quality vise grips

[Raisedonadeere]

I have used vise grips for more than 70 years. Now and then, a pair winds up in some body else's tool box, (yep I occasionally find some body else's in mine, not thievery just mix-ups, they all look like "mine') mostly in somebody else's and so I come up short and have to buy another set or two. The quality gets less and less. I have always looked for genuine vise grip after winding up with some off brand lookalike that "wound up" in my box. The last set of Irwin's were terrible working around my farm machinery last summer. New summer arriving and I want some good ones that will hang in there like I remember them doing years ago.


You know the drill. I have see some of the discussions but don't recall and cant seem to find a specific recommendation for dependable quality traditional curved jaw with the wire cutter vise grips in various sizes.


It has already been discussed to death so looking only for a brand name or vendor. Discuss away if you like but when you get done please name the good one if you can. I bet most of you do not know the limits of a good set of vise grips so Irwin might do the job you are expecting. Being a farm boy and being out in the field trying to make hay while the sun shines requires repairs with what ever tools you have in a small tool box you have mounted on the tractor. Vise Grips, crescent wrench, hammer, prybar, screw drivers are the staples. Some of you might recall a mechanic remarking, this looks like a farmer has been working on it, as he sees marred nuts, bolts, flanges etc. That's me sometimes. I also do jobs I wont let vise grips near, another story.

 

[KnurledNut]

Petersen.

 

[Mr_B]

Yeh hunt down old stock peterson or good used online or yard sales.
Other good makes of today are knipex or toptul .

 

[dnschmidt]

TOPTUL and Milwaukee still make them the way Peterson use to with Cr-M and Cr-V steel. There are likely other brands as well and I've hear good things about the higher end line of Vise-Grips now being sold by Harbor Freight. All of these come out of Taiwan and possibly all come from the same factory.

 

[BukitCase]

https://www.protoolreviews.com/tools/hand/milwaukee-torque-lock-expansion-2016/25123/

I have a couple of the curved jaw, couple of the swivel pad clamps, and recently picked up a couple of the HF's new "Bremer" (sp??) - bremers are better than other HF's, OK for the price.

The Milwaukees are about the same price as the peterson ****, and MUCH MUCH better. don't have that annoying "under then over" bite like the petersons... Steve

 

[WittHay]

The most important tools for farm use are adjustable wrenches and vise-grips. New made in China Case IH and Crescent adjustable wrenches are just as good as the old USA ones

I don't get that the new Irwins are junk. Have 7 Vise-Grips in the service truck alone , only 2 are USA made. The China ones work fine, squeeze them hard as you can and then put a pipe on the vise-grip. They don't bend.

The USA ones get so worn out after a while they always end up being used for welding clamps. To me Vise-Grips are a necessity and a consumable.

 

[Raisedonadeere]

Thanks for passing that stuff along again, I just say it a few days ago but couldn't find it. Your explanation of the steel change explained what I had experienced. Only place around here to shop is big box stores or online. If you could shop one brand with out being able to look at the pliers which brand gives me the best chance of getting the original curved jaw vise design.

The best ones I had came some where in the late 70's to mid 80's. Some of the off brands seemed OK but were shaped a little different and just didn't do quite what I had in mind. Some of them were probably better at other things so I can adapt if necessary but want to start out with good quality. I adapted to poor quality until I finally was just plain coming up short with a few sets of the Irwin's which I had thought were a duplication of the original.

 

[Snakebyt]

they are great for worn out hood/trunk shocks.. lol.. thats the only thing i have used mine for in the last couple years

 

[plinker]

If you find used/new Vise grips at yard sales, ebay or where ever, Look for a roll pin on the release lever instead of a rivet, those are the better ones.

Toptul locking pliers are supposed to be pretty good from what I gather. Dont have any myself though. Originals are fairly easy to come by for the most part. I've got one set of Grip-ons and dont care for them.

One thing I do is spray paint my Vise grips so they are ID'd as mine since most of the people I've worked with has their own. If the paint comes off, respray.

