Yost Vises ADI-4, 4 Inch 130,000 PSI Austempered Ductile Iron (ADI) Bench Vise with 360-Degree Swivel Base superseding Yost FSV-4

I received the new ADI version instead of forged steel. That was disappointing for me since I can't be sure how it will hold up and all the existing reviews are for forged steel. There's no data on ADI vises since no one does it other than the new Yost.The packaging was okay, but not as nice as I've seen in earlier reviews. The paint wasn't terrific, but good enough. It was very greasy and needed to be cleaned up quite a bit. It looks kind of like cast iron, which makes me a little uncomfortable.You can see in my photo there's no welds and it looks different from the forged picture. I got it for a low price so I'm hoping it works out. Time will tell if ADI is a good material/process for building vises.Here's some updated wording from the manufacturer's website:"The Austempered Ductile Iron (ADI) series of professional grade bench vises is constructed out of 130,000 PSI Tensile Strength Austempered Ductile Iron and is at least 45% stronger than the Yost FSV (forged steel) vise series. ADI castings are (1) continuous cast, precision machined, whereas the FSV series was forged then welded together. The ADI line of vises is equipped with replaceable machinist and pipe jaws. Adjustable hardened guide rails provide smooth, precise operation. The durable powder coat finish provides a professional finish that helps prevent damage from weather. The ADI base features two lockdowns for a tight grip."

I ordered the 6" ADI-6 model. It appears to be fairly well made and substantially constructed. The jaws are shaped nicely and line up very well when closed. Time will tell, but no problems stand out immediately.The "powdercoat" finish is pretty poor, in my opinion. Anywhere the costing ends against an unfinished/milled area, it flakes off horribly. I disassembled the vise to clean and grease it, and when I was finished my bench was covered in red flakes of paint that had come off. It's a vise, not a show piece, but I still wouldn't expect that sort of problem right out of the box.The listing states that it has black oxide hardware. Mine is all bright silver finish.

I’m less than impressed I know yost makes more expensive vises but this is a step above entry level but you’d never know based on the fit and finish. It didn’t include a user manual I know you don’t need one, but there is one, you just don’t get it. It doesn’t have black oxide jaws as advertised, not to mention he pipe jaws had visible bandsaw tool marks. The outside pipe jaw was probably 8 degrees out of square to the point that without immediate adjustment it wouldn’t function and is rusty on the inside.The paint job is spotty and wasn’t taped off properly so machined areas got painted and it’s chipping badly right out of the box. None of the corners or edges were dressed and they need a new QC guy because my casting should have been rejected it looks like my buddy’s harbor freight vise. It was barely lubricated and the grease it did have on the screw looked like they took it out of a thirty year old farm truck axle hub. None of these complaints are extremely critical so hopefully it lasts. I’d buy a Wilton if I could go back in time. It just seems like the people that built this vise didn’t care any amount at all. If it was 100$ I’d give it 4.5 stars but it’s quite a bit more and it’s disappointing.

I don't always take the time to write reviews but now and again theres a tool or product that makes me feel like I need to give it the due process it deserves. This Vise is certainly one of them (obviously). It arrived within a week of ordering it, got free shipping and the packaging was wonderfully done, double boxed and padded inside, arrived in perfect condition. Beautifully accented and painted a bright crisp red that draws your attention inside of the shop. I love that the attachments are oxidized for longevity, it certainly has done the trick inside of this climate which does get relatively humid now and again. The performance of the unit is nonetheless outstanding than it's appearance and well thought packaging. It has great clamping force, the swivel base has no movement once pinched down with a relatively light touch, really doesn't take much to get it rigid enough for fixed & sturdy workstation. The anvil is well machined and of a nice covenant size for the overall construction of the unit. I applaud the innovation put into the design for adjusting the tolerances of the unit to adapt for normal wear and tear overtime. That's very nice. It's got a full lifetime warranty on the unit and accents. If the jaws mess-up, the drawbar bends, the base breaks loose, they will replace the piece or vise free of charge to the customer. Yost really won me over with this guy. I couldn't be happier with the vise itself, and its overall performance. Plus it's US produced, manufactured, & distributed... (& it shows).Thank you Yost!

