What is the ultimate drill press vise ?

Re posting as someone posted the same post twice and by accident I deleted the entire thread in the process of deleting one of his duplicate posts ! (don't think I have ever done that before but there was some distraction going on at the time that would take quite a bit of explaining, so I won't)

Anyway to return to the story, the Heinrich 6SV ( Heinrich Company - Grip-Master Vises - Racine, Wisconsin ) the best cam lock type far as I knew but there was another on the tip of my tongue I could not remember but it finally came to me....LASSY http://www.lassytools.com/index.html

Even though they have been around since 1939, I don't recall ever seeing a Lassy in real life.... So I call them up and find out the owner passed away just a month ago ! But the son is supposedly taking the reins and will call me back after lunch.

In the meantime, I'd still be curious about any cam lock type drill press vises of high quality that perhaps are obscure in the US but not so much in Europe or Japan.

I took a look at their website and that Slide-Lox safety vise is pretty impressive. Thanks for pointing them out.

Scottl said:

I took a look at their website and that Slide-Lox safety vise is pretty impressive.

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Yeah....and they've been around "forever"....and yet in all the auctions and plants I've been into over the decades I don't recall ever seeing any Lassy stuff anywhere !! So I'm wondering who the heck have they been selling to all this time ?

(not to mention the fact that CNC has made the "slide lox" system a bit of an obsolete concept for most companies. Still, it's the "Rapid Lox" vise that interests me... looks pretty nice in the photos..)

Found them...
E-935／UNI LEVER ACTION VISES 製品詳細（仕様価格）

as well as the standard pump handle type:
E-925／QUICK ACTION DRILL PRESS VISES 製品詳細（仕様価格）

...and they are affiliated with this "Swiss" company !:
Gressel Products WORKSHOP EQUIPMENT ecopos | GRESSEL

afai'c, the best 'drillpress' vise for me is an inexpensive 4 or 6 inch kurt-type import . there's so much mass there
that you'd seldom need to clamp the thing to the table , but could find its way if it has to , countersinking or reaming.

and what type of drill press..... Carlton 6'x19" , Servo 20k micro, chinese enco POS ?

the moore #2 jig bore came with a beautiful vise (in the mahogany desk) .

tnmgcarbide said:

afai'c, the best 'drillpress' vise for me is an inexpensive 4 or 6 inch kurt-type import . there's so much mass there
that you'd seldom need to clamp the thing to the table , but could find its way if it has to , countersinking or reaming.

and what type of drill press..... Carlton 6'x19" , Servo 20k micro, chinese enco POS ?

the moore #2 jig bore came with a beautiful vise (in the mahogany desk) .

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The topic is supposed to concern the best drill press vise, not the worst. Suspect if you ever tried a Heinrich 8SV you'd see the light as there you'd have the mass and the speed, sorely lacking on the mill vise.

digger doug said:

Found them...
E-935／UNI LEVER ACTION VISES 製品詳細（仕様価格）

as well as the standard pump handle type:
E-925／QUICK ACTION DRILL PRESS VISES 製品詳細（仕様価格）

...and they are affiliated with this "Swiss" company !:
Gressel Products WORKSHOP EQUIPMENT ecopos | GRESSEL

Click to expand...

Interesting.....guess the advantage of the Eron over a Heinrich is the one hand action. Might could get the Gressel via Rotec here but they appear to be all screw type rather than cam lock.

Spoke with Lassy finally, and they are sounding good so far....waiting on photos..

Milacron said:

Yeah....and they've been around "forever"....and yet in all the auctions and plants I've been into over the decades I don't recall ever seeing any Lassy stuff anywhere !!

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Do you mean thier DP vises, or do you mean ANy Lassy stuff? Just picked this up at the last one;

cyanidekid said:

Do you mean thier DP vises, or do you mean ANy Lassy stuff? Just picked this up at the last one;

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I mean the vises. According to owner their hand tappers are the most popular items they have made in the past. I've probably seen plenty of those but didn't pay them any attention.

Just ordered a 4BR vise...a little more expensive than Heinrich, but appears to be better as the cam operated jaw slide rod has threads and therefore does not rely on friction only for holding power. Plus it will accept outside jaws if one needs more capacity.

Ahh, yes, not common the vises. I will have to look into that, thanks!

Its not a cam style vise, nor it it particularly rare, but I prefer the Cardinal Speed-Vise on my drill press. It is very versatile, fast, and works excellent. They are a tad expensive new, but are pretty affordable used. I also like how the base plate is replaceable. If used by Neanderthals in a past life, just cut a new plate of CRS and you're off and running with no marks of shame.

Cardinal Speed Vise Quick Action Design - Penn Tool Co., Inc

Arc-On said:

Its not a cam style vise, nor it it particularly rare, but I prefer the Cardinal Speed-Vise on my drill press. It is very versatile, fast, and works excellent. They are a tad expensive new, but are pretty affordable used. I also like how the base plate is replaceable. If used by Neanderthals in a past life, just cut a new plate of CRS and you're off and running with no marks of shame.

