# Morgan vise 200A



## railaw

I just acquired the below vise via cl for $50. It is pretty darn big; it opens to 12", is about 3 1/4" deep and perhaps 9 or 10" across. It's a quick release which I haven't used before- it seems like the mechanism is to slide closed as far as possible then you only get a 3/4 turn to tighten up, right? 

The plate that mounts to the bench has no hole for attaching a wooden pad. I thought I would build it into the bench so the edging/ skirt covers the rear pad. Is this a good way to go?

I think this is my last tool purchase for a while as I have to get my bench in order and restore the bandsaw I just picked up. Except for a spokeshave, and brace bits (Jennings or the other style?) and a mortise marking gauge and.... And... And ...


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## jigs-n-fixtures

Yes building the rear plat into the table is the way to go. 

Looks like a good buy.


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## Dave Paine

railaw said:


> The plate that mounts to the bench has no hole for attaching a wooden pad. I thought I would build it into the bench so the edging/ skirt covers the rear pad. Is this a good way to go?


Nice old vise. This should clean up easily.

If you wanted a wooden rear pad you could install the vise through the wooden pad using the two installation screws.

Mounting flush with the apron also works, but I prefer to have wood surfaces for both jaws. Personal preference.


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## TobyC

Use leather or cork for the rear surface.
Or double back tape and wood.

Toby


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## railaw

Dave Paine said:


> If you wanted a wooden rear pad you could install the vise through the wooden pad using the two installation screws.


Gee, why didn't I think of that?

I was going to have the rear plat (is that the correct term?) behind the apron so there would be wood on both gripping surfaces, but your Suggestion has the advantage of enabling replacement of the pad. Perhaps I will install the pad as suggested here, but make the pad flush with the skirt. I could see that helping when holding longer boards. Anyone see a down side to that?


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## Dave Paine

railaw said:


> Perhaps I will install the pad as suggested here, but make the pad flush with the skirt. I could see that helping when holding longer boards. Anyone see a down side to that?


Having the rear jaw flush with the apron will help for holding longer boards.

The only consideration is the thickness of the apron. You want sufficient wood behind this rear jaw to support the vise and any wood being held in the vise. A decent about of turning moment as the jaws are opened to maximum capacity.

You may need to glue a block of wood behind the apron to get sufficient holding strength.


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## railaw

Thanks. I haven't decided if it will be an "apron" or "edging". My top is two doors over 31/2" thick. I am going to add a couple of strips to the front to permit bench dogs (square). I may build the vise into these. I'll pick up an old thread of mine re the doors when I start on it.


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## railaw

I'm going to HD to pick up a brush for my hand drill to help clean the grime off my old vise. I think I will clean, de rust then paint. Question: should the brush I pic up be brass, nylon or steel? Would any act differently on the cast iron?


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## firemedic

railaw said:


> I'm going to HD to pick up a brush for my hand drill to help clean the grime off my old vise. I think I will clean, de rust then paint. Question: should the brush I pic up be brass, nylon or steel? Would any act differently on the cast iron?


I'd go with a steel brush... But I would only knock the crud off then soak it before painting... 


This isn't a must but I'd also oven dry it after it was totally rust free and bake the new paint too. That will last a long long time.

And nice vice at a good price!


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## Dave Paine

railaw said:


> I'm going to HD to pick up a brush for my hand drill to help clean the grime off my old vise. I think I will clean, de rust then paint. Question: should the brush I pic up be brass, nylon or steel? Would any act differently on the cast iron?


I have brass, nylon and steel. Brass and nylon I use if I want to minimize any scratches on the item.

Steel is used if you know you will be later removing the scratches.

This vise may be easier to clean up with a paint stripper, then rust removal step. A lot less "elbow grease".

Look for a water based paint stripper at HD. These go on easy, leave for x hours and can remove with putty knife or nylon/brass brush.

For rust removal, purchase Wood bleach. If not at HD, try local hardware store. It should be in the wood finish aisle not laundry. Also goes by its chemical name "oxalic acid". Not a strong acid so easy to work with.

Mix 2 tablespoons per gallon. Can mix more if you like.

Mix enough to completely submerge the pieces. Disassemble if you can.

Leave overnight. I like to use a clearish container and leave exposed to the sun. The solution works better when warm.

