McSpunckle wrote:This thing is awesome and everyone should own one:
http://www.sparkfun.com/products/10410
It's tiny, operates smoothly, and the vacuum base is WAY strong. I've been using the little vise from Harbor Freight, but this is way better.
The only issue with it is that it's mostly plastic. Some more critical bits are metal (the screw and pins the jaws move on and the clamp that locks the head in place), but it doesn't really seem cheap, unless you're the type that thinks everything plastic feels cheap. The only reason it bothers me is that a soldering iron can melt the plastic jaws if you hold it on them.
But yeah. If you do a lot of soldering, grab one. You'll be glad you did. Way better than soldering on your desk or in a 3rd hand.
And update on the Panavise.
They sell these neoprene (synthetic rubber) jaw pads that are -great.- They're only a few bucks. They won't melt when the soldering iron touches them, and they're squishy, so they hold circuits boards really well.
With those, this thing is -perfect.-
http://www.amazon.com/Panavise-204-Pana ... 188&sr=1-1
Mouser has them too. You'll have to search "Panavise 204", but they're there.
...not always though.
