Hey All,
I have just started to get into woodworking, thanks to the amazing Paul Sellers.
I have a project that I need to do which involves laminating some boards together. I live in Canada and I have been shopping around for 6/7 bar clamps. They seem to be expensive here. I came across the following and wanted to get some opinions on them to see if they would do for starting out:
https://www.busybeetools.com/products/clamp-f-36in.html
Cheers
Replies
Generic F-clamps like those can be bought in many guises at many differing prices. Keep these buying rules in mind, though:
You get what you pay for ... but ...
You can pay a lot for a label as opposed to what the label is stuck on ... but ....
There are good bargains to be had, new and second-hand.
Getting your eyes and hands on the things for sale helps a lot. This is not easy in the internet age. You also need educated eyes and hands in respect of tools and their qualities - not easily available to a WW newby.
How to wend your way through the thicket of sales blurb coming from the chattering vendors pulling at your virtual sleeve, then?
You can ask in places like this but you'll largely get the opinion, "I like what I bought" which is not necessarily a good judgement for you. You'll also get the useless, "Those look OK" (on a web page!!??) or, "Those are rubbish because they're from [nationality disliked by the xenophobic poster]". Or, "Those will be great because they're from (fanboy's brand of fetish)".
You can also listen to guru-men on the web. Alas, they too are often filled with their own queer prejudices and fetishes rather than any advice that will be good for you. Many of them assume that you too already have their own "40 years of experience" or inclination to spend a hundred man hours fettling some junk rather than making furniture.
Another helpmeet when buying things is the reputation of manufacturers and/or sellers. Even this can be a conjuration of the advertmen! But not always.
In the end, your own experience of buying and using will be the first basis of your tool acquisition. You will probably make some mistakes as did we all when starting out. But keep in mind those first three rules and your mistakes will be less painful.
We ALL learn by our mistakes. There is no "right first time" except by accident or luck. So it pays to be wary of both the goods and those promoting them so the mistakes aren't fatal (to your wallet, persistence or even physical self).
Lataxe, also offering useless advice.
Those look identical to some harbor freight clamps I got some years ago.
They work ok for me up to 18". After that the flex on bar the causes them to bend out quite a bit. They get hard to keep on and clamping power is lost.
I like these as a decent knock of Bessey deep throat F clamps
https://www.grizzly.com/products/Shop-Fox-36-Heavy-Duty-F-Clamps/D2919?iparcelcountry=US&gclid=Cj0KCQjwvvj5BRDkARIsAGD9vlLCkv1tYyFDnyj0nufp9UMrg_zfAmkJEoJOaYz_0Ay2is7v4GNxmPoaAk_JEALw_wcB
I'm not sure how you will order them in Canada. I think you can get them off Amazon. They are pretty heavy duty. Their size makes them a little more awkward to use than a more standard size clamp. They work well for me, except the plastic pads pop off too easily. I replaced them with glued on cork.
I had two bought at a Harbor freight equivalent in Canada, I wrote « had » because they found their way to the garbage can after numerous failures to stay locked after being tightened. If you need to laminate a panel, pipe clamps are your best cheap option, you will need a minimum of one per foot of panel length.
I had some of that type when I first started. They were ok. I haven't used them in years.
Pipe clamps are a good cheap place to start. I only use them now when I have something really longggg to clamp. Skip the 1/2 inch, go for 3/4.
For small jobs, I have various sizes of these Bessey F clamps that I use a lot https://www.amazon.com/Bessey-TG5-512-12-Inch-Heavy-Tradesmen/dp/B00002245H/ref=sr_1_21?crid=1DECOQL3E48XK&dchild=1&keywords=bessey+bar+clamp&qid=1597922079&sprefix=Bessey%2Caps%2C265&sr=8-21
I use these very often. They don't apply much pressure. They are great for holding, not clamping. But working with one hand is a life saver. https://www.amazon.com/IRWIN-QUICK-GRIP-1964758-One-Handed-Clamp/dp/B001DSY4QO/ref=sr_1_2?crid=3LEE98FYXXFP8&dchild=1&keywords=irwin+clamp&qid=1597922251&sprefix=Irwin+%2Caps%2C215&sr=8-2
I use parallel clamps a lot. Same applications as pipe clamps, but the deep throat make them superior to pipe clamps. I have a lot of the original Bessey K body type, but like these from Jet much better https://www.amazon.com/Jet-70431-2-31-Inch-Parallel-Clamp/dp/B000UBKUJK/ref=sr_1_6?crid=ONP8IOPJIZNA&dchild=1&keywords=jet+parallel+clamps+for+woodworking&qid=1597922357&sprefix=Jet+par%2Caps%2C177&sr=8-6
I used a lot of C clamps when I started out. They don't get used at all anymore.
The description of this clamp as shown on the website you provided is "light duty". For me, "light duty" needs to be defined in a meaningful measurement such as psi. Be wary, when a tool is listed as "light duty" it usually means LIGHT.
Let me put it like this...
I have those clamps. I too bought them when i first started out because they were cheap. That was several years ago. Within maybe 2-3 projects their shortcomings were glaringly apparent. I still have them, and they more or less just occupy space on the rack and almost never get used. When they do get used it's to fill a gap between my other clamps, and even then they're not much use. They flex way too much. I've spent so much money on bad clamps over the years I could have just outright bought some good ones. Having said that, the 12 inch ones are good, but I really woudln't recommend them for anything more than that.
