Wilton vise freebie that needs some repair

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Got a Wilton from a friend who claimed to have cracked the base cranking the vise down on a u joint. I would really like to repair and restore it if possible.  What would be my best bet for filler on this?  I'm aware I should preheat it as well from what it sounds like.  Also if anyone has info on this vise it would be appreciated.  Haven't been able to find much.
Reply:Hey bigred,Wiltons are made out of ductile iron, not sure how old this one is.  If in fact it is ductile iron it can be fixed without preheat provided you use the right filler rod and still maintain the strength of the base material.  The American Welding Society has a publication (rather old but still holds true) that talks about welding this type of material. May be information overload but this vise is certainly worth fixing. This was published in AWS's Welding Journal: http://www.aws.org/wj/supplement/WJ_1985_03_s79.pdfThe Welding GuysRead our blog: www.WeldingAnswers.comFollow us on Twitter: www.twitter.com/WeldingAnswersFollow us on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/WeldingHelp
Reply:Thanks for the help man. Does anyone know how to identify these vises to see when they were made?
Reply:Check for a date on the keyway:http://junkyardtools.com/tool_history/wiltonThe Company (Wilton Tool Manufacturing Co.) stayed at the Chicago location until the 1955 to 1957 time frame when they transitioned to the suburban Schiller Park, Illinois location in the metropolitan Chicago area. Vises were cast with either the Chicago or Schiller Park location on them and this can be helpful in determining their age. But the best method to determine production date is to remove the dynamic jaw, turn it over, wipe any grease to see a stamped date on the keyway. It is also possible that there will be “GUAR EXP” stamp instead of the date code.The Company started out by stamping, not casting, their vises with dates, but these were originally not manufacturing dates, but dates when the 5-year guarantee would expire. In other words, if your vise is stamped with 9-46, as is mine, then it was made approximately in September of 1941. However, I can see where Wilton would run into trouble using this method. If there was ever a backlog of vises due to a recession then many would be sold later with a shorter guarantee period. So Wilton changed their method at some later unknown date more or less in the 1960s. And that is when they started using actual production dates I believe.I would use brazing to repair that crack."USMCPOP" First-born son: KIA  Iraq 1/26/05Syncrowave 250 w/ Coolmate 3Dialarc 250, Idealarc 250SP-175 +Firepower TIG 160S (gave the TA 161 STL to the son)Lincwelder AC180C (1952)Victor & Smith O/A torchesMiller spot welder
Reply:bigred, there's a wealth of vise info on Garage Journal. Maybe more info than you want. http://www.garagejournal.com/forum/s...rchid=17325504If yours is a model 9400, it's probably made in the 1960's. But look at the  bottom keyway slide as Oldendom said, for the date. Let us know what you find out.
Reply:Yep made in 1960. Found a couple more cracks as well....  Was this originally on a swivel base ya think?   I'm gonna pick up some nickel filler rod and give it a go. I'll post up the finished product. Having a hell of a time getting it clean tho.
Reply:Originally Posted by bigredYep made in 1960. Found a couple more cracks as well....  Was this originally on a swivel base ya think?   I'm gonna pick up some nickel filler rod and give it a go. I'll post up the finished product. Having a hell of a time getting it clean tho.
Reply:good call.  also came across this site, with some interesting techniques....http://www.weldingtipsandtricks.com/...cast-iron.htmlis "ductile iron" and "cast iron" different?
Reply:Originally Posted by bigred Was this originally on a swivel base ya think?
Reply:im welding this up before i buy anything, it probably would have been fine for most stuff even with the cracks, but i figured why not give it a go...so am i correct in assuming this is, indeed, ductile iron and not cast
Reply:I have same/similar vise. I figure it would survive a nuclear blast.I really would like to know more details on the breaking. Sounds like a Memaw was backing my truck out of the driveway to go to church and blew out a Rockwell axle story to me.No swivel on mine either.Last edited by mikecwik; 07-28-2014 at 07:39 PM.
Reply:Saw it in my buddy's shop in the corner and he told me to take it. Said it cracked when they were cranking it down on a u joint with the jaws all the way open, which I could see causing the cracks.