Herbert Miller
There may be instances where your workpiece slips from your hands while working and gets damaged. Do you want to avoid those inconveniences from arising? If yes, then simply invest in a bench vise that will firmly hold the object and allow you to work effectively & efficiently.
A bench vise is an essential workshop tool that’s primarily used to hold something in place securely. There are many factors to consider while purchasing a bench vise, like jaw width, throat width, jaw opening, etc.
Keep going through our article to know which bench vises are best suited for you.
Best Overall
Wilton 11104 4″ Bench Vise
- Robust construction
- Greater square inch surface for anvil
- Suited for novices and advanced workers
- Amazing for metalwork
- Cost-effective
Premium Choice
Yost Tools 750 – DI 5″ Bench Vise
- Multi Jaw function
- Best for heavy-duty projects
- Pull pin locking mechanism
- Suited for intermediate to advanced workers
- Strong cast iron build
Best budget
Yost LV-4 Home Bench Vise
- Sturdy cast iron build
- Enhanced stability for a compact vise
- Cost-effective; Value for money
- Lightweight
- Easy to install
The top of the market are listed above, but we have more bench vises for you along with their honest reviews as well as their pros and cons:
1. Wilton 11104 Bench Vise 4″
Wilton is a well-renowned company in the bench vise industry. If you are fond of an all-rounder, solid, and sturdy bench vise, then Wilton meets all the standards. It is best suited for novices and intermediates as it opens up to a 4″ gap.
Wilton 11104 is constructed with highly strengthened steel, which makes it durable and a workhorse even if it weighs only 7 kg. The anvil area is large, which negates the need for a separate area to bend your metalwork.
The vise sports a swivel base with an enhanced rotation that offers working with ease; you need not crank your neck with a piece looking for the right angle. The jaws have a stunning diamond machine finish, which contributes to an additional protected grip irrespective of the material you work with.
The sturdy design is extremely handy when you consider the anvil. The anvil has the ability to absorb the vibrations of hammering of any sort and makes it perfect for any metal or woodwork. Its throat depth is 2.25″, jaw opening is 4,” and jaw width is 4″.
Pros
- Strong construction
- Bigger anvil square inch surface
- Replaceable jaws
- Suited for new learners and advanced workers
- Amazing for metalwork
- Profitable
Cons
- Not for advanced workers
- No rotation in 360-degrees
- Jaws can leave marks on soft materials.
2. Yost Tools 750 – DI 5″ Bench Vise
Yost is the most popular brand among bench vise users. The Yost multi jaw is a heavy-duty, all-rounder vise best suited for serious beginners and pros alike. It is built to be used and abused, with the pipe feature suiting plumbers and engineers as well.
This vise can undertake any project, and you can use it for practically anything! It is made from a heavy-duty iron cast with a wide 360-degree swivel design, which has two kinds of jaw grips.
You can activate the rotation feature with an easy pull pin mechanism that is on the back of the vise. This allows one-handed movement and rotation to lock into one of 12 positions without interrupting your ongoing work.
There are self-aligning pipework jaws which increase the contact points. These are not the usual features of a bench vise. The Yost multi jaw has an incredibly heavy and compact bench vise. It sports a base that is swivel, which gives more accuracy when working with hand tools as you don’t need to insert or remove the piece again and again. Its throat depth is 4″, jaw opening is 5,” and jaw width is 5″.
Pros
- Versatile Multi Jaw
- Best for heavy-duty projects
- Spectacular locking pull pin mechanism
- Suited for intermediate to advanced workers
- Strong cast ductile iron build
- Replaceable jaws; 360-degree turning feature
3. Yost Home LV-4 Bench Vise
Yost comes again with a superb product. The LV houses a strength that is usually lacking in a small vise, and it is of great value. It won’t be suitable for big jobs as it comes with a 3″ jaw opening, but for its price, it’s well made and a great vise for beginners. It is a small vise measuring 4.5,” but its improved design ensures more stability.
It’s made from cast iron that makes it extremely durable when compared with hollow or fragile bench vise in its price segment. It is astonishingly simple to set up on your workbench. It is stable, strong, and ideal for residential bench use or use in tiny workshops.
It sports a small anvil area to assist you with your daily metal and woodwork. It is highly skillful at locking tools for polishing and sharpening. Its strength is unrivaled to any vise of its size, and it is astoundingly cost-effective for a cast iron built. Its throat depth is 2.6″, jaw opening is 3,” and jaw width is 4.5″.
Pros
- Strong cast iron build
- Enhanced stability for a small vise
- Cost-effective; Value for money
- Lightweight
- Easy to install
Cons
- Too small for advanced work
- Not suitable for heavy work
4. Tekton 4″ Swivel Bench Vise
Tekton is the underrated company of the bench vise industry. Tekton swivel is a great bench vise for medium to heavy-duty work at an efficient price. This vise will hold up to whatever is thrown its way and can hold its ground for the transition to light work to work, which requires more strength and sturdiness.
