One of my all time favorite don't leave home without one tool and can anyone guess what it is?  It's the old Irwin Vise Grip.  For those that have never used them or only used them on occasion they are well worth picking up the small size to try out.  Unlike multitool pliers ( I carry a Leatherman juice in my pocket daily) The Vise Grip is like having a third hand and that hand is many times stronger than your human hands with your multitool pliers.  There is a bit of a catch in that you must use Vise Grips for enough time to start "thinking" Vise Grip.  Once you realize how this simple tool can be utilized in so many situations you will not want to be without them.  Regular pliers just can't do what Vise Grips can do.   I'm not really recommending carrying them on your person as EDC but rather in the car and at the house and absolutely in any kind of BOB or GHB.  Put is this way, if SHTF and I have to leave my vehicle, the small needle nose Vise Grips in my truck are definitely going with me no matter what other tools I have at my disposal.  Vise Grips can put a handle on anything.  They can hold stuff while you do other things.  They can shape things with crushing power.  They also allow you to grap something and put force in other directions which you can't do to any significant degree with handheld pliers.  Anyone else like Vise Grips?  Like I said if you are not sure try them and you will be amazed at what you can do with this tool.

How about this guy-

Irwin Multitool

That looks more useful than any other multi tool I have used.

Think I will pick 2 up, one for my son.

Txl

Eta,  $15-20 on amazon

Nice!  Leatherman actually made a locking plier version for a short time but it apparently never sold.  This new Iwin tool is the exact model of Vice Grip I carry and highly recommend but with the added multitools.  I think I will still prefer a Leatherman and the six inch needle nose Vise Grip but I'm definitely going to check out this new product.

I carried the smallest pair of Vise Grips (5") in my back pocket after breaking pretty much every multi tool on the market at the time.

Does Leatherman still make the "Crunch"?

I learned how to use vice grips to drive roll pins and it changed my life for the better. I don't need to carry them in a pocket, but I do have em handy.

They aren't new... I can recall my brother having one close to 2 decades ago...

That being said, vise grips have a time and place but the biggest down side is the permanent damage they often do when used to tighten/loosen bolts etc. They are my last resort. If you're going to keep a set in the car why not keep a small toolset to cover most bolts etc? Just to be clear, not knocking your suggestion bc vise grips are very handy tools, I'm just recommending real tools in addition (for in the car).

You are correct they can damage bolts but sometimes that is unavoidable.  I have real tools in the truck of course but I can't carry them all in a disabled vehicle shtf situation but the real advantage of the VGs is they can do stuff the other real tools you are referring to simply can't do.
If a handle breaks off of something a VG can be locked on to keep going.  When two things that are normally held together break VGs can hold them temporarily.  VGs can hold things many times stronger than you can with normal pliers and then allow you full use of both hands.  Pretty much nothing else in a tool box can do this and that is where they become a force multiplier.  I actually sized a Seiko watch with the small VGs by clamping on one of the pins which then became the sizing tool.  I could not do this with normal pliers where you would have to apply constant force just to hold the pin.  I have also seen VGs used to quickly secure a garage door where the lock was damaged.  So many tasks can be accomplished in seconds with this tool.  I don't carry them EDC but as I said come SHTF the small needle nose VGs will be on me all the time.

I think they do.  Expensive, but if you need a very compact vice grip, it works quite well. I carried one for the last decade or so of my military career as part of my EDC.  For those times you don't have a lot of immediate choices for tools, it's like having a third hand.  I do prefer the needle-nose vice-grip more, but still love the Crunch.  Another (non-vice grip) I'm looking at adding to my get-home bag is the smallest Knipex Cobra (5") adjustable pliers.  I have the 8" ones I use the most often for most chores around the house.

ROCK6

I put a hole in a brake line along the top of the Canadian Rockies driving home from Alaska. At night.

Did a cut, crimp, roll, and then re-crimp while leaving the ViseGrips attached to the rolled line. Used hose clamps to secure the whole thing to the axle tube.

