Hi Sean

Looks like a compact unit and look forward to your findings when set up and used.

Emgee

The arc euro looks more useful as it has slots in the side to clamp it to the table. However, how do you move the jaw on either, I cant see any clamp screw. Or does the angled one somehow traverse the moving jaw.

I've owned a DH-1 for several years and for the majority of milling jobs, this is my goto vice, very versatile, has a bigger capacity than any other vice in the same footprint. Additional Jaws are well worth purchasing

The 90mm Type 2 from Arc is no bigger physically from the 80mm versatile but it will open up to 120mm ( 76mm versatile) and has deeper jaws. The only thing you don't get is the abilty to hold large items for gentle work that the extra jaw positions on the versatile allow.

You can also see the hole for the key to tighten the precision ones.

J

PS The e-bay seller Harryuk is Harry from Amadeal.

Edited By JasonB on 01/01/2018 07:41:34

Alright, I thought the versatile could handle 205mm work, looking closer to the listing it says light work only in that config – as you say. Is the table size on your mill similar to a WM18 Jason? that is will a 90mm type 2 fit or it's too large?

For my cnc router , I brought a pair of Toolmakers vices, similar to what is listed , but from a local tool company. They are within 0.01mm everywhere to being the same. I mounted them onto a sub plate that has dowels to located the vice to. 3 pins , 1 is an end stop, and the other 2 are a side stop. These are spaced so that I can have the vices 25mm apart to a max of 200 mm between the 2 vices. The dowels are a neat slide fit for the side pins, so can be removed if required. I'm very happy with them so far and it's been 2 years now. The new vices all seem to have the short retaining pin that can be loosened off and then slide to the next hole point. The older ones used to have a through dowel that needed changing and that really was a pain at times. I used M8 capscrews for the end clamps, so the 6mm allen key does all the clamps and the vice jaw tightening. Mine also has M8 threaded holes for the side stops etc as well.

Neil

Having had to replace another rebranded Versatile 5" from JLS that broke the back out i replaced with a 120 Type 2 and regretted every second with it.

In hind sight its quite a good vice but its the constant annoyance of having to use an allen key with limited travel. Even worse back out 1 rev too much to clear the underside indents and nut drops off. You will send more time faffing about than using.

Personally i would risk the Versatile again and put two rows of off the shelf cheap bearings in about £2, wish i had.

Ian, That is why I made a sub plate to hold the vices with. The new ones have a sping and are very user friendly. I have never had the bottom nut come off yet at all.

Neil

This is the vice I have. I bought it about 5 years ago from a reputable supplier (Chronos I think) and should have returned it immediately. I recall that the main picture on the web page did not show this smallest sized one but I expected it to have the same features as the rest of the range. I dont think the larger ones had the stepped jaws but on this vice they are about a third of the jaw height.

This vice might be precision ground but not to any precise dimensions, nearly every feature is unequal. the grooves on ether side are different heights by 0.1mm, the moving jaw is flush to the body on one side and 0.4mm clear on the other. The slot is offset by over 1mm so I ended up making a new trunnion nut so that the screw had a straight pull.

As regards fixing it to the milling table, there are two diagonal M4 tapped holes on the underside but to me it does not seem good engineering to have to mount the vice on a plate. The M4 tapped holes in the side faces are even less sensible and one of the four needs a tap putting through it (it chews up HT screws) but being hardened I dont want to waste a tap.. Neil's vice does at least have notches at both ends so is straightforward to clamp down.

My main vice is a 68mm 'Precision' vice which is I think intended for metrology purposes rather than milling duty. Whilst it has a certificate of accuracy (parallelism/squareness/hardness etc) typically to about 0.005mm and better, the screw is quite coarse pitch and a very rattly fit, quite out of keeping with the rest of it.

Ian P