Best Shop Vice?

[CADplans]

I prefer to use a milling vise as a bench vise,,
This one was too small,,,

so, I got a bigger one.

I had to use the FEL to lift it onto the bench,,

A milling vise seems to have much higher clamping force, IMHO,,

 

[5030]

It also has a much shallower grip depth and unless you machine the jaws (serrate them), it won't grip like a normal vice will.

That is an old shaper vice not a milling machine vise anyway. Milling machine vises will have an open leadscrew in the center. Shaper vises don't.

 

[BackRoad]

Frig full of beer???

(Best Shop Vice)

 

[ruffdog]

I have a Wilton and two Columbian machinists vises. I got them VERY cheap from a shop that was closing. I see old Columbians going for 200-$500. There is a big price jump for ductile iron vises.

 

[MinnesotaEric]

4 minutes to get it out of the box
3 minutes talking, with distant views of the vise
4 minutes drilling and threading holes in his table to mount the vise
2 minutes rotating the vise.

Never reversed it.



Bruce

I'd love to get the latest Panasonic 4K camcorder or a Sony A7III mirrorless camera so I can do zoom shots, but alas, I have a collection of randomly failing Osmo and GoPro Action Cameras. Even better, I'd love it if I had a second person with some camera training so I could just be me getting things done and let the cameraman figure out the best angles like bigger channels do, but it is just me. Fact was that some of my zoom shots didn't work out because the Osmo Action Camera's memory card formatting shelled for reasons I don't understand and so through the magic of editing, I did my best with what I had. Feel free to show up and story board!

"Seems"? one can look up the "real" Wilton vises at least and see that they are made of a high-strength cast iron. Some refer to it as "nodular" iron. Thus the reputation as others have mentioned of being able to take a beating.

I did not look at the wilton site but would guess they, like most manufacturers, now have a cheapo line that is not as strong as their good stuff. A "real" Wilton can still be had new but costs WAY more than that kentool thing.

As a side story - i do have a Kentool tire spoon. After some use i thougt it was a good thing. But then on a larger tire, i actually bent the spoon!!! Just using my hands to push/pull on it! I have, since, not been impressed with kentool. My Horrible Freight spoon, while less functional because of its strange shape, has yet to bend........

As I stated in my video, I have a friend with the Wilton vice, that is curiously also referred to as a 4800 model just like the KenTool KT4800 vice, and that puts me in a position to make something of a comparison. Also, after reviewing what I consider to be the best vise comparison video on YouTube, I concluded that Wilton vises are not "all that" but they do carry an "all that" price tag. Watch for yourself and draw your own conclusions.

What are the prices for the KenTool's KT4800 8" reversible vice and the Wilton 8" revisable vice. Where would one go to get the best price.

I ask as I need a good larger vise.

Thanks

The best price I found (after I'd ordered the vise I purchased from JB Tools) was at Amazon for $195.00, which is a steal in my mind! Amazon.com: Ken-Tool 64800 KT4800 Professional Reversible Mechanics Vise, 8-Inch: Automotive

The KenTool KT4800 vise is 80 pounds and very robust.

 

[Spanky100]

I'd love to get the latest Panasonic 4K camcorder or a Sony A7III mirrorless camera so I can do zoom shots, but alas, I have a collection of randomly failing Osmo and GoPro Action Cameras. Even better, I'd love it if I had a second person with some camera training so I could just be me getting things done and let the cameraman figure out the best angles like bigger channels do, but it is just me. Fact was that some of my zoom shots didn't work out because the Osmo Action Camera's memory card formatting shelled for reasons I don't understand and so through the magic of editing, I did my best with what I had. Feel free to show up and story board!



As I stated in my video, I have a friend with the Wilton vice, that is curiously also referred to as a 4800 model just like the KenTool KT4800 vice, and that puts me in a position to make something of a comparison. Also, after reviewing what I consider to be the best vise comparison video on YouTube, I concluded that Wilton vises are not "all that" but they do carry an "all that" price tag. Watch for yourself and draw your own conclusions.

The best price I found (after I'd ordered the vise I purchased from JB Tools) was at Amazon for $195.00, which is a steal in my mind! Amazon.com: Ken-Tool 64800 KT4800 Professional Reversible Mechanics Vise, 8-Inch: Automotive

The KenTool KT4800 vise is 80 pounds and very robust.

MinnesaotaEric

Appreciate this thread and the detailed information on the good pricing.

I have to be getting my wife's Birthday Present soon and the vise would be a great idea. I could use it to sharpen the blades for her ZTR Mower she got for our anniversary earlier this year.

 

[MinnesotaEric]

MinnesaotaEric

Appreciate this thread and the detailed information on the good pricing.

I have to be getting my wife's Birthday Present soon and the vise would be a great idea. I could use it to sharpen the blades for her ZTR Mower she got for our anniversary earlier this year.

That's funny. Better than a new dish washer too! LOL

 

[CalG]

I could have sworn there is a lengthy best vice thread on TBN somewhere but I couldn't find it in a search. Anyway, I wanted to throw down with a video of KenTool's KT4800 8" reversible vice which is only two-third's the price of the Wilton's 8" revisable vice and (since a friend of mine has the Wilton) seems very comparable in build quality.

Between chew and whisky, I've got all the shop vices a fellow needs.

 

[caplimilan]

These tools are going to last a lifetime haha. My father has something similar to this and it's still in perfect condition. It's such a shame that they don't make tools like this anymore. I was looking at this Heavy-Duty Bench Vice | 5 Essential Elements in order to buy some things that I need for my heavy-duty bench and I am comparing the elements from my brand new one to the one that my father has. The engineering process is still the same, but the materials that they are made from, are really different