A better helping hands tool

[akis]

I have two "hands free / helping hands tools with magnifying glass" - had them for years and years. They are very badly made. Their base/weight is too small, even a PCB with a few components tips them over. Their articulated arms are badly engineered and they stick, there is no smoothness in their movement or adjustment.

Does anyone know of a better/heavier/more precise tool?

[kg4arn]

I like panavise. 
https://panavise.com

[VK5RC]

I have found the panavise holds things too high off the bench, I haven't fully explored all the panavise options but the general vice holds things about 10inches off the bench, way too high for soldering for me.
I have the PCB grip system, which looks more 'configurable' but have yet to get it right for me. 

[Fred27]

Panavise used to be hard to get hold of in the UK, but seem to be stocked by Farnell now. Or maybe they always did and I never noticed.

[artag]

There are low-profile versions of the base and vice which knock about 3 inches off the height, at the cost of less flexibility in positioning.

I find the standard height good for bench work, but it's high when I'm working under a microscope.

There's also this interesting idea :

http://hackaday.com/tag/3rd-hand/

[DTJ]

Have you seen these Stickvises? I'm thinking of making a couple.

Easy to knock up and they lay flat on the bench.

If you google around there are a number of different customizations to hold wires, connectors etc. There's even a few wooden ones for the vegans among us. 


EDIT - you can use that cheap ball & socket air / coolant nozzle stuff instead of 3D printing your own.

[akis]

The helping hands that I use have two crocodile clips at the end of two semi-articulated arms and they are most excellent for convenience, for example to hold wires in place while soldering, and in general for holding small things for soldering, all the way up to holding small PCBs while placing components and then soldering

The problems are

1) the articulated arms are very badly made, with no precision fittings and trying to make accurate adjustments is hard (and annoying)
2) the weighted base is not heavy enough to hold the device in place even for the most minor works, a medium size PCB makes it tip over
3) The crocodile clips are medium size, metal and have teeth - they are too weak for holding onto a medium size PCB and too strong for holding onto thin wires (say 24 AWG) as they bite into the plastic sheath

Ideally I would like a "helping" hands with 4 arms, not just 2, like the Indian deity what's her name, I will pass on the boobs but otherwise it'd be an extra bonus, with interchangeable crocodile clips, with and without teeth, with a heavy duty base (like 1kg or more), and made with precision so that the arms can be adjusted easily.

[janoc]

Have you seen these Stickvises? I'm thinking of making a couple.

Easy to knock up and they lay flat on the bench.

If you google around there are a number of different customizations to hold wires, connectors etc. There's even a few wooden ones for the vegans among us. 


EDIT - you can use that cheap ball & socket air / coolant nozzle stuff instead of 3D printing your own.

I have the SparkFun "helping hand" (or rather squid/octopus - it has 4 arms!) made out of those coolant hoses. The good thing is that that can hold even a large board. The bad things are - difficult to position, the hoses are stiff and difficult to bend where you want them and it is too high above the bench (about 2x as high as a normal helping hand!). Also flipping the board over while soldering is a major pain.

The stickvises I haven't tried yet, but I have one of those Chinese holders (second image from the top), eBay and Alliexpress are full of those. It is fairly useless for normal work, but it works OK for small SMD boards which are otherwise too small to hold reliably in a helping hand/vise.

If you want to work on PCBs, it is probably best to forget about any "helping hands" type of tool and get something like this:
http://www.conrad-electronic.co.uk/ce/en/product/811394/Weller-PCB-Holder-Mounting-Frame
Or the Panavise vise with the PCB holder (expensive).

These tools allow you to quickly flip the board over as you are populating it - useful for through-hole work.


If you don't want to spend money on a Panavise, get one of those ball-jointed vises:
http://www.conrad-electronic.co.uk/ce/en/product/815880/Basetech-815880-Ball-joint-vice-Jaw-width73-mm-Span-clamping-jaws55-mm?ref=searchDetail

There are some with plastic/rubber jaws - then you clamp the board by its edge in the vise and often it is good enough.

The helping hands are useful for things like soldering wires to connectors or holding things in place while gluing them. Not so much for populating PCBs.

[Mark]

I recently purchased the Dremel Multi Vise which is surprisingly good, I regret not buying it sooner.  Amazon UK had it for £21 but it has gone up in price now.  There is a lot of plastic, but it is surprisingly sturdy and doesn't need to be over-tightened to stay sturdy.  It holds PCBs for soldering perfectly and is quickly and easily adjustable.  It would not be suitable for heavier duty like holding wood for sawing. 

