Irwin 4 in. Locking Wrench

This thing is cool. I love tools - especially small ones that can fit into a small EDC pouch.These are lightweight and TINY! - but they are sturdy and the normal quality you would expect from VISE-GRIP.I didn't know what to expect with the shape of the head, but you can grab small bolts and screws really well with it. It also grabs anything round (tube, pipe etc) really well and maybe doesn't mar it as bad as a normal vise-grip. (or maybe just as bad. Not the right tool if you are worried about scratches).The 'wire-cutters' are a joke, as with most locking pliers with this feature. I suppose it could work in a ... pinch?

Another quality Irwin tool

Worked great for getting a bolt off that was striped

It's very good at hex. Other than that it's kinda useless. I got this one for holding one end of a bolt while I fasten the other hands free. Use to do it with two wrenches one hand on each.Got this then I just clip these on one side and go to town on the other side.Sadly these only work with hex. And some of my fasteners are square. I carry a normal jaw vise grip now but this is a great tool if you have a bunch of hex fasteners. It's not as versatile as the regular jaw versions and sadly these have a range of what sizes they can lock onto.

For undersized, rounded off, rust fused brake lines and bleeders, this little tool is usually my go to now.The only time it wasn't of use is on my rear drum bleeder valves, but that's not the tool's fault, there's just no good way to get on them since the wheel cylinder is basically sunk into the rear backing plate.But I still love this locking plier. In fact, I bought the 7LW and the 10LW to go with this 4LW so I now have the set.The Good:Irwin is a well known brand name with a reputation for quality tools, this 4LW is no exception.Feels sturdy in the hand, even for its small size.Crisp action on the locking mechanism.Hex key slot on end of knurled adjustment knob for further tightening.Good grip on rounded off nuts/bolts/fittings/bleeders.The Bad:Nothing to Report.

These worked really well to loosen the nut on a 25-year old brake hardline.

I used to have a full size set, used it a lot, didn’t think I’d use the small ones that much but I use them almost every day.

Like other reviews mention, these vise grips are pretty tiny. I originally bought this so I could remove 26 year old, rusted brake line nuts. Unfortunately, after using both a flare wrench and this vise grip, the brake line nut rounded out and I had to cut out a section of new brake hard line and flare new ends.I'm still wondering what use this vise grip will be for me but I will continue to test out other stubborn, rusted bolts/nuts and hopefully find a good use for them. For now, these are somewhat useless to me but they do feel pretty sturdy for their small size.