Clamp Pad Marks or Residue

[Rick]

I have some Jorgensen Cabinet Master clamps, and I really like the way the work. Very good investment. I've not had a bit of trouble with them, but I have with some other Jorgensens.

I bought some regular 3700 series clamps quite a long time ago. Since I recently purchased some CM clamps that come faced with the nice orange plastic that worked great, I decided to buy some of the orange pads for my smaller hand clamps.

I put them on about a week ago. A few nights ago I clamped up some oak spindles on a bed I'm making. I also clamped up some walnut trim pieces on a blanket chest and some maple trim on toy box. On every piece was a round blotch slightly bigger than the clamp pads. I tried to sand it off. No dice. Its soaked into the wood.

How the hell do I get this foreign substance out of my wood? I have $300 in walnut in the blanket chest that will get finished with just a couple coats of catalyzed lacquer. If this project is ruined, I don't know what the hell I'll do. I surely don't want to rebuild it. And I know the customer is not going to be happy waiting for another one.

Anyone know how to treat this problem?

Do you know what caused it? A release agent in the plastic molds?

I tried sanding the faces of the pads and cleaning them. Clamped a test piece. It still stained the wood.

Are they defective pads? Do they all do this? Anybody have the home phone number for the president of Jorgensen?

Not a happy customer right now.

Rick

[Leon]

Rick,

I think LRod mentioned your problem before you posted it here...

To clarify, the marks are not from the Cabinet Master clamps, rather from the orange Jorgensen pads that fit other some other clamps.. Correct?

If those removable pads are like some I have from Jorgensen, they are more of a rubber material than a plastic.

Have you tried an application of your finish to see if it will cover or hide the spots?

[Rick]

I've got so many filters running to get rid of the junk that I miss alot of legit posts I think.

Anyway, yes, they are the removable style that fit lots of generic small hand bar clamps.

I did try coating an area with the lacquer that I use. It did NOT cover it.

The only way to make it even "passable" is to apply some sort of stain. Which is exactly what I didn't want to do.

How in the world can a clamp company market and sell something to woodworkers knowing that it will stain the material that they are using?

Rick

[Leon]

Would an oil like a danish oil blend it better before the lacquer finish??

Sounds strange to me. Mine have never doen that and I have those little orange cover also but they are 20+ years old. I wonder if yours could have become contaminated some how and absorbed oil themselves prior to you buying them.. Good luck..

[Rick]

They were blister packed when I bought them. The package showed no signs of contamination. I bought about 4 or 5 packs of them at the same time. I would suspect that they all came from the same production lot.

I know very little about plastics, but my guess is that the release agent is bleeding out of them. I don't know of any other explanation. I've never seen any other plastics "bleed" like that.

Rick

[Leon]

Well plastic is a petroleum based product. If it compress and changes shape it may ouz.. Or that soft material may have absorbed a release agent and then you squeezed it back out... Let us know how Jorgensen reacts..

[Edwin Pawlowski]

"Rick" <

If it is a release agent, most likely it is silicone based. One sticking part and over zealous operators will spray huge amounts of it in the cavity. It is unusual that colorants or plasticisers would leach out, but it is possible. I've seen migration from one plastic to another, but I don't know what it would do to wood.

My guess is that you are faced with removing the contaminated wood, possibly by sanding, if it is not absorbed too far. Ed

[Silvan]

Mine aren't nearly that old, but I used them right after buying them a few years ago. Maybe not the same stuff. Mine are the ones to fit over Pony clamps. That's the same company, isn't it?

I've had problems when I stupidly clamped directly over a glue line, but I've never seen any sort of chemical/color leach out of the things, and I have several of them bought at several different times over a span of a few years.

[BRuce]

yep, had the same problem with some new "F" clamps. Stained the oak ply for a cabinet I was making. wasn't too much of a problem this time since the customer wanted a real dark stain. I did try and sand out one of the marks just for future reference and it didn't take to much to get it out.

I assumed it was a plasticzer (sp?) or release agent so i will try and clean them before the next use.

