The history of the J-Vice (2)

Around the end of 2003 the vice ended up in the hands of Hans Weilenmann and as a fellow countryman I know Hans very well, not only as an excellent fly tier but also as one of the world’s most knowledgeable tiers when it comes to vices. While I published most of my work in the Netherlands, U.K. and Scandinavia, he wrote articles and reviews for American Flyfisherman magazine. I loved his work and it was amazing to read his articles. Besides that, when Hans tells you a vice is good, you can count on it. He was impressed with the J-Vice and Jay listened carefully to Hans’ few concerns, and they were taken into account by Jay. They improved the vice even further. Hans’ review, in combination with some questionnaires, later helped me make the important decision to chose the J-Vice as my final one. The review from Hans in the U.S., but also other reviews and positive words from people like Americans Peter Frailey and Dean Childs, and local South African tiers like Ben Pretorius, Ed Herbst and Tom Sutcliffe were all responsible for the J-Vice getting a lot of international recognition and attention that increased Jay’s sales enormously.

The J-Vice has undergone considerable evolution since Hans wrote his review. The Gooseneck is now the standard vice and gives considerably more hook height adjustment and hand access. The original double action cam for clamping the hook has been replaced by a three-stage unidirectional clamping action, upward toward the gooseneck. The rotating lever has been replaced with a crank handle on a 10mm stem. The current J-Vice is made from solid brass for all the thumbscrews and adaptors, 316 stainless steel for the main shaft and bar stock aluminium for the main housing bushes and fittings (These are anodized silver as standard with red, blue, green and black as options.) The bushes, which act as clutch and brake mechanism in the main housing, are turned from Ertalite. This is an extremely durable material used for bushes and bearings in heavy machine engineering and gives a smooth clutch action when setting the large thumbscrew.

About further improvements Jay wrote:  “What the future holds I can’t say for certain – but development never stops. Responding to feedback from customers and interpreting their ideas has led to the development and manufacture of the attachment for tying Clousers, articulated bobbin holders and a backdrop card holder for photography, J bobbin, hackle plier, on base dubbing brush maker, stand alone long fibre brush maker, Bodkin Dubbing spinner, mini deer hair stacker and a deer hair packer. The vice keeps evolving. The basics have remained which makes upgrades, add-ons and customization easy. At the moment, looking at what else is on the market, I think it is fair to say that there is no vice available that is as versatile and multi-faceted as this one”.

I fully agree with that because I have since spoken to many J-Vice owners who also agree. Several of them mentioned that Jay made unique accessories on special request. That’s something not many vice makers will do. I know even a few people who use Jay’s midge head accessory with a special adapter made for them by Jay to use exclusively on their Regals.

Jay’s passion for and care about his clients is also evident in his service and sales. “A perfect service” is his slogan and he certainly lives up to it. Important to know is the fact that the J-Vice is not available through shops because Jay prefers to interact with his customers. I can personally confirm this because we had extensive communication through WhatsApp before my J-Vice choice was put together and sent to me. Jay told me that only through good communication can he fully understand his client’s requirements and it allows him to ensure that each vice is setup perfectly for each individual.  How good Jay’s administration and how far his passion goes I witnessed when I tried to find the first owner of a particular J-Vice that was used in China. Within a few minutes Jay could tell me who owned the vice originally and I was able to tell him who had became the new owner as well. Each J-Vice base, GooseNeck, brushmaker and J-Bobbin has its unique number.

Also good to know is that the J-Vice comes with a lifetime guarantee – Jay’s life that is. But don’t worry the vice is so well made that the chance you will ever need his warranty service is very slim and his vice really should last you a lifetime.

About his exclusive base pack or workstation as I call it, Jay says: “I found that most tables and surfaces at fishing lodges often weren’t suitable to take a clamp and were often in an unsuitable location. The oak base is designed to allow laptop tying while sitting on a deck chair preferably with an ale or whiskey close at hand. I figured that if thousands of businessmen could tote laptop computers around the world a laptop-sized base would work well and fit into a standard PC laptop bag. The problem was that laptop bags are pretty pricey and often cost as much or more than the vice, so I had to design a less expensive bag to keep every thing together“.  Jay designs the bases from solid woods and offers a lighter version with a wooden frame and special foam inside.