I have purchased many older / vintage “made in the USA” bench vises in the past and I am one that uses a tool way beyond its intended use. If you want a heavy vise that you can beat on, flatten or bend steel, use an extension (yes I know your not supposed to do that) then this is the vise to purchase. Don’t waste time or money on anything else, this thing is a true heavy duty vise and won’t fail you. Read the literature, it’s made of solid steel not cast iron. Like I said, I’m hard on my tools and expect them to work as hard as I do and beyond and not break. The pic shows a 3/8” piece of steel that I needed flattened and it handled it no problem. There is also a YouTube video on this same vise, he puts it through the ringer as well just to show how strong it really is. Good job Yost, finally a vise that’s worth buying and doesn’t break the bank.

I inspected and found some flaws in quality. The threaded shaft does not have a stopper and so if you keep threading the opening bigger the handle and jaw assembly will hit the floor just after the 8.5 inch mark, Also the gib that takes up the slack will fall out. It was a bit challenging to put the gib back in while positioning the worm screw into place at the same time. I will drill out the end on the worm screw and attach a roll pin to fix that from happening again... While I had the GIB out (triangle wedge) I took it to the belt sander to smooth out the crudely cast piece so that it would slide easier and could be tightened up more to remove slack and also be smooth. The adjustment worm screw is bent and now I have to contact host to see what to do about that The handle end of the worm is held in with a half circle collar of some sort and is held with 3 screws, 2 of which had stripped threads. I removed the half collar and installed 3 washers between the collar and the cast to remove most the the forward and backward slack that was in the vise. not sure why the slot was cut to be twice the size of the collar. If these very easy modifications were done at the factory end this would easily be a 5 star vise. Just don't think I should have had to do it for the price that I paid. My modifications took me about 1 hour but if you are not a handy type of person I could see this being a bit of a challenge.Updated my review to 5 stars because the customer service was fantastic. They even responded to my claims on the weekend! This is a small company that cares about the product. I can't blame them for sourcing out manufacturing overseas because of the costs required to produce and equivalent product here would have been double. At least they stand behind the product. Now that I have had an opportunity to put it through a few tests I am more than satisfied.. Thank you Yost customer service!!

I received the ADI version, which is a direct replacement to their FSV line (which is now discontinued). I contacted the company and they were quick to respond to my question regarding the warranty, which the same as for the FSV series - lifetime warranty on the casting. Everything about this vise is solid. I disassembled it as soon as I got it to grease everything up again nicely.The only negative thing I noticed is that the paint chips off very easily in places and you'll see a lot of paint flakes when you disassemble it. Not a big deal, just coat it with some grease.Others have commented that the jaws did not line up on their units, but I had no issues with mine. Note that there are two black screws on the side which push against a small metal bar inside to adjust the play in the sliding section. Make sure to grease up the rails well and you can turn the screws almost all the way in to reduce the slop to close to zero.

Been using this vise for a few months and damn... Soooo much better then any hardware store brand one's I've bought in the past. Those were all 5'' to 6'' cast iron vises unlike this beast. Forged Steel and the removeable pipe vise on the inside was a nice touch. Everything is solid on it. Recommend for sure! Don't waste money on cast iron no more and just wait for this one to go on sale. Worth every penny!

I've been using this vice in my work room for about a year now, after shattering my old cheap cast one. So far, it has taken all the abuse I have thrown at it, and been worth every penny. I was extremely impressed with the packaging, mounting instructions, and overall feel of the vice, right away. No broken English instructions, or cheap pot metal parts. It is well finished, no crude casting, or poor craftsmanship noticeable. My only complaint, if you can call it that, is that the pipe jaws aren't very spread out, so it allows round stock to move a bit when you push on it. That said, I barely use them, and the rest of the vice can't be beat for anywhere close to the price. I would definitely recommend a Yost vice to anyone who wants quality, but can't afford to spend $1000+ on a vice

Perfect. Just got mine and its great. Everything is tight no play. Opening and closing is super smooth. Packing was perfect. No mounting bolts included btw. Bought it after watching a welder guy try to destroy it on youtube and talk about the difference between forged steel vs cast steel...plus its warrantied for life and yost has been in business over 100yrs.