My new vise: a J-Vise (sold by Wasatch Custom Angling)

D

denovich

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I was asked to name my prize for a recent job well done at work. I have a Danvise which after a number of mods I'm fairly happy with. But I saw this as a chance to get the vise of a lifetime. I work for a UK company, and my manager is from Scotland, so a LAW Bench vise would have been perfect if one could be found for less than a king's ransom.

I considered the other options... For me access to the back of the fly with my left hand is essential. It's what bothered me about the Danvise and why I had to tweak it. I considered the best that Regal, Renzetti, and DynaKing had to offer. Each had something about them that I didn't like. So I kept looking and found the J-Vise (or J-Vice) http://www.jvice.com/

Jay Smitt appears to be stepping into the shoes that Lawrance Waldron vacated, by making extremely well designed vises in low volumes with high attention to detail. Ordering from him direct is a bit of a pain (he's in South Africa) but his vise is resold by Wasatch Custom Angling http://flytyingtools.com/ who add their own custom base.

Now I'm a wood worker, and would be happy to make my own base (probably will) but I wasn't paying, and it was easy to order from them. Amazingly it arrived only 2 days later.

I've tied a few flies on the vise now and I can say I'm really impressed. The access to the rear of the fly is as good as it gets. The jaws grip tight enough to snap off hooks and work with the largest and smallest hooks I have (2/0 to 28). The rotary function is very smooth, it's so natural to have my left hand resting in the bend of the arm. I easily rock the fly back and forth to see what I'm doing. It's not perfectly balanced, so it won't spin like a Norvise... but that's not how I tie anyway. I also got the gallows (parachute) attachment. It's just a loop of wire that you can tie your post to... it rotates with the head and it's genius. Very slick for hackle stacker/paraloop style flies.

The Wasatch made base is very nice. I was surprised to find that the brass cups were lathed from bar stock and weigh about a pound each. After I took the attached picture, I gave the brass a rub down with a progression of grits from 1000-4000. They now look really sharp. They are a buff away from being mirror like, but I think I like the dull glow better.

The vise has many options... Wasatch sells some, but you can find all sorts if you order direct from Jay.

Check it out if you are in the market for your last vise.
Or look at the pretty picture of mine and be envious. :)
 

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nice setup !
 
OK
 
Sweet looking vise, but mine leaves no room for envy... ;-)
Bought my last vise about 17 yrs ago. Vises are such a personal affair.
 
great vise
good choice
However mine sits unused due to a few odd quirks
- There are no easy adjustments. To change the position of the head on the gooseneck you need a special tool. should be a thumb screw (I have heard this as a main issue of other Jvise users as well)
- the poor design of the rotary handle (rotary crank). With its long l-shaped design you need to turn a large circle (is using the handle) rather than just a small twist. the handle should be closer inline to the bearing head
- poor adjustment of tension in the rotary feature. it is either almost to tight to turn/index or so loose it falls back to the 0* position

THere are some really nice things
- solid construction
- The included accessories. the gallows tool you mentioned. The jvise branded bobbin holder, waste basket, and mounting board are top notch
- it really holds a hook!

If you are serious about a creating a new mounting board look at the one Jay has. it is really well thought out
 
I'm used to using a hex key (allen wrench) to adust things, so it's not a big deal. The tradeoff is marginally better clearance behind the fly. I may make a small hex key tool for this vise... a little button of brass or wood with a sawed off piece of hex key embedded in it.

The rotary crank. It's easy enough to shorten the L-shaped shaft. It's held in with a grub screw.

Rotary adjustment tension: mine has enough inherent drag that it just holds its position even when fully loosened. There is a fair amount of adjustment between tight and almost-completely tight too. (But it doesn't want to lock absolutely tight.)

Jay's mounting board is sweet. I like the option of tying with my vise in my lap. The built in dubbing brush maker is a slick trick. My wife would probably approve of the waste basket.
 
If you want my ad vise - puter to use
 
I tied on Jay's personal vise at one of the shows. I never bought one because it just didn't work for me, and the points rolling dog raises are part of that. But I think his use of the word quirks is really appropriate. It is not in any way flawed. Jay's engineering is wonderful, and it is a beautiful vise to look at. Congratulations on owning a great tool that will serve you well!
Mike.
 
Oh my god, You have to use an allen wrench! That's terrible. Big Circles!!!! woe is me.

You have a very nice vise and I agree the backside room is way more important then an allen wrench and small circles. Put it to long and continued use and enjoy.

Envy? over a hook holder. Don't think so.
 
I have one that I use to use the allen wrench on. It got striped and now I use a pair of plyers to tighten. Been thinking I could have a handle welded on to it.
 
That is a sweet vise man
 
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