A good quality bench vise can last generations. Unfortunately, these days many companies are choosing to move manufacturing overseas in order to save money and increase production. Not only is this bad for the environment, but it can also have a negative impact on product quality. In this article, I’ll be looking at American made bench vises.
Before getting into the article, some readers may feel like there are a couple of companies missing from this list. Well, in order to make it onto the list below, the company needs to manufacture bench vises for regular consumer use. There are a couple of American bench vise companies out there that strictly produce bench vises for major industrial use and therefore didn’t qualify for this list.
Are There Any USA Made Bench Vises? (The Short Answer)
Some readers may be surprised to find out there are actually a couple of companies that manufacture bench vises in the USA. They are Benchcrafted and Milwaukee Tool & Equipment Company.
American Made Bench Vises (Here’s What I Found)
Now that we know which companies manufacture bench vises in the USA, let’s take a look at each one in a little more detail.
Benchcrafted (Sort of)
Benchcrafted isn’t your typical bench vise manufacturer. It manufactures specialty wood-based vises. These vises are built out of wood but they use strong metals like cast iron for the handles and inner workings of the vise.
This entry might be cheating a little bit as these vises are called glide leg vises. They go down the leg of a workbench and sit neatly on the side of your bench. These vises combine aesthetics with practicality to create the perfect tool for amateurs and professionals alike.
The company is located in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. This is also where it manufactures its products.
Milwaukee Tool & Equipment Company
This one is a little confusing. There are seemingly two companies named Milwaukee Tool & Equipment. I believe that they are two different companies, although I’m not 100% sure. For the sake of this entry, I’ll be talking about the company linked here.
The website for this company is fairly old and it doesn’t have all that much information on it. That said, it manufactures all of its products at its manufacturing facility in Milwaukee. It manufactures pipe wrenches, c-clamps, blacksmith tools, screw Jacks & braces, and of course, bench vises.
This is a seemingly small business and it doesn’t look like there is any way to order its products online. Instead, it looks like you have to contact them and order directly through them. I’ll leave its company phone number below for those wanting to get in touch.
As for its bench vises, Milwaukee Tool & Equipment Company has quite a lot to choose from. As mentioned above, its website is quite old, but it is easy to find its vise products. Here’s a link to the company’s homepage, vises are the very first thing you’ll see.
Honorable Mention
I came across one brand that does seem to produce some of its products in the US. However, things aren’t particularly clear regarding its manufacturing locations. Here’s what I found.
Wilton
Most of Wilton’s products seem to be made overseas. That said, at the time of writing this article, a couple of Wilton’s bench vises are still possibly made in the USA, but I couldn’t definitively prove this so it gets an honorable mention.
The company dates back to 1941 when Czech immigrant Hugh W. Vogl founded his own vise manufacturing company. Wilton quickly grew to become the company that it is today. Its vises are sold to happy customers all around the world. Its vises are renowned for their quality, in fact, a Wilton bench vise has the potential to last for several generations.
While Wilton does have a couple of manufacturing facilities in the US, and its headquarters is also located in the US, I found numerous unhappy reviews from customers who purchased Wilton products only to find out that their product was made in Taiwan.
This wasn’t just on one product either, I found the same type of reviews across a large range of Wilton’s products. Unfortunately, I couldn’t find out which of its bench vises are made in the US. But from the information I could find, there doesn’t seem to be that many American-made Wilton bench vises out there.
For situations like this, it’s always best to reach out to the company directly and ask which of its models are made in the US. Here are the contact details for Wilton Tools.
Bench Vises that Are Commonly Mistaken as Being Made in America
I came across a company that used to produce its vises in the USA. However, over the last few years, the company has moved its production overseas. Here’s what I found.
Yost Vises
Yost Vises has been going strong since 1908. For the majority of its history, Yost Vises manufactured all of its products in the US. These days, while the company is still based in the US, Michigan to be exact, its manufacturing takes place in China and Taiwan.
Unfortunately, the company’s website doesn’t have much information regarding its manufacturing locations. This has created some confusion with some customers who have seemingly mistaken this Michigan-based company for an American manufacturer.
While there isn’t a whole heap of information regarding Yost Vises’ manufacturing locations on its website. Eagle-eyed potential customers may have noticed the made in China or Taiwan label in the additional information section on each product.
I also found out about Yost Vises manufacturing locations thanks to a combination of Amazon reviews and various posts by trusted news sites stating that the company has moved production overseas.
