EZ Rotary Vise

I bought this vise, with the base, for traveling. The base stripped when tightening it to the pedestal. I used a piece of cloth to hold it in place, The jaws seem that they will hold a hook firmly. The rotary function is not smooth. Nic for starting out. Currently I use it as an ornamental paper weight.

I love the rotary head and hook clamp head. very easy and very stable. Much better than my starter clamp. Whether rotating for chenille or hackle, it works easily and produces a beautiful fly.

I bought this JS EZ Rotary Vise with pedestal, waste bag, and bobbin holder in 2019, and have used it to tie hundreds of flies. I would rate this 3.5 rather than 3, i.e. somewhere better than average. I agree with Aaron G in terms of the inconsistent manufacturing. Mine arrived dinged up in a very cheap cardboard box with torn up foam insert and was slightly bent from shipping abuse, which I informed JS of. They offered to replace it but I ended up taking mine apart, straightening the bent piece, cleaning out grit and metal pieces, oiling it up and working the moving parts after reassembly to get it to operate smoothly; this helped tremendously. I do wish the hook jaws were a bit longer & more pointed for working with smaller hooks (18 and smaller) but its not a deal killer. And after 4 years of use, the connection between curved (rotating arm) and the jaw head bracket has started to get a little loose (no screw to tighten that joint). I'll probably put a dab of JB Weld and keep on truckin'. Ending on a positive note, I am extremely frugal and tied flies for years on the most basic vise there is. Moving "up" to this one with true rotation for much less than the expensive brands worked well for me. If you are similarly minded you won't be disappointed.