BRuce

Rick wrote:

[Roger and Missy Behnke]

I had the same problem with the same brand of clamp pads. Not sure what caused it, but I got lucky. I was using danish oil to bring out the color or the cherry wood. The spots blended right in and the shellac finish coats adhered well.

Roger

[Lance]

If it is plastic, the mark could very well be plasticizer. You would think that they would formulate the compound to avoid this. If that is the case then you have a legitimate gripe!

[Phil Anderson]

Hi Rick,

I would try heat. Heat gun, hair dryer. See if you can get it to evaporate.

[Ron Magen]

FWIW - I've looked at several examples of these 'safety pads' but never actually

*bought* any. Besides being a cheap SOB, I figured they would probably slip off at the most inopportune time {like the clear plastic ones that came with the HF clamps}.

Over the years I have 'collected' a pile of 'Tips & Techniques', and a significant amount of them focus on 'Clamping Aids' {including 'Pads'}. Combine that with a 'tight-wad attitude' that creates boxes of small wood scraps, carpet pieces {indoor & out}, and rolls of 'Slip-Knot', and I have all the 'Clamping Pads' I'll ever need.

Do I qualify to contribute to this thread if I paint them RED ?

Regards, Ron Magen Backyard Boatshop

{PS: Put them in a sealed plastic 'Sandwich' bag. Leave if in a warm place for a few days. If you see interior 'condensation' it is most likely the plastizer outgassing. I would ask the 'Tech Department' what the chemistry is . . they may be able to tell you specifically what solvent to use. I would also complain to the Sales & Marketing Department . . . there should be a customer alert to the effect, "NOTE -NOT to be used for unfinished wood . . .", etc. The only other suggestion I have is . . . try to 'Steam out' what ever it is from the wood}

[Rick]

This is the response I received from Joann Oczkowski ( [e-mail]) at Adjustable Clamp today:

"We are aware of the marks left on the wood when using our clamp pads. Once your project is finished using a stain or varnish, the marks will not be noticeable. We have tested this on many varieties of wood and in each case the marks disappear. Let us know if you have any other concerns."

As an update, I finished the walnut chest with ML Campbell Magnalac. The clamp pad marks are still visible. I indicated this in my email reply. We'll see what kind of response I get tomorrow.

Rick

[Me]

If you're talking about the small roundish rubber caps that fit over the faces on the Jorgensen #37xx F-clamps, then the problem you're having is commonplace. I bought some of those years ago for my clamps, and they've always left a mark on the wood after clamping. I was able to find a number of others who have mentioned this problem. If I need to clamp wood with them, a piece of wax paper or Saran Wrap between the face and the wood solves the problem.

Dunno exactly WHY they do this. I suspect it's some sort of chemical in the rubber compound being squeezed out when pressure is applied, but I have no proof to back that up. As it is, I rarely use them to clamp up wood (I have some Bessey F-clamps with plastic face covers that don't leave marks). The Jorgies are pretty much relegated to clamping down jigs and the such these days.

[Ron Magen]

Interesting that they acknowledge THEY have a problem, but don't apologize for it. By indicating the use of a stain or varnish {typically Amber}to

*cover* THEIR problem, they are de facto admitting that a 'water-clear' finish will NOT make it *disappear*.

Sort of like saying, " Yes, we know you will be cut by the unfinished/untrimmed edge on this expensive tool. We're not going to add a de-burring step, so just get yourself a box of band-aids".

Regards & Good Luck, Ron Magen Backyard Boatshop PS: Just another reason to keep buying the cheap 'knock-off' clones; they look the same & work the same. No over-blown hype, and I know what to expect . . . nothing . . . that I can't make on my own.

[Rick]

I've given them two days to reply, and I have yet to hear anything further than the first email reply that I posted. Obviously not stellar customer service. I'm very disappointed in the Adjustable Clamp because of the way they have handled this situation. I really didn't expect them to ignore me.

If they had apologized for the problem and offered to refund me for the product, I would have been happy. Now, with each passing day, I grow a bit more bitter over the whole situation.

Rick

[Leon]

Ah Rick, life it too short to grow more bitter. Mark this up to experience and avoid their products if that makes you feel better. I agree that they should have offered something especially after admitting that there is a problem with their product.

Anyway thanks for the update.