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Posted: 3/25/2017 11:26:08 PM EDT
I'm building a workbench in the garage and am looking for a decent bench vise.
Local estate sales haven't turned up anything. Local ACE Hardware has a Craftsmen 4" vise for around $55. Hazard Fraught Tools is in town but skeptical of quality. Yost? Irwin? Any ideas? |
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I bought my 6" vise at lowes and paid $75.00 for it and it is a damn heavy duty vise, have used it for much more than building guns!
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I'm building a workbench in the garage and am looking for a decent bench vise. Local estate sales haven't turned up anything. Local ACE Hardware has a Craftsmen 4" vise for around $55. Hazard Fraught Tools is in town but skeptical of quality. Yost? Irwin? Any ideas? View Quote View Quote |
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I paid $25 for my harbor freight and it works just fine! For ar's its perfect
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That Wilton may not fit your price range, but it's a lifetime vise.
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$569.00 for a vise? Are you serious? View Quote If you need a larger jaw size than 4 1/2 it starts to get really expensive. |
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I agree, if you are going to buy a vise, make sure and get a set of soft jaws that fit it.
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My wife got me this one for Christmas and I love it. Very versatile as well, as it comes with a mount you can use to put it on your workbench - and it's removable if you want the space. Nice that it's portable and you can use it on your truck hitch.
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00HG4QM4Q?tag=vglnk-c102-20 |
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Yost vises are nice, particularly the 750di, made from ductile iron, and the fsv series, which is made from forged steel. Both of these will be much stronger than the avg. cast iron Chinese vise. They should last a lifetime.
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00CBL62HQ?tag=vglnk-c102-20 https://www.amazon.com/dp/B015Z8LMR6?tag=vglnk-c102-20 Will do anything AR related and more |
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Yep. I suspect my Wilton Vise will live on much longer than me too. View Quote |
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If you're really using a vise, a good one would probably be worth it.
If you're building ARs, it would be stupid to spend more than harbor freight. |
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I've always thought I would be passing my firearms along to my son, but never thought to include a bench vise. Is something like this more for guys who work on bolt guns? Barrels etc? That just seems like. a lot of $ for something I really only use for a build. I see that bench vise and I think "new Noveke barrel" lol View Quote It worked fine for most AR related projects but it could not hold the Reaction Rod secure enough to prevent it from moving around. Also, the jaws were to narrow and didn't offer enough support for clamping the lower receiver when installing receiver extensions... While torquing on the receiver extension the lower would want to twist out of the protective rubber padded Vise jaw caps. I have no such problems with this new Wilton Vise. I would guess it really all depends on how serious you are about assembling ARs, when installing receiver extensions I use the correct torque requirements and I really need a Vise that can hold it all together, most guys incorrectly clamp the lower in the Vise using a mag well Vise block and just barely go past hand tight when installing receiver extensions/castle nuts. I have thousands of dollars invested in tools just for assembling ARs though, so the price of this Wilton Vise is really just a drop in the bucket for me. I'm off to go buy a Snap-On inch pound torque wrench I guess. Because it will look good sitting next to my Snap-On foot pound torque wrench and my CDI inch pound torque screwdriver. |
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I'm building a workbench in the garage and am looking for a decent bench vise. Local estate sales haven't turned up anything. Local ACE Hardware has a Craftsmen 4" vise for around $55. Hazard Fraught Tools is in town but skeptical of quality. Yost? Irwin? Any ideas? View Quote Lowes has a good 4 1/2" vise perfect for rifle work, $30 |
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My wife got me this one for Christmas and I love it. Very versatile as well, as it comes with a mount you can use to put it on your workbench - and it's removable if you want the space. Nice that it's portable and you can use it on your truck hitch. https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00HG4QM4Q?tag=vglnk-c102-20 View Quote |
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I got the Tractor Supply version of that vise. It's great, and probably made in the same Chinese factory. View Quote Can't speak to the copies, but the Wilton one I got was worth every penny. I really like it. |
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i got a harbor freight 4" vise.
i use it to hold things, my lower, upper, chainsaws, trimmers, blades, etc. im not beating on it as a welder would, or auto mechanic would. its a third hand. not a anvil. if i was using it hard and beating on it, welding on it, etc, i wouldnt have gotten it, i would have spend good money on a strong vise to take the beating. now im going to say im not affraid to to give it a whack, or weld on it if i had to, and if it broke id buy a strong one, but until then, its not a anvil. its a third hand. |
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I paid about $30 for my 4" vice from home depot. Plenty sturdy for wrenching a barrel nut.
