Craftsman Professional vise or?

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work765

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Aug 25, 2013
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Hi, I'm looking for a sub 150 dollar vise and and if you google it. The consensus is the Craftsman Pro. But It appears to be no longer available anywhere. Do any of you guys know a source? Or are there any other highly recommended vises in that price range that aren't crap?

Thanks guys.
 
I am a big believer in buying quality tools once! That said, I bought a cheap Chinese made 5" machinists vise about 20 years ago (when I was too poor to buy quality) and it has never let me down. Now don't get me wrong, I love American made tools and if I were independently wealthy I might even consider buying a USA made Wilton...but probably wouldn't because they are completely out of line on their pricing. Just saying, you can get a decent, usable vise for your price range.

Bob
 
Craigslist can be your best friend for good quality USA made vises at a very reasonable price. In some cases you may get 3 good vises for the price of 1 new one.
 
It really depends on what you're wanting to do with it. I have a big beefy machinists vise that I picked up at a barn sale that's awesome for clamping down on things I need to hold really tightly. I also have the Grizzly Parrot Vise and LOVE it for just holding stuff still.

Craigs list and barn/garage sales are great places to pick up some old iron! I'm still on the hunt for the perfect post vise.

J-
 
We have some Record vises, 5 and 6" or larger

They were made in the UK 30/60 years ago

Now the trade brand has been purchased by Irwin and production has shifted to China and quality reduced to lower production costs.


The world is buying up the old stuff and used vises can be out of sight,
http://www.ebay.com/itm/WILTON-6-Ma...Great-shape-jaws-are-almost-100-/251280219378
Nice paint, but who pays $1,600 for a bench vise ?


But the same applies as the others have mentioned buy old used stuff garage sales, estate sales, auctions, industrial clearance auction, craigs list,


I prefer fixed vises for fabrication and such work,

Usually the swivel rotation is a pita to me in fab work

but Nick Wheeler and others have shown how they use a Wilton combo bullet pipe vise and that makes sense for knife use.


try one of each, make up your own mind.
 
I am of the mind that buying good American tools is your best option. However like one other person commented I also bought a Chinese 5" vise from Grizzly and it has taken a beating over the years and held up quite well.

This is the one I have and it is not a bad price so I am not worried using it hard. So far it has taken daily hard use in my machine shop without any problems. And I saved over a $1000 for other American tools for the shop.

http://www.grizzly.com/products/Multi-Purpose-5-Bench-Vise/G7062

g7062-6bab0c3208ab47df57b5f3331bb65d6e.jpg


Greebe
 
Work, where you at. I have a pretty nice, old craftsman vise that is just collecting dust. Probably a $200 vise when bought new many moons ago. If you are anywhere near the Salem Or area I would be happy to make you a deal.
 
Lots of good advice.

I have some crazy high end American made vises that I'd never gotten without finding crazy good deals. The 6" Wilton I have retails for something insane like $1800. :eek: And no... I didn't pay anywhere NEAR that. It is an amazing vise... so well built, and comes in around 185 pounds!

The one I use the most is a Chicom rotating head vise from Harbor Freight. I paid $35 for it in 1996. Now they're twice as much $$$ for half the quality. :thumbdn:

I definitely agree with the idea of finding a quality, used vise. CL is good sometimes, but there are a lot of people selling them on there nowadays that must be antique dealers. I saw a $15 HF drill press vise that LOOKED like it was 85 years old, listed on CL for $300 as a "heavy old machinist bench vise." I wanted to punch the seller in the face. Twice.

An even better bet (around here anyway) is a good flea market. It just depends on whether the seller is geared toward selling tools or antiques. ;)
 
I've been keeping an eye out on craigslist and ebay the last month and finally found a Wilton vise for what I think is a decent price. Actually just received it from UPS today. Its on the older side but doesn't look beaten up.
 
NickWheeler said:
Lots of good advice.

I have some crazy high end American made vises that I'd never gotten without finding crazy good deals. The 6" Wilton I have retails for something insane like $1800. :eek: And no... I didn't pay anywhere NEAR that. It is an amazing vise... so well built, and comes in around 185 pounds!

