Model 201 "Junior" Miniature Vise, silver / black

If you're working on items that generally fit in a hand: cellphones, calculators, small PCB electronics, etc., Panavise Junior will work. Unlike its bigger brother, PanaVise 300 Standard Base it will unlikely tip over since hand sized objects may not be big enough to offset the vise's center of gravity. Its easy enough to screw mount it to a larger flat piece of scrap wood, or as I do, zip tie it to a 5 pound barbell weight plate temporarily. As is, and without extra bulk it makes it easier to transport and use.The jaws are made of plastic, but can resist some amount of heat. However, it won't take being hit directly by a soldering iron. Its rigid enough to hold firmly, and its amazing something made so cheaply work so well. The box says its made in USA, but there are no marks to suggest the same.The vise is made to hold items, while a helping hand Cables To Go Helping Hands with Magnifier is more for smaller items, like holding wires on a PCB, so they complement rather than replace each other.Panavises vises hold value well; auction sites often have 30+ year old used models that fetch 50%+ the cost of new models, or accessories. Older models are much heftier and better finished.There is one option available as of this writing, a wheel you can overlay onto the thumbscrew so you can spin the screw with your finger to get the jaws moving faster.ConsThe finish is fairly crude. Its rough and not the same quality of materials and workmanship of the original Panavise from the 1980s, but it works just as well, and thus, can be forgiven.There are no other vise accessories that fit this base, as of this writing, but the Junior head can be purchased for the standard 300 bases, but it cost as much as the whole Junior!The screw used in the vise is fairly fine, so it takes a lot of turning to get it to open completely. The $5 wheel accessory should be included with the unit, not as an accessory.Despite a lot of copying by counterfeit makers of many electronic products, this is one item I've never seen as counterfeit, so most Panavises I see are genuine, this is one of them.

I got this and a pair of the Model 301 vises to facilitate working on a model ship I'm starting on. I read the few negative reviews at Amazon on both models but went ahead with the purchase because I prefer to buy American on those extremely rare instances where it's possible.Bam! Score! Both models are exquisitely well made and functional. They do exactly what I need for them to do and I couldn't be happier. Excellent quality.One "feature" I needed was the option to mount these to a board I could move around my worktable. Most other options were the kind that c-clamped to a tabletop. Those would not work for me. That narrowed down the field as well. I need to clamp both ends of the keel of my 48" model ship to a fixture that will allow me to move the ship around while I work on various parts of the ship. That's what the model 301's will be used for - attached to either ends of a 1" thick MDF base.This 201 will be used to hold individual smaller parts while I'm working on them - masts, spars and the like. I'll mount this to a small board as well to provide a more solid base for the delicate work or shaping, polishing, painting, rigging etc. on small parts.Expensive compared to the off-shore models offered in great numbers at this site? Yes, they are.Worth every penny? Indeed!

For years I have seen the PanaVise Model 301 vise in stores and never purchased one. I never liked the design of the 301 head for what I need a small vise for. Then I discovered that Amazon carried all the PanaVise models and accessories. I liked the look and design of the Model 201 PV Jr. At first I was skeptical about the plastic jaws thinking they would be cheap even though the specs said thermal plastic. And the rest of the black parts on the head assembly would be plastic also. Well the only plastic parts on this vise are the jaws and adjustment knob, and they appear to be of the same high quality thermal plastic nylon. It has a very fine thread to open and close the jaws (which is what I wanted). It just takes a while to go from full open to full close. Don't worry PanaVise makes a speed control handle (Model 239 and on Amazon for less than $3.50) that will speed this up using all your fingers like on a door knob or just a single index finger in the hole and spin. It's made of the same high quality thermal plastic and snaps on firmly with no tools. For the model railroader (like myself), PCB builder and other delicate craft and hobby users you will love this vise. I do. If you want to add an additional base to this vise then I would suggest the PanaVise Model 308 cast iron base (also on Amazon). It weighs in at 5 lbs and makes this vise rock solid. For delicate work get the Model 204 neoprene jaw pads. You will not be dissapointed with this vise.

I really like this vise, it has a nice weight to it. It comes in handy for certain jobs, of course I have a few other vises of different styles depending on what job I might be needing it for. I only wish the arms/jaws were made of metal instead of plastic, otherwise I would give it 5 stars. It's not the perfect vise for EVERY job but that's why it's nice to have a few of different styles. Seems like a fairly durable vise and I didn't have to spend as much as some of the others out there. They now have a magnetic base available for this vise that makes it much more usable. Without the magnetic base a motherboard would tip it over, with the base installed it's able to hold my motherboard and even put a coffee cup on the board and still held strong, I can even put more pressure on the board with my hand and actually bend the board and the magnetic base still holds well.

Does the job well by holding plugs , circuits, etc. Stays in place - which is what you want. Also there is a complimentary product made by QuadHandswhich fits the Panavise Junior perfectly (it's a base with 4 long adjustable hands which hold small components - look for it on amazon) . The Junior takes no space and could easily get inside a standard drawer

Functional for holding PCBs while working on them, in addition to “helping hands”, for which it is not a replacement but rather a complementing tool. I was a bit disappointed with the plastic jaws at first, but they seem sturdy enough (at least they are non-conducting). The best feature – sits stably on the table and doesn’t go anywhere once placed. Holes for permanent installation are present, but if your electronics lab needs to go into storage after use (temporary setup on the kitchen table, for example), the stability without any fastening gives this vice a whole new dimension. Would buy again, would recommend.

I use this vise to hold my locks while I pick them. It is sturdy when on a flat surface as is. It is also small and light enough to be hand held as well. I would definitely recommend it.

Great product

Product is "tuff", study and great for the price

I bought this vise (with the ribber pads) to help in building a plastic model of a F1 car. It was extremely helpful and made the job much easier.