Jorgensen or Irwin pipe clamps?

[Greg Koch]

I ordered some Jorgensen 3/4" pipe clamps on the Amazon sale. Further browsing showed the same 3/4" clamp by Irwin for $1+ less... Which would you go for, the Jorgensen or the Irvin. Seems Irvin is will thought of, as well as Jorgensen. Are they "J"'s worth the extra buck? I'd like to decide whether to change my order or not.

Thanks.

[Christopher Stahl]

I have about 20 of the Irwin 3/4" pipe clamps and haven't had any problems. I think they're great.

chris

[Greg Koch]

Amazon says now that my order for the pipe clamps will be shipping soon...so I don't have long to change the order..

Any more comments/opinions?

Chris,

Thanks for posting... I have never owned either of these, but I have heard good things about both.

[Gary Swart]

I seems to me that Irwin is making their place in the clamp market. Jorgenson and Bessey have had the market pretty much to themselves, but Irwin seems to have a competive product. As for me, most of my clamps are Harbor Freight 'cause they're much cheaper. Please...I didn't say better, just cheaper.

[Stephen Dixon]

I have 6 Jorgy's, 4 Irwin's, and 8 Harbor Freights, I can't tell any difference between them in use. I just shop by price, and that makes the Harbor Freights a no brainer.

Steve

[Andy Hoyt]

I've got a bunch of 3/4 Jorgys. But recently acquired eight of Rocklers version. And they are truly great. Hangs on a cleat with no hassle; stands up with no fuss; pre-drilled holes for attaching stuff to clamp faces; and they're a bit bigger and have a smoother action.

[Jeff Singleton]

I used to use 3/4" pipe clamps but got tired of the flexing pipe. It made it hard to glue up flat panels. Switched to Jog. I-Beam bar clamps about 10 years ago. Cost about $25 per clamp for 36" and worth a thousand times more then pipe clamps. If you can't make your mind up which one to buy, J or I, I would buy the one that is made in the USA regardless of price. Now I have many pipe clamps that I don't use.

Jeff Singleton

[Kirk (KC) Constable]

I agree that the I-bar is the cat's PJs....but suspect that you won't find anybody buying them that hasn't been using them a long time.

I have a couple Kbodys, and quite a few CMs...but think both manufacturers should remember Al Gore in theire prayers at night. The Internet (why is it capitalized??) has convinced a whole boatload of new woodworkers that the Bessey/Cabinet Masters are the only way to go...and they'll never use anything else.

I've also got a bunch of Pony bar clamps, but I think the Rockler SureFoot is an improvement. When I'm using a pipe clamp, I reach for the Rocklers first.

KC

[Bill Hartman]

I have the Rockler clamps and love them. I you watch the Rockler sails you can some times get them for 1/2 price.

[Greg Koch]

Thanks for all the comments. My order status changed to shipping, so the Jorgenson pipe clamps are on the way. But, I did find a Rockler store not that far from my house, and signed up for their newsletter. I'll watch for their sales.

[Steve Clardy]

I bought 12 of the irwin 1/2 a couple of years ago. The ones that do not need the threaded pipe.
The ends would not stay in place, they spun around on the pipes. The pipes did not go into them far enough I thought, making them crooked on the pipe. I got to where I despised the things, and sold them on ebay.

[Bob Noles]

Greg,

If you really want to save money, go get them from HF. They are much cheaper and for pipe clamps, work as well as any out there.

[Michael Fross]

I used to use 3/4" pipe clamps but got tired of the flexing pipe. It made it hard to glue up flat panels. Switched to Jog. I-Beam bar clamps about 10 years ago. Cost about $25 per clamp for 36" and worth a thousand times more then pipe clamps. If you can't make your mind up which one to buy, J or I, I would buy the one that is made in the USA regardless of price. Now I have many pipe clamps that I don't use.

Jeff Singleton

In my (rather limited) experience, I've not needed that much pressure to glue up flat panels. I take a lot of time to make sure that the edges are well jointed, and just a little pressure seems to be ok.

Michael