It is a hands-down suggestion to intermediate level workers with medium work. It is also an all-around offering with a cast-iron build to make it sturdy, along with a coat of black powder and a steel accent. It is extremely stress-free to install and has a swivel that is 120-degrees to help the angular adjustment.
The anvil in the back is polished and can withstand the force of recurrent hammering that is required to flatten or bend metal in any metalwork. The handle and screws are sturdy and smooth, with no stiffness expected in a tool.
Steel plates are expendable, so it can undertake projects which require brute force. Its throat depth is 2.125″, jaw opening is 3,” and jaw width is 4″.
Pros
- Replaceable steel jaw grips
- Easy to install
- Strong cast iron build
- Cost-effective
Cons
- No rotation in 360-degree
- Not for highly advanced work
5. PanaVise 381 Vacuum Base Bench Vise
PanaVise is a relatively new company in the bench vise industry. PanaVise 381 is a fantastic small or miniature vise; it is ideal for tiny precision work like jewelry making, electronics work, etc. The resourcefulness of the jaw movement and placement is priceless when it comes to any work with semi-precious or precious resources.
One of its biggest advantages is that it is resistant to high temperatures or heat, and thus it is capable of assisting in tasks like soldering, light welding, and grinding.
It can be easily underestimated by its size, but it is geared more towards the users who work on electronics or similar small projects.
PanaVise 381 may look small, but it is powerful. It has heat resistant capacity of up to 200 degrees Fahrenheit of constant exposure and 300 degrees Fahrenheit of discontinuous heat exposure.
It can be easily installed or mounted. It is strong, small, and precise, and this accuracy that is flexible usually ends up with a big price tag, which isn’t the scenario in this case. Its throat depth is 1.25″, jaw opening is 2.25,” and jaw width is 2.5″.
Pros
- Turns and rotations in 360-degree
- 90-degree tilt
- Heat resistant
- Sturdy yet lightweight
Cons
- Not made for heavy work
- Ill-suited for woodwork
6. Yost Vises 445 4.5″ Utility Bench Vise
Yost is full of surprises. Yost 445 features a pipe and bench vise with a 360-degree base swivel. It mounts to a workbench to provide clamping action for light-duty applications. It features a hand tightening lock knob on the base to secure its position and is equipped with built-in cast iron pipe jaws, which are grooved for enhanced grip.
It is equipped with a cast-iron build and a steel U bar for sturdiness and durability. It also includes a flat portion, which doubles up as the anvil and additional workspace along with replaceable hardened steel top jaws.
Due to its large size, it offers a high clamp force of 4950 pounds, which translates to brilliant grip when holding different kinds of objects using this bench vise.
It sports a torque rating of 116 ft-lb and is effective for home garage use or medium use. If you need a bench vise that is strong, durable, portable, and for home use but don’t want one with incapacity for heavy use, go for it. Its throat depth is 3.75″, jaw opening is 5.5,” and jaw width is 6.5″.
Pros
- Swivel base with a 360-degree angle
- 2 points lockdown for stability
- High clamp force of 4950 pounds
- Torque rating of 116 ft-lb
Cons
- Heavy
- Requires regular maintenance
7. Wilton 4800R Bench Vise Reversible
Wilton is a miracle company for bench vise users. The Wilton 4800R is strong, sturdy, and ideal for moderate to heavy work. The two anvil zones are seamlessly primed for pounding and are perfect for all sorts of metalwork.
The jaw has a reversible feature, which is just what you need if you are working with big pieces of material. It is heavy and gives you a sense of safety and durability due to the tight grip and locked base. It sports dual locks for ultimate stability. Although it’s the crowning jewel is the fact that it can be reversed.
With the jaws in the regular position, they open to 8″, but when they are reversed, they expand to an extreme 14.5″. This very ability increases the variety of projects that you can work on as it can handle much larger workpieces. Its throat depth is 4.75″, jaw opening is 8,” and jaw width is 8″.
Pros
- Extremely sturdy
- Worth the money
- Has double anvil surfaces
- Wide jaw opening
Cons
- Heavy
- Difficult to operate for a beginner
8. Grizzly G7062 Multi-Purpose 5″ Bench Vise
The Grizzly is a rather unrecognized brand, but its products are impressive. The G7062 is a fabulous moderate operation bench vise whose two features make Grizzly stand out from other vises.
The design of the shaft in this bench vise delivers clean adjustments and a snug fit so that it can be swiveled horizontally as well as vertically. It also provides you with unlimited grip position directing. The width and the jaw opening and are precisely 5″ with a 3″ throat depth; with being only 50 pounds in weight; it’s a firm piece of a vise.
