Before You Buy a Habor Freight Bench Vise

#4
I have an old ESS VEE vise that has served me for more than 30yrs. No experience with HF vises but a buddy bought a HF anvil and it split in two when he went to use it to straighten a piece of strap, he recently overpaid for a real anvil (thanks to American Pickers and Ebay) just to have one. I hate HF tools but I still buy a few here and there, just nothing I have to count on much. We get what we pay for when we buy discount stuff, I buy paint guns there because I hate cleaning a good one so I use em and toss em once the project is done.
 

Gatecrasher

Well-Known Member
#5
I have the 5" and while it has never cracked, it does have the problem with the base not locking securely with the two T-bolts. Just like the guy in the video said, no matter how tight you make them you can still turn the vise.
 
#6
Lol , several years ago i bought a new vise at HF and used the hell out of it banging - bending and i thought it was holding up good so one day my son was out in the garage working ang he came in and said he broke the vise - how the heck do you break a vise ? he did and can't remember what he did but had to get another from HF and it's still holding up.
 

trinik7597

Active Member
#8
$69 bucks ?? that is not watching your wallet !! i have bought both of my good old american vices at yard sales :thumbsup: for like $10 bucks each
 
#9
I have the 5" and while it has never cracked, it does have the problem with the base not locking securely with the two T-bolts. Just like the guy in the video said, no matter how tight you make them you can still turn the vise.
Yup, had two of them like that.

The weld did the trick though.
 
#11
I've got 2 . Ones a Royal from England,3 " that is a huge 3", and an older Craftsman 4". Both swivel, and neither one will keep from swiveling if you put a big enough shove on it.
I bought a 55 lb. anvil from HF and had it delivered to me for less than 50.00. After reading this and other reviews on line about them breaking, I took a 5 lb sledge to mine yesterday just to see. Beat the hell out of it and left some dents, but no breakage. Good enough for me. I'm not making fine swords on it.
 
#13
My workbench will move before mine will swivel but it's been a good one like I said, different folks have different experiences with any given item and that's why so many tools come in different levels of quality and more the prices vary wildly from affordable to crazy expensive depending on the quality. My 1st choice in vises are Wiltons which I once had but replacing that particular #450 today is $800 so that's not going to happen.


I've got 2 . Ones a Royal from England,3 " that is a huge 3", and an older Craftsman 4". Both swivel, and neither one will keep from swiveling if you put a big enough shove on it.
I bought a 55 lb. anvil from HF and had it delivered to me for less than 50.00. After reading this and other reviews on line about them breaking, I took a 5 lb sledge to mine yesterday just to see. Beat the hell out of it and left some dents, but no breakage. Good enough for me. I'm not making fine swords on it.
 
#14
My bad . It's not a Royal, it's a Record. Yeah, my bench starts moving also. I need to bolt it to the floor if I want to straighten any more forks.
 
#15
I asked the wife for a vise a few years ago for my birthday. I expected HF or some such, but she brought home a Wilton. I have such a good wife.
 
#17
Ill tell ya how to get it to stop swiveling. Take that part off and bolt the top half directly to the bench. Iv broken two vices the first one broke the way yours did it was an old american made one and the second one was a big chinese one it broke off at the square sliding part. I never tried welding the first one but that chinese one would not take a weld. I always had to reweld the jaws on they kept breaking off. I even had a freind who is a pro welder try it with all different rods and heating it. It was just crap metal. It seemed to weld fine but eventually would break out. Now I have a good collection of 3 or 4 big old american vices from flea markets $30-50 each. Iv had good luck with my current one but I should be set for life now.
 
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