Bar Clamps Reviews

Just bought two of the 98 inch k bodies on March 22, 2006, received on May 5, 2006 and was worried about them flexing, no problem at all. Anybody that ever clamped with any Bessey k body, knows how heavy duty they are and the great price from Toolcrib, plus a free 24 inch k body. The clamps are now shipping from Amazon warehouses, instead of Toolcrib's, so don't expect to have them in good shape the first time. When I first ordered them, I received two 82 inch k bodies instead, wrapped pretty good in four sheets of cardboard. Second time received two 98 inch k bodies well damaged, one in a 12 x 12 inch bubble wrap bag covering one end torn open, damage on the red end, missing the black plastic end piece and the other packaged what looks like a cereal box, crushed red end and also missing the black plastic end. The third time ordered, I was told I would be placed on the top of the order list, when the inventory for the Bessey 98 k bodies came in, not. Last ones received were ok, still had to use some parts from the other ones to make two good ones. By the way, the free 24 inch Bessey k body clamp was wrapped very well and was received on March 28, 2006 in excellent shape. When Amazon told me free shipping, they forgot to mention bad shipping.

I finally decided to invest in some good clamps so I checked the price at Lowes and was dismayed at the price. Then I found this set and that I could get all four clamps for less than the price of just the two large ones so I ordered the set. I had never had any really good clamps and figured there really couldn't be much difference between the cheap bar clamps that I had been using and the Besseys. Boy, was I wrong!. I have gotten so that I don't want to use the old clamps and will wait overnight to glue up doors or drawers so that these clamps are available.

I don't know how they compare to the other premium parallel jaw clamps, but I do know that I am saving up so that I can buy some more of these.

The Bessey K-Body clamps are superior for multi-board and cabinet door glue-ups by keeping the pieces flat. Wish I could have purchased the K-Body clamps instead of all the pipe clamps I own.

The big benefit to these is that you get true mobility out of them. While holding a piece of work, lined up, in one hand, you use these quick grips in the other hand to secure the work. If it slips while clamping, it is still a one handed tool to release it, and reclamp it again. Enables you to maintain a professional flow to your work. I feel awkward when using regular clamps in comparison. They require two hands. You could use a spring clamp to hold it together, then get another clamp to give it a final hold, but the quick grip saves you from having to do that.
Having these clamps in a few different sizes is beneficial as well. Small ones are more frequently used, and don't get in the way. The 33 1/2" is great when you need to hold larger projects together, and you can't effectively use two smaller ones to substitute. Additionally the macro clamps give you deeper jaws for a farther reach, enabling you to use them for securing work, to your radial arm saw table for example. They are fast enough to be used for almost any application. Sometimes I use them to secure work when sanding with a power sander. A couple squeezes and they are on, and one squeeze and they pop off.
After getting the smaller ones, and using them, I immediately order two of the 33 1/2" for larger projects, and for tie downs on equipment, including the drill press, and occasionally the radial arm saw.
Their is a small rubber stopper, which you can readily remove, in order to reverse the end, and make it a spreader as well. Something not needed very often, but difficult to achieve without one of these.
One note is that these have built in rubber pads, that completely cover the metal internal end. That is an advantage when you do not want to mar the wood. That and the fact that you can squeeze these with one hand, creates a mechanism that is easy to use, but not something that you would want to use for strength clamping. As a safety measure, these clamp sufficiently for most operations, but a threaded bar clamp, is stronger. So for those operations where extreme strength is needed, these are not the clamps to use. You sacrifice mountain holding strength for the ease of use. For example if I was using a large bit on the drill press, and drilling into metal, I would clamp it with something more. Even the slightest movement in an operation like that, could cause a snag, sending the piece into movement. If you are using just one of them, at the end of a 24" board, and decide to rout the other end, it will move on you. Securing it with two of them, and it is super tied down. You get my drift.
The big advantage of quick grip clamps, is that they handle wood beautifully, even for glue up operations. Hold workpieces more than securely to do the job in most applications, and are so handy that they deserve more than 5 stars. I would feel lost without them. It is another tool in the must have category.

