Locking Pliers 2021 Test: Which Brand Wins?
In our 2021 test we compared 13 locking pliers options head to head. Malco Eagle Grip came out on top. See the measured results, the runner-up, the budget pick, and a link to the full test video.
Malco Eagle Grip
Price shown in test: $44
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Irwin Vise-Grip and Craftsman
Price shown in test: $14
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The quick take
The short version of why each pick lands where it does, built straight from the measured results.
“the malco did a terrific job and easily won this competition however the malco is very expensive at over 40 dollars so if you're looking for an affordable brand the irwin performed very well as did the craftsman”
Best in 3 of 8 measurements, including Grade Five Bolt Grip Test, Front Teeth Grip Test and High Carbon Steel Grip Test.
Best in 1 of 8 measurements, including Front Teeth Grip Test.
The measured results
Every number below is read straight from the test. Products are listed in the order they finished.
Jaw Width
- 1Pittsburgh0.44 in
- 2Tekton0.42 in
- 3Harden0.44 in
- 4Irwin Vise-Grip (original)0.47 in
widest of the brands tested up to that point
- 5Williams J.H. Williams0.42 in
- 6Crescent0.45 in
- 7Milwaukee0.5 in
widest of the brands tested up to that point
- 8Craftsman0.46 in
- 9Knipex0.46 in
same as Craftsman
- 10CH Hanson0.47 in
wider than average
- 11Grip-On0.41 in
narrowest of the brands tested up to that point
- 12Stanley Fat Max0.53 in
widest of any brand tested
- 13Malco Eagle Grip0.43 in
Weight
- 1Pittsburgh474 g
- 2Tekton443 g
- 3Harden449 g
- 4Irwin Vise-Grip (original)514 g
heaviest of the brands tested up to that point
- 5Williams J.H. Williams507 g
nearly as heavy as the Irwin
- 6Crescent504 g
slightly lighter than Williams
- 7Milwaukee528 g
heaviest of the brands tested up to that point
- 8Craftsman575 g
by far the heaviest of the brands tested up to that point
- 9Knipex568 g
nearly as heavy as Craftsman
- 10CH Hanson626 g
heaviest of the brands tested up to that point
- 11Grip-On630 g
heaviest of the brands tested up to that point
- 12Stanley Fat Max623 g
- 13Malco Eagle Grip538 g
heavier than average
Country Of Origin
- 1Pittsburgh
China
- 2Tekton
China
- 3Harden
China
- 4Irwin Vise-Grip (original)
China
- 5Williams J.H. Williams
China
- 6Crescent
China
- 7Milwaukee
Taiwan
- 8Craftsman
China
- 9Knipex
Germany
- 10CH Hanson
Taiwan
- 11Grip-On
Spain
- 12Stanley Fat Max
China
- 13Malco Eagle Grip
USA
Grade Five Bolt Grip Test
- 1Pittsburgh
adjustment screw could not handle the 120 in-lb target torque and slipped; set as much tension as possible before slipping, resulting in only 5 in-lbs of grip, described as not very good
- 2Tekton59 in-lbs
teeth not very sharp, bolt caused minor damage to the teeth
- 3Harden226 in-lbs
much better than Tekton; teeth cut into the bolt a little but were not very sharp, minor teeth damage
- 4Irwin Vise-Grip (original)594 in-lbs3rd
much better than previous brands, finished third overall in this test behind Malco (1053) and Stanley Fat Max (751); sharp teeth dug in well with much less damage than earlier brands
- 5Williams J.H. Williams552 in-lbs4th
nearly as well as the Irwin, fourth overall; teeth dug in well and held up really well
- 6Crescent324 in-lbs
better than the first three brands tested but well behind Irwin and Williams (both over 500 in-lbs); teeth not as sharp, couldn't gain a strong grip
- 7Milwaukee445 in-lbs
quite a bit better than Crescent but still behind Irwin; teeth held up really well
- 8Craftsman572 in-lbs2nd
moved into second place behind Irwin at that point; slightly more teeth damage than Irwin
- 9Knipex378 in-lbs5th
fifth place; teeth not very sharp and showed a little more wear than some other brands
- 10CH Hanson389 in-lbs
narrator notes it is 'probably my fault' this automatic self-adjusting design didn't perform better since there is no fair way to torque-test it like the others, teeth still in great shape
- 11Grip-On366 in-lbs
teeth sharp but uneven height side to side, small amount of teeth damage
- 12Stanley Fat Max751 in-lbs2nd
by far the best yet at that point (second overall behind Malco); teeth dug in well with some minor damage
- 13Malco Eagle Grip1053 in-lbs
by far the best of any brand tested, described as totally crushing the competition; most aggressive grip, small amount of teeth damage
Cutting Test
- 1Pittsburgh173 lbs
but the adjustment screw moved out of position under the load, only left a small dent in the nail rather than cutting through cleanly
- 2Tekton178 lbs
but the handle began to bend and the pliers gave up; cutting knife took quite a bit of damage
- 3Harden
no cutting knife, skipped
- 4Irwin Vise-Grip (original)140 lbs
by far the best (lowest force) yet at that point; cutting knife still looked as good as new
- 5Williams J.H. Williams120 lbs
best (lowest force) of all brands tested, came out on top of this test
- 6Crescent
no cutting knife, skipped
- 7Milwaukee147 lbs
small amount of damage to the cutting knife
- 8Craftsman136 lbs2nd
second place behind Williams; cutting knife still looked as good as new
- 9Knipex153 lbs
took a bit more pressure than average; cutting knife still in great shape
- 10CH Hanson
