Well, I REALLY wanted a big heavy vise, for all kinds of stuff, especially truck and tractor repairs. I was considering a big Wilton, but the price is just nuts. All the ex-farm ones around here are basically trashed beyond all reckoning (dudes around here can f**k up an anvil in a sandbox), or just go for stupid amounts. So, when I ran across Fireball going into production on their vise a little over a year ago, I jumped on the pre-order the second it opened.
About 14-15 months later I finally got it!
I cannot overstate the gravity this thing has, shipping weight was 295lbs, and there's no way the crating weighs more than 15lbs. So, yeah, she's got some iron.
So far I'm impressed, the finish is quite decent! It appears to not have any filler under the paint, and the castings look pretty nice. The machined surfaces are smoth to the fingernail, and it shipped well greased. The action is very very smooth and there's very little play in the moveable jaw in any direction. The blued (?) Fittings have a pretty ok finish; definitely not done by the Colt Python guys.
Jaw serrations are actually really excellent! They're a pretty truncated pyramid instead of sharp, so they're probably able to hold some things without destroying the surface. I'll see if I can get a decent closeup.
I'll have to go get some transfer punches and borrow a mag drill to mount it up, but I'll update if I find something people should know about.
Crate
View attachment 442557
View attachment 442558
Shots on the work table
View attachment 442559
View attachment 442560
View attachment 442561
View attachment 442562
View attachment 442563
Jaw serrations
View attachment 442564
