Pipe Clamps

[michael.scheller]

I'm just starting to outfit my shop. Of course no one can have enough clamps; and I'm going to be buying some. Does anyone have experience with the Pittsburgh brand of pipe clamps sold by Harbor Freight? Worth the money? Cheaply made? Waste of money?

Thanks,

[MilDoc]

If you mean their F-clamps, good enough for starters. I bought a bunch and still use them frequently. Just don't tighten more than needed. And throw in some of their aluminum bar clamps too.

[sweensdv]

The #31255 ¾" Pittsburgh pipe clamps are as good a quality pipe clamp as others that cost twice as much or more. I own about a half a dozen of them and if I needed more wouldn't hesitate to buy more. The Harbor Freight 6", 12" and 18" bar clamps also are a very good deal for the money. In my useage, the 24" and larger bar clamps tend to be a little flimsy and the bar can bow when you tighten them down.

[LCHIEN]

lots of discussions here recently
do a search for pipe clamps or click this link:

http://www.bt3central.com/search.php?searchid=158756

[michael.scheller]

Thanks Loring... I guess I forgot the 1st rule of forums is "Do a Search".

[cabinetman]

Thanks Loring... I guess I forgot the 1st rule of forums is "Do a Search".

As for regular pipe clamps, I did a thread on their improvement:
http://www.bt3central.com/showthread.php?t=23090



"I'M NEVER WRONG - BUT I'M NOT ALWAYS RIGHT"

[whitecobra]

A few more additions
If you live in the shouth getting black pipe is all but impossible and using galvanized will not work since the coating chips and the clamps lose thier "gripP

If you use the aluminium ones at HF make sure you get the coupons or print the web pages since they are MUCH cheaper then at the store.

Lastly if you tighten them down hard expect them to slip or break

With that said I have 2 dozen 3/4" and 1/2" HF pipe clamps and atleast 1 dozen aluminum ones fomr them and all work fine for my ahnds

Dr D

[eezlock]

HF pipe clamps

I'm just starting to outfit my shop. Of course no one can have enough clamps; and I'm going to be buying some. Does anyone have experience with the Pittsburgh brand of pipe clamps sold by Harbor Freight? Worth the money? Cheaply made? Waste of money?

Thanks,

Michael,
Hf pipe clamps are as good as other ones costing twice as much.

The F clamps are very good, I have several of these in various sizes
and they work well. ( Bessy look-a- likes)

Stay away from the plastic handle black and orange ones...they are JUNK!
If you do like I did...I squeezed them too tight and busted two of them!

Their corner clamps ( heavy duty type with one screw handle---very good
they are made like Irwin clamps and are very good quality.

Never had any of their alunimum bar clamps...looked kinda cheaply
made to me would rather have some other brand.
Eezlock

[LCHIEN]

I will add, and my comments are in the historical threads on the subject, that I don't like pipe clamps very much. Too heavy and they bend too much.
They do have their place but I think other clamps make up a better starting package.

[LarryG]

Another +1 on the HF 31255 pipe clamps being a genuine bargain. These are the kind with a multi-plate clutch; avoid the other model they sell which has a single little flip-lever that locks the clamp in place.

I can't argue with Loring's objections to pipe clamps, but they do have the advantage of being far more economical than any other type of clamp when you get up to the longer lengths, say 48" and above. I don't think pipe clamps come into their own, so to speak, until you get up to 30" capacity or so.

In my part of the south, black pipe is easy to find. The local Home Depot sells 10' sticks for ten bucks and will cut and thread it to the lengths I want for free. This is cheaper, by far, than I can buy precut lengths of the same pipe in the same store. (Go figure.)

Speaking of threading, be sure to get your pipe threaded on both ends, so you can hook two pieces together with a coupler when you need a longer clamp.

Finally, don't forget that the clamp halves will use up about 5" - 6" of your pipe length. To net a 36" clamp, you'll need about a 42" long pipe.

