Speaking of Holdfasts!

[Chris Griggs]

Our old friend Tom has entered the holdfast market....

http://www.lie-nielsen.com/catalog.php?sku=Holdfast

Low profile.... made out of ductile cast iron....

Me likey!

[David Weaver]

Spensive!!

Rough casting surface probably gets a good grip, though.

[Chris Griggs]

Yeah, a bit. The low profile really appeals to me, and I've been meaning to get a new set of holdfasts for a while. I'm still using a set I got from HF a couple years ago for literally $2. They've actually held up and they work great in my 1 1/4" apron, but on the top they sometime have trouble holding.

I'll actually be sticking with the Gramercy's though when I upgrade, as they are perfectly sized for my 2 1/4" (max) thick bench top. And they are also a steal.

It looks like LN rather than trying to directly compete is filling a hole in the market. Says their's are designed for 2 3/4"-4" thick tops, which IIRC is bigger than the Gramercy's are ideal for.

[Gary Herrmann]

Hmm. I'd like to see a comparison at some point. LN, LV, Grammercy, Harry's, and those really spendy ones the Schwarz uses.


On 2nd thought, I'll bet someone has done one already and I'm just too lazy to look. It's cold out there. I see nesting in the lazyboy with a glass a wine and a book, while listening to the fire.

[Rick Lapp]

I bought a pair from Amos Tucker http://www.ebay.com/itm/Holdfast-Woodworking-Tool-Clamp-Antique-Bench-Dog-/271067495271?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item3f1ce1bb67 last year for $45 each. I can see that his prices have gone up. They are a superior product though, and work well on my 4" top. Rick

[David Weaver]

I'll actually be sticking with the Gramercy's though when I upgrade

Yeah, big big fan!! I have a rockler right up the road from me, but the taiwan holdfasts I got there failed so fast that I couldn't spend $11 on another one on purpose, it just seemed wrong.

[allen long]

You might consider checking out Lee Valley's Veritas adjustable holdfasts. I have been very appy with them. Although, I have to admit, I have never used a high quality traditional forged holdfast.

[Gary Hodgin]

I'd just about given up on holdfasts until I got a couple Gramercys. Got a couple of cheapos at Harbor Freight several years ago. About all they'd hold down was paper. I wasn't sure if it was the holdfasts or the thickness of my bench. My bench is 1.5 in thick on the inside and 3 in thick on the rails. Decided to take a shot with the Gramercys and they work great. I made do with some LV plastic hold downs but the holdfasts have greater range.

Just noticed Allen's post on the Veritas adjustable holdfasts, called hold downs on LV website. This is not what I was referring to above. The adjustable appears to have quite a bit of range. I don't think LV sells the hold downs like I have. What I have is close to the Veritas "surface clamps" but operate with a lever.

[Bob Jones]

My gramercy holdfasts work great in my 4in thick bench. I had to wrap sandpaper around the shaft by hand before I used them the first time. Note -around the shaft not up and down it. The new LN looks great, but I'll stick with my gramercy for now.