Stanley 83-069M Maxsteel Multi-Angle Base Vise

I bought this item, this is an impartial review. I needed a vice to use on a work bench where I didn't want a large, permanently mounted one. It's a light duty $50 ball head vice that hits above it's weight. Very flexible work positioning, locks up tight. I was concerned that the higher center of gravity at the jaws would add leverage to the base and cause the vice to be tipsy on the work bench, but that is not the case. The vice adjusts quickly and stays in position once tightened. Pros: Highly positionable Well constructed Durable Price point Yellow Cons: Retail packaging is frustratingly intertwined with the vice and takes several minutes to extricate. Summation: A highly positionable vice intended for light to medium duty. The price point is very good. You'd have to work hard to damage this vice. Very well designed, should last a lifetime. Unlike some reviewers who may have been expecting a Manfrotto or Arca Swiss level ball joint, I had no difficulty with the fit and finish of any of the moving parts. A little added lube and its all good. I favored this vice over it's slightly cheaper no-brand clones with the thought that there may be better QC on the Stanley name, although they probably all come out of the same factory. If you need to do a lot of hammering, pipe fitting and power tool work, get a bigger vice. If you need a compact, highly positionable, solid vice for small work, this is the item.

Using this to make roughs from hard wood squares with a chisel for next step carving. Pro 1. It is compact 2. It grips enough to hold 2x2 and work on it with a sharp chisel. 3. Very comfortable with essentially being able to hold wood at any angle. 4. Decent price 5. Rubber pads are quite noice. Con: 1. There are obvious weak points which is the screw that immobilizes the ball bearing. This is the weakest point of system you have to tighten it really hard, and it makes me feel the threads of bolt will strip. The other weak point is the screw that holds the vise against the table - the cap on the screw is tiny and connection flimsy. I wish it was 3 times larger. So far I am concerned about these two points - lets see. 2. The vise grips wabble on the guide rods when free, when the grip is tightened nothing wabbles.

I have been looking for a small vice to keep on my tech desk for small repairs. I often need an extra pair of hands and this fits the bill. I bought it because it was cast aluminum and just the right size. Many similar small vises are poorly made and don't hold well. This vise stays put when you tighten down to your work area, yet is easy to remove and store when not needed. This unit has plastic jaw inserts and they hold extremely well. It is not intended for heavy duty use, so don't expect to clamp down a muffler and try to break a rusted 1/2" bolt. For those needs I have a 5 inch bench vise I can bend and beat on! At first the screw mechanism felt a little tight, but it has loosen nicely. I have made two wooden jaw inserts (just "L" shapes out of hardwood) for when I need to solder items -- easy to make and perform perfectly. The multi-angle adjustment works well and is very handy. All in all this is a great little vise and I would recommend it to anyone looking for a light duty vise they can adjust to any angle. Great design.

This vice hits way above its weight class. Very well made and quality is great. I have used it multiple times already and it has worked great every time.

This is NOT a heavy duty vise, but it isn't a flimsy piece of crap either. I have a friend who is an ABS MasterSmith knifemaker, and he has been using this model for almost 10 years, and highly recommended it to me. It is readily apparent that parts of this could be broken by overtorque. This unit cannot be recommended as a sole vise in a shop needing hammering, and massive clamping action. The distance between vise jaws when fully opened is about 2.75 inches. This unit would be excellent for laying up glued layers of materials, holding things in place and delivering moderate clamping pressure. It is lightweight, easily transported and with the swivel ball joining the two bodies, very handy. If you take these things into consideration, it should last for a long time and give good service.

Many have stated that this is not a heavy duty vise, very true. It is not designed as a heavy duty bench vise, rather it is a very versatile, light weight tool. I accessed Amazon today to look at purchasing a second vise, not because anything had gone wrong with the original I purchased two years ago, but to have an extra one around the house and work bench since it is so handy. For example, today I used it to repair a USB connector that was bent. I put two USB connectors in side by side and straightened the one with using the second one as a reference. I was able to easily position the vise at a very comfortable angle, and quickly accomplish the repair. That is a single, small example. Fine work, minor repairs, light sanding, soldering, electrical connections, grinding and so forth are easily accomplished. The best feature is you can adjust three axes of motion to optimize your work. Not only does this help with reach, but lighting, and work height. It is also and excellent tool for handicrafts and the hobbyist. Highly recommnded

This is a great light duty vice that works well for my guitar builds. It holds everything where I want it to be held and keeps things firmly in place. My only gripe is that I can't mount the base of this vice flat to the bench, but I'm not going to knock the rating for this as it's just a personal preference. This vice clamps to the side of my bench firmly and doesn't slip at all. The rubber jaw grips are a nice touch. Yeah, it's simply not designed for the high torque jobs - that's what the big wiltons are for. If you have hands made of ham and clamp something in this and apply a huge breaker bar to the job, then of course you're going to break it. I don't plan on being this daft and fully expect this little vice to last a long time.

I picked up this Stanley vise expecting a solid, shop-ready tool, but the overall finish was disappointing. Out of the box, there were oil stains on surfaces. I understand light oil is used for protection, but this felt excessive and poorly cleaned. The paint job is also uneven with thin spots, and visible scratches underneath, suggesting rushed finishing or rough handling. There are also micro-abrasions across much of the metal and hardware.They’re not deep, but they’re noticeable enough to make the vise feel less “new” than it should—almost like it’s been lightly used or second hand. It may function fine, but in terms of appearance and quality control, it falls short. For a brand like Stanley, I expected better attention to detail

青いやつの幅ギリギリですが、期待通りでした！装着の際は、ネジが抜けて地面に落としたりしないように注意してください。自分は落としてフローリングへこみました。

Me encanta! Este producto es genial. Cumple con mis expectativas!

construido en acero, muy, muy útil. Viene con unas mordazas removibles de plástico para sujetar algo delicado, si de va a aplicar calor o sujetar algo acerado que requiera fuete apriete, será mejor retirarlas, es fácil de hacer. Lo sujetado se puede posesionar en infinitas posiciones, no he visto otro tan bien construido y practico, eso si, este deberá de ser tu segunda prensa, porque para los trabajos pesados, la tradicional es insustituible por su robustez, esta no lo es tanto así, particularmente por la forma de sujetarse a la mesa, asunto que no ofrece la misma capacidad de anclaje y si le aplicas demasiada fuerza es posible desmontarla sin desearlo de la mesa.

When I bought it I was worried that it would slip at the ball joint if you pulled hard or not. I was surprised how sturdy it was for the size of it. I used to have a large vise permanently mounted that took up space on the work bench. This is a removable vice so when you are finished with it you can put it away until the next use. Very happy with the purchase. Would even buy a second one.

This little guy is perfect for all your small and precise work allowing access to your project from any angle