I've mostly been using pipe clamps these days for wider glue ups (3/4 pipe, though i do have some 1/2"). It's probably the cheapest, most effective route. You can get your clamp fittings then get various lengths of pipe. I have a selection of 48", 60" and 24" pipes and just swap out the clamp fittings depending on the project. However, pipe clamps also have their downsides, namely the small jaws.
I plan on upgrading to parallel jaw clamps sometime soon.
If I've learned anything in woodworking, it's that you'll never regret spending the money to get a good tool, but you will regret not spending enough when you end up with a crappy one..... stay away from those 36" clamps. Go pipe for now, or bite the bullet on something even better.
I agree with most all of the above; especially that pipe clamps will give you a lot of bang for the buck; and particularly if you can find some used pipe rather than buying it new. I do differ in 1/2" vs 3/4". I have both and I will reach for the 1/2" most of the time. They are a good deal lighter in weight making them less awkward particularly in longer lengths. Also, I find that they will provide the clamping pressure I need 99% of the time.
Buy the Lee valley heavy duty clamps at 37 bucks a bit more money but we’ll worth it ,much better clamp if you are going for an f style clamp.hope this helps cheers.
The Harbor Freight F clamps are actually not bad.
HF also carries the aluminum bar clamps just like the ones Mr. Sellers uses. He has a video on how to doctor them to make them work better.
Don't get in a hurry to buy all the clamps you need. Get on the email list for all the woodworking tool dealers, they put the clamps on sale from time to time and you can save real money. I got a deal on a set of bar clamps at a scratch and dent sale at a local store that has woodworking classes. They had used them in classes but they wouldn't hold tight in places. When I looked at them I could see the teeth were filled with glue and the allen head screws that mesh with the teeth on the bars were worn. I cleaned the bars with vinegar to dissolve the glue and turned all the screws a quarter turn and had a $160 set of bar clamps for $10. Make sure you know how to fix something before you buy it thinking you will get a bargain or you will end up with 10 cents worth of scrap metal that you paid $10 for. I've done that. I've bought some store label clamps that are pretty flimsy but if they will ship to Canada, Menards "Masterforce" F clamps are really stout and fairly cheap. If Craigslist is in Canada, check the tool listing. Pipe clamps are handy. You can put enough pressure on something to crush it so be careful and use cauls. I like Bessey brand because the legs keep them from falling over when you're getting set up but don't buy a ton of them to start with. Buy a couple pipe clamps and a couple parallel jaw and see what works best for you.
Good luck and be safe.
16 CAD seems a bit pricey for those. Lots of good advice here. I will add that my least used clamps are the clutch style F clamps you show. I very much favor the clutchless Bessey style. It is important to figure out which guy you are; clutch or clutchless since this can be a polarizing topic.
Think Bessey K-body versus something like the Jet parallel things. I love my k-body clamps and reach for my Jets last. Someone else feels just the opposite and we are both right ;-)
It is good to hear that the Shop Fox clamps are an option to the Bessey Tradsman F clamps; I had often wondered.
That being said, when I run out of other clamps, my old Jorgie f-style and even a few no-names come into play and do fine. I agree that these "medium" duty clamps start to become too flexible at some length. The limit will vary with the quality.
As mentioned, don't buy them all at once. Buy a few of what you think you might need and add them as your projects demand. I just kept buying whenever I saw a good price until one day I could do just about anything without running out of clamps.
P.s. No one ever got fired for buying 3/4" pipe clamps. I use them rarely and only for really long stuff but, wouldn't want to be without a few.
Go used. Find some yard sale, estate sale, etc. Clamp technology really hasn't changed much and there can be some good used ones out there.
I'm a relative newbie and love my parallel clamps. I'm on the woodpeckers mailing list and got an offer today for 4 Bora clamps (2-24", 2-31") for $99.
I can't speak to Bora because I don't have anything from them (or woodpeckers for that matter...fun to look at though), but if they are decent quality, that's a good price.
https://www.woodpeck.com/bora-portamate-parallel-clamp-4-piece-set.html
Agree that you look for used ones at garage and estate sales. You can find lots of good woodworking stuff cheap that way. But also note that sometimes you an achieve your clamping goal by using weights on top of your workpieces.
Thanks for all the great feedback. I decided to go the pipe clamp route for now and will gradually add more. I bought some Bessey 3/4 pipe clamps, then I can pick up some cheap piping. Much more affordable and I like how they work from watching videos on them.
I have a commercial account at Home Depot for my business. Every time I need something business related I roll through the clamp aisle and pick up a pair of bessey clamps. I sneak them from my truck to the shop and my wife, also the bookkeeper has no idea. I am getting quite the collection. In other words don't get them all at once but in small installments. I also got some of the HF ones and regret it now as about half are missing pads now.
Clamps are like beer, there isn't never enough.
Clamps can BECOME beer! I had a pal in my shop in February to help with a glueup... I had commented on the phone the week before that I must have a hundred clamps in the shop. He looked around and bet me a case that I could not pull out the 100 clamps. 10 minutes later he was headed to the distributor.
@sclause and @_MJ_ I think you both have the right of the clamp Zen.
You can never have too many clamps. No-one ever wished to have one fewer clamps. Even those cheap F-clamps get pressed into service occasionally, though a good tool will of course do way more than a poor one.
A good clamp is any clamp you don't get into trouble for buying....
I'm happy if Santa brings me any clamp. All get used eventually...
Have you ever considered Jim Tolpin's wedge clamping stands for panels? Here's some made from scrap and a dry run practice before clamping a panel.
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