seen them before:
old-vice-t73056.html
post1197903.html
The colour looks to be original, and there are differences in that and some other details with the one posted in the second link above.

Anyway, I'd like a bit of opinion at the end as to finish, hence the daft thread title.

It was in great condition relatively.
JQHpfR4.jpg


rFXscUC.jpg


AcoUiKH.jpg

That casting void is superficial and no threat but was filled with a little JB weld later anyway.

AIvyjcJ.jpg


StrXfbJ.jpg

The big round head is the main difference between this one and the vise shown in Nab's thread linked to above.

E7mt6qi.jpg


P4Luvi1.jpg


7ebyxl6.jpg

Unusual thread?

RZboLXV.jpg

Getting stubborn paint out of the detailed areas was a worry. Then I remembered I'd impulse purchased an aldi combination dremel/ 'grinder' at year or two ago just for this very moment. =D>
More on that later.
Stripped down (the vise, not me), and into the citric bath in 2 stages. The bars were done previously and the covered in oil to stop them rerusting while the rest sat in the tub.

1v7cGD5.jpg

Pork Pie anyone?
dojyZFH.jpg

The Cast Irone Throne.
Brass brush in the drill polishes up the cast just right. The Aldi Dremel was surprisingly effective if a little 'vibratey'. Did the trick though on the tight spaces. Quite impressed!

The body of the vise was always going to get stove blacked. It's fast, cheap, effective, cheap and durable. Doesn't interfere with any moving parts. Oh! It's cheap as well.
One trick I learned doing up my old morticer was just how much the application of heat via a gas torch helps apply black.
Warm enough that it won't burn you but you wouldn't want to hold it seems just right and the stove black will liquefy and and run into the cast just right. Great for threads and hard to reach areas. A light buff with a loose cotton mop in the drill is enough to finish it.
LmWj3Lo.jpg

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mdRA1Tx.jpg

Monster! Does anyone know about the design of this one? Is it unusual or have I just not seen it on records etc.

All done. The only 'repair' made was to flatten a small metal plate that operates the quick release and I'm going to replace a bent split pin used to hold the stop on the bars with some small bar I had in the shed.

M2GydqP.jpg

So the question now is?
What finish for the front?
YKgDAbR.jpg

Ooooh. Shiny!

There's two real options. I'm not buying more paint so it's either black the front and paint the highlights in orange like the morticer.
KwYaXkG.jpg


Or I still have some paint left from the Meddings and I like those colours too!
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What do we think people?

Cheers,
Chris

Edited to repair a bad link.
 
Last edited:
Roses are red
Violets are blue
and so are vices too.

Buy some nice blue paint like the original.

Failing that keep it shiny and laquer it.
 
Ooh, cracking job there Chris and useful tips for anyone tackling something similar.

Iirc, the link to Gary's Hackney Tools blog used to lead to a glorious feast of glossy blue with gold highlights. I think he only had permission to show the photos for a limited time. Did you keep a copy?

Failing that, I know someone else who had one of these and gave it a similar repaint. I'll ask him if he has any photos.

Normally I go for a subdued look on old iron but this design needs to shout a bit. It would only need a couple of tiny little tins of Humbrol...
 
AJB Temple":3dx2ew30 said:
Roses are red
Violets are blue
and so are vices too.

Buy some nice blue paint like the original.

Failing that keep it shiny and laquer it.

A Rolls would be nice,
So would a Royce.
But times are tight,
And I don't have much choice.

I posted my first vice,
Which you might have seen,
That too was rusty,
It's now Brit Racing Green.

I have nearly 5 now :oops:
All Record, as said.
One Green, One Blue.
But the 74's red!

The only rhyme (well not quite the only rhyme tbh) I could get for laquer was crackers and I didn't want to offend you. :D
 
AndyT":343p8g2v said:
Ooh, cracking job there Chris and useful tips for anyone tackling something similar.

Iirc, the link to Gary's Hackney Tools blog used to lead to a glorious feast of glossy blue with gold highlights. I think he only had permission to show the photos for a limited time. Did you keep a copy?

Failing that, I know someone else who had one of these and gave it a similar repaint. I'll ask him if he has any photos.

Normally I go for a subdued look on old iron but this design needs to shout a bit. It would only need a couple of tiny little tins of Humbrol...
Cheers Andy.
Funny I spent some time looking today for those photos but failed to find the Luthier pics. As you say, link is dead. Sounds magnificent. :D
I think we probably have similar tastes on cast. :wink: It was your lathe that made me do the morticer like that after all. And I agree that the face plate needs some bounce. I'm not averse to buying some Umbrol tins. (hammer)
One reason I was leaning to stove black and the orange as highlighting is I don't want to lose any casting details under primer, undercoat and two top coats.
 
