Clamping 60" dresser

[Sean Powell]

I just finish cutting all the material for a dresser and the biggest clamps I have are 36" f style clamps. I cut dados on top and bottom and I was going to glue and nail them into sides. I need 60" clamps and I looked at the price at besseys clamp and they are expensive. I know I could screw them in but worried that it might blow out the plywood. One reason I bought the cheapest 3/4 plywood I could find( Chinese plywood at $36 a sheet). I'm just painting in with chalk paint so didn't think I needed a expensive piece of plywood. Any suggestions or do y'all think screwing them in would be fine. Thanks

[Joe Hillmann]

You could build some wedge clamps out of 2x4's and once you no longer need them you can take them apart and reuse them on some other project. Here is a link that should give you an idea of how to make them http://benchnotes.com/Wedge%20Clamps/wedge_clamps.htm Or do a search for woodworking wedge clamp.

[Dominic Carpenter]

As long as you pre drill your screw holes, I wouldn't worry too much about blow out, I would worry more about the appearance of the screws. Do you plan to cover the screws? Your best bet is to buy a few 3/4" pipe clamps. They are the best bang for the buck at that length. I bought four 72" lengths of threaded pipe and 4 sets of pipe clamps and it was about $110.

[Mark Bolton]

Why dont you just go an buy a couple pieces of pipe and some pipe clamps? Our main clamp in the shop is the 3/4" Pony HD clamps. You can set up a five foot clamp for about 20 bucks. Im not a fan of parallels or the Bessey pipe clamp bodies because they are just over priced and over rated in my opinion. $13+ for the clamp and a $5 piece of pipe and your in business. So for 36$ or a touch more you could have two 5' clamps. you wont even touch a single parallel for that.

**edit** the HD is not home depot (though you can buy them there). They are the model 50, $14 bucks now on amazon. That'd make a 2 clamp set 38 plus tax.

[Charles Wiggins]

I just finish cutting all the material for a dresser and the biggest clamps I have are 36" f style clamps. I cut dados on top and bottom and I was going to glue and nail them into sides. I need 60" clamps and I looked at the price at besseys clamp and they are expensive. I know I could screw them in but worried that it might blow out the plywood. One reason I bought the cheapest 3/4 plywood I could find( Chinese plywood at $36 a sheet). I'm just painting in with chalk paint so didn't think I needed a expensive piece of plywood. Any suggestions or do y'all think screwing them in would be fine. Thanks

If you want to get out cheaper I have two suggestions:

1) Pipe clamps (http://www.ptreeusa.com/pipeClamps.htm). This is where I started with long clamps. You buy the heads, then buy pipe. Both are available at your closest hardware store or big box home improvement store. I bought 3' and 4' lengths of pipe and connectors so I could easily make 6', 7', and 8' clamps when I needed them. Don't mess with the 1/2" clamps. The 1/2" pipe is too flexible in long lengths. Get the 3/4".

2) Make your own wooden bar clamps:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wr6MkXy1nos

Cheers,
Charles

[Sean Powell]

Thank yall

[scott vroom]

+1 3/4" pony clamps

[Lee Schierer]

Make some wood rectangles out of scrap that will allow you to place two of your existing clamps tail to tail with the moveable leg of each clamp inside the rectangle. This should give you a length in excess of 72". Screw and glue your rectangles together for strength.

[Bobby O'Neal]

I'll play devil's advocate to your bank account.

You will not ever regret having bought the Bessey's. If it is at all possible to buy them, they'd be joy to use. Having said that, if you cannot envision more large projects in the future it may be a tough sell but we all usually find more pieces that they work with. You only have to buy them once. I bit the bullet on a bed for some 60s and they were well worth it and have gotten plenty of use since then.

[Mark Bolton]

I'll play devil's advocate to your bank account.

You will not ever regret having bought the Bessey's. If it is at all possible to buy them, they'd be joy to use. Having said that, if you cannot envision more large projects in the future it may be a tough sell but we all usually find more pieces that they work with. You only have to buy them once. I bit the bullet on a bed for some 60s and they were well worth it and have gotten plenty of use since then.