 

[bmwpowere36m3]

Grip-On.... probably the best new “vise-grips”, just come at a cost.

 

[zippy1981]

Made in Spain grip on seems to be the top of the line. It's what and snap on sells. I've never used them. They adjust differently. There is a screw took adjust how tight they grip, they auto adjust to the size of the work.

I only have seen YouTube reviews though.

I read somewhere that someone bought the old American Irwin factory and will restart production. I'm skeptical though of a new manufacturing line. Hopefully they compete on quality not price.

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[tarbellb]

Sounds like you should look at the Milwaukee locking pliers.

Easy to find, easy to warranty, cheap, good enough quality.

 

[anndel]

I buy Made in USA original Petersen from Ebay. Sometimes I go to garage sales in my neighborhood and locally on Oahu but I never find Petersens, just Made in China Irwin and they want $20-30 ea for them.

 

[zippy1981]

Grip-On.... probably the best new “vise-grips”, just come at a cost.

If they are as durable as people claim, seems a worthwhile premium. I mean my Irwin vise grips work fine, but if I needed something more durable I'd try gripon.

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[Twisty]

I have a pair of knipex at work that ****! The teeth have rounded off and they hardly grip anything. I’ve had the best luck with the USA vise grips and the new Milwaukee’s.

 

[Parrothead]

Sounds like you should look at the Milwaukee locking pliers.

Easy to find, easy to warranty, cheap, good enough quality.

I was going to take your advice and the advice of others, but stunningly, Milwaukee in their infinite wisdom doesn't make the equivalent of the Vise Grip 7WR!!! How is that even possible? They have the same jaw as the 7WR, but with the cheesy rubber grip and different locking mechanism, or the same 7" size with the traditional locking mechanism, but with the not as useful "Maxbite" jaw. What the...!!!

It looks like I'll give the Bremen's at HF a shot, because that's seriously disappointing.

 

[Millwrong]

The older Petersens are definately better than the Irwins, but Grip-on is better than both.

 

[BTL-A4]

I bought these kind:
https://www.zoro.com/proto-locking-plier-sets-plain-grip-3-pcs-j299rxl/i/G0505251/

They are made in Spain. I like how the release works: it's a "pull up" on a lever that sticks out, instead of a "push down" on a lever that doesn't. Prevents finger pinches.

I wanted some new made in the USA ones and couldn't find any so I got these.

 

[Sco Deac]

Those Proto are made by Grip-on. They are nice. grip-onmakes the same for Snap-on too.

 

[Raisedonadeere]

Just ordered 5"grip-on from Amazon since I have them in two days and need that size immediately. I am betting I am going to turn right around and gat the 5 piece set.

 

[Monte]

https://www.harryepstein.com/index.php/tool-brand/bollmanngrip.html

 

[Tenex]

I get a lot of mixed reviews on the Grip On pliers. Go watch a bunch of toolbox tour videos and you'll hear a lot of techs say they are junk. I have a single pair only because they were a cheap purchase from Amazon Warehouse Deals and I don't think they are anything special.

 

[Fialaja]

Don’t know how they stack up, but Cripe distributing has NOS Armstrong’s as well as Napa brand from Spain

 

[CR888]

If you want premium & are prepared to pay for it I'd take a look at the new Facom design. They look really well made and long lasting. My favourite vice grips are some older ones passed down from my grandfather, much less flimsy than the average set today. I'd get curved & flat jaw and needle nose designs. But check out the new Facom design, they are a little different but in a good way.

 

[Skin]

Made in Spain grip on seems to be the top of the line. It's what and snap on sells. I've never used them. They adjust differently. There is a screw took adjust how tight they grip, they auto adjust to the size of the work.

I only have seen YouTube reviews though.

I read somewhere that someone bought the old American Irwin factory and will restart production. I'm skeptical though of a new manufacturing line. Hopefully they compete on quality not price.

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You're describing Lock Jaw, not Grip-On. The former is out of business I believe. Kind of annoying to adjust but they were actually decent quality I thought despite China COO. I still have a couple pair.

