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Thread: Bessy I-Beam clamps

  1. #1
    Join Date
    Feb 2009
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    San Diego, CA
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    240

    Bessy I-Beam clamps

    I am considering a purchase of these: Bessy I-Beam 48 in. Capacity Heavy-Duty Industrial Bar Clamp.

    I was able to use a set recently and found that Titebond II glue stuck to the beam. It was
    very time consuming to remove. It felt like I was removing epoxy. Has anyone found
    a material besides temporary tape to remedy this?

    Perhaps a good coat of buffed out paste wax.

    Robertr
    Epilog Mini 24-45W, Corel Draw X6, Photoshop CS5, Multi Cam CNC

  2. #2
    Paste wax.

  3. #3
    i use these clamps for large glue ups (passage doors, countertops, etc.). wax the bars. wire wheel on a grinder removes stuck-on glue. sometimes these slip... .if they do, put a flap disc on the grinder and just impart a small cross-hatch on the bar, and they won't slip anymore.

  4. #4
    Join Date
    Mar 2003
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    SE PA - Central Bucks County
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    65,685
    Waxing the bars can help. The alternative that many folks use is to adjust the clamps close to the needed adjustment and apply tape to cover the metal that's under the material being glued. This method can also help protect against staining as some wood species can be reactive to certain metals when moisture is present.
    --

    The most expensive tool is the one you buy "cheaply" and often...

  5. #5
    Join Date
    Mar 2006
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    The nature of these clamps means that waxing the bars will not cause any problems. That being said we all know where we are going to put glue and where it is going to obey gravity. We learn this during our assembly dry run. I just stick bits of tape where the glue joint will be.

    CB-Anthony (2).jpg

    I apply the tape during the dry run and it is just there when I do the real glue up. I do not notice glue sticking to the I-Beams any more than other clamps. TB-III can be quite gummy if it gets into things. The same quality that makes it great for stress joints makes it tenacious when it gets where it shouldn't.
    Last edited by glenn bradley; 07-30-2022 at 5:47 PM.
    "A hen is only an egg's way of making another egg".


    – Samuel Butler

  6. #6
    Join Date
    Jun 2014
    Location
    Western PA
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    Hey Robert, I have the Jorgensen version of that clamp, and the majority of mine are used. And not gently used, either. These suckers are probably 30+ years of industrial use. I love them, and they will last the rest of my WWing life. Not to say the bessey revo k bodies won’t, but they are two different animals.

    As far as excess glue, I don’t bother with it unless it interferes with the movement of the clutch. When that happens I have a POS beater chisel that is as blunt as the day is long. Hit the dried glue with enough force and it shatters off the bar. It’s somewhat impossible to hurt the bar, so you can use excessive force.

  7. #7
    Join Date
    Feb 2021
    Location
    Portland, OR
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    462
    I sloppily cover mine in paste wax when I first get them, don't wipe the excess off, don't buff. Just let it dry on them. Have been using them for years and have never had glue stick to them that can't be easily peeled off by hand. No tape necessary.

  8. #8
    I use strips of wax paper, whatever length is needed, to cover the bars.
    The strips run perpendicular to the bars.

    Regards,
    PCG

  9. #9
    Join Date
    Jan 2010
    Location
    Tampa Bay, FL
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    3,895
    I asked a similar question here 9 years ago (as have many others) on how to remove TBII or TBIII
    https://sawmillcreek.org/showthread....highlight=glue

    Heat guns, vinegar, acetone, all sorts of chemicals suggested. Wire wheel and scraper too. But the best suggestions, were how to avoid getting there in the first place, which seem to be paste wax (except now you can't get Johnson's Paste wax as it's been discontinued), masking tape, wax paper, etc... I like Brian's suggestion above to coat them with paste wax when purchasing and don't remove the excess when it dries. Wish I had known that.

    Personally, I now use wax paper. Except when I forget
    - After I ask a stranger if I can pet their dog and they say yes, I like to respond, "I'll keep that in mind" and walk off
    - It's above my pay grade. Mongo only pawn in game of life.

  10. #10
    Join Date
    Nov 2012
    Location
    New England, in a town on the way to nowhere
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    537
    Gulf Wax canning wax, availible at the grocery store. Just rub it on the bar once in a while. Lubes the clamp, doesnt have evaporative spirits in it, wont transfer into woodwork unless you heat it.
    Also good for the bottoms and runners on crosscut sleds and the worm gears and trunnions on tablesaws. Lubricates and doesnt draw/hold dust

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