How Channellock Avoided the Fate of Vise-Grip

🔧 How did Channellock survive when Vise-Grip lost the factory that made it famous? This is the story of two iconic American tool companies, two small towns, and two very different decisions. In Nebraska, Vise-Grip became a legend after William Petersen invented locking pliers in the 1920s — but after the company was sold, then acquired again, production eventually moved overseas and the DeWitt factory closed in 2008. In Pennsylvania, Channellock faced the same pressures — cheaper foreign manufacturing, offers from bigger companies, and the temptation to cash out. But the DeArment family refused to sell, kept control of the company, and kept forging its famous blue-handled pliers in Meadville. 🇺🇸⚙️ This is not just a story about tools. It is the story of what happens when a brand stays connected to the family, factory, workers, and town that built it — and what can be lost when that connection is broken. Two pliers. Two founders. Two factories. One brand survived as a name. The other survived as a legacy. 👍 Like the video if you enjoy forgotten industrial history. 🔔 Subscribe to Iron Legacy for more stories about the companies, machines, and inventions that built the modern world. #Channellock #ViseGrip #IronLegacy #AmericanManufacturing #ToolHistory #MadeInUSA #IndustrialHistory #BusinessHistory #ForgottenHistory #HandTools #AmericanTools #Manufacturing #Meadville #DeWittNebraska #EngineeringHistory