Vices/Prices. What's fair?

[BLZR]

What is a fair price for a good vice? How do you tell if it is a quality vice?

[Thomas Dean]

Prices will vary, according to location mostly. The main thing to check is the threads on the screw and inside the screw box, if they are worn excessively then you may want to pass, that or get it cheaper than the asking price. The jaws should line up evenly and grip the same across the jaws. You can check to see if they close the same by placing a dollar bill, ( or a $100.00 if ya got one! ) and pull on the ends to see if they hold it the same across the face of the jaws. I have seen where they will grip on one side and not touch on the other. You want the jaws to line up even, side to side and tops the same. You can adjust the side to side but it takes more work to even the tops out the same. Just a few thing to watch for, and thanks to the collectors, eBay, and Craigslist just about ANY blacksmith tool goes for rediculous prices...best is to ask around, run ads in your local 'penny-saver' paper, post an ad at your Post Office (if they will allow it) Good luck!

[Old N Rusty]

Blacksmith tools are getting to be pricey , The collectors (spit) have made buying any kind of tool outrageously expensive! Post vises are almost as hard to find as anvils, One kind of vise that you can still find used and relatively cheap is a BIG old machinists vise, a REED or COLOMBIAN, jaws six inches wide, parallel and square opening up to eighteen inches wide! Often they have been set aside because it no longer opens. this is a simple repair, tear it down clean it and you will likely find a pin holding a ring on the screw shaft broken. Replace it and the vise is good as new. Visit the oldest established machine shop by you, Hopefully they will sell one to you.

[Bob S]

A good working vise with spring and mount is worth $2 per pound and up from there if it is particularly large or in some way unique. When you get old and feeble it will be worth that much $$$ or more.

Think of tool prices as money in the bank. You get to use them as long as you want and then you get your money back.

Always buy quality.

[Timothy Miller]

A good vise is worth the money even if you pay too much for it. There are a whole bunch of worn out leg vises for sale and ones that are missing parts. Focus on quality first and secondly price. If you can get a good grip on your work you are ahead of the guy who only paid $20 for his vise that is bent, missing the mount and spring . Fixing leg vises is a possible though it requires some skill most likely beyond the skill of a beginner. Frustration at the lack of good tools has thwarted many a would be smith.

[joshua.M]

Blacksmith tools are getting to be pricey , The collectors (spit) have made buying any kind of tool outrageously expensive! Post vises are almost as hard to find as anvils, One kind of vise that you can still find used and relatively cheap is a BIG old machinists vise, a REED or COLOMBIAN, jaws six inches wide, parallel and square opening up to eighteen inches wide! Often they have been set aside because it no longer opens. this is a simple repair, tear it down clean it and you will likely find a pin holding a ring on the screw shaft broken. Replace it and the vise is good as new. Visit the oldest established machine shop by you, Hopefully they will sell one to you.

i went to a farm auction the other dat and fouud a working colombian bench vice, 6 inch jaws opens to 18" smooth and no rust to speak of (painted black).... what is it worth? I payed $2.50 CDN

[Timothy Miller]

Old leg vises are cheep think about what you are getting for your money. Compare what the equal amount of money would get you in new goods and how long they would last.

[pkrankow]

New leg vises are expensive.
https://www.blacksmithsdepot.com/Templates/render-image3.php?image=/Resources/images/vise/40_etau_pied_400.jpg&maxw=500&maxh=500
Looks like the top end is $700 or so.

Used leg vises come from several centuries of manufacture. While poor jaw alignment, bent or missing legs, missing mounts and springs are common defects, then are not the most important part. The screw and box is very important, as everything else can be straightened or easily replaced (even a missing leg is relatively easy to fix, or work around).

That said, I scored a 60# vise for $50 delivered off ebay, $10 bid and $40 shipping. I think I did pretty good. The jaws do not match perfectly, but it is complete.

Phil

[Old N Rusty]

Joshua ,you scored big time lucky! I have paid $50 U.S. for a REED vise that is the same size. These heavy old machinists vises are tough and can stand a lot of pounding, perhaps not as much heavy hitting as a blacksmiths post vise the same size, but a LOT! The jaws are parrallel and do not wedge like a post vise does,but for holding bending jigs and holding work for grinding or drilling, they are excellent. The bigger the better. For now the collectors (spit) do not seem to think these old vises are worth collecting, and they can be had cheap.

[Timothy Miller]

I have a 5" peter wright vise that grips as well as any machinist vise. It looks like it was only lightly used before it fell into my hands. It still has the serrations on the jaws most vises seem to have them worn away. The serrations are light and don't really mark the work. I may at some point recut my 6" forge vise.

[ThomasPowers]

I bought 2 vises in Albuquerque NM, USA off of craigslist this year for $30 a piece. I thought that was a fair price. I had to forge a spring for one of them a 4" Columbian in mint condition otherwise and will have an $80 price tag on it at the SWABA conference in Febuary. Covers my time and gas to get it and the time and materials to forge the spring for it.

Last vise I bought for myself was a 6" columbian that I paid $50 for at the SOFA conference 2 years ago.

As mentioned the screw and screwbox *are* the vise. Any excessive wear or damage to them plummets the price of the vise. Repaired ones are generally not worth much either---though some folks selling them seem to think so!

