Do you use Spring Clamps?

I've had 2 of these Great Neck Spring Clamps just laying around my shop forever - maybe they are my Dad's. LINK.

I never really found a use for them. And when I DO occasionally need something like this, I usually use these plastic Milwaukee beasts I bought at the BORG on sale. LINK. But today, I really needed to place a light pressure clamp in a place that was too small for my Milwaukees. So I pulled out the steel Great Necks and they were just the ticket!

Does anyone else use steel spring clamps? What for?

Fred

I do use spring clamps very rarely but do use them. Mostly used to hold something temporarily. They come in handy at times.

once in awhile, sometimes when I use corner clamps

I have used them for a number of things where I need quick action typically on a temporary basis such as early partial stages of glue-ups, holding light brackets on tools and photo tent. They also come in handy on occasion for holding small parts against the crosscut sled on the table saw.

The big red handled ones seem to take both hands to squeeze so either they're getting stronger or I'm ...........never mind:D

Occasionally but despite having a bunch of them, they have not proven quite as useful as they originally were thought to be. The last time I did pull some out, it was to hold up a backdrop for photographing a piece. :)

My most valued use of a small spring clamp was years ago when I used a walk-behind lawn mower and wanted to keep the handle that keeps the engine running held down. Nowadays I use them to hold up plastic sheeting when spraying, and not much else.

I actually did use the drawerful of them that I have to hold wood yesterday, the first time in, well, ever. Probably will be another forever before I have occasion to do that again.

I have 15 steel spring clamps and use them often, sometimes all of them and sometimes fewer. The most frequent job they get used on is gluing up banjo armrests, I use 4-5 per armrest and since the glue area is small they provide plenty of pressure. I also use them to glue the tops and backs onto mandolins, fiddles and dulcimers, and sometime with a caul to glue peghead overlays on instruments. I would be lost without mine. I have never found a plastic one that I liked. There were 3 1.5" steel clamps and 2 2" here when I came, and I got another 10 2" ones at estate auctions over the years. I have never used them much other than for instrument building except that I use two to hold a wooden salad grinder base in place on the kitchen countertop when I make roadside potatoes.
Zach

I use them whenever I'm putting on edge banding on ply or mdf. Mine look similar to the one in your link but mine have a steel strip inside that puts pressure on the face of the work piece. Works similar to Rockler's Bandy Clamp. Wish I had bought twice as many when they were offered on sale. Invaluable for face frame work.

I have a bunch of Jorgensen spring clamps of various sizes I bought at a yard sale for like $5. Don’t use them often, but handy to have. Sometimes I find myself using them to position something on a jig, especially if its tricky, and then use a f-style to clamp more securely.

I have maybe 12-15 but no longer can use them because I can't open them because of arthritis in my hands. Whenever using them makes sense it is usually for a light duty clamping application in a confined area. I've never understood why someone doesn't make a spring clamp with a much lighter duty spring. I can't be the only one that encounters this problem. Don't know why but I've never liked ratcheting clamps, although they do solve the strength-to-open issue.\

I would use them to hold my shop made circular saw guide to plywood that I was cutting. I have a track saw now, with appropriate clamps so have used them less. I also used them when making a torsion box to cut on, to hold the skins to the frame.

I have a bunch of them - I bought them cheap from a commercial woodwork shop that was going out of business. I don't use them often but for certain things they just can't be beat. If you put several on a small glue-up, the pressure is pretty high. I wouldn't want to be without them.

Mike

I have several and use them occasionally. They're nice to have when you need them. I even have a small plastic container full of clothespins that have come in handy at times.

I use them for flat gluing veneer. Cover work with plastic sheeting, then plywood . Put spring clamps around perimeter,
and a weight in the center.

I have some that I use regularly in situations like others have described above.

But one thing I do more regularly than anything else, is to use two strips of wood to measure distances between two points where I am going to fit something. I use the spring clamps to hold the two strips together, after positioning the strips between the two points I am interest in.

Great way to avoid measurement errors! For me anyway...:)

I use spring clamps mostly with this product : http://www.jevonstoolco.com/

Or, with F-clamps for glue-ups as spring clamps tend to creep and move the workpieces as glue works like a lubricant. Spring clamps are used where quick maneuver is called for, such as attaching a stop block to the cross-cut sled or saw fence. I have about 40 of them in various sizes lying around in the shop.

Simon

Do Collins clamps count?

Attachment 399957
Attachment 399958

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Jared Sankovich

Do Collins clamps count?

---

I havent seen those before, but they look quite handy. I think I'll go buy a set. Thanks!

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Frederick Skelly

I havent seen those before, but they look quite handy. I think I'll go buy a set. Thanks!

---

They are used a lot in trim work
Attachment 399965

I have a few of the metal ones and a slew of the cheap plastic ones in various sizes. They're great for small projects.

Recently, I was working on a small project where I had to route rabbets down the underside of a piece so it would be flush with the surrounding surface, and I made the rabbets too deep. I had to glue thin strips into the rabbets to have another go at them and the spring clamps were perfect for that.

