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What method do you use to glue/clamp your bridge?

I see some people use clamps with long throat and some use clamp jig thru the pin holes. Pros and Cons of each?

Thanks, David

One deep throated "C" clamp and a home made bridge clamping caul patterned after the Stewmac bridge clamping caul

I used to use the clamps through the soundhole until I used a vacuum clamp. There was no turning back.

I used to use the clamps through the soundhole until I used a vacuum clamp. There was no turning back.

Has anyone made a home-made C clamp out of plywood for this? Could it be made strong enough?

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Here is what a Parlor Guitar is for!
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for the next one I plan to use the LMI 'fox bridge clamp' but haven't used it before. Seems like a simple enough method anyways

Matt

I made a cam clamp once to glue the bridge on a soprano ukulele. It wasn't hard to make out of scrap wood and a little 3/4 by 1/8 inch steel. Since I made it for this uke, I designed it to clear the top braces. It worked well.
Doug

Ditto on the vacuum clamp. Easy, thorough, etc.

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Eagles may soar, but weasels don't get sucked into jet engines.

with the right treaded inserts you could make one but I assume you mean on that is both the clamp and lower and upper caul all in one but the cost of a single C-clamp and build your own upper win adjustable caul from ply, inserts screws and cork and a ply bridgeplate caul would far less work.

Here is one of the clamps I use:

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Sylvan
http://www.wellsguitars.com

As Robbie, did the clamps and for last 3 years vacuum, never do to it any other way (well unless breaks or run out of power, so good to know both)

I always use two bolts through the 1'st and 6th string holes that are the exact same size as the hole and lightly tighten them to hold for positioning and then use 3 clamps with cauls shaped for the wings and the center.

I started with a central clamp and caul with two long clamps on the wings. Now I use the StewMac clamp. Pretty much the same principle as Sylvan's cool clamp. Quick, so it works well for hide glue. Plenty of access for clean up. You need a rigid central clamp or else the outrigger screws can spring the central clamp open and reduce the pressure.
I hold the bridge with two brads in the saddle slot. Drilling the holes before gluing as you have to do with the Fox clamp never appealed to me.
Terry

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It's not what you don't know that hurts you, it's what you do know that's wrong.

Yep my rig is the same but I made ny own bridge caul

I use the same set up as Terence. I can't tell from the picture if he has removed the plastic cap on the end of the clamp screw, which I did. The end of the screw is ball shaped, and I drilled a matching shallow "dent" in the middle of the bridge wing clamp. This will keep the screw on the C-clamp centered on the bridge clamp and keep it from moving as you apply pressure. One more thing to keep in mind with this set up is that you need fairly rigid bridge plate caul to counter the pressure over the bridge wings, to avoid distorting these areas during clamping.

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Rian Gitar og Mandolin

Yep I removed the plastic thing and drilled a recess in the caul for the ball end of the clamp. I think I got the idea from a post by Arnt!! I just use a 3/4" caul exactly the same shape as the bridge plate with a radius on the soundboard side. I don't have any outriggers that span the X and come up under the wings. (Used to when I used three separate clamps) Do any of you guys do that?
Terry

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It's not what you don't know that hurts you, it's what you do know that's wrong.