[ciccio]

I've tried a lot of helping hands with some disappoint.
When assembling PCB i use an (expensive) dedicated support (see link below: it's labeled Ideal Tech, but is built in Italy).
http://www.distrelec.it/it/telaio-di-posa-sicurezza-esd-500-220-mm-ideal-tek-pcsa/p/18249489?q=*&filter_Category3=Materiali+di+brasatura&filter_Manufacturer=Ideal+Tek&filter_Buyable=1&page=5&origPos=5&origPageSize=50&simi=99.5&manufacturerCode=man_idealtek
For simpler works, I built a lot of  very simple gadgets, using a clothes clamp and a piece of sheet metal, glued with hot-melting glue. See Cheapest photo below. Clamp must not be plastic, or the soldering iron will damage it, wood is better.
For heavier work, such as connector wiring, I use a simple plastic  vice like the one in the other photo (Cheap). Cost: less than 10 euros.
It is useful even for soldering small pcbs.

Best regards

[savril]

For SMD work, my preference go to the AOYUE 328. It is not the best quality product I've seen but it hold really well the board. And the metal binding make it suitable for hot air. It is far more stable than the stickvise with credit card size (the second image from DTJ post).

[robrenz]

Old threads but might be useful

Hemostat mod 1
Hemostat mod 2

[Gyro]

You could always knock up or modify your own (see attached pics).

A couple of other threads (thought this one seemed familiar):

https://www.eevblog.com/forum/beginners/soldering-surface-ideas/

https://www.eevblog.com/forum/projects/stickvise/

[bills]

I have one of these and it works great.
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00Q2TTQEE?psc=1&redirect=true&ref_=oh_aui_detailpage_o04_s00

[GreyWoolfe]

I have a couple of different Panavise units and a couple of different basic helping hands.  I really only use the helping hands for soldering wires.  everything else is done with the Panavise.

[tooki]

I have one of these and it works great.
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00Q2TTQEE?psc=1&redirect=true&ref_=oh_aui_detailpage_o04_s00

I have one of those, it's not bad for the price!!

I also have one of these, which is fantastic for wires and weird shaped boards: http://www.amazon.com/Hobby-Creek-Helping-Hands-Soldering/dp/B010C504NK/ref=pd_sim_469_5?ie=UTF8&dpID=41kzIPlZaZL&dpSrc=sims&preST=_AC_UL160_SR160%2C160_&refRID=0AN2M5Z4BA6NVP818SJG

It's worth every cent. (It's based on the coolant pipes others have mentioned already.)

Also, it says a lot about how such helping hands tools and Panavises complement each other that the manufacturer sells Panavise products alongside its own on its website: http://www.hobbycreek.com/shop/

I've been wanting a Panavise, but unfortunately here in Europe, they're hard to find and are extremely expensive (like 3x the US prices!!).

[Shock]

I have a couple of these $15 each, quite flexible and can be used for tinning and holding both small and large objects.

[MrSlack]

I still use the original cheap and nasty Chinese ones. Throw the magnifying glass away, vaseline all the balls (ooerr) and it's fine. The screw threads wear in after a few weeks and stop being lumpy and the clips loosen up a bit. As for weight, I clamp the whole thing in my drill vice if I need more mass.

[wblock]

I have a couple of these $15 each, quite flexible and can be used for tinning and holding both small and large objects.

The V-grooves in the jaws are useful for holding small boards.  It takes a while to change sizes, though.  I'm thinking of trying to fit a small bar clamp instead of the vise head.

[tggzzz]

Consider changing the problem: put the magnifying glass on your head so that it is always optimally positioned. Bonuses: stereo vision and change the magnification by swapping lenses.

Many places sell these: http://uk.farnell.com/lightcraft/lc1765/led-headband-magnifier/dp/1826445 Some types are 1/3 the price and perfectly acceptable

[fivefish]

I want to get/try one of these... it just seems so expensive.

[Julez]

I like the GRS line of helping hands tools.
http://www.grstools.com/for-jewelry-work/third-hands-and-soldering-stations/third-hand-with-soldering-station.html


The base, however, needed improvement. I had a machine shop make me a U-shaped base from 3mm stainless steel, the sides are folded up about 15mm. So it doubles as a tray for small parts. These are perfect, I can post images tonight.

[nidlaX]

I have one of these and it works great.
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00Q2TTQEE?psc=1&redirect=true&ref_=oh_aui_detailpage_o04_s00

Another vote for this type of stand for small - medium scale PCB work. I have this identical model: http://www.amazon.com/Adjustable-Soldering-Rotisserie-spring-clamp-rotation-lock/dp/B01709B0PW/ - was cheaper when available.

[Circuitous]

I hadn't seen the Tested review of the GRS Tools hands.
I stumbled upon the GRS Tools after some heavy searching, and they're great.  The company is just down the road from me.... down I-35 about 100 miles, but this is Kansas, so that's not reall all that far.

