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.

[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.

plyclamp.jpg

[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