I have a 52 1/2 left at the house I've moved to, so apart from being great to watch in its own right, this has been beyond helpful in giving me insights into how to restore it. Thank you, and wish me luck!
Fantastic, I am fortunate to have all three of the Record vices that are still in great condition with the original paint. It so good to see someone take the time to restore a great vintage tool like this. BRAVO FOR YOU!
Hi sir. I just found one of these in a pawn shop today. The guy had it for a while and couldn't get rid of it. He let me have it for $40 us. I'm really happy with it. I think I'm going to follow your lead and restore it. It is totally functional.
I have almost finished restoring a similar age 52 1/2 and was just about to paint it with Paragon roundel blue enamel paint. Now I'm having second thoughts. Nice job.
Ah! That takes me back. Around 10 years ago I finally completed a laminated Paul Sellers work bench and wanted a couple of vices for it. Ebay to the rescue. I did a partial restoration on both (I'm not an engineer or a metalworker) got them cleaned out, working smoothly etc, then a quick re-paint. You've got a much better finish than I did on the bare matal parts, but now I have discovered the power of the wire wheel. These things are so well built and have amazing holding power
Ha! Excellent! I'm part way through restoring a Woden vice that's virtually the same as this. It was sadly in a far worse state and I had to spend a week soaking in it vinegar solution overnight, wire brushing it then putting it back in the vinegar, just to remove enough rust to be able to move the thread and dismantle it. The spring and castellated nut had rusted right through, but I managed to get replacement from "Viceman". The handle is too rusty to restore fully, so it will just have to remain functional, rather than fine. The quick release blade was rivetted rather than screwed, so I had to drill that out. Just have to tap a new thread in it, then I can paint and reassemble it. I'm going to use blue Hammerite, to keep out any more rust and to hide the severe pitting. Great video !
Very satisfying to watch, a good form of therapy. A labour of love. Some good tips in there too (carpet tape, holding small parts with tweezers/pliers)
That is amazing. I'm so glad you didn't paint it. A tool in the raw! I detest slotted screws. I invariably strip them trying to get them out. I had to look up methylated spirits. In my world it's denatured alcohol! Nicely done. A lot of cleaning and care went in to that. Awesome!
May I suggest you use slightly thicker wooden blocks and counter sink the screws deeper into the block. They will leave a lovely dent in every piece of wood you clamp otherwise.
Thank you very much sir. This is now the new look for my record vices. The casting is too beautiful to cover. And there is no paint to chip or scratch like my no 5 vice.
I moved into a house a month ago and 1 of these was left down by the garage. Gunna have a go at getting it working again. Must of been outside a long time and is heavily rusted and seems siezed up but I'm gunna try. This video will help so much. Good job.
I like that plain lacquer finish for that vintage look real classy. I understand the merits of using a soft wood that you don't have any issues changing for the jaws, but as hardwoods go that are pretty easy to come by, look good and are VERY hard I recommend some good old red oak.
just setting up for a evening working on a record 89 vice (looks very similar). nice job............but i will be going for a slightly brighter paintjob!
I worked in a school shop for fifteen years and maintained these - four to each bench, 9 benches. They were very good and still are. It’s a great job but the original blue Paint job really identifies Record products.
Nice to watch, thanks for posting that. I found the same vice about 40 years ago in a second hand shop for NZ$25 and did more or less the same thing. Its been on my work bench ever since and its probably my most used tool, built to last!! The lacquer looks great. Wondered if you were aware the main slider bars are threaded into the front face of the vice? They aren't much fun to get out but it makes the work on the face plate a bit easier, if you ever do another one!! Cheers from NZ
Great detail. Was nervous about removing the quick release portion on mine as couldn't find any videos showing in good enough detail how to remove and put back this portion. Am happy to give it a go now and get my vice working smoothly 👍👍👍
My fiance got me a work bench for free with a record 52 on it (the slightly smaller version of this) very nice vice and it only needs some tlc to look nice but i love that vice
I very much like this restoration. Just one slight niggle. This is a woodworking vice, and the soft jaws which you have bolted to the cast iron faces from the inside, WILL damage any pieces which the bolt heads touch as the vice is closed. The sacrificial faces should be lightly held to the cast iron jaws by a short wood screw going through the cast iron faces and about 1/4"to 3/8" (6-10 mm) into the wood. Then, when the vice is attached to the bench, the wooden jaws should be planed down to be level with the top of the bench.
Very very nice, I think I'll try using clear lacquer after seeing your results, I've got a very similar vice I'm about to try and restore. I like the clear easy to follow video without being distracted by unnecessary music, thank you for a great video.
The wooden parts can be made much wider than the metal jaws, and can be higher too. It means they can be used to hold, for instance, drawer sides well to the sides of the parallels to cut dovetails. No need for a moxon vice. And no chance of ruining a saw on the steel jaws.