no cutting knife, skipped
- 11Grip-On
no cutting knife, skipped
- 12Stanley Fat Max
no cutting knife, skipped
- 13Malco Eagle Grip173 lbs
took more effort to cut than most other brands; cutting knife still looked as good as new
Front Teeth Grip Test
- 1Pittsburgh
not tested in this round per transcript
- 2Tekton21 in-lbs
lost grip on the bolt
- 3Harden50 in-lbs
moved into the lead over Tekton at that point
- 4Irwin Vise-Grip (original)134 in-lbs
moved into the lead, described as a terrific result for a budget-price tool
- 5Williams J.H. Williams99 in-lbs2nd
second place behind Irwin at that point
- 6Crescent102 in-lbs2nd
barely edged out Williams for second place at that point
- 7Milwaukee112 in-lbs
better than Crescent but not enough to take the lead from Irwin
- 8Craftsman155 in-lbs
best yet at that point, took the lead from Irwin
- 9Knipex107 in-lbs4th
fourth place behind Milwaukee
- 10CH Hanson195 in-lbs
narrator flags this as not a fair test since the C.H. Hanson uses a different jaw-pressure adjustment style
- 11Grip-On95 in-lbs
did not perform as well as some less expensive brands
- 12Stanley Fat Max111 in-lbs
per the in-body result (the closing recap sentence states 'stanley fat max 11 inch pounds', almost certainly a dropped trailing digit from 111; keeping both figures per the no-silent-correction rule)
- 13Malco Eagle Grip209 in-lbs
best of any brand tested, beat Craftsman by 54 in-lbs
High Carbon Steel Grip Test
- 1Pittsburgh
not tested in this round per transcript
- 2Tekton75 in-lbs
lost grip; struggled badly against an impact wrench for 5 seconds afterward, causing quite a bit of teeth damage
- 3Harden99 in-lbs
outperformed Tekton; teeth experienced quite a bit of damage
- 4Irwin Vise-Grip (original)167 in-lbs
moved into the lead over Harden; teeth held up really well
- 5Williams J.H. Williams144 in-lbs2nd
second place behind Irwin at that point; teeth held up less well than Irwin's
- 6Crescent166 in-lbs2nd
nearly as well as Irwin, second place; similar wear to Williams
- 7Milwaukee128 in-lbs
not enough to move into the lead; teeth held up really well
- 8Craftsman196 in-lbs
moved into the lead over Irwin; slightly more teeth damage than Irwin and Milwaukee
- 9Knipex149 in-lbs
nearly as good as Irwin, but teeth took quite a bit of damage
- 10CH Hanson137 in-lbs
again flagged as not an apples-to-apples comparison, teeth held up about the same as Craftsman
- 11Grip-On169 in-lbs
performed well but Craftsman held the lead; teeth experienced quite a bit of damage
- 12Stanley Fat Max199 in-lbs2nd
took the lead from Craftsman, finished a close second overall behind Malco (206); teeth held up about the same as Craftsman
- 13Malco Eagle Grip206 in-lbs
best of any brand tested, barely edging out Stanley Fat Max; teeth showed less wear than average
Unlock Force
- 1Pittsburgh
not tested in this round per transcript
- 2Tekton13 lbs
/ 5.7 kg
- 3Harden15 lbs
/ 7 kg
- 4Irwin Vise-Grip (original)14 lbs
/ 6.5 kg
- 5Williams J.H. Williams19 lbs
/ 8.5 kg
- 6Crescent19 lbs
/ 8.5 kg, identical to Williams
- 7Milwaukee12 lbs
/ 5.5 kg, easiest (best) to unlock of any brand tested
- 8Craftsman15 lbs
same as Harden, three pounds more than Milwaukee
- 9Knipex17 lbs
/ 7.5 kg
- 10CH Hanson17 lbs
/ 7.5 kg, same as Knipex
- 11Grip-On25 lbs
/ 11.5 kg, hardest to unlock of any brand tested
- 12Stanley Fat Max24 lbs
/ 10.75 kg
- 13Malco Eagle Grip13.7 lbs
/ 6.25 kg
All measurements (1 more)+
Failure Load
- 1Pittsburgh
not tested in this round per transcript
- 2Tekton349 in-lbs
adjustment screw bottomed out, handle bent pretty badly
- 3Harden252 in-lbs
failure point was the weld on the threaded part of the handle
- 4Irwin Vise-Grip (original)444 in-lbs
moved into the lead at that point; weld on the threaded portion of the handle broke
- 5Williams J.H. Williams352 in-lbs
weld on the threaded portion of the handle broke
- 6Crescent265 in-lbs
did not last nearly as long as Irwin or Williams; weld broke
- 7Milwaukee556 in-lbs
moved into the lead at that point; weld held but the end of the adjustment bolt came apart
- 8Craftsman466 in-lbs
barely edged out Irwin; weld broke and adjustment screw bottomed out
- 9Knipex186 in-lbs
lowest failure load of any brand in this round; adjustment screw experienced quite a bit of damage
- 10CH Hanson
not tested in this round per transcript
- 11Grip-On543 in-lbs
nearly as long as Milwaukee; head on the adjustment bolt twisted off
- 12Stanley Fat Max311 in-lbs
weld on the threaded part of the handle broke
- 13Malco Eagle Grip593 in-lbs
most durable of any brand tested; point of failure was the weld in the handle
How it was tested
- grade 5 bolt gripping strength (torque to slip point, in-lbs)
- cutting a 16 penny nail (force required to cut through, lbs)
- front teeth gripping strength re-test on a fresh bolt (torque to slip point, in-lbs)
- gripping strength on a high carbon steel half-inch socket extension (torque to slip point, in-lbs)
- force required to unlock the pliers (lbs / kg)
- failure load / durability test (torque until mechanism failure, in-lbs)
“the malco did a terrific job and easily won this competition however the malco is very expensive at over 40 dollars so if you're looking for an affordable brand the irwin performed very well as did the craftsman”
