# New Vise Ordered



## lpeedin (Dec 4, 2015)

When I got my new mill a couple months ago, I ordered a cheap import vise with it to get me going.  I knew it wouldn't be the greatest, but, budgets are budgets. 

The cheap vise had its issues. The ways were unsure enough that oil left circular stains where it collected.  The vise jaws are not perpendicular to the magnitude of approx .004 over the 1.200" jaw height.  I havw alao noticed that the keyway in the fixed jaw is at least .012" out of being parallel to the jaw face, which means that it is not perpendicular to the ways.  This results in the moving jaw having to twist to clamp a part. To say the least, I should have bought a better vise. 

Still having a budget, a Kurt was out as well as some of th others like Glacern. I ended up ordering this vise from Little Machine Shop. 
http://littlemachineshop.com/products/product_view.php?ProductID=4733&category=1963256912

I had been talking to the guys at LMS amd they said it is awesome and meets the specs shown.  I have been looking at this one and the Shars 440V, which seems to be a good deal as well.  There are two reasons I chose this one: 1) I have had great experiences with LMS, and 2) it comes with thr swivel base.  While I don't plan to use the swivel base all the time, I like the fact that it is included for the same price as just the Shars vise. 

I will do a review when I get the vise in.  I just wanted to share what I believe to be a great value for the hobby machinist on a budget.


----------



## housedad (Dec 4, 2015)

I think you'll like the vise.  Little machine shop does not seem to generally sell anything that is not decent.  I look forward to the review.   Make sure there's pics!!!


----------



## lpeedin (Dec 9, 2015)

Well, I got the vise yesterday.  Took it all apart and cleaned it up. First impressions, this thing is beefy.  The vise alone weighs more than my inexpensive 4" vise and swivel base.  The rails of the ways are thick all the way through the length.  The handle is also massive and it actually has a full through-peg connecting the long handle to the socket head.  It is not polished, but simply painted with silver paint.  It should be more than adequate.  The vise itself has OK paint, and you can tell there wasn't a lot of prep involved before it was painted.  It does appear to be the same casting used for the Shars 440V, and possibly the Glacern / Vertex, etc.  

The grinding seems very good on the ways, the bottom, and on the fixed and moving jaw blocks.  The jaws them selves were well ground, but not deburred on the corners.  I had to do that with a file and some sand paper.  Upon reassembly, I noted two issues.  First, the holes for the moving vise jaws were drilled and tapped a smidge low.  This causes the moving jaw block to rise as you tighten the screws.  I did some reworking on the holes for the jaws and this has been alleviated.   The second issue is that the fixed jaw is not perpendicular to the ways.  I checked it every way I could, and found that the top edge sticks out just a bit further than the bottom.  I used my 1-2-3 blocks and a precision square to check this and there is a good bit of light visible.  Also, I can get a .0025 feeler gauge between the face of the jaws and the blocks or square at the bottom.   The problem is in the fixed jaw mounting block itself, not the jaws.  The fixed jaw mounting block is not perpendicular on either face.  I ended up shimming that block to square things up and now it is good.  However, this now throws off the top face of the fixed jaw mounting block.  So, if I machine anything large enough to need to rest on the top of the mounting blocks with the jaws on the outsides, this will result in approx. .003" variation in contrast to the moving jaw block.  I think the only way to fix this is to either make a new fixed jaw block, or to make a fixture to allow me to machine the face of the jaw mounting sides true.  

Aside from that, I am actually happy with the vise.  I like the challenge of making a piece better.  Does it make me happy that I have to do it? No.  But, I would rather do that than to send the thing back and deal with those issues.  I stoned the bottom of the vise before mounting it, so I would worry that they might say that I messed the vise up.  Would I buy it again?  I am leaning towards no.  I wish now that I would have spent the extra $50 and gotten the Shars 440V.  But, this is my hobby, not my livelihood.  I am learning so much in the process, that I cannot imagine doing it any differently.


