Drill press vice size
Updated: 2026-10-21
You are about to buy a vice from a title that says 100 mm. This drill press vice size guide treats that number as a claim to check, not a gap you can put a part through. Jaw width is the length of the jaw face. Jaw opening is how far those faces part. Slot centres decide whether the vice even meets the table. The twelve amazon.co.uk prices sit on the [machine vice comparison](/hub/workshop/machine-vice). Products Compared used those listings, Chester's width-and-opening table and HSE's HSG129, not a lab, on 20 October 2026. A qualifying purchase can earn a commission at no extra cost to you.
You are about to buy a vice from a title that says 100 mm. This drill press vice size guide treats that number as a claim to check, not a gap you can put a part through. Jaw width is the length of the jaw face.
You are about to buy a vice from a title that says 100 mm. This drill press vice size guide treats that number as a claim to check, not a gap you can put a part through. Jaw width is the length of the jaw face. Jaw opening is how far those faces part. Slot centres decide whether the vice even meets the table. The twelve amazon.co.uk prices sit on the machine vice comparison. Products Compared used those listings, Chester's width-and-opening table and HSE's HSG129, not a lab, on 20 October 2026. A qualifying purchase can earn a commission at no extra cost to you.
Our top picks
| Badge | Product | Jaw width | Opening | Slots | Note | Price | Offer |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Best overall |  Faithfull Faithfull FAIVDP75 | 75 mm | 70 mm | Elongated, centres unlisted | 8.1 | about £46.99 | View offer |
| Alternative |  Wolfcraft Wolfcraft 80 mm quick-adjust vice | 80 mm | 80 mm | Slotted base | 7.5 | about £24.65 | View offer |
| Best value |  KATSU Tools KATSU 100 mm drill press vice | 100 mm | 110 mm | 13 mm slots | 7.4 | about £15.99 | View offer |
On this page
Width is not the opening
A 100 mm name is not a 100 mm gap unless the listing prints both. Faithfull FAIVDP75 prints 75 mm jaw width and 70 mm opening, at about £46.99. A 72 mm flat bar does not go in. KATSU's 100 mm listing prints a 100 mm jaw and a 110 mm opening at about £15.99. Chester's trade table shows the same split: 75/70, 100/90, 125/110, 150/130. Cromwell sells a Senator 100 mm workshop vice with a 90 mm opening. The title follows the jaw.
Measure the thickest part, not the longest. A 90 mm bracket needs the opening. A long thin plate can sit in a 70 mm gap. If the listing gives only one millimetre figure, you do not yet know whether the part fits.
The vice has to meet the table
Elongated slots help only if they overlap the table slots. There is no single UK pitch. Brochures often omit the centres, as a Screwfix Community thread showed for a Bosch PBD 40, so measure slot width and the distance between centres on the table, then on the vice. Those numbers are usually missing while the vice is still in a box.
KATSU's 100 mm page is the only listing here that prints a slot width: 13 mm. Silverline and Faithfull mention elongated slots and do not print centres. If the slots miss, the next move is a sub-plate or another vice, on how to mount a drill press vice. Do not drill extra holes through a thin aluminium table, and do not assume T-nuts are in the box. HSG129 tells users of a small bench drill to clamp the vice to the table.
Weight and type change the job
A cast drill vice here is a low screw body with a slotted base, for downward holes in flat bar. KATSU 65 mm is about £11.99 and 1.8 kg, with no printed opening. Silverline is 2.08 kg at about £15.50. KATSU 150 mm is 4.12 kg at about £21.99, still without a printed opening. Irwin 226340 lists 454 g beside a 4 inch iron vice. Treat that weight as a bad field.
Wolfcraft Simplex 60 is 490 g, with an opening up to 65 mm, at about £12.99. It is a stand accessory, not a 3 kg casting. The tilting 75 mm listing weighs 5.68 kg and costs about £46.99, the same shelf as Faithfull, and the opening is not printed. Buy the tilt only if you already drill at an angle. Greensen's title says coordinates drilling table, while the bullets describe a vice.
What to ignore in the stars
Stars come last. Greensen's 4.6 from 12 is four UK bodies, not a market test. Irwin's 4.6 from 4,419 is the largest line in the set, and the raw file does not give a matching pile of UK texts about this casting. Silverline's 4.2 from 1,748 is an independent count, and it is also the slot-mismatch story.
Do not average those lines, and do not treat a tilting 4.6 as Faithfull's 4.6 from 207. The Faithfull sample talks about a drill vice, not a mill. A best-seller badge on amazon.co.uk is a live rank, not a fit with your stand. Shortlist only after width, opening, slots and type are written down. This page does not crown a winner.
Common questions
Is a 100 mm vice a 100 mm gap?
No. Jaw width is the length of the jaw. Jaw opening is the gap. Faithfull prints 75 mm and 70 mm. KATSU B07NL98RYT prints 100 mm and 110 mm. Chester's trade table shows the same split on another range. If the listing gives only one millimetre figure, you still do not know whether your thickest part will go in.
What size suits a small bench drill?
A 75 mm class vice is the usual starting point for a small bench drill, and 100 mm is the usual home-workshop step. That is a shopper's rule of thumb, not a standard. Measure the part and the table slots. A 200 g mini clamp or a 34 mm Micromot opening is a different job, even if the title still says machine vice.
Do mounting slots follow a UK standard?
They do not. There is no single pitch. Silverline buyers report a miss on a Scheppach DP60, and a Wolfcraft 3423000 review reports a fit on that stand. Measure slot width and centres on the table, then on the vice. KATSU's 100 mm page is the only listing here that prints a 13 mm slot width.
Is a 200 g vice enough for a full-size pillar drill?
No. Hozzwhoo is 200 g and ranked in Bench Clamps. Reviewers use it for models and a mini bench drill. HSG129 tells users of a small bench drill to clamp the vice to the table. A sub-500 g body is a light hold, not the 2–5 kg cast class in this set.
Should I buy the tilting vice as my only vice?
Only if you already drill at an angle and you accept an unstated opening. The 75 mm tilting listing costs about £46.99, the same as Faithfull, weighs 5.68 kg, and has 28 reviews. The extra joint can sit out of square. For ordinary downward holes, a fixed cast vice is the simpler buy.
Why do three KATSU sizes show the same star count?
B07NL98RYT, B07NLB86KM and B07KT9KPZM share one review text and one 4.3 from 643. Count that as one sample, not a market test of each size. Do not treat it as three separate verdicts when you compare 65 mm, 100 mm and 150 mm.
When is a mini vice the right buy?
When the drill is a mini bench drill or a Micromot stand and the part is small. Hozzwhoo prints 0–55 mm. Proxxon's manufacturer page prints 50 mm and 34 mm. Neither listing is the first vice for a household pillar drill that takes 4 mm bits in flat bar.
Related pages
Sources
Public UK sources and the amazon.co.uk listings compared on this page. Updated October 2026.
- HSE: HSG129 Health and safety in engineering workshops (retrieved October 2026)
- HSE: PUWER overview (retrieved October 2026)
- BSI: BS EN 12717:2001+A1:2009 Safety of machine tools, drilling machines (retrieved October 2026)
- Protool: How to choose machine vices (retrieved October 2026)
- Pauli Mot: Types of machine vice (retrieved October 2026)
- Cromwell: Senator 100 mm workshop drill press vice (retrieved October 2026)
- Proxxon: Micromot machine vice MS 4 (retrieved October 2026)
- Bromley Council: Consumer rights for goods (retrieved October 2026)