So Many Vises, So Little Time!
And The Winners Are...
This concludes the first large
scale review on Fly Fish Ohio. After exhaustive hours spent tying on all these
vises, we’ve come to some pretty clear choices. In each category, we’re going to
pick a value leader, where the vise named isn’t the absolute best vise in the
category but it has enough features and is reasonably priced to garner the title
“Best Value”. The winners of each category will receive a “Best Overall” award
for each price category. On to the winners.
In the under $50 category the
competition was clear for both best value and overall winner. While it’s hard to
be a 20 dollar vise that does everything you ask, we here at Fly Fish Ohio want
a little more in the area of life expectancy and "quality feel" out of a vise.
That’s why we didn’t go with the inexpensive vises as best values. We consider
these vises to be strictly threshold tools that would give the user a taste of
what it’s like to tie flies. The serious vises cost a tad more, but the value
there is evident. That’s why the Zephyr EZ
Rotary vise from Hook & Hackle is our
winner for best value. For such an inexpensive vise it’s got quite a good
feature set. You get a decent c-clamp along with the full rotary functionality
and a darn nice box for storage.
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The best overall in the 0-50
dollar category was the Crown vise
from Bass Pro Shops. No other vise comes in a fitted wooden case. The fact that
it includes two posts, a c-clamp AND a pedestal base could have made it the best
value but the Regal-style jaws can be an acquired taste. Joe argues that,
once acquired, that is a taste that is hard to give up. Joe's regular vise is a
Regal. Old school tiers without rotary chops take note!
In the $50 - $100 category
things get trickier. We have some serious contenders and the quality of the
vises goes up substantially. You have better materials being used and superior
engineering and quality control begins to make itself evident. We liked the
Renzetti Apprentise, but the MSRP and a hook range that limited it to smaller
flies kept it from the leader board. The Griffin vises have great jaws that make
them awesome entry level tools. We absolutely love the extension posts that
screw, inline, to the main post. This makes for a very versatile tool, but the
lack of rotation was their downfall.
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For best value and
the best performer in the $50 -
$100 category there was one clear choice. The Dan-vise
from Danica stood out from the pack in appearance, originality and practicality. As the only ‘plastic’ vise in the shootout, it has the
distinction of being one of the lightest tools going. It’s c-clamp is an awesome
piece of engineering. The hook range is very good and it’s a true rotary vise
complete with 2 ball bearings. Add to that a DVD on how to use the tool and you
have a great value. As you can see from the photographs, the Dan-vise miight not
be the
prettiest pick of the litter (unless you're a Star Wars fan, in which case you
can make a Darth Vader voice while you're tying) but once you get to know it this $80
investment will seem like a beautiful steal!
Tied for best value, a strong Honorable Mention has
to go to the
Apex vise from Anvil. Known_small.jpg)
mostly for their superlative scissors, Anvil has come out with a couple of real
knock-out vises in the Apex and Atlas. These overbuilt tools simply shout
quality. There’s no denying the fact that the Apex could be a contender at
two-plus times its retail. It’s got a great hook range and comes in a nice box
with both a c-clamp and a pedestal base. This could easily be the first and last
vise you ever buy and is, in all ways, as good a value as the Danvise. This was
Jim's favorite vise in the category, to the point where he purchased the review
sample!
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In the $100 - $150 category you
really start to see the heavy hitters of the industry offering their
best products. There was less than one point difference between the top four
contenders in this category. That says to me that these manufacturers want to get
a decent product out for the money. The fact that there are so many companies
vying in this price point says it’s a hot category. Of the vises that
came close but didn’t take the prize were the Regal Inex,
which has essentially has the same
head as the rotatable Regal vise. You can’t miss Joe’s favorite vise in the
Adventures in Fly Tying videos we produce here at FFO. The jaws are a one-of-a-kind design that
seriously hold a wide range of hooks. If this vise rotated it would have
garnered much more support. As it is, it’s still an awesome tool for tying big
flies and anything that requires a serious grip on the hook.
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The HMH vise has the
absolute best implementation of a draw-collet design. It’s easy to change the
jaws and the hook holding properties are fantastic. Joe had a particular
soft-spot for this one, calling it "the best midge vise ever!" Certainly
the HMH featured the finest finish and that Quality with that capital "Q" we read
about in Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance.
It was generally agreed that the Anvil
Atlas is the vise you’d go to war with. Anvil has taken overbuilt to a
new level of heaviness. It came close to the best value leader by only a few
tenths of a point. Professional tiers take note. If you want a vise you can beat
to a pulp and have it come back for more, the Atlas is your tool. Our only real
ding is that its jaws aren’t easily replaceable.
That takes us to the value
leader in the category. We really liked the Griffin
Blackfoot_small.jpg)
Mongoose. It’s
build quality is awesome. The jaws cover the gamut of hook holding. It comes
with a great c-clamp, a bobbin cradle, material clip and Griffins fantastic post
extension system. Add to that, full rotation and a great set of jaws and it all
fits into the only foam filled, hard plastic case in the entire competition.
Quite the feat, for the fair sum of $145.
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The overall winner in the
$100 - $150 category is the Peak vise. It was difficult to put into words
the visceral emotions you feel when you see a tool that brings both form and
function into such a tight focus. We absolutely loved the Peak vise. It has it
all. Full rotation, a full line of optional accessories, height extendibility,
and a
great set of replaceable jaws. It's very hard to
find anything to criticize. Smooth, slick, suave.... how many superlatives
can we throw at this great piece of gear. Manufacturers building vises in
the $200 plus category have a lot to worry about with this product in the
market. Buy one before they figure out the price is too low!.
The Fly Fish Ohio team would like to thank all
the manufacturers for their assistance in this project. Everyone we
contacted was very supportive of this project and of Fly Fish Ohio in general.
This review turned out to be an enormous undertaking, but one we'll happily
reprise. Knowing what is available on the market and having a source of
consistent critical review is paramount to getting the very most from a hobby
that is at once a vital and central part of each of our lives and yet is
constrained by all the obligations civilized life demands. When you have a
few hours to fish or tie flies you should make the most of it. We
sincerely hope our efforts make that a little easier to accomplish.
-Jim Stuard
Senior Editor
Fly Fish Ohio