It sports rubber-coated jaws as powerful grip material that can be itched or scratched with a typical metal jaw, making it excellent for holding wood or while cutting soft metals. The key drawback of G7062 is that the vertical swivel is reliant on the jaw to stay in place, making it difficult to hold material and tighten up the jaws at the same time. Its throat depth is 3″, jaw opening is 5,” and jaw width is 5″.
Pros
- 360-degree turn
- Cast iron build
- Replaceable jaws
- Cost-effective
Cons
- Not for heavy work
- Vertical swivel dependent on the jaw to lock
9. Olympia Tool 38-604 4″ Bench Vise
Olympia is also a relatively unheard company in the bench vise industry. Olympia tools aren’t smooth, but that is justified as it is a shop tool. It sports a reinforced base with heavy make and durable build to make it best suited as a stable tool that can be trusted not to dwindle.
It is a bit rough around the edges, but it is still suitable for light to medium-duty projects and pipework. It is a small 4″ bench vise with a lot of competition in its price segment, but it doesn’t disappoint due to its workshop level build and reinforced body. When you attach it with the 4 point lug attachment, it won’t go anywhere unless you want it to.
Its reinforced base gives a sense of security and stability, which is required when working with a vise. It turns through 270 degrees and adds another dimension to your work. The reinforced steel jaw faces are of superb quality and replaceable as well.
Although the pipe jaws underneath are fixed and permanent, they are a useful feature, especially on a vise of this size. Its throat depth is 2″, jaw opening is 4,” and jaw width is 4″.
Pros
- Swivel base
- Features fixed pipe jaws
- Replaceable steel jaws
- Sturdy and durable
Cons
- Rough edges
- Heavy and not smooth
10. Capri Tools 10519 Rotating Base and Head Bench 6″ Bench Vise
Capri Tools is a severely underrated company in the bench vise industry. The high-quality construction and design of this vise make it superior to all in its price segment.
It creates a perfect balance between quality and price with its amazing features, robust build, attractive design, and being cost-effective or economical. It is made from 60,000 heavy-duty ductile iron with a 6″ wide jaw opening and a throat depth of 4.2″.
The 9000 pounds of clamping force ensures that it performs up to the mark on any job assigned without any hitches or difficulties. Capri Tools has a much better workspace with its large-sized anvil to enable you to fabricate and mold whatever you wish.
Both its head and base feature a rotation in 360-degrees, with its head having the ability to be locked 30 degree – 12 points. The rotation ability of this vice makes it versatile for metalwork, woodwork, pipework, gluing, sawing, drilling, etc. Its throat depth is 4.2″, jaw opening is 5.7,” and jaw width is 6″.
Pros
- Heavy-duty ductile iron make
- Rotation in 360-degrees
- 9000 pounds of clamping force
Cons
- Not for beginners
- Not for soft metals
Bench Vise Buyer´s Guide
A vise is a perfunctory device used to grasp a part of the piece firmly. It is typically used in metal cutting or woodworking. Before you buy, you need to know what factors to consider to qualify it as a worthy purchase.
Throat Depth
The throat depth is the space in the middle of the jaws. Generally speaking, it’s the distance between the topmost head of the jaws to the bench base, and thus you can customize the depth as required.
Jaw Width
The jaw width can be defined as the dimensions of the jaws in inches. You can find options from 2-6 inches where a 6″ is considered to be ideal as the larger the scope of the jaw, the better grip it will offer and the larger object it will hold.
Rotation Angle
Few bench vises will tolerate the rotation of the jaws, which makes the tool more bendable. Angles range from 0-360 degrees, and you should choose one with the highest rotation for better working.
Jaw Opening
It is the horizontal plane space in the middle of the jaws of a bench vise, with its distance varying from bench to bench. Maximum width is to be checked to make sure that you can effortlessly fit an object on the bench or not.
Mount type
A bench vise is typically bolted with screws, which are known as bold on the type and can be clamped on as well, known as clamp-on type. A clamp is for desk and small jobs, whereas a bolt is for a wall or a fixed place. Pick whichever suits your job.
Durability
One should choose a cast iron, forged iron, or reinforced steel vise for metal and woodwork for enhanced durability, whereas, if you are working with fragile resources like soldering, watcher, etc., then plastic or rubber vises can be used, but they aren’t durable.
Summing Up
A bench wise is one of the most important tools to have in any workshop as it allows you to easily use power tools on any workpiece while keeping it completely stable. We have mentioned some of the best bench vise options in this article along with their reviews, features as well as their pros and cons. A detailed buying guide is also given to assist you in understanding which bench vise is right for you.