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Current Craftsman vises, like Harbor Freight, are Chinese. They tend to have casting voids and rough threads on the center shaft. They don't hold up to serious work. Might be ok for AR assembly, though. But, you need a strong vise for serious barrel work. Old Craftsman vises, when made in the USA, are every bit as good as Wiltons. Look for garage sales, local "penny pincher" magazines and such. You can pick up a real US made Craftsman - heavy-duty 5" or even 6" vise for well under $100, sometimes under $50. I paid less than $50 for this one, which dates back to the '60s, and have used it hard. The magnetic soft jaw inserts are Wilton, and are very useful. http://i1366.photobucket.com/albums/r772/gbloss/Mobile%20Uploads/A6F9EC64-00BB-4120-8374-74CD771CA19B_zpssrfog13o.jpg View Quote |
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Harbor freight used to be less than 2 miles from my house (before the divorce) I had their 4 inch vise on my work bench. Never had a issue. I have a drag car, classic car, gun builds and lawn mower fixes on it. Never had a issue.
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Great that you are working on AR's, but as your skills progress you are going to tackle more complex projects.
I mention only to say that there is no single vise that you need: you just need your first vise. I'd go with a a 4 to 6 inch one, and I'd look for one locally on Craig's list, garage sales, or Harbor Freight. The next vise you'll need is a small swiveling one; go with eBay on that one. You can find some really nice vises at garage sales sometimes, it's just hit or miss. The more used quality tools you buy, the more you'll try to buy. It's exactly like guns: you only need one more to have all that you'll ever need. |
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I've got a cheap wilton, but I'd recommend checking craigslist.
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I have a Harbor Freight 4" vice that has been going strong for 4 or 5 years now. Not top shelf but is hasn't given me any problems.
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I've bought both of mine off ebay. If you're willing to wait for the right time and jump ebay might work for you.
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You got any antique/picker shops in Sumter? I have seen a few around the Lexington area, they get gone quick.
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I'm building a workbench in the garage and am looking for a decent bench vise. Local estate sales haven't turned up anything. Local ACE Hardware has a Craftsmen 4" vise for around $55. Hazard Fraught Tools is in town but skeptical of quality. Yost? Irwin? Any ideas? View Quote I believe I have the craftsmen like you saw at Ace. I paid about $50 for it. It's worked fine for me. |
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I got a Yost 460 off Amazon of all places. It's not anymore but it on sale and on prime, shipped to my door for $160, $110 out of pocket after I used a gift card. Might not be a forever vise but it's definitely a well built.
And some of y'all are right, you don't need a 6" vise to assemble ARs but if you work on anything else, they're especially handy. As for price in general, most vises are mechanic's vises, not built to exact tolerances, theyre built to hold stuff while it's welded or beat on or otherwise worked on. Machinist vises are the vises that seem to just slide as you turn the handle. They're built so that you can hold pieces and measure the tenth thousandth. But you pay a premium for that. For my purposes and most people, a mechanic's vise is fine. |
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And some of y'all are right, you don't need a 6" vise to assemble ARs but if you work on anything else, they're especially handy. As for price in general, most vises are mechanic's vises, not built to exact tolerances, theyre built to hold stuff while it's welded or beat on or otherwise worked on. Machinist vises are the vises that seem to just slide as you turn the handle. They're built so that you can hold pieces and measure the tenth thousandth. But you pay a premium for that. For my purposes and most people, a mechanic's vise is fine. View Quote |
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OP, here's a USA made Yost 865-DI vise with a lifetime warranty. $185 at Amazon right now. I've seen it there for full price($460), so I reckon there's a sale happening.
Features: - Made in USA - Lifetime warranty - 6.5" jaws with 4" throat depth - 3.5" pipe capacity - Dual anvil - Ductile iron - Reversible |
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4 in. Swivel Vise with Anvil $39
Use one of their 25% off coupons and you're $30 and tax. I've used the hell out of mine the last 5 years and it's still works great. I had it mounted to a wooden bench up until I moved last month or two ago. Didn't have the room at the new place for a bench so I mounted it to my toolbox last week. |
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OP, here's a USA made Yost 865-DI vise with a lifetime warranty. $185 at Amazon right now. I've seen it there for full price($460), so I reckon there's a sale happening. Features: - Made in USA - Lifetime warranty - 6.5" jaws with 4" throat depth - 3.5" pipe capacity - Dual anvil - Ductile iron - Reversible View Quote |
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