[Jeffrey Schronce]

I will add, and my comments are in the historical threads on the subject, that I don't like pipe clamps very much. Too heavy and they bend too much.
They do have their place but I think other clamps make up a better starting package.

I agree completely with this statement. IMHO aluminum bar clamps have the best bang for the buck for a into set. Light weight, jaws are square to each other, little deflection or flex and they can be cheaper than pipe clamps when you factor in $1 per foot for pipe. HF makes some great aluminum bar clamps and are a great value when you catch them on sale (typically half price).

Note to self : Finish clamp FAQ by end of the year.

[TheRic]

......Note to self : Finish clamp FAQ by end of the year.

Tick....Tock.....Tick....Tock

[Jeffrey Schronce]

I think these are great for an intro set of clamps. Incredible bang for the buck . . . .

http://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/cta...emnumber=38184

There is also 2 coupons out there right now. 1 is for 15% of single or the other is 10% off entire purchase. Print the above link off and take it into the store (call first and make sure they stock the clamp). Buy 8 of them at $4.99 = 10%. Great beginner clamp set. Enjoy.

[LCHIEN]

I think these are great for an intro set of clamps. Incredible bang for the buck . . . .

http://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/cta...emnumber=38184

There is also 2 coupons out there right now. 1 is for 15% of single or the other is 10% off entire purchase. Print the above link off and take it into the store (call first and make sure they stock the clamp). Buy 8 of them at $4.99 = 10%. Great beginner clamp set. Enjoy.

Aluminum clamps are quick to adjust, inexpensive, lightweight and have parallel jaws, and are stiff that they don't bend much.
The only thing wrong with the alum clamps you like so much are that they have very little reach depth. That means they are good for clamping the edges of glued-up panels and table tops, and even for boxes,
but can't reach to clamp inside the center, for example, of a assembly.
The so-called "F"-clamps and Quick grip clamps have a typical reach of about 3", and there are some F-clamps with as much as 6". Also Hand screw clamps have longer reaches, the 12" hand screw clamps will reach about 4-5 inches and can be arranged to clamp at the tip only or along the whole length, a neat advantage.

[Jeffrey Schronce]

Aluminum clamps are quick to adjust, inexpensive, lightweight and have parallel jaws, and are stiff that they don't bend much.
The only thing wrong with the alum clamps you like so much are that they have very little reach depth. That means they are good for clamping the edges of glued-up panels and table tops, and even for boxes,
but can't reach to clamp inside the center, for example, of a assembly.
The so-called "F"-clamps and Quick grip clamps have a typical reach of about 3", and there are some F-clamps with as much as 6". Also Hand screw clamps have longer reaches, the 12" hand screw clamps will reach about 4-5 inches and can be arranged to clamp at the tip only or along the whole length, a neat advantage.

Guess what the vast majority of my clamping needs are? LOL!
You make a good point there. All clamps have weaknesses. The aluminum clamps I point out are also measured by the length of the bar, which when allowing for the clamp fixtures, results in about 5" less clamping capacity. "F" clamps certainly have their place, but IMHO only in very short lengths of 12" or less. This will allow those tight areas that you mention that the aluminum clamp will have problems with due to depth of the clamping pads.
I have (6) 24" aluminum clamps that I bought prior to building up my K-Body collection. They were functional for my needs, however the clamps pads are also quite slick due to the paint they use on them.
Today I use parallel clamps pretty much exclusively. My work is primarily larger pieces (tables, desks, book shelfs, etc). My clamp collection is by far the most expensive tool in my shop on a retail basis. Fortunately I had some time on my hands earlier in the year, caught some great Amazon deals on Besseys, sold some on Ebay and paid for the majority of the set.
Having said that, I stand by my "bang for the buck" statement on HF Aluminum clamps. Yes, you will need other clamps for smaller clamping projects and tight areas but YOU CAN NEVER HAVE TOO MANY CLAMPS!!!!