In any case, at this point, I'm mostly concerned with the quality of the
vises. That second vise is fairly common and can be purchased from any
number of sources besides Pits_Online.

Actually the first vise may not actually be any better. They may just make
it look more appealing. :-)

Have you looked at Enco's version? It looks about like the Clark in their
online catalog but in their current sales catalog it looks like the other
one. It's currently on sale for $84.95. According to the back page of the
catalog they're offering free UPS shipping until the end of May if you enter
promo code NRUPF45 and that vise is within UPS's weight limits but they have
an asterisk beside it indicating truck shipment. It may be marked wrong so
you may be able to get them to do the free shipping.

Best Regards,
Keith Marshall


"I'm not grown up enough to be so old!"


"DeepDiver" wrote in message
...
"Keith Marshall" wrote in message
. com...
Based on a fair bit of eBay experience I'd go with the 1st one. The
buyer has had at least 690 transactions with no negative feedback.
That's pretty remarkable in my book.

On the other hand, the 2nd seller has a feedback rating of 98.3% and IMHO
anything under 99% is dangerous unless you look at their feedback and see
a valid reason for it. I looked at a few of his negatives and they all
say things like rude, no response to emails, really slow shipping, 5
weeks to receive item, etc...

BTW, in case you're interested, the 1st seller wants $180 for that vise
if you use Buy It Now but based on an earlier sale it looks like his
reserve is $140.00.


Hi Keith, thanks for the feedback.

I had already asked about the reserve on the first vise auction and you
are correct: it is $140.

I have been impressed with the email communications I've been having with
Machinery Exchange (the dealers of the first vise sold under the "Clark"
name). They have been responsive, informative, polite, and professional:
all consistent with their 100% positive feedback rating.

To be fair to the second seller (Pits_Online), I purchased from them
before about three years ago when I was first getting started in
machining, and they did provide excellent service at that time. I had
bought from them (via Ebay) a number of items and Pits_Online was great
about combining the auctions into a single shipment (no excessive charges
either, even though the total shipment was quite heavy). When I got the
package, one of the items (an import toolmaker's vise -- the heaviest item
in the shipment) had a manufacturing defect (buggered threads, IIRC).
Also, a set of insert boring bars was not what I had expected. They agreed
to exchange the vise with a new one and promptly sent a replacement (which
was perfect) at their cost; they also refunded me for the boring bars, all
with no fuss. They even refunded me back the shipping costs I paid to
return to them the defective vise and boring bar set! I thought that was
exceptional service from an Ebay seller.

Unfortunately, Pits_Online's recent feedback has been less than stellar.
Perhaps they have new management.

In any case, at this point, I'm mostly concerned with the quality of the
vises. That second vise is fairly common and can be purchased from any
number of sources besides Pits_Online.

Regards,
Michael