This Quick-Grip Clamp exceeded my expectations with its ease of use, durability, and gripping power. A must for the workshop.

I use this to hold down an advanced watercooling system on my Geforce4. Bet ya never knew you could put it in a computer did ya! Highly recommended! These things ROCK!

These pads work great on Rockler "Surefoot" pipe clamps as well as the Pony clamps. One less thing to worry about during glue-ups.

I built a shed recently with a wide door to accomodate big tools. I made this door out of 2x6 tongue-and-groove decking boards, which I needed to clamp together to attach 2x4 bracing. So a pair of "Pony" clamp fixtures and a couple lengths of black pipe was just the ticket -- or almost. The decking boards needed a bit of persuasion to get all 9 planks together, and I didn't want to gouge the nice oak. Some cedar shims against the clamp pads promptly crumpled when I tightened the clamps. So I left the door until the next weekend and ordered these clamp pads.

Now I have a nice shed with a sturdy, attractive door on it. And no clamp marks!

Strongly recommended.

There is not much criteria one could comment on clamp pads. I have installed these on all my Jorgenson I-Bar clamps, and they (1) are non-marring and, (2) stay on the clamps very well. What more can one ask for?

I own several of these Bessey clamps in various lengths, and I think the world of them. I reach for these clamps the most often in my shop. I have never experienced the bar "bowing" like other clamp bars tend to do - not at any length. With a very reasonable pricetag, I think these are some of the better all-around clamps on the market.

In my day to day tasks this clamp is the first thing I grab. Quick, strong, positive. I have some of those orange branded clamps and some days they are all applied (yes some days one can never can have enough), but the orange model has more give or deflection. Now that I have more than one model I can quickly feel the diffenrence. I like the larger diameter handles too. (The orange models have been modified with an epoxied on expander - feel no need for this with bessy.) I was given a thank-you gift of 4 new bessy 4"x15" that are also excellent. I'm a Bessy convert - I love'm.

The nice thing about the Bessey Tradesmen's is that they are heavier duty than the competition, in the medium duty class, and you don't have to take out a second mortgage to afford a set of them. The locking mechanism works without any hassles, and the grip is strong. All in all a nice piece of equipment. A major competitor sells this model for less money, but it is also a lighter weight clamp. I like them all. Bessey makes great stuff, you can't go wrong with these. They are a great general-purpose clamp. Highly recommended.

I have had the smaller versions of this clamp and love them. So I ordered some larger ones now that I have found a need. I love the long throat and you can really put some presure with them. I think they are the best clamps of their kind and will surely buy more as I need them.

When i picked up this clamp for the first time i just could not believe the weight and qualty it had.Acme threads,big handle that you can actually grab on to ete.This is German quality in its finest hour when it comes to woodworking tools.I have since bought over 50 various Bessey clamps in the last year.Thanks !

These heavy duty models from Bessey are a lot beefier than the picture shows. Definitely a strong clamp. I bought a couple to hold things down on the drill press, and for general purpose work. The clamping mechanism works well without any hassles. Easy to adjust, lot's of pressure, and looks substantial. Highly recommended.

The nice thing about the Bessey Tradesmen's is that they are heavier duty than the competition, in the medium duty class, and you don't have to take out a second mortgage to afford a set of them. The locking mechanism works without any hassles, and the grip is strong. All in all a nice piece of equipment. A major competitor sells this model for less money, but it is also a lighter weight clamp. I like them all. Bessey makes great stuff, you can't go wrong with these. They are a great general-purpose clamp. Highly recommended.

The clamps are made the right way stiff and sturdy. They are better than other clamps similar to this stile, stay away form the cheap clamps. I have the 6", 12", 18", 24", 30" 36" clamps and I know I will buy some more, which I just ordered 6 more of the TGJ2.506 2 �" x 6, little bit pricey, but WELL WORTH THE MONEY.

I have recently puchased several sizes of the Tradesman clamps offered by Bessey. I am delighted with their performance. The Bessey clamp is far superior to other bar clamp offerings from suppliers such as Jorgensen. The Bessey clamps have a much sturdier bar and larger clamp screw with ACME threads. They also come with protective plastic pads that do not marr the project. Jorgensen on the other hand requires you to purchase protective pads seperately and they tend to leave an oily mark. The Bessey clamps are simple to operate and the serated edge and set screw system work flawlessly. By far the most clamp for the money.

