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Bench vice buying guide: what to check before the stars

Updated: October 2026

You have a small shed bench, or a kitchen table you must not drill, and the listings all say swivel or heavy duty. A bench vice buying guide for this set starts with the mount and the listed kilograms, because a high star line can belong to a 1.5 kg hobby clamp. You need a table screw, a bolt-down base, or a ball joint, and the jaw rather than the opening. The [Swivel vice](/hub/workshop/swivel-vice) comparison holds the twelve amazon.co.uk listings. This checklist does not name a top pick. Figures are the UK cards from 16 October 2026. A purchase through our links may earn a commission at no extra cost to you.

You have a small shed bench, or a kitchen table you must not drill, and the listings all say swivel or heavy duty.

Our top picks

Stanley Stanley MaxSteel multi-angle vice

Best overall

Stanley Stanley MaxSteel multi-angle vice
8.6/10about £22.31
View offer
Stanley Stanley MaxSteel 4 inch light-duty vice

Best value

Stanley Stanley MaxSteel 4 inch light-duty vice
8.0/10about £29.95
View offer
TEENO TEENO 70 mm table vice

Alternative

TEENO TEENO 70 mm table vice
6.8/10about £18.99
View offer
On this page
  1. 1.Start with the job, not the star rating
  2. 2.Jaw width is not the opening
  3. 3.Weigh the listing against a workshop vice
  4. 4.Lock, pads, and anvil
  5. 5.A thin review count is not a test

Start with the job, not the star rating

The first split is where the vice lives. A clamp-on here sits around 1.7–1.9 kg and comes off the table when you finish. A bolt-down listing is the one you drill for, and the cards that look like small bench vices cluster around 5 kg. The third shape is a screw clamp with a ball joint, listed at 1.5 kg, which tilts the work instead of turning on a flat base. Pack-away work belongs with the clamp and the ball joint. Filing on a bench you own belongs with the bolt-down. Hammering or a long plank sits outside this set. When the only question left is whether you may drill, use the clamp on vice vs bench vice page.

Jaw width is not the opening

Jaw width is the width of the face that grips. Opening is how far those faces move apart. A title in inches is only a rough translation: 4 inch is about 100 mm, 5 inch about 125 mm, and 6 inch about 150 mm. The opening can be smaller than that title. Do not treat 4 inch as a guarantee of what will fit. One clamp-on card titles 60 mm while buyers who expected about 80 mm reported openings nearer 60–72 mm.
Stanley Stanley MaxSteel multi-angle vice

Testsieger

Stanley Stanley MaxSteel multi-angle vice
8.6/10about £22.31
View offer

Weigh the listing against a workshop vice

Listed weight is the quickest correction to a heavy-duty title. Both the 5 inch and the 6 inch HYCHIKA cards state 5 kg. The Stanley 4 inch card states 5.04 kg, and the title already says light-duty. A 6 inch word on the same kilogram as a 5 inch cousin is not a step up in mass. A home listing at about 5 kg can be a light bench vice. It is not trade iron. If a manufacturer page prints a force the amazon card does not, leave that number off the card.

Lock, pads, and anvil

UK reviews on several clamps and on the light bolt-down vices say the body creeps unless the lock is properly tight. Tight means the lock the maker intended, not a pipe slipped over the handle. Several clamp-on packs claim rubber covers, and reviewers report covers that never seat. For aluminium, copper, or paint, cut a liner from scrap. An anvil on these cards is a small flat, not a stake. One reviewer cracked an anvil striking a bearing. If your job is riveting, leave this comparison.

A thin review count is not a test

Read the count beside the stars. A 5.0 from one review, the Buyfun card at £45.99, and a 5.0 from five, the VIDETOL card, are not a workshop result. If a casting cracks in ordinary first use, stop and do not weld it. Use the retailer's returns route. The best swivel vice page names the top pick and the best value, each with the reason to skip it. Jaw overhang and bolts are on how to fit a bench vice.

Common questions

Does a swivel base make the vice weaker?
It gives you more positions and a less stiff joint than a fixed base, which is Wonkee Donkee's point. That is reasonable for light work if the lock holds. UK reviews in this set often say the body creeps when the lock is only nipped up. It is the wrong choice when you already wanted a fixed engineer's vice.
What jaw width do I need?
Match the jaw to the piece you hold, not to the largest inch size on the page. For bolts, brackets, and short offcuts, a stated jaw around 70–100 mm is the home range here, if the opening is at least as wide as the work. A 6 inch title on a 5 kg card is not a trade 150 mm vice. A wide plank needs a woodworking vice, which is a different tool.
Is jaw width the same as opening?
No. Jaw width is the gripping face. Opening is the gap. Stanley's UK page for the 1-83-065 prints a 103 mm jaw and a 100 mm opening, while the amazon.co.uk card says 100 mm. Four inch is about 100 mm, as a rough guide only. If the card never states an opening, you do not yet know what will fit.
Why does listed weight matter if the title says heavy duty?
The title is advertising and the kilogram is the seller's measurement. Both HYCHIKA cards here, sold as 5 inch and 6 inch, state 5 kg. Excel's catalogue all-steel swivel vices are listed at 7.5 kg, 11 kg, and 14.5 kg for 100 mm, 125 mm, and 150 mm. A heavy-duty line on a 5 kg casting does not move it into that class.
What if it snaps on the first weekend?
Stop using it. Do not weld the casting and do not fit a longer pipe to the handle. Section 9 of the Consumer Rights Act 2015 is the satisfactory-quality rule, and a one-month seller line does not cancel statutory routes. This is not legal advice. Photograph the fault, keep the listing text, and take it back through the seller.

Related pages

Swivel vice

Best swivel vice UK: top pick, then the best value

Clamp on vice vs bench vice: which mount to choose

How to fit a bench vice: holes, bolts and the lock

Vice for light metalwork: filing and sawing at home

Sources

Public UK sources used for this comparison. Listing prices, stars, and review counts are the amazon.co.uk lines from 16 October 2026.

  1. HSE — PUWER overview (retrieved 16 October 2026)
  2. The Provision and Use of Work Equipment Regulations 1998 (retrieved 16 October 2026)
  3. HSE — Safe use of work equipment (L22) (retrieved 16 October 2026)
  4. Consumer Rights Act 2015, section 9 (retrieved 16 October 2026)
  5. HSE — using the right type of PPE (retrieved 16 October 2026)
  6. Stanley UK — MaxSteel multi-angle vice 1-83-069 (retrieved 16 October 2026)
  7. Stanley UK — MaxSteel 115 mm light-duty bench vice 1-83-065 (retrieved 16 October 2026)
  8. Excel Machine Tools — all-steel bench vice weights (retrieved 16 October 2026)