I'm one of the people that thinks Grip-On are hugely overrated. I just dumped my set. I got some Facom recently, too early to report on durability but they're nice. Big downside is they run $60-$80 a pair and only come in 8".

 

[Wamsutta]

What about Knipex? Nobody ever talks about them. I can see that the release lever design is the same as Grip-On.

 

[tarbellb]

I love my Grip-on, which are also the Spain made Napa btw, even Channellock has a few rebranded Grip-on out in the wild.

They arent a direct replacement to USA Petersons, dare I say they are lighter duty. But the fit n finish are great and work as intended.

Sadly, the Knipex locking pliers repeatedly get lack luster marks. They are not the same caliber as most their other products.

 

[Skin]

What about Knipex? Nobody ever talks about them. I can see that the release lever design is the same as Grip-On.

No one talks about them because the price in NA has generally been stupidly high. Knipex also doesn't make them, they're rebadged Bollman. Monte posted a link above with much more reasonable prices.

 

[NUTTSGT]

If you can find the old stock or decent ones at sales, auctions or swap meets buy them. If not, the Irwins are way better than the cheap ones that you can find at places . . . well cheap.

 

[bmwpowere36m3]

If they are as durable as people claim, seems a worthwhile premium. I mean my Irwin vise grips work fine, but if I needed something more durable I'd try gripon.

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Yeah... there just vise-grips. For my needs, it’s not a tool I reach for first (except bodywork variants). I’ve got Petersens, US-made Irwins, Williams, Grip-Ons and some cheap imports over the years.

The US made ones and Grip-Ons have held up the “best”, but that’s relative since there generally beat, ground, torched or painted with.

 

[Local]

I put vise grips through the ringer. Usually weld a nut on the end so I can tighten with a spud once clamped. I use them daily when I do work on towers and tried a few. Milwaukees and dewalt are actually decent and have the hole for my spud. Dewalts have a nice black finish and a lock to prevent opening. I never use the lock or needed one but it's cool to have. Both will break if tightened too much. As you know the old Petersens are very good. The adjuster turns like butter and I haven't broken the one I've been using. Problem is it walked away and haven't seen it since. I replaced it with a toptul which is decent. Still miss the butter of the Petersen adjuster and hope the toptul breaks in and smooths out. My next order from Harry's is going to be a bolman. Has anybody ever tried one?
https://www.harryepstein.com/index....ckingpliers-bollmangrip-wirecutter-black.html

 

[Wamsutta]

Knipex also doesn't make them, they're rebadged Bollman.

That's good info. Thank you.

 

[GTO]

CH Hanson self adjusting locking pliers

 

[Empty Pockets]

I grab any of the original Petersens whenever I see them at swap meets, flea markets and the like.

HJE now carries a line of German made locking pliers, they looked pretty nice last time I was there, but I haven't used them

 

[Mr_B]

^
Yeh I go used peterson when can, ebay generally has some if willing pay the money .
https://www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_from=R40&_sacat=0&_nkw=peterson+grips&rt=nc
HJE has the german bollman which same as knipex .
My favourite 2 are peterson then toptul .
I not big fan of gripon .
Peterson can be had from likes of 5bucks to 15bucks a piece pending on condition.
I paid 60 bucks for a 5 piece set (roll-pin release lever) but condition was superb and it cheap money for what is quality tools and lasts a lifetime.

 

[Fialaja]

Those dollars for a three pack with $7 shipping. For that price I don’t think you could go wrong

 

[Fialaja]

 

[Parrothead]

Those dollars for a three pack with $7 shipping. For that price I don’t think you could go wrong

 

[Parrothead]

...Dewalt are actually decent and have the hole for my spud. Dewalts have a nice black finish and a lock to prevent opening. I never use the lock or needed one but it's cool to have.

Where are you purchasing your DeWalts?

 

[Fialaja]

They are Armstrong being sold by Cripe distributing for 27 dollars