PM-30 Vice Size

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wileel

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Ok guys, Cart is full and about to pull the trigger and order my PM-30 but cant decide on what size vice....I'm getting the PM precision swivel vise but do I get 4 or 5 inch? I know its probable not the not the best on the market but want a decent starter set up that I can make mistakes on...
It looks like most have the 4" but the 5" is only a couple bucks more...being a man I automatically default to bigger is better but don't want to get it and have it cumbersome.
From the specs the mill has an 8" table but the info on the vices is a little wonky on the site, it shows the same dimensions under the descriptions (17x11x7), and the shipping sizes (15.5x10.5x8) so that doesn't make choosing any easier...

Can anyone advise please?
 
I have a 4" on mine and the only thing I found that I wanted different was wider jaws, so I ordered some 5" jaws from monster jaws. Haven't installed them yet, I'm adding a halo led on the spindle and a 12v power supply, then the new jaws.
 
So do you think the 5" vice would be overkill or a better purchase to get the wider grip?
 
Ok, any other concerns I need to think about using a "non standard" size...parallels or blocks going to be a concern?
 
I think that a vise can be too big for a milling table. An important measurement is the distance between the mounting holes of the vise and the location of the table slots. A big vise may interfere with travel in Y and overhang your hand wheel dials at the same time. It blocks your line of sight to the wheel and can be a pain when using the handle to tighten the vise. Big is fine but sometimes just right is better.

My RF-31 table is 8X28 and a 4" Kurt fits both the table and my needs quite nicely.
 
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And this is why I'm indecisive...I don't have the actual measurements or the experience. Either way I'll be good as a beginner but done want to begin at a disadvantage if I can avoid it, esp or the nominal cost difference
 
Why not call Matt and have him give you the measurements and his recommendation?
 
I'm deployed right now but I sent an email. They are sleeping so thought I would see what the rest of the world thought.

I did see someone (7milesup) has a 5 inch on his 833 and it has the same table depth as the 30...here it looks a tad too big but unfortunately I don't have the practical experience do know what is best. Seems like he was happy with it tho
 
My mill has an 8x30 table and I have a four inch Kurt. There've been two incidents so far that I wish I had a bigger vise. One I was able to fit my piece by removing the jaws and placing them in the alternate positions, although not ideal it worked okay. The other I just milled the part on the table with clamps.
 
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