Every time I buy a pair of of besseys (or equivalent) I regret adding two clamps to the rack when I couldve added 5 that do the same job or better. ;-)

When I think of my shops dollars resulting in adding 10 clamps vs 25 for the same money... and with a few extra pipes i get both long AND short clamps? well..

[Tony Haukap]

You will not ever regret having bought the Bessey's.^^ I agree. Although I would suggest getting 4 of the 40" Bessy K-body clamps instad of 2 60" clamps - for one they are a lot easier to handle, they are a more useful size (you're not going to be reaching for a 60" clamp to glue up a 24" wide panel!) and when you need the extra length you can use the Bessey extender or you can interlock the jaws as in the photo below to get the length you need.
http://img22.imageshack.us/img22/119/a3nv.jpg
http://img38.imageshack.us/img38/1285/ukl.gif

[Sam Murdoch]

.
http://img38.imageshack.us/img38/1285/ukl.gif



This can be done with virtually any clamps and has saved me many times.

[Lee Schierer]

When I think of my shops dollars resulting in adding 10 clamps vs 25 for the same money... and with a few extra pipes i get both long AND short clamps? well..

If you thread both ends of your pipes and get some pipe couplers you can make up any length of clamp you need. I once made up a clamp over 20 feet long from my pipe clamps using this method.

[Mark Bolton]

If you thread both ends of your pipes and get some pipe couplers you can make up any length of clamp you need. I once made up a clamp over 20 feet long from my pipe clamps using this method.


What at did you wind up clamping over 20'? I could imagine numerous non and woodworking related things.

[Ken Fitzgerald]

I agree that predrilling holes should help prevent blowout.

Several of my projects were over 60" so I bought 2 sets of 2 pipe clamps. I have 8 - 4' pieces of pipe and 4 collars that screw together and I can have 4, 8' pipe clamps. When needing to clamp shorter projects I use just 4' of pipe.

[Prashun Patel]

Personally, I don't like my long cabinet clamps. My Besseys clamp superbly, but can be finicky to engage on long, unwieldy pieces. They are also a pain to store.

long pipe clamps are perfect for this; the jaws engage easily on any length pipe. I find it very convenient to buy multiple lengths of 30" pipe and then couplers to make up longer pipes.

I would also spend a 'little' extra to get quality, 3/4" clamps like the Pony's, Besseys, or even the Rocklers. Don't buy cheap (they can slip) and don't buy 1/2" (they can flex).

[Mark Bolton]

I would also spend a 'little' extra to get quality, 3/4" clamps like the Pony's, Besseys, or even the Rocklers. Don't buy cheap (they can slip) and don't buy 1/2" (they can flex).

Agreed.

The math just for fun.

4 - 40" Bessey's at 116/2pk = 232$

Pony 50's @ 14$ea and 43" of pipe @ 3.70 (based on $11 for a half joint of pipe) = 17.70

A 3.275:1 ratio

There is of course tax and if your unfortunate enough to have to pay for a couple cuts and threads.

When I make up clamps I buy full joints at a slightly lower price and were able to cut and thread here at the shop, but Id have a hard time turning down adding 13+ clamps to the rack in trade for 4.

[Mike Wilkins]

I had a similar need recently and just went to the local Lowes, got some threaded 3/4" black pipe in the needed length, got some clamp heads from the tool department and called it a day. Not my favorite type of clamp, they are not shiny and red, but they worked. And I have them if the need arises again.

[Lee Schierer]

What at did you wind up clamping over 20'? I could imagine numerous non and woodworking related things.

I needed to hold a board in place against a structure without fasteners for a short period of time. It did take 2 people to hold the clamp in place so it could be tightened. I also used some 12' long clamps to put composite decking down with the Tiger Claw hidden fastener system. You were supposed to pound the boards into the fasteners starting on one end and working toward the other end, but I found that on long pieces as you got to the other end, the first end had popped out of place. The clamp allowed me to work alone.