Sometimes even the bigger ones are handy for getting a clamp on something quickly just to hold it while I get the better clamps on it.

I have 4 on the lid of the barrel of my dust collector. When I had a 2hp cyclone, did not need clamps, but with the 3hp, need to clamp the lid to the barrel or the lid will float up while the blower is on, and blow chips all over my storage area. Have 8" on the exhaust blowing outside. 6" system.

I have a couple hundred Jorgensen steel spring clamps, 1", 2", 3" and I use them regularly for many tasks not just woodworking. I like them and have figured out how they can be useful to me in my shop. I am likely in the minority when it comes to these clamps.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Chris Fournier

I have a couple hundred Jorgensen steel spring clamps, 1", 2", 3" and I use them regularly for many tasks not just woodworking. I like them and have figured out how they can be useful to me in my shop. I am likely in the minority when it comes to these clamps.

---

Hi Chris. Feel like sharing some ideas for how to use them? Fred

The Collins Clamps are awesome and I have plenty! Frederick, I use spring clamps in guitar building to glue kerfed and solid linings. Quick glue ups. Holding parts when mocking up projects. Work holding when spray finishing. All sorts of metal fabricating applications. Assembly tasks where three hands are useful etc.

I have and use the Jevons squares, with the spring clamps as pictured. They've been easier to use than the corner clamps I used to use.

Jared and Chris - thanks for the tip on the Collins Clamps. I placed an order for some!
Fred

The larger spring clamps are excellent for attaching temporary tarps. I am using them to keep my roof decking covered right now until I can get a proper roof on. They were a buck apiece at HD. I will have a pile of them to do something with after the shop build is done but I am glad I have them.

I have about a dozen of each, metal and plastic. I use them for holding trim on edges while glueing, Just picked up some of those 'Bandy' camps to fit them, but haven't used them yet.

I use them all the time to hold paper or cardboard on tables to mask while spraying. I use them to hold extension cords out of the way occasionally.

I use a small dog collar to hold my Rockler universal small hose going to several sanders. It holds the hose up on a hook so it doesn't drag and get in the way while sanding. Problem was that the hose kept slipping down the loose collar, so I used a clamp on the collar to take out the slack, just the other day.

I use one clamp all the time. It is on the depth stop rod of my drill press. I adjust the stop for depth with the nut that came with the DP, but it has a 6" throw and I have to bring it down a couple turns to get to the actual drilling. A pain, so I use the clamp to hold the DP down, just above the work. Saves a lot of cranking. I know this is hard to follow, but I am not good at pics. Some DP's come with two nuts, one above the stop and one below...mine didn't, and this is quicker to set up anyway.

EDIT: Forgot...my favorite of these clamps is a black plastic 2" Bessey that has an adjustment screw for tension. Since I injured my hand a year ago, it is nice to be able to adjust one for light use. They don't always have to be super strong.

I used to use them all the time when I was doing suspended ceilings. I had about 20 of them

They are quite simply fantastic! Practice a bit with them on scrap as they can skate if not installed properly and whatever you do don't pinched by one! I hope that you like them as much as Jared and I do!

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Frederick Skelly

Jared and Chris - thanks for the tip on the Collins Clamps. I placed an order for some!
Fred

---

We use the Collin’s spring clamps at work , on base and mitered window trim , or other places that they come in handy.

I made my own “Bandie Clamps” , I went to HD and got the .99 cent spring clamps , and then to WalMart to got a bike inner tube. You cut the inner tube into 6” lengths and slip the now open ends of the inner tube onto the clamp ends.

They work great for gluing on wood edge banding onto 3/4” plywood parts.


Attachment 400147


I think I made twenty , I made ten, liked how they worked then made ten more. The 10 clamps cost 9.99 + tax and the inner tube was under $5.00 , for for fifteen dollars I made 10 clamps , the Rockler Bandies was $13.00 + dollars for two , plus some shipping fees.

If you ever apply wood edge banding , and want to avoid pin nailing the strips on , or don’t want to use pipe clamps and cawl’s to do the clamping, the home made stretchy clamp might be some thing to consider.

That's pretty clever Paul. Thanks for the tip!
Fred

Edit: I took the liberty of copying your excellent idea into the Tips and Tricks thread here: Link

I have several dozen that hold protective netting and agricultural fabric on my garden tunnels. They work great. Attachment 400178,Attachment 400179

Yep. I have every one I own as well as a bunch more small clamps currently on my dust collector bin holding the rubber gasket in place until the calking dries.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Frederick Skelly

That's pretty clever Paul. Thanks for the tip!
Fred

Edit: I took the liberty of copying your excellent idea into the Tips and Tricks thread here: Link

---

I‘d like to claim I thought of it, but I googled it after seeing the Rockler clamps, they looked like a good idea , but to high priced. Glad you passed it onto the tips and tricks thread.