Vises have gone up, several years ago the bottom band for a working vise was around $40 at Quad-State; then last year that band seemed to be around $75. (When I lived in Ohio a decade ago 20 and 25 dollar vises were fairly common)

Generally I go for ones that need a mounting plate and or spring as their prices are generally better and those are trivial to make---especially if you use the Columbian U-bolt and angle iron variation...far far better to buy one missing the mounting stuff but with a clean sq screw than a "complete" vise with the screw worn out!

[Timothy Miller]

But the real question should be what is the value to a smith of a vise in good working order. That should decide what one is willing to pay.

[ThomasPowers]

I believe the price still depends on the local market. The value of a car to me is much higher than I have ever paid for one. The value of a pint of blood to a person may be nearly everything they possess yet I still have given away more than 10 gallons of the stuff.

If the value to a person is less than the price; then don't buy it!

Just like the cost of a new post vise may be $700---this does not mean the value of a used one is $500 when you can still buy them for half that fairly easily!

[joshua.M]

Joshua ,you scored big time lucky! I have paid $50 U.S. for a REED vise that is the same size. These heavy old machinists vises are tough and can stand a lot of pounding, perhaps not as much heavy hitting as a blacksmiths post vise the same size, but a LOT! The jaws are parrallel and do not wedge like a post vise does,but for holding bending jigs and holding work for grinding or drilling, they are excellent. The bigger the better. For now the collectors (spit) do not seem to think these old vises are worth collecting, and they can be had cheap.

it has been sitting around under my workbench looking for a home, i dont know if i will be keeping it
josh

[pkrankow]

I believe the price still depends on the local market. The value of a car to me is much higher than I have ever paid for one. The value of a pint of blood to a person may be nearly everything they possess yet I still have given away more than 10 gallons of the stuff. If the value to a person is less than the price; then don't buy it! Just like the cost of a new post vise may be $700---this does not mean the value of a used one is $500 when you can still buy them for half that fairly easily!

I agree whole-heartedly, but not knowing the value of new can be detrimental in shopping used, at least in a general sense. One case I can cite is when I needed a radiator brace for a Cavalier. Bone yards wanted $50-$100 for a used one that they probably bent up taking a radiator out. Dealer wanted $30 for a new one...

Point is you have to know about what you are looking for, both current new priced and used prices. These things are a little crazy on Ebay, people want $100 shipping (or higher!) and the bids run up into the hundreds. A live farm auction or an event like Quadstate will reflect more realistic actual prices, at least for that area.

Phil

[ThomasPowers]

Knowing how much something regularly goes for is the first step in looking to buy one! I've seen a lot of "buy it on sale at HF and try to sell it for more than the normal price on CL".

At the fleamarket they know that I will not be paying more than retail for an item; but I will pay cash for what I buy and they know that if the price is right I will buy it! (How I end up with a bucket of ballpeens)

When people tell me "it's antique" or "it's a collectable" I usually apologize telling them I was hunting for stuff to use...and I often would prefer not to own a mint antique tool as I plan to use them and often use them hard and I am quite willing for tool collectors to pay top dollar for those ones.

Many the time has been when I won't buy something from one dealer at the fleamarket but will walk back past him with the very same stuff in my hands that I bought at what I consider fair price from someone else. (This particular dealer of tools once told me that the prices marked on the tools were NOT the prices he was selling them for---he wanted more!)

[Will. K.]

Around my area, large bench/machnist vices in decent shape tend to go for far more than I see the usual post vise sell for. I can't recall seeing a nice 6" or larger machinist for less than $100. I've seen plenty of 5 1/2" and under post vises for under $100.

[Glenn]

I was just offered a REED 2C machinist vise with 4 to 4-1/2 inch jaws for $100. I passed as I have one a bit larger that I use now.

[gaalamosmithing]

Hey guys im just curious i got a small three inch vise last week its a machinist vise and i paid 18:00 for it the cheapest i have found for it online is around 50 and it grips great and works really well for small stuff when i don't need to use my 6 in so did i get a good deal? or over paid.

Tim

[ThomasPowers]

Can't tell from what you posted. Is it a low grade chinese made vise or a top of a line german made vise?

It's like "I just paid $5000 for a car, it has 4 doors, did I get a good deal or not?"

We'd need to know the Make, Model, Condition to answer the question.

[gaalamosmithing]

its a erie tool co. superior 43 i think if i recall i don't have it next to me but i think thats it so yea its usa made, sorry about no information. its also in good shape paint is worn and swivel mount is missing ill post a link to a similar one.

Link removed

Tim

[Old N Rusty]

You did not pay too much. My wife buys all the lil vises she can find at garage sales, I finally had to say ENOUGH pipe wrenches, those little red 4" vises complete, at a blacksmith meet tailgate no more than $30.

[gaalamosmithing]

lol well im glad i didn't over pay i had to buy it when i saw it.

Tim

[Bildo68]

I have a reed Vise says no. 304 it's big any info

[Irondragon Forge ClayWorks]

Yes, not enough information to give you an answer. Start with pictures, what kind of info are you looking for, then.  READ THIS FIRST