The rig managed to hold brake fluid pressure all the way down to Lake Louise. Only 3 brakes working was a bit hairy, and a very slow descent, but with engine braking it worked.

You are right, it looks like they either still make the crunch or started making them again.  I see them available on several big name websites.  The only drawback I see is the cost.  The nice thing about the VG is they cost $10 so if you need to leave them in place it's not a big deal and it's cheap to have them in several places.  The advantage of the Crunch is the ability to actually EDC a locking plier without having to add an additional piece of gear if you already EDC a multi-tool which is something to consider for sure.  The last few posts are some good examples of why I consider the VG an indispensable emergency tool.

Vice grip pliers are always in my truck.

5WR Vise Grip $10.28 on Amazon

I'd much rather have that and a multi-tool (or real tools even more so) than a combination tool.

ETA:5WR & 10WR set for $17 @ Cripe Distributing

They do work when you break off the shift lever on a motorcycle too.

Pretty good idea to add to my EDC kit.

Almost everybody in Bush Alaska has a regular and needle nose vise-grips.

Have taken apart a 30hp outboard and put it together with one.
All we had.

Ahhhh so you've been to Africa...oh wait, Alaska
I've found vise grips to be an absolute must have. I have one in each vehicle. The uses are near endless. I can say that you will hate life if you have to change the belt on a Renault 5 in the hot sun and you don't have a pair vise grips to hold that bastard tension pulley. We found an old pair of my friend's GF's stockings in the "trunk"and fashioned the "belt".

https://www.ebay.com/itm/SCHRADE-USA-Multi-Tool-VICE-GRIP-ST6HP-nylon-SHEATH-NIB-MADE-IN-USA/192979941931?hash=item2cee803a2b:g:ePQAAOSwFKldG3wj

It has no equal. I'm on my 2nd one, only because I lost the first one.

Good post, OP.  I think he's right.

Somewhere I have an old Schrade hand-me-down vice grip that was my Dad's. ... I need to find it and keep it in the go-bag in the car.

They work well in an emergency pinching off a fluid line too, whether hose or pipe.

I keep a set of the needle nose types with all the sharp edges ground smooth. They don't cut the rubber.

Well worth having in the tool box, but not something I would carry in my pocket.  JMHO.

Tool I'm getting not a vice grips but seems like a really nice tool can't wait to get it.

Last year at a PRS match a shooter came up to me ( I was an RO) and asked if I had any vice grips. I replied yes and took him over to my CanAm where my tool bag was. He had broken the "bolt knob" off his rifle and wanted to attach the vice grips to the shaft sticking out of his action. It took a few minutes but we got it in position so that it wouldn't hit his scope but would still allow him to work the action. He finished the match shooting out to 1300 yards with vice grips. They were placed back in my buggy. I never saw the guy again. God Bless America.

I really don't care for a pliers-based multitool having a knife.  If it was a choice, I would prefer something like the Leatherman Surge's replaceable blades (wood saw, metal saw, file).  If they do have a blade, give me something I can abuse like the Leatherman Crunch's serrated sheepsfoot blade.  If I'm carrying a multitool, it's already in addition to a dedicated pocket folder or fixed blade.

I really like the old Schrade Vice-Grip tool...very well done.  Closest I have is when Kershaw made a vice-grip, needle-nose pliers tool:



I still prefer the Leatherman Crunch simply for the size/compactness (my last decade on Active Duty, I carried both the Crunch and a Swiss Spirit Multitool):



Multitools are always going to be a compromise as are the compact (6" or less) vice grips and channel lock pliers.  Still, that compromise keeps them small and compact; easy to carry in a variety of ways to places a larger tool box isn't a good option.  I'm all for "using the right tool for the job", but I've been to locations and in situations where the "job" was remote, time-constrained, or little to no access to more appropriate tools.  Multitools are the survivalists' ultimate improvisation tool...

ROCK6