I find two and a half inch deep clamps have there limitations, and started looking for some deeper clamps. I find the extra depth of these four inch and five and a half inch deep clamps useful for many applications, such as clamping jigs to bandsaw tables and clamping work pieces to a workbench. I gave four stars for being generally good quality clamps, and the fifth star for the price. (I bought four sets, and am considering buying more.)

I have had these two sized clamps for years and finally had to get some more. They are the best clamps of their type, no question. I will buy more as I need them, for certain.

Already have 8 of the TG4.008 clamps and found them so handy wanted to buy several more. They're great for all sorts of glue up situations. Very fast and very strong. The non-marring pads spread the force over larger area and don't damage the wood if you use some caution. With these clamps and most others its easy to apply too much force and starve the glue joint. This package is a good deal and look forward to trying the slightly deeper 5.5" throat on the second clamp. Expect it will give me some additional flexibility on occasion but frankly the smaller clamps have been just fine.

I am familiar with Jorgensen's reputation for quality tools, and this clamp is no exception. I purchased two 18 inchers and will also purchace at least two more 12 inchers from the same company.

They are the clamp I reach for first when I want solid clamping for a work piece. They are easy to operate, quick adjustability clamping and releasing. I have other clamps with the ratchet type clamping action. They are also good but do not provide the firm clamping action that is often needed for woodworking projects.
I would highly recommend the Jorgensen clamps for anyone that is looking for high quality clamps.

I bought this as a fill in on an order. was quite surprised how rugged it is compared to others I have bought. will buy the jorgensen clamp from now on

Say you have a cabinet door to assemble or repair, are you going to dig out 3/4 inch pipe clamps? I hope you don't use a heavy, cumbersome tool for all of your assembly and repair. A raised panel door is not too awfully complex but it does deserve to be treated delicately and thoughtfully. These clamps seem to be intended for cabinet doors. Lighter than a Bessey K-body or a Jorgenson (or any other brand) 1/2 inch pipe clamp, they are just as versatile, plenty strong and every bit as adjustable. The handle screws tight just like a Bessey K-body and the clamping pads are a good 2 inches or more from the bar. This gives you the same reach as a comparable Bessey and far more than most pipe clamps. I've built a lot of cabinet doors and done tons of repairs to cabinets and furniture. I'd be miserable without these. Also if you're looking for this type of clamp, check Irwin. Thier clutch locking clamps are a little more affordable, not as high quality. I definitely prefer the screw down handle over the Quick Grip or the Grip-Lock for fine tuning a good glue joint. BUY AT LEAST 4 !!!

I read the reviews on these clamps & there were several comments about the clamps breaking so I emailed Jorgensen & asked them is this true & what have you done to correct the situation. Their response was the early versions had cast aluminum heads to save weight & that they had switched to steel because the aluminum wasn't holding up. I've owned several of these for about a year now, none of which are made with aluminum, and haven't had a single problem. The issue with the clamps sticking together when closed can be resolved by backing the handle all the way out, pulling the handle straight up away from the bar & then pulling back. As is true with all clamps they aren't perfect for every situation. But these are the first clamps I reach for because they're so versatile & so easy to use. I own a lot of clamps & I'm a Jorgensen man. I have a few Besseys & they get used last. I don't think they're bad clamps I just prefer Jorgies. I do however think Jorgensen should have done a much better R & D job on the Cabinet Masters & quite frankly they flat out failed in this area. I expect better then that from an American institution. There was a time when Made in America was a good thing & Made in Japan, China or Taiwan wasn't. I hope Jorgensen will continue to be Made in America & more importantly I hope they've learned from their mistakes. I find these reviews very helpful & would like to thank the people who write them & I encourage anyone with an opinion on a product to put it in writing. Also Lee Valley has the best prices on Cabinet Masters.

I bought these two years ago for making some doors. I had always used pipe clamps for glue my doors before this, and had some problems with them not laying flat.

