Clamping Cauls

[Erik Christensen]

I have made cauls out of 2x4's and they worked ok - better than nothing. I now have a set 4' long made out of 3 layers of 3/4" BB - they are dead flat and unbelievably strong.

[Max Neu]

I have made cauls out of 2x4's and they worked ok - better than nothing. I now have a set 4' long made out of 3 layers of 3/4" BB - they are dead flat and unbelievably strong.

Thanks for the tip!What dimensions do you use for the BB,3 1/2" ,like a 2x4 ?

[Glenn de Souza]

I have made cauls out of 2x4's and they worked ok - better than nothing. I now have a set 4' long made out of 3 layers of 3/4" BB - they are dead flat and unbelievably strong.

Hi,

With a dead flat 4' length caul, how are you exerting the same pressure in no man's land (the middle) as you are on the ends where your clamps are located?

Are you using your dead flat caul on one side of the glue-up and a cambered caul on the other side?

[Max Neu]

Hi,

With a dead flat 4' length caul, how are you exerting the same pressure in no man's land (the middle) as you are on the ends where your clamps are located?

Are you using your dead flat caul on one side of the glue-up and a cambered caul on the other side?

I'm guessing if they are strong/stiff enough,you won't need a camber,assuming you are clamping material that's flat and square to begin with.

[Jeffrey Martel]

If you just go to Home Depot/Lowes and buy a couple of their 2x2's or 2x4's, you won't even have to do anything to them. They're already pre-curved usually.

[Peter Quinn]

Not really, Peter. We want a friendly site for ANYONE of ANY skill level to visit. Practice just a tad of restraint and keep criticisms constructive and friendly and it does go a long way.

Give a man a fish. Teach a man to fish. Tell a man about a really expensive place to buy decent fish. Some of the "friendliest" people I've met didn't have my best interest at heart. Sorry my approach is so heavy.

[glenn bradley]

Any one use this system

http://www.woodcraft.com/product/125...ng-system.aspx

Thanks

I tried those years back and found them to be usable but, they don't work like magic. They are not much less effort than plain bar clamps. That is; you still need to help the boards get aligned and the cauls force the squeeze out into the wood fibers and so on. I sold mine.

[Tom Deutsch]

I actually did a google search to find out what a caul is; turns out I've been using them for years, using the warped BORG board - some of which I got from the cull pile. (Cull/caul. Coincidence?) Sighting the crown of a board is maybe the most useful skill I was taught early on.
But ... I totally get spending money on hobbies or professions. A hardware store yardstick measures practically as well as a $300 ruler, but the $300 ruler is a lot cooler to hold and look at, for sure.