Here's a better link to Gary's old blog and the right post which was about the violin makers.

http://hackneytools.com/2013/09/slidesh ... -neitzert/

The button for the slideshow doesn't work for me in any browser I have installed, and nor do any of his other slideshows, which I remember as excellent.

Gary, if you are reading this, can you help us out?
 
Absolutely excellent Chris. Well done. As for colours....I wouldn't go too blingy. I certainly wouldn't pick out all of the detail on the front, for instance. Maybe just the lettering. There's enough going on without turning it into the Blackpool illuminations.

I'm glad you've ended up with this vise. I don't normally covet tools when they come up on here because I've got everything I need, but if I'd have had need for a second vise I would have jumped at this one, 'coz it's gorgeous.
 
Black with orange highlights unless you want to shake things up a lot and paint it orange with black highlights. Bleh to the greys.

Pete
 
Blackswanwood":djzdrczk said:
That looks superb. I think it’s crying out for the black and orange.
Thanks BSW. I heard a bit of wisdom once. If you can't choose between two options. Toss a coin. As soon as it is in the air you will know.
This thread is the online equivalent I reckon.
 
AndyT":2se6kbqe said:
Here's a better link to Gary's old blog and the right post which was about the violin makers.

http://hackneytools.com/2013/09/slidesh ... -neitzert/

The button for the slideshow doesn't work for me in any browser I have installed, and nor do any of his other slideshows, which I remember as excellent.

Gary, if you are reading this, can you help us out?
That's where I was this afternoon Andy. Thanks as always for your efforts. Legend.
 
MikeG.":u3zudno9 said:
Absolutely excellent Chris. Well done. As for colours....I wouldn't go too blingy. I certainly wouldn't pick out all of the detail on the front, for instance. Maybe just the lettering. There's enough going on without turning it into the Blackpool illuminations.

I'm glad you've ended up with this vise. I don't normally covet tools when they come up on here because I've got everything I need, but if I'd have had need for a second vise I would have jumped at this one, 'coz it's gorgeous.

Thanks Mike. I'm with you. I promise there will be no painted flames.
I appreciate your second point. Really. And your graciousness in the original post where I was lucky enough to get it. :wink:
 
Inspector":262fthml said:
Black with orange highlights unless you want to shake things up a lot and paint it orange with black highlights. Bleh to the greys.

Pete
Cheers Pete. :D
The stove black is not going so dark on this as the morticer. God knows why. But yeh. It's nice that consensus seems to be the same as mine. Even the Mrs told me to black it and highlight in orange. Black and orange just works. Not sure about orange and black you anarchist. :D
 
Trevanion":39od4ufg said:
Bm101":39od4ufg said:
Unusual thread?

Buttress thread :D

I think most quick-release vices use this kind of thread form.

That's another pint I owe you fella. Thanks mate. Best as always.
 
It's so that the half nut pulls into the thread rather than jumping out ............ that's why when one doesn't work properly it's often got crud in the threads. It's also why you can't release the quick release when it's done up.
 
Chris,

Possibly a bit late but these are photos of my friend Hugh's vice. You can see that the original paint would have been blue with gold highlights.

twentieth_century_vice_before.jpg


And here it is with fresh paint on, looking confident and ready to face the next hundred years.

twentieth_century_vice_after.jpg


Your vice, your decision and I would be just as undecided on this. I think your morticer and drill both look superb jobs, so I am sure this will look just as good whatever you do.
 
Not late Andy! Nothing happens that fast round here.
Thanks again for taking the time and effort to post this up. It's also cleared up a minor mystery for me without me even mentioning it. You really are the Prof!
While I was cleaning up at stage one in the acid bath, there were a couple of areas on the face plate that baffled me. Only small sections but when wet, definitely visible and not cast or old blue paint. The finish left was similar to soldered flux on copper. I couldn't really make it out. Enough so that I took extra care cleaning it off before I got to bare cast in case it had been repaired at some point.

But guess where the patches were....? On the lions.
I never got so far to conclude it was just gold paint. Makes you wonder what they made the paint from in those days! It makes total sense now of course and to be a little fair the paint had decayed to a non gold colour.
Hindsight is a wonderful talent and nearly always 20/20.
Thanks Andy.

Barring mishap and with all respect to AJB and your friend, I think it's looking increasingly likely that a stove black and orange finish is in the offing. Need to decide now on how little is enough. Less being more in this case I think. When I was doing art lessons as a schoolkid Dave Barton, my art teacher, and Absolute Legend, told me that that the one thing more important than doing something is knowing when to stop doing something.
 
Paint it orange, top with black, (carefully) sand the high spots on the lions and lettering to uncover orange in those areas, then cover in a clearcoat?

Could look great... could end up looking terrible - but it's recoverable if it looks terrible!
 
It's definitely certainly possible Sploo. No doubt about that. :D
 

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