Glacern Standard vise vs. Shars CNC vise

tkollen · Jun 2, 2013

I am currently shopping around for a good 5" milling vise. Ideally I want a Kurt but I don't have that kind of money to spend. So far I have narrowed down my choices to either a 5" Glacern GSV-550 or a 5" 550V CNC vise from Shars. From pictures and specs I've seen they seem identical, from the same source but with different labels. The price difference however is substantial, $335 for the Glacern vs. $235 for the Shars.

Does anyone know if they are the same or has anyone any experience with either one or ideally both that they could share?

MichaelP · Jun 2, 2013

I've heard good feedbacks on Glacern vises, but for this amount of money you can find a used Kurt quite easily. That's what I'd do.

PeteM · Jun 2, 2013

+1 to Michael's recommendation. I'm about to sell a pair of nice 5" Kurts around $250 each (replacing them with three 4" Kurts). Too far from you for affordable shipping, but I'd suggest looking for the genuine article on the East Coast. Nice used ones will be about the same price (or less) than new imports, have better castings and likely more accurate surfaces.

My vague recollection is that Glacern gaurantees the accuracy of the grind. That might justify the $100 extra in price.

The cheapest imports often omit the hemispheric ball for the lock down mechanism, using a cast iron "ramp" of sorts instead. I'd guess that both the imports you're looking at will, at least, not make that shortcut.

SBAER · Jun 3, 2013

I've bought lots of stuff from Shars and been happy with most of it, but the vise I bought from them was pretty bad.

chainfeed · Jun 3, 2013

ditto on a used kurt. Don't buy china machine stuffs.

stephen thomas · Jun 3, 2013

Dunno what the freight difference to you between the west coast and whatever your nearest import dealer is; but if I was looking for a 5" machine vise and PeteM was selling a 5" Kurt, I would not hesitate for an instant.

I've bought lots of stuff from Pete and been extremely happy with it.

smt

JRIowa · Jun 3, 2013

First of all, Kurt no longer makes a 5" vise. They make a 4 and a 6". The 6" is cheaper than the 4". If you really want a Kurt 5" vise for your mill/drill, you'll have to find a used one.
JR

Ron of Va · Jun 3, 2013

The 6” Kurt Vise model 688 is on sale at Enco for $529.
Enco - Guaranteed Lowest Prices on Machinery, Tools and Shop Supplies

Sale code for 30% off ends today 6/3/2013: THIRTY
Free shipping code; VIPFREE or SHIPVIP

$529.00 - $158.70 = $370.30

You should consider this.

tkollen · Jun 3, 2013

Thanks for your advise guys. I e-mailed the same question to Shars and here is their answer:

"I am not sure about Glacern's manufacture on this item. From what I know about ours is that they are made in Taiwan and are very comparable to the Kurt series. I have not had a defective return on this item also the specs @shars.com are very accurate. Let me know if you need anything else."

They seem to kind of confirming my suspicion. At least their stuff is not Chinese but made in Taiwan.

PeteM, I will think about your offer and may get back to you.

Spencer in NH · Jun 3, 2013

It is reported that some manufacturers in China say their product is made in Taiwan to take advantage of the perception of US customers.

See: http://www.practicalmachinist.com/v...-machine-tools-experience-266571/#post2045535

Caveat Emptor.

Buy the Kurt.

(I have three D675 vises, and they are fine. And supported. And relatively cheap.)

Solo Inventor · Jun 3, 2013

If you do buy a Shars vise make sure you take it apart and check the interface between the 'half ball' and the ramp. I bought one of their cheapest 6 inch milling vises and while they at least included the half ball design it was kind of useless (moving jaw still lifted) due to the poor surface finishes but it only took about 15 minutes of filing and sanding to fix it. Other than that it seemed fine.

72bwhite · Jun 3, 2013

Look at the teco vise same price range as Glacern

feets · Jun 3, 2013

tkollen said:
At least their stuff is not Chinese but made in Taiwan.

Seriously?

Taiwan is a Chinese province. They want to break away but they are not recognized as an independent nation.

MetalCarnage · Jun 3, 2013

No direct knowledge though I believe I read somewhere that the Shars vise used regular threads on it's screw rather than acme threads. It might be worth checking out before laying down any money.

-Ron

tkollen · Jun 3, 2013

feets said:
Seriously?

Taiwan is a Chinese province. They want to break away but they are not recognized as an independent nation.

Yes seriously. Since you have been a member here since 2004 you ought to know that people in the machinist community distinguish between ROC Taiwan and DCR China all the time, especially when it comes to quality of machinist tooling.

With regard to which country can claim sovereignty over the other country, fact is that both countries are internationally recognized as independent countries and both countries make the same claim visavi the other country in their respective constitutions. However that discussion doesn't belong here and I suggest you take it elsewhere.

Racebrewer · Jun 3, 2013

Been there, done that........

The first morning in Taiwan, I stopped in a 7-11 and bought a diet Coke. The guy behind the counter looked at me and said "Good Morning!".

Please don't confuse the two. Taiwan recognizes itself as an independent nation and the U.S. recognizes that. Wonderful, independent, and peace loving people.

John

Milacron · Jun 3, 2013

feets said:
Seriously?

Taiwan is a Chinese province. They want to break away but they are not recognized as an independent nation.

Nothing to do with politics and everything to do with quality. Exceptions will always crop up, but in general Taiwanese machines and tools are much better quality than Chinese...been that way for decades now. Some Taiwanese CNC machines are excellent quality.

scadvice · Jun 4, 2013

Here is a 3" Kurt vise on ebay, haven't seen one of those for a while. I think I would go for one of the 5" first though.

Nice Kurt 3" Anglock D30 Precision Milling Machine Vise | eBay

ranchak · Jun 4, 2013

Ron of Va said:
The 6” Kurt Vise model 688 is on sale at Enco for $529.
Enco - Guaranteed Lowest Prices on Machinery, Tools and Shop Supplies

Sale code for 30% off ends today 6/3/2013: THIRTY
Free shipping code; VIPFREE or SHIPVIP

$529.00 - $158.70 = $370.30

You should consider this.

You can't apply both promo codes.

Parkerbender · Jun 4, 2013

We got a pair of glacerns pretty much as they were coming out, three maybe four years ago... and I like them a lot! I mean, I still want to buy some oranges, but they are still doing their job every day, running parts in them right now, actually. They like to plug with chips so you have to clean them every month or so, but we don't use the little shield plate, and the shars probably do it too.

I havnt bought the shars 6" vises, but I bought four double vises from them one time, tried to grind them into shape, gave up, and sold them at a loss on an internet auction. worst things I have ever seen. Fixed center jaw would move almost .050", even with grade 8's and dowels in them. Terrible.

Glacern Standard vise vs. Shars CNC vise

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