These clamps solved that problem. They are now the clamps I use first. I like that they are reversable, and have used them to support and adjust upper cabinets while they are being installed.

On some of the other sizes of this clamp there are some negative reviews about the quality, and also about receiving clamps stuck together with no way to open the jaws. I haven't had any problems with the quality, but 2 of the clamps did come stuck together. I was able to unlock them by taking a screw driver and levering the locking mechanism, no problem since.

I have never tried a bessey clamp, so I can't compare them, but these are great clamps. Hope to get some more in the future.

I own two of the Bessey K-body clamps at this same size (well, close - the 31" clamps) and would have rated them five stars. But I decided to give these clamps a try, and now the Besseys, though still excellent clamps, drop to four stars and the Jorgensens get a solid five. They have all the benefits of the K-body clamps, with some clever improvements. There is a very nicely designed clip at the end of the bar which can be removed to allow the movable jaw to be reversed to turn the clamp into a spreader. The clip also does double duty - it is the same height as the two jaws, so it stabilizes the end of the bar when the two jaws are close together (i. e., when you are clamping something small). With the Besseys, if you set the clamp on the floor and move the jaws close together, the unsupported end causes the clamp to tilt - the clip on the Jorgensens eliminates this minor annoyance. The jaw faces are considerably larger - this is a small advantage in length, but the extra width is really useful. You can lay the clamps on their side and still have useful clamping depth - not a lot, granted, but useful if you only need to clamp 3/4" or so, in which case you can put pressure on a much longer area. This would help in edge joining boards, for example. And the larger handle is more comfortable.
Jorgensen has the K-bodies beat in pretty much every feature. The Besseys are still most excellent clamps - I'm certainly not getting rid of mine, but my future purchases will be the Jorgensens. By the way, these comments are specifically about the 24" and 30" clamps that I actually own and have used, but I don't see why they wouldn't also be true of the other lengths.

These great clamps were purchased for my husband. He loves them-thinks they are great. They work better than his Quick Grips clamps. He especially likes the feature of the button release on the Jorgensen clamps, as opposed to the release clip on the Quick Grips. The release is easy to use and his hand doesn't get pinched as it does with his Quick Grips. He would definitely purchase these clamps again.

I purchased 2 Jorgensen 12" and 2-18" clamps after wrestling with ones my husband had...too big, too small, too heavy for what I was making, etc. We had a set of Columbian clamps with the twistie-handle and various Irwin and Quick-Grip clamps similar to the Jorgensen's. I guess I'm not coordinated enough to operate the twistie-handle kind of clamps since I was constantly turning the handle the wrong direction and always loosening when I needed tightening...and they were really heavy and bulky for something like the bluebird houses I was building. Using the Irwins and Quick-Grips when I could, I pinched my fingers in the little metal release clip. So I got these Jorgensens since the size was what I needed, and the price was a little cheaper than the Irwins. WOW!--they are MUCH beefier and feel much more solid than the Irwins or Quick-Grips I had been using, and there's NO pinchie release clip either! Instead there is a square button release where you'd normally grab the metal tab--much easier (and safer for a clutz like me!) The squeezie action to close them is fast enough and smooth enough, and they just don't feel as flimsy as the others--and I liked the others fine, but after using these, I will stick with Jorgensen's in the future. Nice tight grip, perfect inbetween size, and really nice sturdy feel--not too heavy and not too light, just right! I haven't used them as a spreader bar yet but was able to make the change easy enough to play with it. I love my new toys!!! I will definitely go with Jorgensens again when I need other sizes for the projects on my list.

The Jorgensen ISD bar clamp I got from Amazon is well-made. I don't have a way to check out Jorgensen's claim of 40% more clamping force than the competition, but they do seem to have very strong clamping action. The steel mechanism that holds the clamp tight looks robust---much better than the no-name cheap clamps I've bought before.
I had thought that clamps would be a good place to buy cheapies and save money for tools that need precision or safety features, but these clamps aren't so much more expensive than the cheapies, and they're a lot more pleasant to use. I plan to buy more in the future.