After the soaking period, remove, may need some patina removing with wet-dry paper, but should be mostly ready for the painting step.


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## railaw

Thanks to both. I will let you know how it turns out/ the precise steps I end up doing.


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## brokedown

I read this post and I wanted to share a very similar situation.

I also recently purchased a Morgan 200a Vice for $40 from this really nice lady on craigslist. These are the before pictures...


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## brokedown

And here's the finished results...


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## BZawat

That looks great! I've got one that needs to be restored if I ever have the time to get to it. Same exact model as yours, oddly enough.


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## railaw

*shiny!*

That looks great! Inspiration to get mine up. I have that strip of dog holes and a few more I mentioned in an earlier post ready for glue-up but was side-tracked by Christmas presents - when I get back to it I'll have to re-plane them all. And I still need to plan the details of connecting it. 

How did you get it so shiny? My clean-up efforts so far have removed the bulk of the crud, but have not really progressed past there.


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## brokedown

Well it took a lot of work but basically I pulled it all apart and got all the crud, rust and paint off on the benchtop wire wheel. What I couldn't remove with the wire wheel I used a dremmel with several different wire bits. It took about a good 6 hours to get all the rust, dirt and paint off but then it started to shine. Then I spray painted a couple coats of red and put it back together after a few days. I'm very happy with the results, not to mention it functions very smoothly.


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## brokedown

*BTW Thanks...*

Thank you very much for the compliment, I needed that. I showed it to my girlfriend before and after and all she said was "why did you paint it red?"


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## EastexToolJunky

Thanks for the pics. I picked up a decent vise in rough shape and will be doing the same thing. Did you use a primer before the paint?


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## brokedown

I did not primer it though probably should have (Rust-oleum recommends using a primer first). Right before I was ready to paint I cleaned it really good with acetone then I masked off the faces of the vice plates and I sprayed about 3 light coats and 2 heavy coats of Rust-oleum Protective Enamel Spray paint letting it dry overnight between each application. I started on a Sunday and each day I come home for lunch and I would spray it again before I left back for work. I put it back together that following Saturday.

I hope that helps! 

Let me know if you have any more questions? I'd be happy to answer!


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## Anguspapa

Brokedown, 

Looks excellent. I would really like a nice wood vice but don't really have a place to put it and can not find one at a deal like that. 

Eric


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## Brentley

brokedown said:


> Thank you very much for the compliment, I needed that. I showed it to my girlfriend before and after and all she said was "why did you paint it red?"


Sounds like married life.


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## Tamaroa

How did you break loose the two 1 1/8 nuts that hold the rails to the face of the vice?


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## BIZNAWICH

Hello Brokedown. I have a question ...do you know the age of your vise? I just bought one off eBay with the same guide rod anchoring system yours has and the majority I've seen use nuts to secure the rods. Which is older?.


Thanks, Biz


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## BigJim

He probably isn't here any longer that thread was back in 2013.


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## Tony B

railaw said:


> ......................The plate that mounts to the bench has no hole for attaching a wooden pad.
> ............


Your rear plate has 2 holes in it.
generally this if for a screw to go through the wooden rear , then through that plate and into the edge part of your bench I cant tell from your photos but in post #12 and 13 you can see the slots in the rear section of their vise that bolts up from the bottom into the bottom of your workbench. Once your bench is built this bolt that comes up from the bottom, actually has a hole you make just deep enough to countersink the bolthead then through the rest of the top and down through the holes or slots in the rear of your vise This is what really holds the brunt of the weight of the vise.


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## Onefreetexan

brokedown said:


> Thank you very much for the compliment, I needed that. I showed it to my girlfriend before and after and all she said was "why did you paint it red?"


You need a new girlfriend,>


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## Tony B

BigJim said:


> He probably isn't here any longer that thread was back in 2013.


just noticed your post, Jim. Oh well, thats' one of the downsides to age. Chalk it up to another senior moment brought to you by Tony B


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## BIZNAWICH

Tony...my vise is the same design/model as brokedown's. That is to say, my rails are held in the front plate with dowel pins rather than with threaded nuts like most of the 200A's I've seen on eBay and other sites.


I was wondering if this indicates when the vise was made or is newer than the bolted vises.


Thanks, Biz


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