Lee Valley parallel clamps


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Their blue. Who the hell wants blue clamps! If you buy blue clamps they wont match your red clamps. Now you have to buy all new blue clamps or that pretty wall of clamps will look all screwed up. :)

 

on the homebrewer's forum, all the cooler's used for mash tuns have to be blue or you are just sacrificing efficiency and flavor :D

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Why is the color important?   If the clamp does what it's designed to do, color means nothing.... That is unless you're keeping up with the unknown Jones!  Green, blue, red, white? Who gives a rat's butt ? If it works, that's all that matters. If all that matters is how it looks in a photo, you need to be teaching classes. If it brings your joints together, how it looks is pure B/S.

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UD- Universal Design

With lever action, my seven year old and her seventy year old grandfather (approximations) can still use a parallel style clamp without needing wrist rotation force.

 

Is weight affected by UD too? Because a 7 year old will have a hard time trying to lift a Bessey K Body Revo and put it in place.  Maybe those new UD clamps are made of lighter materials.

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I think you are missing the point. When you want that seven year old to feel included, you find ways for them to be involved. I am not proposing that I intend to sell all my clamps and buy these. I just find the concept intriguing. So you set things on the bench and say to little Jr. "Give that a crank." That is just a possible use that might take the focus away from gimmicky over torque. Just brainstorming. My background in installing lock sets obviously colored that line of thought.

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  • 3 months later...

Hmmm! Don't know where you guys think Jet and Bessey parallel jaw clamps are made, but I can assure you they are made in China!

 

Ehoma make the clamps that Lee Valley are selling and they make very good quality products. I'd have to agree that the swivel handle is a bit of a gimmick and I personally don't see it ever being necessary. If your woodworking skills are that poor that you would need it you need to go back to school! Interestingly Ehoma make a version without the swivel handle that is identical in every other respect.

 

The anti-slip system is a variation on the Jet trigger mechanism, not a feature to prevent slipping on the bar in use, and makes setting up for glue ups a lot easier. I'd be very surprised if anybody who buys these is not extremely happy with them and giving themselves a pat on the back for being so smart! The weight of these clamps indicates that they are as solidly built as the Besseys, but not quite as heavy as the Jets with the extra mechanical parts necessary for the trigger mechanism. I'm looking at importing them to sell in Australia.

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That would depend on how good ones grip strength is.  If one has low grip strength for some reason this would be rather helpful.

I agree but I also know there have been times that I used my Pony clamp to draw things together... because of the power.... WHICH was because of my poor fitting of parts together.  This handle probably isn't designed to help the person overcome bad fitting but giving the clamp one last bit of pressure when the aging hands don't want to grip it any further.

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I agree but I also know there have been times that I used my Pony clamp to draw things together... because of the power.... WHICH was because of my poor fitting of parts together.  This handle probably isn't designed to help the person overcome bad fitting but giving the clamp one last bit of pressure when the aging hands don't want to grip it any further.

Don't talk about my grip.

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Just checked my Jets. Made in China for Jet. The clamp is not labeled, I happened to have one box with some other stuff stored in it. It was a door kit (two 40" something's and two 24" with staging blocks.) It is possible my longer ones were made somewhere else as the manufacturing is not identical.

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Jet are Taiwanese. At least some Besseys are made in Germany (not sure if they also have a taiwanese line) Pony clamps are made right here in chicago.

Amazon usually lists country of origin.

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I got a bunch a while ago with their introductory offer & like them a lot. It's easy to control the slide function & they grip really hard. I don't know that I'll ever use the swivel on the handle though. Much better than the old style Besseys, but I have no Revos so I can't compare to them.

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I have a couple of the sets Lee Valley had on sale when they were first introduced. They are OK. I also have some Jet parallel clamps and they are MUCH easier to use.

I actually used the swivel handles a couple of days ago - I had to re-seat some eccentric cams on my jointer and I was able use to use one of the clamps (with swivel action) to do the job. Worked great. Not sure I would ever have that needs for wood though...

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I have a couple of the sets Lee Valley had on sale when they were first introduced. They are OK. I also have some Jet parallel clamps and they are MUCH easier to use.

I actually used the swivel handles a couple of days ago - I had to re-seat some eccentric cams on my jointer and I was able use to use one of the clamps (with swivel action) to do the job. Worked great. Not sure I would ever have that needs for wood though...

Arthritis in the hands can be an issue, such as Rheumatoid Arthritis.  Hopefully not a problem you will have but there are many things that can effect grip strength.

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