Clever Clamping Suggestions?

[John Finley]

I am building a queen sleigh bed and am getting close to the point where I need to glue up the headboard and footboard. The headboard and footboard are 63.5" long. I would rather not go out and buy four bar clamps for this length, but I may have to.

Do any of you have any clever suggestions as to how I can clamp these pieces during glue up without using bar clamps?

[Chris Padilla]

Do you have a wall that one of the pieces can butt up against?

If so, a piece of heavy machinery pushing against the other end might work? Perhaps a car? :)

Bar clamps are cheap...pick some up. :D

[Brent Ring]

Just by some of the threaded sleeves and some smaller extentions for your bars to lengthen them to the desired size. Then take them apart when you are done.

[Joe Chritz]

Brent's idea works well with pipe clamps. I have a bunch of the pony brand and while they don't get used all the time they are cheap and handy to have.

Several are a little over 3' long (10' bar cut in 3) and several are 5' long. Thread both ends and you can attach them with 3/4" couplings when needed. You do have to be careful to keep the clamping square but it works in a pinch.

Joe

[Lee Schierer]

You can use two clamps in series to make longer clamps. You will need an extra set of hands to hold one clamp while you tighten the second one.

As others have suggested pipe clamps make this easy to do with pipe couplings. I've made pipe clamps over 15 feet long with pipe couplers.

[David DeCristoforo]

Take the bed outside and assemble it with one end against the wall of your shop. Then back your truck up against the other end. You might want to use some moving blankets or foam pads to protect the wall of the shop and the bumper of your truck. And be sure to back up slowly.....

YM

[Walt Nicholson]

A good makeshift clamp extension is to use some 2x4s cut a little shorter than the headboard is wide and fasten some shorter 2x4s on each end. Put 2 or 3 pairs on either side of the headboard, add a cross piece placed against the headboard and then add your clamps and tighten the end piece against the side pieces. I am not much with drawing but attached a rough idea to demonstrate what I mean.

[John Finley]

The pipe clamp extension sounds like a good plan. The problem is that I don't have pipe clamps (just getting started in woodworking). It sounds like I need to get some though.

Walt, I like that idea. I should have known...coming from someone in the great inland northwest. :)

[jim oakes]

You could use Go bars. Go bars are springy poles you prop against the wall or ceiling. Drive them in against a caul that protects the piece you are clamping.

This is how cavemen used to glue-up sleigh beds ,back when there was no Home Depot to get clamps from.

[Alex Yeilding]

Glue and screw tubafors to either end of a sheet of 3/4" construction-grade plywood, a few inches further apart than your workpiece. Place one end of the glue-up against one of the 2x4s. At the other end, have one piece of wood to protect your work and two wedges that you can drive or squeeze together to apply pressure.

Might want to use one below and one above your workpiece to even out the pressure.

85517

[Vince Shriver]

How about some strap (belt) clamps?

[Jason Beam]

Wedges ...

Use walls ...

Another idea similar to Walt's extensions is just a scrap strip of plywood with a hole drilled in either end - one jaw of your clamp goes in the hole, the other onto your clamp-pads/cauls/etc. Then you don't have to worry about the joints on the extensions - just the tensile stength of the plywood.

[josh bjork]

How about some strap (belt) clamps?

I have to echo the voice of reason.

[Peter Quinn]

Echo...echo...echo...a three pack of 1000# ratchet compression straps is about $16.99 at my local borg. In a pinch these will pull down a large glue up.

PS...use cauls to distribute clamping pressure evenly in any event, and place the clamps one up. one down to avoid bowing the work.

Also, this is the perfect opportunity to purchase some pipe clamps, and a 10' section of gas pipe threaded at both ends is only $8.99. When your done you can cut them in half and have numerous 5' clamps!

[David DeCristoforo]

"How about some strap (belt) clamps?..."

"I have to echo the voice of reason...."

Well, sure... but what's "clever" about that?

;)
YM

[Karl Brogger]

Just buy the clamps. I bought almost 30 clamps in sizes from 30" (16) 48" (6) 60" (4) and 8' (3) for around $300. I use them every single day.

FYI- I've never seen pipe clamps at an auction go for less than they cost.

[Roger Morris]

While it may not work quite as well as some of the above, I have at times used a rope looped around the two pieces and twisted a board in the middle like a tournequet. Just be sure to protect the piece with scrap to keep the rope from damaging the piece.

[Josiah Bartlett]

One of the problems with long pipe clamps is that the middle of the pipe deflects significantly. You have to watch out for this and make sure it doesn't throw your joints out of square.

I have a pair of 8' pipe clamps hanging from the roof of my shop for stuff like that. They are pretty awkward but they work. I think I spent $20 for the pipe and the same for the clamps.

[Andy Pratt]

The veritas panel clamp hardware (just search for panel clamps on their site) from lee valley is a very versatile thing to have for the shop, and could work well in this situation. A set of "clamps" only costs about $35 or so and you can make them work with material of any length by drilling the appropriate holes in normal 2X4 lumber of whatever size you need. They're so useful for everything else, including being awesome for panel glue ups, that it's a great first buy if you need a solution for large capacity clamps without a huge investment in something that you would only use for large projects.

[Peter Quadarella]

The Borg sells 10 foot long 3/4" black pipe for $10 and will cut it to length for free. You don't need to buy new clamps, just move the heads from clamps you already have.

[Cliff Rohrabacher]

You can make 'em from 2*4s
Or take it in the chin and go get yourself some pony clamps and a couple of long pieces of double extra heavy black iron pipe.

I made a huge water bed some 30 odd years ago. I bought 4 rather long pipe sections to span the bed head board and all. I use 'em, so often I can't recall how I existed without 'em.

[Jacob Reverb]

If you get into woodworking more, I think you're going to find a lot of need for pipe clamps.

I always used/bought the Pony brand pipe clamps for 3/4" iron pipe, but then for grins I tried some of the Chinese ones sold by Harbor Freight Tools. You can find the Chinese knockoffs for $3.50 on sale whereas the Pony brand are typically ~ $12 (not including the pipe, of course).

Well, surprise, surprise, the Chinese ones look darn near as good! They're cast iron just like the Pony ones, the castings are just as heavy, the screws have the same Acme threads, and they seem to work just as well!