Parts of a Vise – Labeled Bench Vise Diagram

All 11 parts on the diagram

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Bench vise 8

Fixed jaw The jaw that does not move. It is part of the body.
Movable jaw The front jaw. The screw moves it in and out.
Handle The bar that turns the screw.
Screw The threaded rod that moves the jaw.
Anvil A flat pad on the back of the body.
Swivel base The base the vise turns on. It can be locked.
Pipe jaws Curved, toothed jaws under the main jaws, for holding pipe.
Slide The bar that carries the movable jaw through the body.

Three more kinds 3

Clamp base vise A light vise clamped to the edge of a bench.
Pipe vise A vise with hinged jaws, made to hold pipe.
Machine vise A low vise bolted to a drill press or other machine.

How this list was compiled: Every name checked on 2026-09-30 and kept only where at least two of these use it. (1) Wikipedia, Vise, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vise : two jaws, one fixed, one movable and threaded in and out by a screw; an anvil on the back of the body; a swivel base; curved serrated jaws for pipe; clamp-on, pipe and machine vises. (2) US Navy, Tools and Their Uses (1971), full text at https://archive.org/details/ERIC_ED132362 : the machinist's bench vise with a swivel base; the bench and pipe vise with pipe jaws and an anvil; the clamp base vise; the pipe vise. (3) US Army, TM 9-243, Use and Care of Hand Tools and Measuring Tools (1983), full text at https://archive.org/details/use-and-care-of-hand-tools-and-measuring-tools-1983 : jaws, handle, swivel base, built-in pipe jaws; clamp base bench vise, pipe vise, machine table vise. (4) A vise maker's catalog (1994), full text at https://archive.org/details/wilton-catalog-136 : fixed jaw and sliding jaw, slide bar, main screw, anvil, swivel base, pipe jaws. (5) A second maker's bench vise manual with a parts list, full text at https://archive.org/details/manualzilla-id-7037340 : base, moving slide, main spindle, handle, jaws, built-in anvil, swivel base. (6) US Army, TC 9-524, Fundamentals of Machine Tools (1996), full text at https://archive.org/details/tc-9-524-fundamentals-of-machine-tools-1996 : the fixed jaw and the movable jaw of a vise. Licence: own work

The drawing: Drawn for this site on 2026-09-30 from plain geometry; no maker's tool, nothing traced. Licence: own work

How it works

A vise holds work between two parallel jaws: one is fixed, one moves. A screw, turned by a handle, moves the movable jaw. The second view shows three more kinds of vise.

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Jaws, screw and handle

The fixed jaw is part of the body. The movable jaw stands in front of it, on the end of the slide, a bar that runs through the body. Turning the handle turns the screw, and the screw moves the jaw in or out.

Pipe jaws, anvil and base

Under the main jaws is a pair of curved, toothed pipe jaws for round work. The flat pad on the back of the body is the anvil. The swivel base lets the vise turn on the bench, and it can be locked.

The screw is also called the spindle, and the slide the slide bar. The quiz takes either.

Questions and answers

What are the parts of a vise called?

A bench vise has a fixed jaw, a movable jaw, a screw and a handle. The movable jaw rides on the slide. Many also have pipe jaws under the main jaws, an anvil on the back of the body and a swivel base.

What is the flat part on the back of a vise?

The anvil. It is a flat pad on the back of the body.

What are the curved jaws under the main jaws for?

They are the pipe jaws. They are curved and toothed to hold pipe and other round work, which flat jaws cannot grip well.

What is a clamp base vise?

A light bench vise that is clamped to the edge of a bench instead of being bolted down.