Cardinal Speed Vise Quick Action Design - Penn Tool Co., Inc

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Looks like an ok concept, but am a bit mystified why you would like it better than the Lassy...prices are similar for new per size, used Cardinal's on eBay are surprisingly expensive...even ugly ones with no step jaws are close to new price.....I can see the possibility of a Cardinal turning up at live auction dirt cheap however....where a Lassy would be rare as hen's teeth and a Heinrich might be worn in the friction cam department.

But new, the Lassy looks like the cat's meow... I'll find out next week anyway.

I have a Heinrich and the Cardinal. The Cardinal is bigger, so I use it for some things. The Heinrich is awesome. Plus, mine has a flat so it can be flipped up on its side.

The only gripe I have about the Heinrich is that you can't really use soft jaws with it. I've run jobs before where there is an odd hole or some operation I can run in the drill press, so I cut some soft jaws for the Cardinal vise and perform the operation in the drill press.

ewlsey said:

The only gripe I have about the Heinrich is that you can't really use soft jaws with it.

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Not mentioned on their website, but the Lassy will accept soft jaws....they even sell soft jaw blanks for each vise model.... plus other jaws, like V style.

Why they fail to mention these tidbits on their website is beyond me, but the emailed brochure they send is cram full of interesting details like that, complete with prices.

I'm not positive of the make of this one but it has 6SV cast into the base. It could be one of the vises made in Wisconsin you mentioned.

It is probably older then I am and it has been beat to death but still does a decent job regardless of its appearance. I'd say it's seen it's better days but new a good quality vise.

This style vise I think is pretty handy on a drill press but that'd be the only machine I'd use it on. My 2 cents...

Brent

yardbird said:

I'm not positive of the make of this one but it has 6SV cast into the base. It could be one of the vises made in Wisconsin you mentioned.

It is probably older then I am and it has been beat to death but still does a decent job regardless of its appearance. I'd say it's seen it's better days but new a good quality vise.

This style vise I think is pretty handy on a drill press but that'd be the only machine I'd use it on. My 2 cents...

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Yeah that seems to be an old Heinrich 6 inch Grip Master.... nice clamp handle....NOT Yes, meant for drilling and tapping only....even a new one would not do for milling....although Lassy makes a heavy duty version that is good for milling and/or multiple part holding fixtures.

I have a beat up slide lock vise that I use on my welding table... indespensible when tig welding small parts or awkward stuff that wants to roll. It does get hefted over to the drill press now and then.

Milacron said:

nice clamp handle....NOT

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Hope I didn't give the impression there wasn't any room for improvements.

The black pull back ball is gone also.

Brent

Didja all notice on the Lassy website, the video....Note the "preloaded"
handles to put multiple parts in the vice in one go.
When in the vice, they appear to hang down below.

With (2) handles as shown, the operator is unloading and reloading with fresh
parts as the machine is running.

I've answered this before. The short answer is: Heinrich 13-WH or Wahlstrom Float Lock or the Lassy mentioned above. I use the Heinrich 13-WH in the main shop and also at home. The problem with the other Heinrich Gripmasters like the ones posted earlier in the thread is that they have nothing to prevent them from spinning. The 13-WH model prevents spinning with a bar that rests against the column or table attachment.

On a drill press, there are 2 workholding challenges:

1. Work wants to twist.
2. Work wants to climb the helical flutes of the bit, especially when the drill emerges through the bottom of a through hole

1. Heinrich Safety Drill Vise. This is what I use in my home shop and also in the machine shop. Lists for around $270 when not on sale at MSC. The safety bar rests either against the column or in the holder that bolts to your table. Typical workflow == mark your hole, center punch it, clamp it in the vise jaws and move the vise around, use a 1/8" drill bit to center the hole under the chuck, then lock the vise to the table and drill. This is fast, safe, and accurate, and the vise accommodates work up to around 12" and also round shapes.


2. Wahlstrom Float Lock Drill Press Vise. Lists somewhere in the vicinity of $200 new from MSC when not on sale -- a bit less for the 9" capacity and a bit more for the 12" capacity. People prefer the quick release version. You can buy an optional clamp bracket that you can use to mount the vise WITHOUT drilling a mounting hole in your table.

3. Lassy tools drill safety vise. I haven't used one of these, and they cost more than the other options. They look really nice, though, and I've heard good things from machinist friends.

Lots of people also like the Heinrich gripmaster cam-locks. Other companies make similar ones, too (dayton, wilton, etc...quality varies...but heinrich's are still excellent). I started out with a pair of the monster 8" ones, which were nice. However, I sometimes drill big holes, and I'd still worry about one starting to spin. If you have one of these vises, you can make it a lot safer by bolting on a bar to rest on the column and prevent spinning (similar to the first two vises I listed).