• For more information on how to avoid pop-up ads and still support SkiTalk click HERE.

Tom K.

Skier Ordinaire
Skier
SkiTalk Supporter
Joined
Dec 20, 2015
Posts
8,399
My kind of crappy vise just bit the dust. Though far from perfect, it knew my foibles well, and tolerated me quietly for well over a decade. Also, it was a cheap date.

So, Essay Test for Pugski Tuning Maestros: Declare your favorite waxing/tuning vise, and describe why in 100 words or less. Photos optional. Penmanship will not count. No videos.

Thanks!
 

Jacques

Workin' It on Skis Best I Can
Skier
Joined
Apr 24, 2017
Posts
1,615
Location
Bend, OR
Ha ha! No video links counts me out.

Most are good that have two ends and a center vice, but it's how you use them. Take care now.
 

Blue Streak

I like snow.
Skier
Joined
Nov 12, 2015
Posts
3,266
Location
Edwards, Colorado
I have no vices.
:decisions:

But you can buy the Swix World Cup vise for just $147 on amazon (and I wish I had).
61JCNlx4nML._SL1000_.jpg


I have the Swix Jaw Economy Vise, which is just fine for a little less, $119.98.
61aGkshN76L._SL1000_.jpg
 
Last edited:

SlideWright

aka Alpinord
Industry Insider
SkiTalk Supporter
Joined
Nov 24, 2015
Posts
625
Location
Upside down in the San Juans
vise_wings_800.jpg


T-track vise system & Tools4Boards Vises

EDIT:

The vises open symmetrically from center and are also useful for lots of tasks aside from ski and snowboard work. The 'Vise Wings' I made have plenty of friction on the tops and a pair of skis can be laid flat and worked on at once without clamping. It is way more efficient than old school clamping. Plus, when you add heat to the skis while waxing, the camber relaxes, letting the skis float makes more sense to me than keeping them clamped and flexed.

 
Last edited:
Thread Starter
TS
Tom K.

Tom K.

Skier Ordinaire
Skier
SkiTalk Supporter
Joined
Dec 20, 2015
Posts
8,399
Thanks for the replies. Keep them coming. I like the look of the Swix vise systems, but.......

What I really want is something that is easy to mount ~8" in from the edge of my workbench. This keeps all the wax drippings and scrapings on the bench, and off the floor, which is great.

Not a deal killer, but a guy can dream!
 

hbear

Out on the slopes
Skier
Joined
Aug 17, 2016
Posts
890
SwiX WC, Toko WC, Ski Man I think are all the same vices in different colours.

Great vices and pretty much stock for most techs.
 

Primoz

Skiing the powder
Skier
Joined
Nov 8, 2016
Posts
2,483
Location
Slovenia, Europe
Basically all World cup models are same regardless if it's Swix, Toko, Holmenkol... They work good, they last forever and when you split money you will pay for them over their lifetime, they cost lest then coffee/year :) Personally I have Swix World cup vise and they are still from the time I was in world cup business, which means they are probably older then some of Pugski members, and still look pretty much like new. :D
 

SlideWright

aka Alpinord
Industry Insider
SkiTalk Supporter
Joined
Nov 24, 2015
Posts
625
Location
Upside down in the San Juans
I think there are a number of "brands" that are all really the same vise.

The WC Pro may be the Freeride in Toko's line.

SkiMan makes vises and lots of tuning tools for the various ski and snowboard wax companies, Toko, Briko-Maplus, Swix, Holmenkol, The WC vise being just one flavor, painted different colors. So it gets down to color, brand loyalty, but some vises and tools do have minor differences specific to a brand.

I'm not sure on Fk-SKS Kunzman vises. Tools4Boards makes their own and used to make vises for Swix (Cinch, Cordloc, Pro500, etc).

Here's Toko's WC vise ($144):

ydro3pqida53ppdzuxc8.png
 
Last edited:

Dwight

Practitioner of skiing, solid and liquid
Admin
Moderator
SkiTalk Supporter
Joined
Dec 13, 2015
Posts
7,440
Location
Central Wisconsin
I use home made wood "vices". I use real vices at a retail store, until I make new wood ones. :)

20171217_213443.jpg
 
Thread Starter
TS
Tom K.

Tom K.

Skier Ordinaire
Skier
SkiTalk Supporter
Joined
Dec 20, 2015
Posts
8,399
Anybody know anything about the Eggbar system (other than it's expensive)? It looks intriguing.

Of the more classic style vises, right now I gotta say that @Jacques favorite Beast looks very good.

