What's the easiest way to remove glue from parallel clamps

[Alan Lightstone]

Been meaning to ask this one for a while. Over the years, my parallel clamps have gotten more and more glue stuck to their metal bars. Mostly Titebond II and Titebond III.

What's the easiest way to remove this? It seems pretty tenaciously attached.

Also, does waxing them REALLY prevent glue from sticking to them?

[Mike Henderson]

I scrape mine now and then. I don't find the residual glue to be much of a problem in the use of the clamps and only scrape for looks.

Mike

[Bill Huber]

I don't know how to get it off if it gets there but the best is for it not to get there. I guess just scraping it off with a scraper and yes it takes some time.

I use Johnsons wax, put it on somewhat heavy and I don't buff it at all, any glue that does get on the bar just pops right off. I wax them anytime I see some glue that does not come off with my finger.

[mreza Salav]

I take a utility knife and scrape them.

[Ken Fitzgerald]

I just scrape them but will try the Johnson wax idea. I am surprised I never thought of that! Thanks!

[Mark Engel]

I have used a wire wheel on a grinder or a hand held drill.

Gotta try the wax though.

[Dave Zellers]

After I set the jaw width I put 3/4" painters tape on the bar where the glue will ooze.

A bit of a pain but it works perfectly.

[Alan Lightstone]

I usually put wax paper over the bars, but obviously I've forgotten to do that more than a few times.

Could a heat gun help, or would it destroy the plastic clamps?

[Cary Falk]

I have heard that a heat gun works but I have never tried it. I have had little luck wit a wire wheel on a drill.

[Mel Fulks]

I've seen the wax used ,but if you get any on the threads it will make the clamps actually unwind and loosen .If that happens spraying the threads with brake cleaner will fix.

[Matt Day]

I need to wax mine, but I use an old chisel.

[Mel Fulks]

Oops , I thought we were talking about the wood hand screw clamps. I see now its "bar" clamps.

[Ole Anderson]

And it is tough to scrape the serrated Bessy steel bars. Doesn't heat soften the glue?

[Peter Quinn]

Best method I've found is to not let it get there in the first place. Not being sarcastic here. If you find tons of glue squeeze coming out every where and fouling up the works, you are simply using too much glue. I'm a recovering over gluer myself. On an ideal glue up I'm getting a very fine line of squeeze at the entire joint line, and nothing drips. Ok, so not every one of my glue ups meets that ideal, but I keep trying, and things improve. For the glue that does get out and drips into those fine little serrations I use the ram and slam method….I loosen the handle fully, back up the head and slam it through the glue, sometime backing up and ramming it several times. The same method works when you get to your parking space in your old work truck an find some yuppy in a BMW has taken your assigned spot, or if you have parallel parked only to return and find some inconsiderate driver has parked you in….ok, off topic but you get the idea.

I used to use boshield on my pipe clamps and that worked pretty well, lasted a long time and glue just peeled right off. Never tried it on the k bodies, probably should.

[Alan Lightstone]

They are Jet Parallel clamps, FWIW. Sounds like the Besseys have the same serrations. Wouldn't say that I'm an over-gluer. I'm not perfect either. And, not at all insulted by the good advice, Peter.

I'll have to try the Boeshield on the pipe clamps. I usually just put packing tape on those, which is just a pain. Does that prevent getting those black marks on the wood?

[Steve Kohn]

I warm the bar with a heat gun and then use a wire wheel to pop off the glue. Warming the bar softens the glues hold on the serrations of the bar.

[Lee Reep]

Concerning overuse of glue causing ooozes and drips which leads to messy clamps, try a silicone roller for applying glue. I bought the Wood River brand at Woodcraft. The surface is textured so you get pretty evenly applied thickness of glue (similar to using -1/2a notched trowel when tiling). The one I got is small (maybe 2-1/2" long) and has a metal handle. I paid $8.99, so they are not cheap, but they should last forever. Cleanup was pretty simple, as expected for a silicone applicator.