Now....I have just spent 10 years of luck on one day.... I manage to find 20 of these in a junkyard.... Selected and picked thirteen of them and had spent almost 200 usd on 211 kgs of cast iron monsters. All of them are the 1960s version. Thinking of coming back for the remaining 7 that was left behind because of missing parts and minor damage and at the time of purchase I ran out of cash for them anyways...so wish me luck friends in both restoring and selling them back. Im keeping 2 units for myself.
Well Done!! Highly functioning Quality Tool now. Liked the way you left the metal natural and just put clear on it. Always impressed with what can be done with so little. Thanks for sharing this.
It's all very pretty but what's the point? If there are worn components then I do see the benefit. Entertainment I guess, I enjoyed it anyway! I have same vice, old- I just keep it clean and lubricated.
I do like the vintage industrial look, it's a nice touch. I picked up a 52 1/2 A for £25 on gumtree, and am going to restore it and fix into my workbench. It's currently painted in some thick gloopey silver paint (lots of cured drip marks over it) so I thought I'd give it a treat and restore it back to it's original colour. Now I've got some clear lacquer for the bare metal parts of the vice, but was going to spray the front and rear jaws with a Jenolite spray. I've bought the cobalt blue, but not sure if it's going to turn out too dark. I'll try a bit on some paper tonight and let it dry. Can anyone recommend a spray paint that is close enough to the roundel blue? Hammerite, Ronseal, and a host of others do various shades of hard wearing blue spray paints. Thanks for the video it's clearly showed me the process for stripping mine down. I couldn't find much info online about the "A" variant of the 52 1/2 so I'm not sure if it's a rarer model.
I found out the 52 1/2 A is an older 1930's variation. I ended up returning the Jenolite cobalt blue and forked out more money for the Paragon Roundel Blue semi gloss. I've cleaned up the vice and sprayed some parts with clear Jenolite lacquer, and the paintable parts with bodyshop primer in preparation for the Paragon enamel. I'm actually already sad that I've started the process of painting it. A couple of days after electrolysis, there was a bit of flash rust covering parts of the face, which gave it a real sense of character. Wish I'd just sprayed the whole thing with the clear lacquer. Would have saved about £30 and let's be honest, my 1930 vice that's been treated like crap is not going to look great even with gold leaf.
Yeah, I like the finish!! Is that linseed oil applied to the timber? I used a natural metal finish on my Soviet mini-vice and have recently used clear coating over rust for a preserved patinated look on s couple of very early vices.... Check the videos!!
I’ve just restored a 52 1/2 A. It was in really bad shape, completely seized. I’ve got it almost up and running, however I can’t get the quick release to work. It’s as if there isn’t enough travel in the spring, any ideas? Great video btw, cheers!
Hi there. I bought the same vice recently but it’s missing the piece at 10:19 and I wondered if it’s possible to buy it? I can’t find it on the internet and I’m worried I won’t be able to get the vice to work without it. I believe it pushes the jaw open when loosening the lever. Would really appreciate it if you would reply, thanks
A great and thorough job. Can you tell me please what liquids you used in the rust removal and paint stripping? I have an identical model which I’m just about to strip. Great vid. Gives me confidence now I have this as a reference guide!
Amazing restoration! What a beautiful vise. I do feel like you could have used a slightly nicer wood for the jaw though. After all that work to make the vide beautiful I think some nice white oak or rock maple would have looked great in it!
What is the reason for the parts washer cleaning in the beginning? Was it greasy or something? I like the sanding strip tip. I will keep that in mind as I probably would've just used a wire wheel but that would get a much finer finish on select parts. I assume that was some kind of grease you smeared on everything to protect from rust. Seems like it might be a bit messy. Just sayin. Wax better? Very nice job. Really like the clear.
I have the exact same vice as well as a few other record vices I really like your approach of not painting but the clearcoat much better I think, paint just makes it too New and it just doesn't suit I don't think
Fantastic project! Has inspired me to search for an identical vice from the 1940s, which I now have (bargain at £25) and have already dismantled. Are you just washing the parts in soapy water before using the rust remover? Also mine has remains of 2 metallic stickers on it. One oval one by the quick release handle saying "Genuine Record mark - Made in England" and the other on the rectangular plate removed at 3 minutes saying " This RECORD VICE has TWO IMPORTANT FEATURES. 1. SAWDUST EXCLUDER PLATE TO PREVENT CLOGGING OF WORKING PARTS 2. NUT EASILY REMOVED FOR CLEANING. KEEP WORKING PARTS LUBRICATED". Would like to keep them but lots of rust surrounding them. Worried that rust remover might damage them. Not planning on repainting. Any suggestions? Thanks.
