Hi,
You should be happy with your HF vise. You will probably outgrow it. However, when you outgrow it and get something better there is a good chance you will put it someplace else as a secondary vise.
I paid $19 for the HF vise, on sale. I paid $175 for the new Rockler. I would not go back to the HF. With that said---each of those vises had their problems and their assets. Both of them have cantankerous sliding mechanisms. The Rockler has a very much sturdier mechanism. I really should go back and re-clean the Rockler sliding mechanism. Perhaps I did not get all of the packing goo out of it.
Both of them have problems with the vise faces being true to each other. It is one heck of a lot easier to correct this with the HF. All you have to do is plane the wood vise faces until they are parallel. With the Rockler you have to remove the vise from the bench to do adjusting because the two "Tie Rods"(?) and the screw run through the bench side vise face. I really like this concept. It is just a pain go get things initialized. As is, it is everybit as good as the HF. The Rockler can be improved to surpass the HF improved.
I still have my HF and do not intend to get rid of it.
Enjoy,
Jim
If money is a bit tight, the HF will do you well. It is like a sound system or a car...A certain amount of money buys you a good functional product...As you spend more, it gets better...However, the amount of improvement for the dollar spent drops off. Then when you get to the fancy stuff it takes a lot more money for an improvement that might be apparent only to an affectionado.
The HF has a bit of racking, but so does the Rockler. The Rockler does because I have not planed the wood faces to be parallel when the vise is tight...To a degree that is my fault. However, it seems than $175 should buy you parallel jaws.