Though I may have hurt his feelings by specifying "no videos". :(
 

Dave Marshak

All Time World Champion
Skier
Joined
Nov 17, 2015
Posts
1,454
I use home made wood "vices". I use real vices at a retail store, until I make new wood ones. :)

View attachment 35491
I have one like that that I use with a Workmate, because I don't have room for a real bench. Rubber mesh shelf liner from Home Depot probably makes more friction than smooth rubber. I think it's way better than a vise, but you'll probably want a center vice if you need to flatten or structure the base.

I like the Eggbar, and I could probably fabricate a similar holding system on a workbench.

Every time I buy a vise, it works great until the next pair of skis is too wide or the sidewalls are some weird shape or the bindings or too tall or something.

dm
 

Lorenzzo

Be The Snow
Skier
SkiTalk Supporter
Joined
Nov 12, 2015
Posts
2,984
Location
UT
My vice is the Jaws of the Beast from Beast tuning tools. $109.

I like the way it works, it grabs the binding and adjusts up to tip and tail but I needed extra clamps to get it to fit my bench (wider) and it's fairly plasticky. So it doesn't really live up to it's name. Furry Little Rabbit would have been a better name.

I wish I'd sprung for a sturdier vice.
 

Doug Briggs

"Douche Bag Local"
Industry Insider
SkiTalk Tester
Joined
Nov 9, 2015
Posts
7,483
Location
Breckenridge, CO
I've used the eggbar vice (the round race model) and liked it some. PROS: The on edge grip took getting used to and isn't something I use a lot so didn't get the hang of it. The grippiness of the platform was excellent. The ease of attachment to the bench (no strong arm required) was nice. CONS: the race model doesn't hold two skis at a time and in my production environment, skis side by side makes work quicker and easier. I simply swap skis left and right without having to move them off the bench.

I'm waiting for Ace to send me a shop model that is reportedly quite nice, two skis/one snowboard wide and with an easy to adjust length between the stands.

I use an old set of Swix vises. Narrow so not optimal for fat skis. Despite the center clamp, wide skis wobble as the clamp often won't hold the non-vertical sidewalls.
20171219_084208_Queen Of The West Road.jpg


The 2x4 arrangement on top of the bench holds the second ski while working on the first. Time and space dictate that I not move the ski not being worked on around to a wall or rack, but rather just swap them.

20171219_084948.jpg


20171219_083642_Queen Of The West Road.jpg


The tray is held on by the vise clamps. Just mount vises on the bench with clamps loose, slide the tray in place and clamp the additional cross pieces to span the slots and permit the clamps a tight grip on the bench.

20171219_084230_Queen Of The West Road.jpg


20171219_084250_Queen Of The West Road.jpg
 

Doug Briggs

"Douche Bag Local"
Industry Insider
SkiTalk Tester
Joined
Nov 9, 2015
Posts
7,483
Location
Breckenridge, CO
Looks like I need to make a wax tray like that... Great idea...

Thanks. The tray is simply luan plywood with a piece of lumber on one edge to stiffen it up and create a lip. Since employing it I haven't had more than a drop or two of wax on the floor and almost no scrapings.
 

Swiss Toni

Out on the slopes
Skier
Joined
Aug 26, 2016
Posts
586
Until recently Skiman was the only company making die cast aluminium ski vices, but recently the Chinese have entered the market. The one pictured in focker’s post is made in China and sold under several brand names, you can pick them up for $72 https://www.aliexpress.com/item/alpine-ski-vise/32464334394.html They have also started making irons, file guides and wax brushes.

Is this the sort of setup you were thinking of Tom K.?

Ratte_Bench.jpg
 
Last edited:
Thread Starter
TS
Tom K.

Tom K.

Skier Ordinaire
Skier
SkiTalk Supporter
Joined
Dec 20, 2015
Posts
8,399
Right now, I've got the following:

1. A cheap (now cracked) plastic center vise that holds modern skis modestly well at best. I just put assorted wooden blocks under the tips and tails of skis during waxing, which works OK, again, at best. The great thing is that the cheap old vise mounts 6 inches in from the edge of the bench, completely eliminating wax dripping. The second great thing is that when I'm not waxing, the wooden blocks disappear in a second, leaving my bench all but clear of ski-related crap, so it can revert to bike duty quickly.

2. Then on the edge of the bench, I've have easy on/off Swix vises for edge work, which I'm perfectly happy with.

I was ready to pull the trigger on The Beast, and do a wax tray a'la @Doug Briggs, but comments from @Lorenzzo on the chintziness of it made me pause.....

So, question for @SlideWright, could these be mounted directly to a wooden bench without the use of C-Clamps, so I could mount it six inches or so in from the edge of the bench?

http://www.slidewright.com/tools4boards-ski--snowboard-tuning-vise.php
 

Sponsor

Top