Hey everyone, and welcome back to our design log!
In our last post, "It All Starts with the Jaws," we talked about the heart of our vise. The feedback was amazing, and it confirmed what we believed: you guys care about the details as much as we do. Now that the heart is in a good place, we're focusing on the backbone and the brains of the operation – the materials, the clamp, and the ergonomics that make a vise a joy to use, or a pain to deal with.
From Good Steel to Great Steel: The Jaws Upgrade
When it came to the jaws, we saw two main paths in the industry: standard carbon steel (like the common 45# steel), which gets the job done but can wear down over time, or high-end 'tool steel,' which is very hard but can also be brittle and adds significant cost. We weren't satisfied with either compromise. We wanted the best of both worlds.
That's why we made a very deliberate engineering choice: 40CrMo (Chromoly Steel). This isn't your standard carbon steel. It's a high-performance alloy steel, famous for its use in applications where failure is not an option, like high-performance engine crankshafts and gears.
After a specific heat treatment process, it achieves the perfect balance: the incredible wear resistance approaching that of many tool steels, but with superior toughness to prevent the chipping or breaking that can plague overly hardened jaws. It’s not the cheapest option, nor is it the most exotic, but it is, in our expert opinion, the smartest choice for jaws that will provide a lifetime of precise, reliable grip.
Rethinking the Anchor: A C-Clamp That Actually Works
Let's be honest, most C-clamps are an afterthought. They're often made from cheap cast aluminum that's either heavy, brittle, or just plain ugly. We looked at dozens of off-the-shelf options and weren't happy with any of them.
So, we're designing our own from scratch.
Instead of casting, we'll be machining it from a solid profile. This gives it incredible strength without the bulk. But here’s the clever part: we're designing it for dual-direction clamping.
What does that mean? It means you can clamp it to your desk horizontally, like any other vise. But you can also clamp it vertically to the side of a drawer, a shelf, or even the edge of your fly tying kit box. Imagine tying a few flies on the go, then clamping your vise right onto the box you store everything in. It's a small change that brings a new level of convenience.
The Little Details: Ambidextrous & Rock-Solid
Two final updates from the workshop:
- The Rotation Lock: We're moving the rotation locking knob to the top of the hub. Why? My partner is a lefty, and it was always a bit awkward for him to reach around. This new position is perfectly centered and equally easy to access whether you're right-handed or left-handed.
- The Unshakeable Post: Some vises offer adjustable height, but it often comes at a cost: a weak point that can wobble or rotate under pressure. We're sticking with a direct screw-in connection between the post and the base. Is it adjustable? No. Is it absolutely, positively, 100% rock-solid? You bet it is. We believe stability is king, so we set the height to what we feel is the perfect ergonomic sweet spot and locked it in for maximum rigidity.
This journey is all about making deliberate choices. Every single part is a conversation, a debate, and a step towards what we hope will be the perfect fly tying vise.
What do you think of these changes? Are we on the right track? Drop a comment below or subscribe to our newsletter for more behind-the-scenes updates. Let's build this thing together.