Here's my quick review:
https://youtu.be/UNu4pcFq15Y?t=2m51s

[gdewitte]

Not inexpensive, but some good ideas http://solderbuddy.com/

[VK5RC]

Oooh,  I would love to be able to make tools like robrenz,  mine end up looking as though some clumsy ape made it.  (it is the case)
Another possible holder
https://www.hobbyking.com/mobile/viewproduct.asp?idproduct=17626

[janoc]

Not inexpensive, but some good ideas http://solderbuddy.com/

Not inexpensive? Asking 40+ bucks for a piece of wood with an aligator clip on a piece of wire?!? Whooa. That is ridiculous.

[tooki]

But they're for audiophile cables, err, I mean, "interconnects". The lacquer finish of the soldering jig will affect the sonic performance of the stereo system! It has to cost a lot or it won't be good! 

[LaurentR]

QuadHands

Not cheap but nice.
http://smile.amazon.com/QuadHands-Four-Helping-Hands-Soldering/dp/B00GIKVP5K/

[KL27x]

Not inexpensive? Asking 40+ bucks for a piece of wood with an aligator clip on a piece of wire?!?

Maybe you didn't catch the double negative. Not inexpensive == expensive. 

I like to try new things. I keep buying helping hands and then loving them and then throwing them away when I need the bench space and realize I hardly ever use them. I have yet to come a big enough task where they actually save me time or effort over other alternatives.

[Julez]

Ha, I just found photos of my contraption I posted years ago in another forum...

[Julez]

I dismantled my GRS helping hands:

https://www.eevblog.com/forum/reviews/a-better-helping-hands-tool/msg835225/#msg835225

[rx8pilot]

Ha, I just found photos of my contraption I posted years ago in another forum...

Me likey likey.

[nanofrog]

Another Panavise user (376, 315, and 303 heads with a 300 base). Used a steel plate for the base mount. 

You can also DIY some helping hands that actually work from segmented CNC coolant hose, such as Loc-Line (inexpensive stuff from China is stiffer than expected, so will work). Jeton is another name brand (COO = Taiwan), but the pricing is about the same as Loc-Line brand. Any of it will work though.  Take a look here for some links to examples (photo of the Desk Squid). 






Base mounted tweezers can be useful as well, such as tinning wire or used to DIY your own custom helping hands as well (alligator clips, tweezers, hemostats, ...). You can also get the parts separately, or just buy an entire helping hand with double jointed pivot assemblies (disassemble for parts, as it's less expensive if you mean to make more than one).



Flexible metal tubing used for camera mounts could be useful too (threads =  1/4"- 10, length = 1/4").



FWIW, the following type of Dial Gauge Holder could be handy as a tool or probe holder as well. 



Based on what I've seen for eBay pricing, the DIY ideas above are reasonable on your wallet too. 

[LaurentR]

I hadn't seen the Tested review of the GRS Tools hands.
I stumbled upon the GRS Tools after some heavy searching, and they're great.  The company is just down the road from me.... down I-35 about 100 miles, but this is Kansas, so that's not reall all that far.

Here's my quick review:
https://youtu.be/UNu4pcFq15Y?t=2m51s

Another vote for the GRS third hands. I tried everything, the cheapo ones, the Hobby Creek platic ones, the QuadHands flexible ones, but the GRS are it. Expensive most definitely, but much better than anything else I have tried.

[dfmischler]

Count me with the Panavise people.  I, too, have 376, 315, and 303 heads, with both standard and low profile bases.  I also have a Panavise Junior (201).  I have one of those things with the alligator clips, but it doesn't seem to stay where I put it as well as the Panavise stuff.

[LaurentR]

Count me with the Panavise people.  I, too, have 376, 315, and 303 heads, with both standard and low profile bases.  I also have a Panavise Junior (201).  I have one of those things with the alligator clips, but it doesn't seem to stay where I put it as well as the Panavise stuff.

I love the Panavise Jr too. For board soldering, it's great.

The third hands are awesome for cables, connectors and other odd-shaped items and as a third hand for the Panavise.

[nanofrog]

I have one of those things with the alligator clips, but it doesn't seem to stay where I put it as well as the Panavise stuff.

If you go with a DIY route using the CNC segmented coolant line, you'll have much better results IME. 

[Samogon]

Hakko omnivise especially two of them pretty versatile.

[blacksheeplogic]

Hakko omnivise especially two of them pretty versatile.

I have four of these, with the top 'jaw' removed I use them under the board for support as well. I like them but they can be a bit of a pain to use if you need to reposition the board on the bench.

[Samogon]

They are ok for small boards, if you use four i assume it is rather big. For this case it is cumbersome to move and impossible to incline, fo that purpose panavase fits better.