2aHawaii
Tools and Uses => Firearms and Accessories => Topic started by: finalchecker on July 24, 2022, 06:08:34 PM
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Sorry if this has been posted before, I am looking to improve my gun cleaning equipment and would appreciate knowing what peeps are using for a vice/holder setup. Mahalo
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What kind(s) of guns you needing to maintain. I have a vice, but don’t use it for regular maintenance.
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I have revolvers, auto's, and long guns. Right now I would like to get something for the pistola's so I don't have to use both hands. I can clamp the guns in my shop vice with plastic inserts but it isn't very convenient to use. Something I can use on the bench would be best. Mahalo
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I bought a Tipton's gun vice long ago when it was on sale. The thing's really expensive for something made of plastic and rubber, but it does have a lot of adjustability.
I use it mainly for cleaning long guns and holding rifles steady to install an optic. For working on my AR rifles, I also have a magwell block, a reaction rod, an aluminum block that locks to an upper via the takedown pins and some silicon blocks to keep the vice jaws from marring the workpiece -- all which require a bench vice to hold them steady.
The Tipton's Best Gun Vice can be a little finicky, such as the clamping not having a very strong grip which lets the firearm move. Locking it down tight isn't always possible because of plastic parts.
If I were in the market, I'd be looking at something that doubles as a shooting rest for long guns and handguns, like below. Some of them come with built-in bubble levels -- important options if you're mounting and zeroing a scope and don't want to carry tools (level) around.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=55rqucOaQXA
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IRWIN Tools Record Light Duty Workshop Vise, 4.5-Inch (4935507) https://a.co/d/4btNgST
I have this one. I have plastic inserts for the jaws for when I work on stuff like pistol slides.
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Flapp_Jackson and drck1000, thanks for the ideas. I have an old Lohman sight vice but don't want to use it for solvents and such. Maybe an adaptation of a smaller bench vise would be the ticket. Thanks for your input.
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I have a dedicated plastic vice from Amazon. My metal vice is for use when I need to tprque something down.
My plastic vice is almost as similar to the dremel brand plastic vice. Where no torque is needed. Also use it when putting scopes on. Actually both vices I do it with.
Also have a mtm box/ shooting rest.
I took an old g19 mag that went to shit, took the spring and follower and epoxied a piece of aluminum I had lying around. So essentially it looked like a popsicle. The aluminum rod protruded below the bottom of the mag.. So that aluminum gets clamped in the vice and the bottom of the pistol mag rests on top of the vice. Good for working on it too.
Key to cleaning.. Is to prep everything first . so if I was cleaning a g19..
Pistol in popsicle mag in vice. And then I'll get everything ready.. Rod with jag, few patches, few paper towels that are ripped into bout a square inch, oil bottles ready, tooth brush/ gun brush, grease with toothpick ready.. Etc.
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For shooting rests, I have a MTM Site-in-Clean.
If I had a dedicated room for gun stuff, I'd have a rifle clamp/vise like folks like Eric Cortina and F-Class John have. Like one of the posters above, I use the rest for cleaning, mostly for rifles when the solvents are working. I also use for general gun maintenance, like scope mounting and leveling. Not the best or most stable, but I bought it when I first got started in rifles and it works fine.
https://www.amazon.com/MTM-SNCR-30-Site-in-Clean-Rest-Red/dp/B000PW5AT4
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One thing to consider when shopping for a long gun vise is whether it will fit an AR.
When I was looking, I only had an AR-15 and a shotgun. I made sure the vise was able to work on the AR platform.
The pistol grip is the main issue. If the vise doesn't raise the rifle high enough, the grip will be in the way. If you're using the vise for a shooting rest, too, the same issue applies.
If you're mounting scopes with it, the front and rear elevations have to adjust enough to get the firearm level butt-to-muzzle. Once you have the firearm level front-to-back and left-to right, it need to have enough clamping to keep it there while you adjust the mounts and scope. A canted reticle relative to the rifle isn't too big a deal if it's small, but most would rather strive for better than "close enough for government work."