There is a cummins tool show coming to town this weekend and I was thinking of picking up a set of their F-bar clamps and big wood clamps. I know they aren't as good as Bessey or Jorgensen, but for light duty work when in a pinch, and for $20 and $25 respectively I figured it may be worth a shot. One 'GOOD' clamp costs that much.
Am I asking for trouble or will they do the job. Here are links to them.
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his breath waiting for lectures on saving and buying good equipment the first time)
Have in the past bought clamps from them, and the bottom line is that the clamps are crap. Cheaper to buy, yes, but when they work poorly or fail, they are a poor bargain
HD has the Bessy Tradesman clamps on sale - worth checking into.
As to the big boys (parallel cabinet clamps), save those pennies and buy the good stuff the first time around
You've summed up my opinion of everything I've ever seen there. And much of the merchandise looks used...a lot. IMHO, you'd be better off frequenting garage sales if you're looking for cheap stuff. Or, even better, buy something good that works well and does so every time you use it, after all the "pain" from the cost is a one-time event whereas crap will constantly remind you that it is crap until you throw it out.
I have bought Cheap Chinese F-clamps that work and some that don't. You can't compare a K-body clamp to a regular F-clamp. F-clamps do not provide parallel clamping force and have a relatively small clamping area (about 1/2 sqaure inch). That just means that they can't provide as much force, they tend to make your work-pieces slide a bit, and you may have to use scrap blocks to protect your work.
That said, I have had good luck with the "pittsburgh" brand F-clamps from Harbor freight... watch their sales The 6-inchers go on sale for around 3 or
4$. They come with little plastic pads which I hot-melt glue onto the clamp so that they don't slide off.
For instance:
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?itemnumber=34387Someone else stated that over 24" they have too much flex... I tend to agree. I think a pipe clamp is a better low-cost option when you get above
24".
Personally, I can't bring myself to pay $30-$50 for a top-of-the-line Bessy K-body clamp. No doubt they are far superior... just a bit rich for my blood.
The Harbor Freight versions are about the same price or less and are MUCH better. I like my HF wood clamps. The F clamps on sale at Home Depot are a lot better than the HF F clamps, but of course much more expensive. The HF F clamps are OK, not great, but better than Cummins.
Mine too. Crap. Suitable only for deposit immediately into the nearest Dumpster. It's amazing to walk away from a place filled with tools and machines having felt not even the slightest impulse to buy anything.
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