Vice Clean Up - Record No.3

Clean up of an old Record No.3 vice.

I inherited an old vice, it's seen some use but tools like this are good for several lifetimes. For me it needed a clean and a fresh coat of paint.

Tools:

• Wire brush
• Paint scraper
• Paint stripper
• Wire wheels for power drill
  • UK Amazon link
  • US Amazon link
• Blue paint - I used Hammerite Smooth blue, it's close to the original.
  • UK Amazon link
  • US Amazon link - I don't see a US link for the spray I used so this the same colour paint.

Hardware:

• Replacement jaws - Record ones are a bit pricey, I've not found a nice set yet so reused the original for the moment.
• Soft jaws - These are great for what I need:
  • UK Amazon link
  • US Amazon link
• New spring - Not yet found a good place for these, reused the original in the short term.
• I also applied some fresh grease during the reassembly, I had some general purpose grease to hand similar to:
  • UK Amazon link
  • US Amazon link

Step 1: Disassembly

Spring:

There's a split pin through the screw, holding the washer and spring in place. I used a little nail head to tap it out. It's not shown in the video but it took some WD40 and a couple of goes to get it moving, it had been there many years.

Screw and nut:

There's a ~5mm diameter pin holding the nut in place, I tapped it out using a big nail. Once the nut is free it can be slid out of the body. The whole slide should come free and the nut can be unwound from the screw.

I started cleaning before disassembly. If/when I do another I'll disassemble first as it makes it much easier to get in and around everything.

Step 2: Clean Up

I stared with a wire brush and scraper, this was optimistic, the wire wheels on a power drill were much better suited to remove dirt and loose paint.

Once the worst was off I could see the original paint was in a bad way so got some paint stripper to remove this, once the stripper had started to dissolve the paint I could scrape it off.

Not in the video, I gave everything a good wash in soapy water then a rinse to remove the soap. If there was any paint stripper solution left in the corners the new paint wouldn't go down very well.

Step 3: Paint

I used a Hammerite direct to rust blue paint. I hadn't used it before but it went on great with no primer. I did 3 coats, leaving each to dry for about 20 minutes until it was no longer tacky. Then left the final coat a good hour or so to be sure it was well dry.

I enjoy spray painting and the results are usually passable.

Things to remember:

• Mix the paint well before you start, especially if it's not a new can, poor mixing/shaking will give spatters.
• The can should never stop moving when you are spraying. Never!
• I go 'off' the ends, don't stop and change direction over the object or you risk a puddle.
• Multiple light coats are much better, paint puddling will lead to runs.
• If you get poor coverage on an area do another coat later.
• If you are indoor make sure it's well ventilated.
• If you are outdoor be aware you will get dust and invertebrates on to your wet surfaces.
• If there's paint left over make sure you clean the nozzle... in-fact clean it anyway it's always handy to have spares!

Step 4: Reassemble

I couldn't get the slider in with the nut on the screw, this may not be the case for all makes of vice.

This is about 8:30 in the video.

For the No.3 Record:

• Insert slide into the body.
• Insert screw into slide.
• Thread nut onto screw.
• Seat the nut in the body and secure with the pin.
• Secure the spring and washer by the sliding jaw with a split pin.

I think the result is not bad. Now I need to build a workbench!

Comments

[Geluk1]

How do get the cotter pin back in, as the hole is covered by the spring? Difficult to squeeze put of the way. Shame video is so fast; if you play via VLC, you can slow right down.

[harryspeedy78]

How did you get the nut out? I took the pin out at the back and undid the screw t bar after I took the pin and spring out and I can not get the nut out.

[wjrweir]

Am looking to buy a Record 3 vise. What is a fair price to pay?

[Alpha_geek]

Did you ever manage to find a suitable replacement for the spring?

I ask the question as I've just picked up a Record No3 that could do with a freshen up ... :-)