[glenn bradley]

We do all get unexpected ooze now and again. I generally put painter's tape where the seams of a panel glue up will be. For those times that the glue gets on the clamps and I don't know it till tomorrow, a product was discussed on one forum . . . . ah here (http://de-gluegoo.com/) it is. Reported to work well by a skeptic who dismantled some chairs gone wrong successfully and has used it ever since. I have no personal experience.

[Dave Zellers]

We do all get unexpected ooze now and again.
OY! Tell me about it. Especially as we get older.:eek:

[Alan Lightstone]

We do all get unexpected ooze now and again. I generally put painter's tape where the seams of a panel glue up will be. For those times that the glue gets on the clamps and I don't know it till tomorrow, a product was discussed on one forum . . . . ah here (http://de-gluegoo.com/) it is. Reported to work well by a skeptic who dismantled some chairs gone wrong successfully and has used it ever since. I have no personal experience.

Looked up the MSDS. It contains methyl cellulose and 5% acetic acid. So it's a combination of a laxative/wallpaper paste/mortar additive/slime used in Ghostbusters, and vinegar. Could that work? Who knows? Any chemists out there with more intelligent interpretation of it's ingredients? I know that once I saw that amount of glue on my clamps I could have just &*(^. No laxative necessary.

[glenn bradley]

Looked up the MSDS. It contains methyl cellulose and 5% acetic acid. So it's a combination of a laxative/wallpaper paste/mortar additive/slime used in Ghostbusters, and vinegar. Could that work? Who knows? Any chemists out there with more intelligent interpretation of it's ingredients? I know that once I saw that amount of glue on my clamps I could have just &*(^. No laxative necessary.

I believe in that same discussion, someone stated that they used warmed vinegar soaked rags and wrapped the area which softened the glue. The smell was the turn-off on that one but, for all I know the product I linked to stinks too :D.

[Larry Gipson]

There was a glue thread here: http://tinyurl.com/knxatek

There is a product that will soften the titebond products http://de-gluegoo.com/

[Sam Babbage]

You can wrap the bars with cloth and poor close to boiling water over them, let it soak for a while which will soften the glue, then attack with manual methods. Obvious caveat of getting rid of the water afterwards, and yes, waxing works wonders.

[Buck Williams]

Like others have said, I use an old chisel or cabinet scraper to get the glue off, I don't think that you have to worry about every bit of glue. I wax the bars with paste wax and buff it, if it doesn't end up keeping glue off of the bars, it certainly makes it glide better,

[Ellen Benkin]

I agree with Dave Z. I either use blue painter's tape or clear packing tape. I hate getting glue on my clamp bars.

[Alan Lightstone]

There was a glue thread here: http://tinyurl.com/knxatek

There is a product that will soften the titebond products http://de-gluegoo.com/

Read the thread. Thanks. Have to try the vinegar, acetone, and water in 1:1:1 mixture. Sounds promising.

[Kyle Iwamoto]

Ok, also a recovering too-much-glue-itus person. I use newspaper and just drape it over the clamps before clamping. Yes, it glues the newspaper to the wood and gets the ink on it, but newspaper is free. And draping it on the clamps requires a few seconds of effort. I sand anyways. Glue front side up.

I use my 3 for 5 bucks Stanley chisels to get glue off when I forget.

[Howard Acheson]

I have heard that a heat gun works but I have never tried it. I have had little luck wit a wire wheel on a drill.

Yes, a heat gun is the best tool to use. It will soften both TBII and TBIII. Also, wet a heavy rag (towe) with almost boiling water and wrap it around the areas with the adhesive. This will work with TBII but not so well with TBIII.

To keep adhesive off pipes and bars, tent waxed paper over the pipe or bar. The best solution is to buy some shower curtain bar plastic covers. (Go to Home Depot or Lowes) Cut them to about 6 to 10 inches and put them on the pipe or bar. Once on the pipe the covers can be slid to the point where adhesive will drip.