(ARA) - This year, hardware store and home center shelves will be full of new tools that weren't available last year.

"For serious do-it-yourselfers or people who want the latest and greatest tools, this is a banner year for innovative, new products," says Jeff Peterson, vice president of hand tools at American Tool Companies. "There are some hot new tools on the market that make life easier in the workshop, on the road or around the house. These tools also make quality, affordable gifts for friends and family."

Mr. Vise Guy

One of the newer products on the market is the Record Quick-Vise, the world's first truly portable vise. It conveniently attaches to bases in multiple places, and yet still exhibits the durability and reliability of traditional stationary vises.

"The Quick-Vise features a slide-and-lock mounting system so a base can be mounted wherever the clamp is needed -- the garage, the basement, the pick-up truck bed, the worksite -- and the vise can lock solidly into the base," says Peterson. "The system makes relocation fast and simple and it creates a solid workstation wherever it is needed."

The Quick-Vise allows users to apply pressure incrementally, which helps to avoid damaging fine materials for lighter duty "hobby-type" projects. Plus, it features rubberized non-marring pads for a tight, non-damaging grip on materials and an attachment that makes it compatible with some other portable workbenches.

A Toolbox You Can Wear on Your Belt

An ideal gift for the house or the car is the new Vise-Grip Toolbox Multi-Tool. Not only does it feature the same, reliable Vise-Grip locking pliers that have been around for 77 years, but it also includes six other tools in one: a wire cutter, scraper blade, wire stripper, a Schrade knife blade with a serrated and smooth edge, a reversible screwdriver with a flat head and Phillips head, and a socket that accepts all 1/4-inch power bits (like hex drivers to tighten or remove nuts and bolts).

"The Vise-Grip Toolbox is compact enough to fit in a pocket, tool belt, kitchen drawer, glove box or tackle box," says Peterson. "With so many options available, it is an essential tool at home or on the road."

An Extra Hand

For anyone who needs a third hand around the house or workshop, there are two new sizes of the Quick-Grip Handi-Clamp available, a small 1 1/2-inch version and a larger 4-inch model.

Whether they are used for clamping together glued pieces in a remodeling project, holding a work piece steady or providing a steady "third hand" in the workshop or garage, the family of Quick-Grip Handi-Clamp curved bar clamps is sure to appeal to do-it-yourselfers, woodworkers, hobbyists and professionals.

They are manufactured from durable, lightweight resin and include swivel pads that adjust instantly to any angle and shape. They can ratchet quickly and easily with a one-handed squeeze of the handle and the quick-release trigger frees the clamp instantly.

The Perfect Touch

Finding the right tool for a woodworker isn't an easy task. But any woodworker would enjoy the new soft-grip Pro-Touch chisels from Marples.

The Marples Pro-Touch chisels feature a soft-grip handle -- the first time a soft-grip handle has been included in a short-blade chisel. The handle is a combination of durable nylon resin composites and soft, rubberized surface coating.

"The handle design makes working with chisels more comfortable for the user," says Peterson. "It's a softer feel, but the handle is still durable enough to withstand pounding from a mallet."

The short blade also gives woodworkers more control and allows them to wear the chisels on their tool belt. 

To learn more about these tools, visit their Web sites at www.quickvise.com, www.visegrip.com, www.quickgrip.com and www.marpleschisel.com.

Courtesy of ARA Content, www.ARAcontent.com, e-mail: info@ARAcontent.com

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