The one I use the most is a Chicom rotating head vise from Harbor Freight. I paid $35 for it in 1996. Now they're twice as much $$$ for half the quality. :thumbdn:

I definitely agree with the idea of finding a quality, used vise. CL is good sometimes, but there are a lot of people selling them on there nowadays that must be antique dealers. I saw a $15 HF drill press vise that LOOKED like it was 85 years old, listed on CL for $300 as a "heavy old machinist bench vise." I wanted to punch the seller in the face. Twice.

An even better bet (around here anyway) is a good flea market. It just depends on whether the seller is geared toward selling tools or antiques. ;)
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Nick, you speak the truth! Gotta have some perseverance for sure, and it seems as if the vises are becoming quite a bit like anvils these days. "If it's old it's gotta be worth a fortune, even if it's beat to death!"
 
Someone please explain to me how a new Wilton 6" machinist's bench vise is worth $2k+ and my brand new USA made Kurt D675 was only about $650. It just seems to me that Wilton are far too greedy and those ridiculous prices are certainly why people think the old vises are so valuable.

Bob
 
The thing about pricing like this is that it probably only cost them $75-100 to make one. Probably much less. Everyone is getting greedy these days. It is because of this price gouging that the Chinese cheap junk has take so much of the market. American Greed. Sound like a a reality tv show.

American companies can make items that are good but sell for less they just do not want to.

Good example is Monster Jaws. I just ordered some steel soft jaws for a 6" Kurt vise and they were on $18, and make in the USA. The quality is excellent. I was going to make a few sets but the 1018 raw stack was going to cost me $15 for one set of jaws. So I payed $3 more to have them do all the work.

So I don't buy this nonsense that American companies can't produce a good inexpensive product. They just choose not to.
 
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Holy cow, I didn't realize that Wiltons cost so much. I was just in the shop here at work and noticed that all of the vises are Wiltons. Probably a dozen of them. Then I see this. Crazy.

I have a cheap Chinese vise that has been used for many years. No problems with it to speak of.

So... What would I rather have, a Wilton or a KMG...? That's a tough one. ;)
 
I did'nt realize vises had gotten stupid expensive. I sold a good quality 'off brand' a while back for $45. Should have got $145!!

Currently have a 6" Wilton, 6" Craftsman Professional, and an old huge Prentice. [can't lift that one!!] All top quality, purchased used and reasonable.

Like everyone else said, watch garage sales/fleamarkets. Hard to beat older American tools!!
 
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Greebe said:
The thing about pricing like this is that it probably only cost them $75-100 to make one. Probably much less. Everyone is getting greedy these days. It is because of this price gouging that the Chinese cheap junk has take so much of the market. American Greed. Sound like a a reality tv show.

American companies can make items that are good but sell for less they just do not want to.

Good example is Monster Jaws. I just ordered some steel soft jaws for a 6" Kurt vise and they were on $18, and make in the USA. The quality is excellent. I was going to make a few sets but the 1018 raw stack was going to cost me $15 for one set of jaws. So I payed $3 more to have them do all the work.

So I don't buy this nonsense that American companies can't produce a good inexpensive product. They just choose not to.
Click to expand...

I think the prices are a rebound to the push in the last 20 years to produce offshore. Their main market is probably fab shops, and machinists who will buy once for their career. We used to be able to buy mid range products at places like sears or Canadian Tire, but their stuff is junk now, no better than harbour freight or Princess Auto. Since mid range is a crap shoot, charge a premium for something that is known to be excellent. I did buy a larger vice from Princess Auto a year and a half ago, and it seems pretty decent, better than their other junk. Look around, sometimes you luck out. I have found Lee Valley to be good for clamps and small vices, and they have the good files. I didn't check if they have larger vices, as I'm not in the market for one now. I was also looking at busy bee tools (similar to grizzly) and their stuff looked OK.
 
A C Richards said:
Work, where you at. I have a pretty nice, old craftsman vise that is just collecting dust. Probably a $200 vise when bought new many moons ago. If you are anywhere near the Salem Or area I would be happy to make you a deal.
Click to expand...

I'm in Southern California. Shipping might be an arm and a leg.
 
Also, I hear you guys about watching Craigslsit. I have been and it seems like more folks are catching on to the higher prices of vises. Maybe I'll hit some flea markets and see if I can get lucky that way. It's kind of ridiculous you can't find a good middle of the road vise at a reasonable price. Seems strange to me.
 
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