Danvise.... very frustrated with jaws

[wschmitt3 0]

For the second time in two years of ownership I need to replace the jaws on my Danvise because they are flared out.

 

I don't believe this is a case of operator error. I follow the instructions provided on BT's Fly Fishing website very closely and have since I got the new set just as I did with the old set. Late last summer I started to notice that they were starting to flare a tiny bit and it has slowly gotten worse since. It cant even hold a size 16 hook in a position that I can tie on any more.

 

I actually really like tying on the vise better than the others I have tied on but having to once again replace the jaws really irritates me. It doesn't make sense that a company would make jaws on some thing that is made to clamp onto something out of a metal that is so soft.

[Stippled Popper 0]

Sorry to hear of your Danvise woes. I know this is a common complaint about the vise.

I can only conclude that some come with jaws having metal defects(bad lots?). But my 15 year

old Danvise still has the original jaws with no flaring.

 

The only other thing that might be happening is that if you have to exert more than the

least bit of pressure to throw the came, you have tightened the screw too tight. If that is happening,

back the screw off.

 

From what I've read when you throw the cam on a Danvise there is a much greater pressure increase

happens on other cam vises. Sounds plausible, but may not be the case.

[RickZieger 0]

My guess is that you might be making the mistake I made.

I turned the screw to much. Now I slowly turn the screw to get enough pressure to hold the hook.

Takes less than I thought it would.

 

Rick

[ditz2 0]

I have had my danvise for several years with no problem. I am not a prolific tier though. Can you explain your technique for putting a hook in the vise?

[SilverCreek 0]

What do the instructions for the vise say about tightening the screw? The reason I ask is:

 

http://flyguys.net/product-reviews/the-danvise-fly-tying-vise

 

"The jaws have been a problem and are also the positive point regarding the vise. The designer (a fly tier) really hated hooks slipping in a vise so he designed the jaws/cam lever to apply a 10 to 1 closing ratio during the hook mounting process; most other cam operated vices have a closing ration of 2.5 (or 3) to 1. It really is amazing how little pressure a tier will feel on the cam-lever handle when closing the jaws and they are adjusted to hold a hook properly. The Danvise really holds a hook VERY well but for those people who don't adjust the jaws properly they will damage either a hook, the jaws or both. A "set-up & how-to-adjust" video is included with all the danvises. "

 

Personally, I tie on a Renzetti so I have no experience with the Danvise. If you love it, that is great but if you have had repeated problems, I would not ask anyone about it. I would get another brand of vise since there is something about the vise that does not match how you use it.

 

A fly tyer should not have to worry about just how tight or loose to the hook is in the jaws. It should be virtually automatic. My Renzetti is perfectly linear in how much resistance there is on the cam vs the pressure on the hook. I would think most vises should work in that fashion.

 

I had an HMH vise before the Renzetti and it also has smoothly functioning jaws with excellent feedback.

[wschmitt3 0]

I do it just like Al says in the video. Set it in, get it close with the set scew, close it half way, check for wiggle if it wiggles up and down a little but stays in place it is loose enough to close it all the way. So I close it the rest of the way. If there is no wiggle I loosen the set screw and check again. Because of the failure of my first set of jaws I make very sure to only apply the pressure required to hold the hook in place and no more. I couldn't tie on the vise if I used less force to hold hooks, as it is I pull hooks out of the vise if I pull on them any harder than is used in regular tying. I have pulled hooks several times spinning deer hair and giving it a tug to flare hair wings.

 

I'm not the type of person that breaks things or misuses things, I follow instructions very well and understand mechanics and how things function and I use them accordingly. This is not an issue with use or misuse this is a design problem.

 

Popper - I don't know what to think about the longevity of your jaws but I would venture to say that it is entirely possible that the metal used has changed or something about the manufacturing process is different because there is no way that my jaws would last that long with any sort of regular use. I have probably tied some where around 1,200 (rough guess) flies in the last year and that is about the same as what I got out of the first jaws.

 

Admittedly, my first one flared out a little bit much earlier than this one did and that may have had something to do with technique (which I changed as soon as I noticed the damage) but I'm pretty good at admitting fault when it belongs to me unfortunately the fault for the failure of this device does not lay with me.

 

They need to make these jaws harder, I think that this is simply the problem here. With something that can produce this kind of holding force on something it doesn't make sense to make it from material that is softer than the material it is holding.

[wschmitt3 0]

Silvercreek - I totally agree. It is time to move on to a new vise. I am actually going to do some hands on shopping for one tomorrow.

 

I really wasn't asking any questions. This post was really just intended to vent about a fly tying tool that has irritated me.

[Stippled Popper 0]

If you are tying deer hair flies, I'd well believe you are required to apply much more pressure on the hook and be required to

have the hook tighter than I need.

[wschmitt3 0]

I'm not doing anything crazy or fancy. Just standard patterns like muddlers or dave's hoppers one of the times it came loose was when I was tying a Moorish mouse. But these things require what would be considered "over-tightening" if your going by the directions to ensure that the hook doesn't come loose.

 

Don't get me wrong, if you follow the directions the Danvise holds a hook very well for standard tying and pretty well even for those times you need to lay into a fly to spin hair or what ever. I just don't think that following the directions to a T will prevent the tips from flaring. I think they will flare after a time no matter what you do.

[NohackleHS 0]

If you go to the Search feature of this forum and put in a search for "Danvise jaws", you'll bring up a discussion from Feb, 2014 of your exact same problem.

[retrocarp 0]

No probs with mine and they are probably 5 yrs old and have had plenty of use ...small dries to larger steamer hooks size 4/0

I've even held my scissors in there to see how well they would hold.

[WVUontheFLY 0]

If you are looking for a new vise with super strong jaws, I would recommend the griffin mongoose. It is built like a brick poop house and the jaws do not slip. I was quite enthusiastic about testing mine. The first thing I tied was a 4/0 musky fly that called for hollow tying deer hair and spinning/stacking the head. I wanted a nice packed head so I really torqued on the fly with my fugly packer jr. The hook started to bend but the hook didn't move in the vise jaws.

[crazy4oldcars 0]

I always do the "ping test" when I put a hook in my Danvise. I saw Michael Verduin do it in his cap spider video. Just catch it with a thumbnail and see if it goes "ping".

 

As of a couple of months ago, I am on my second set of jaws, too. Mine were still holding the hooks fine, but it bugged me. The damage was from when I first got my vise.

The second set is starting to deform as well, and I KNOW I'm not setting it too tight. After a while, you get a feel for what is too tight when you are closing the cam. It takes more effort to close it. Any less and the hooks will start wiggling around.

I took a whet stone to mine last weekend to knock the edge off of the deformity. I think these are being case hardened and blued, rather than tempered. I don't know if it is possible to temper something that thick.

 

Kirk

 

PS: My first set is about 6 years old.

Edited February 27, 2015 by crazy4oldcars

[mikechell 0]

I don't know about the vise you're typing of ... but I DO know that you HAVE to lubricate the cam surfaces. If you don't, you'll think you are clamping with more force than you are, since the drag of the cam makes it feel "tighter".

[Philly 0]

I've been using a Danvise for I guess 20 years. I'm on my second one. I'd had a similar problem with the first one, but got 10 years out of it. I'm noticing the flare starting to develop on my second one, but it hasn't gotten bad enough that it won't hold a size 20 or 22 hook.