----------



## george wilson (Dec 13, 2015)

I doubt the Shars would have been any better. The dealers are both selling Chinese stuff.


----------



## Bill C. (Dec 13, 2015)

3dshooter80 said:


> Well, I got the vise yesterday.  Took it all apart and cleaned it up. First impressions, this thing is beefy.  The vise alone weighs more than my inexpensive 4" vise and swivel base.  The rails of the ways are thick all the way through the length.  The handle is also massive and it actually has a full through-peg connecting the long handle to the socket head.  It is not polished, but simply painted with silver paint.  It should be more than adequate.  The vise itself has OK paint, and you can tell there wasn't a lot of prep involved before it was painted.  It does appear to be the same casting used for the Shars 440V, and possibly the Glacern / Vertex, etc.
> 
> The grinding seems very good on the ways, the bottom, and on the fixed and moving jaw blocks.  The jaws them selves were well ground, but not deburred on the corners.  I had to do that with a file and some sand paper.  Upon reassembly, I noted two issues.  First, the holes for the moving vise jaws were drilled and tapped a smidge low.  This causes the moving jaw block to rise as you tighten the screws.  I did some reworking on the holes for the jaws and this has been alleviated.   The second issue is that the fixed jaw is not perpendicular to the ways.  I checked it every way I could, and found that the top edge sticks out just a bit further than the bottom.  I used my 1-2-3 blocks and a precision square to check this and there is a good bit of light visible.  Also, I can get a .0025 feeler gauge between the face of the jaws and the blocks or square at the bottom.   The problem is in the fixed jaw mounting block itself, not the jaws.  The fixed jaw mounting block is not perpendicular on either face.  I ended up shimming that block to square things up and now it is good.  However, this now throws off the top face of the fixed jaw mounting block.  So, if I machine anything large enough to need to rest on the top of the mounting blocks with the jaws on the outsides, this will result in approx. .003" variation in contrast to the moving jaw block.  I think the only way to fix this is to either make a new fixed jaw block, or to make a fixture to allow me to machine the face of the jaw mounting sides true.
> 
> Aside from that, I am actually happy with the vise.  I like the challenge of making a piece better.  Does it make me happy that I have to do it? No.  But, I would rather do that than to send the thing back and deal with those issues.  I stoned the bottom of the vise before mounting it, so I would worry that they might say that I messed the vise up.  Would I buy it again?  I am leaning towards no.  I wish now that I would have spent the extra $50 and gotten the Shars 440V.  But, this is my hobby, not my livelihood.  I am learning so much in the process, that I cannot imagine doing it any differently.



You didn't mess up anything. You saved a good vise and corrected problems/errors in it's manufacturing.  I am surprised it had been shipped that way to begin with.


----------



## toolroom (Dec 13, 2015)

Hay 3D,
    I have one exactly like it and use my swivel base all the time... What I did was to line up the calibrated marks on the vise pointer and the base and scribe it, then I trammed in the vise and drilled and reamed a .250 hole on the front part of the vise lug (where the nut is) and drop a dowel pin into it.
     Whenever I need to move the vise and then move it back, the dowel drops right into the hole and were back to 90 degrees.
     Yes this is a good vise. I've had mine for nineteen years, and have never had an issue with it.
toolroom


----------



## lpeedin (Dec 14, 2015)

Well guys, I got the repairs made.  It is as square as I can make it.  I have checked it with my machinist square and both of my 1-2-3 blocks.  I can't see any light coming through between the block and the fixed jaw now.  Before, it was a pretty good gap there.  I could also previously get the feeler gauge in there and now I can't get anything in there.     There is still a slight bit of jaw lift when I am using parallels at the front jaw.  The rear jaw is solid.  I don't think it is enough to worry about, just need to tap the part a bit.   Here are a few pics that show the vise base, as well as the new fixed jaw block I made out of aluminum (to save time and energy).


----------

