Official Luthiers Forum!

So I wandered into one of the big box stores a week or so ago and found my way to the tool section looking for some clamps, and found some of Jorgensen's Gear Clamps. Having never seen them before, I decided to give them a try. By far, the easiest and best clamps I've bought in ages. The ratcheting grip makes tightening them a breeze, and the jaws remain parallel and don't twist on you. The clamping pressure is just right. I'm often annoyed with the Quick-grip type of clamp where I never quite feel like I've got it tight enough. These feel great. I just wish I could get those in a longer version!

Anyone else have these?

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"I want to know what kind of pickups Vince Gill uses in his Tele, because if I had those, as good of a player as I am, I'm sure I could make it sound like that.
Only badly."

I've never seen them before but being another quick grip dissatisfied guy, I'll give them a try. Thanks for the heads up.

How much are they?

I think the 12" ones are around $20 from Home Depot, and $34 at Woodcraft. Guess which place I would buy them?

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"I want to know what kind of pickups Vince Gill uses in his Tele, because if I had those, as good of a player as I am, I'm sure I could make it sound like that.
Only badly."

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Bobby Masten

Don, I hope they work out well for you. In some reading online, I'm seeing reports of the gear wearing out and the clamps giving way. Don't wish to be negative ... just wanted to share that so you keep an eye and don't end up with a failure (or safety!) issue in your work.

I agree on the quik clamps ... they are handy and frustrating both! ... in the myriad of clamps we all own, where I want stable clamp pressure I have ended up with the Bessey screw clamps with rubber coated handles. Either Woodcraft on sale or Klingspor store online.

Please let us know how your Jorgensen clamps work out over the next few months!

Andy

Andy, like anything, I suspect that there are those who manhandle their clamps and treat them unkindly! You can ruin just about any clamp if you over-tighten them.
So far, no issues with the gears etc.

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"I want to know what kind of pickups Vince Gill uses in his Tele, because if I had those, as good of a player as I am, I'm sure I could make it sound like that.
Only badly."

They Are identical ( almost) to a pair I bought for a Festool track saw track, difference being the top jaw is rectangular in cross section its full length. Had them for years and work flawlessly. You can apply a lot of pressure with them.


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"It is easier to fool a man, than it is to convince him that he has been fooled"
Mark Twain

I've found the quick grip clamps are good only for holding and positioning, I don't use them for clamping any sort of glue up.


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"It is easier to fool a man, than it is to convince him that he has been fooled"
Mark Twain

If you need more clamping force than these will provide for guitar work, you are doing something wrong.

I prefer these as an alternative to wooden cam clamps (I use cam clamps quite a bit too though): [url]Bessey KLI3.008 8-Inch Ratcheting KliKlamp https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00008K2TD/re ... 1wbE6N72SS[/url]. They are very light and work quite well.

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Aaron Craig

It isn't the amount of force, jac, it is how it is applied. I.e. Direction and alignment of jaws.


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"It is easier to fool a man, than it is to convince him that he has been fooled"
Mark Twain

I have a few like these but they're Bessey brand. I'm always picking up some clamps since you can never have to many.
https://www.google.com/search?q=bessey+ ... uA4N1QM%3A


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Another day, another dollar.

I have a bunch of the quick grips and they work just fine within the mechanical parameters of what they are. They are fine for glue-ups but you need a lot of them. After all, they do provide more pressure than a go bar so how would they not be usable? That said, they certainly aren't bar clamps and shouldn't be expected to perform to that level. All clamps are different, and for good reason. When you need a bar clamp then use a bar clamp. If you really need a lot of pressure then go find a big C clamp.

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Steve Smith
"Music is what feelings sound like"

Well said, Steve.

So far, these clamps have performed admirably. The only complaint indeed is the pads that just want to fall off. I love how you can crank them tight and there is absolutely no sense that they want to twist the work at all. Cam clamps always tend toward wanting to slide the pieces laterally, since the clamping force is not perpendicular to the work. And clamps that you turn often seem to try to twist a bit. These clamp absolutely straight.
I've solved the pad issue with some double-sided tape... easy.

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"I want to know what kind of pickups Vince Gill uses in his Tele, because if I had those, as good of a player as I am, I'm sure I could make it sound like that.
Only badly."