Too Many Clamps, Not Enough Hands

[B A R R Y]

So do I. She's truly a sweetheart, fantastic teacher of little kids, and terrific at lots of things.

Unfortunately, she is not so good with mechanical spatial relationships, which hurts her utility in glue up assistance (as well as navigating a car through strange places ).

She's absolutely terrified of power tools. We've tried and tried to help her get comfortable with all kinds of safety gear, but a machine shop environment still totally overloads her senses. With power tools, I never know if she'll get a death grip or *suddenly let go* at inopportune times. Both can be really bad, not knowing which will happen at a given time is worse!

We've been married long enough to recognize where help from friends and neighbors is valuable. Her, as well as her brother and sister's, high school shop horrors make great "back in the day" stories, as all of them are happy to have not lost any body parts.

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[mac davis]

You make those sound like BAD things... lol

I guess I'm lucky... the wife is a pretty good helper. My guess is that her experience running a sharpening business gives her a basic idea of what I'm doing, so she's a big help with clamping stuff while I try to hold it, being my "cut off table", etc...

Then again, most of the flat work that I do is for HER, that could be motivation..

mac

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[mac davis]

The OP really didn't say WHAT he was gluing up...

I've been doing book shelves and the like lately, and bought 2 pairs of these:

're not really "clamps", they just hold enough to let you align the pieces and hold them until you can really clamp or fasten them... Nice because they're "one handed"....

mac

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[J T]

Sun, Jul 15, 2007, 9:29am (EDT-3) [e-mail] (DerbyDad03) doh lamet: OK, so I don't really have too many clamps, but I definitely don't have enough hands.

A couple of brads, just until the clamp is set. LMAO

JOAT I do things I don't know how to do, so that I might learn how to do them. - Picasso

[Father Haskell]

Thicker cauls require fewer clamps. Jorgenson F-clamps go on before Bessey F-clamps.

[charlieb]

The Lee Valley little one hander black plastic corner/ T clampish things help compensate for being limited to only two hands.

Another less than obvious "holding device" is a bag of lead shot. At about a buck a pound, they're kind of handy for holding things down and when stacked, holding things up. And they don't mark the wood, or even if there's a finish on it. If you don't want to keep it in bags then put it in a completely lock miter joined box and add a handle.

b

[BillinDetroit]

Are you Catholic? If so, you could get last rights at the wedding and cut out the middleman.

Bill

[Doug Miller]

I'm stealing that idea. Thanks, Charlie.

[J T]

Mon, Jul 16, 2007, 3:15pm (EDT-3) [e-mail] (charlieb) doth sayeth: Another less than obvious "holding device" is a bag of lead shot.

Gots no bags of lead shot, but got some smal lead ingos. You can wrap them in cloth if marring is a problem. They stack nicely too. You can make them from tire weights, printer lead, whatever scrap lead you can scrounge. Quite handy indeed.

JOAT I do things I don't know how to do, so that I might learn how to do them. - Picasso

[J T]

Mon, Jul 16, 2007, 3:15pm (EDT-3) [e-mail] (charlieb) doth sayeth: Another less than obvious "holding device" is a bag of lead shot.

Damn, hit send before I was ready.

You can also use bricks, but I'd definitely wrap 'em in cloth first. Personally I prefer the little lead ingots like use, but sometimes you've just got to use what you've got. I have used squares of wood on occassion, but you've usuall got to stack it high to get enough weight, and there's always te danger of knocking it over, and having to pick it up again.

JOAT I do things I don't know how to do, so that I might learn how to do them. - Picasso

[B A R R Y]

As are chrome plated weightlifting plates.

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[DerbyDad03]

-- Jorgenson F-clamps go on before Bessey F-clamps.

I've never used a Bessey F-clamp. Seen 'em though.

What's the major difference and why do the J's go on before the B's?

[Morris Dovey]

| Another less than obvious "holding device" is a bag of lead shot. | At about a buck a pound, they're kind of handy for holding things | down and when stacked, holding things up. And they don't mark | the wood, or even if there's a finish on it. If you don't want to | keep it in bags then put it in a completely lock miter joined box | and add a handle. |

sometimes fill Folgers plastic coffee "cans" with gravel. They don't mark the wood and the weight is easily adjustable. The "cans" have molded-in handles.

But they're much better at holding things down than they are at holding things up.

-- Morris Dovey DeSoto Solar DeSoto, Iowa USA

[DerbyDad03]

handle.http://web.hypersurf.com/~charlie2/LockMiter/LockMiterBox1.html>> charlie b

Thanks! I've got hundreds of pounds of steel plate weights for Soap Box Derby cars (thus the nickname!) They range from 1/2# to 12# and I do use them as "counterbalances" on occasion, using a rag as cushion. I just have to be very careful not to drop them on the project, or my foot.

[mac davis]

yep... the latex paint will hide the holes...

mac

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[mac davis]

I sense a DAMHIKT in there, Morris...

mac

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[mac davis]

Bill... I sure hope GB meant the left OVER one...

mac

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[Morris Dovey]

mac davis wrote: | On Tue, 17 Jul 2007 04:21:28 -0500, "Morris Dovey" | wrote: | || charlieb wrote: || ||| Another less than obvious "holding device" is a bag of lead shot. ||| At about a buck a pound, they're kind of handy for holding things ||| down and when stacked, holding things up. And they don't mark ||| the wood, or even if there's a finish on it. If you don't want to ||| keep it in bags then put it in a completely lock miter joined box ||| and add a handle. |||

|||| I sometimes fill Folgers plastic coffee "cans" with gravel. They || don't mark the wood and the weight is easily adjustable. The || "cans" have molded-in handles. || || But they're much better at holding things down than they are at || holding things up. | | I sense a DAMHIKT in there, Morris...

NBD. If I wanted 'em to hold something _up_, I'd fill 'em with concrete. Most of the stuff I work on in my shop is heavier than I'd set on top of a thin poly cylinder.

Just about everything in my shop that supports work will support at least triple my weight, and (neener) most of those work supports have wheels.

Sadly, only the saw has wings.

-- Morris Dovey DeSoto Solar DeSoto, Iowa USA

[BillinDetroit]

That's the way I read it. Although my wifes sister has mellowed over the past five years, I still can't think of anything GB has done to me that was so bad I would introduce him to my SIL.I'm not protecting HER, I'm protecting HIM! ;-)

Bill

[Father Haskell]

15, 12:29 pm, DerbyDad03 wrote:

Besseys aren't nearly as delicate. I actually used one as a prybar to jimmy a tiedown chain free from under a pile of demolition trash on a 63 Chevy flatbed, without bending it. Jorgensons are lighter, and easier to work with one hand while the other struggles to hold a stack of heavily glued 2" laminate plies together.