Has anyone had a chance to play with the new Woodcraft parallel-jaw
clamps (made by Bessey)? Are they really just green k-body clamps, or
is there a reason they're cheaper than the red ones? The plastic
handle and slightly rounded top jaw are the only differences I can see
in the photos - unfortunately, I don't have a Woodcraft nearby to go
check them out in person.
My first reaction upon seeing them in the flyer: I've occasionally seen
k-bodies on sale cheaper than that, but if THESE go on sale, it'd be a
real deal. However, it would make my clamp rack look like Santa's
Workshop.
Thanks,
Andy
Andy,
The Woodcraft parallel clamps were manufactured on contract by a third
party (Groz of India) to Bessey's specifications. These clamps are
designed and manufactured to Bessey's standards to be a price point
alternative to the regular K-Body manufactured by Bessey Tools in
Germany. I have personally used these clamps on several occasions since
we first received the initial prototypes and I have to say that I truly
believe they are of a quality that far exceeds the price. That being
said if you want the absolute best parallel jaw clamp on the maket then
I would suggest that they buy the original K-Body. If on the other hand
you are a cost conscience customer that maybe has a budget that they
must work within then I believe the Woodcraft by Bessey parallel clamps
offer exceptional value.
Good luck on your decision and with all of your woodworking projects to
come.
(PS: what's wrong with looking like Santa's workshop ??)
PTC
Andy wrote:
> Has anyone had a chance to play with the new Woodcraft parallel-jaw
> clamps (made by Bessey)? Are they really just green k-body clamps, or
> is there a reason they're cheaper than the red ones? The plastic
> handle and slightly rounded top jaw are the only differences I can see
> in the photos - unfortunately, I don't have a Woodcraft nearby to go
> check them out in person.
> My first reaction upon seeing them in the flyer: I've occasionally seen
> k-bodies on sale cheaper than that, but if THESE go on sale, it'd be a
> real deal. However, it would make my clamp rack look like Santa's
> Workshop.
> Thanks,
> Andy
PTC wrote:
> Andy,
>
> The Woodcraft parallel clamps were manufactured on contract by a third
> party (Groz of India) to Bessey's specifications. These clamps are
> designed and manufactured to Bessey's standards to be a price point
> alternative to the regular K-Body manufactured by Bessey Tools in
> Germany. I have personally used these clamps on several occasions since
> we first received the initial prototypes and I have to say that I truly
> believe they are of a quality that far exceeds the price. That being
> said if you want the absolute best parallel jaw clamp on the maket then
> I would suggest that they buy the original K-Body. If on the other hand
> you are a cost conscience customer that maybe has a budget that they
> must work within then I believe the Woodcraft by Bessey parallel clamps
> offer exceptional value.
PTC,
Thanks for the clarification and further info. I have to say I'm
impressed with a company that watches newsgroups to keep up with
potential customers (even if it's just the fact than an employee is
interested enough in the topic to follow up on his/her own). I'm going
to be traveling past a Woodcraft store in a few weeks, so I'll try to
convince LOML that we need to stop for a few minutes... Looking
forward to checking out the green clamps in person,
Andy
> If you want the best parallel jaw clamp on the market, you might want
> to look at the Jet clamps...
>
>
Tried one yesterday in the local woodcraft, they were a bugger to slide
AND you had to have the handle rotated to just the right location to
get them to be able to slide. AND the screw mechanism was anything but
smooth on the 24" I was playing with.
$26.00 was the price. I do like the inovative features they have
though, and once you go the handle adjusted the release lever to allow
quick sliding was quite nice.
Personal favorite is still the cabinet masters.
Alan
Bruce Barnett wrote:
> Pat Barber <[email protected]> writes:
>
> > Based on a prior e-mail...it is safe to say that they
> > are NOT the exact copy of the red models.
>
> I just received a catalog from Harbor Freight
> and they are now selling parallel jaw woodworking clamps.
>
Wow, the problem is that why would you pay $30 for a HF clamp when you
can get a Bessey on sale in the $22-30 range easily.. Heck, isn't full
price on a Bessy $34 or $35?
If the HF ones were $10, I might take a chance, but they've burned me
too many times.
Tim wrote:
> I have a number of HF clamps, but don't use them unless I have to. They are
> well priced and not TOO bad, but I don't like them. I don't think I would
> buy HF parallel clamps for any price; storage space to just too dear for
> crap.
>
> Now... I also bought some Homier clamps, and they disintegrated the first
> time I used them; the HF ones are just not good, which is an great deal lot
> better.
Thanks for the feedback. I bought about a dozen of the HF "F" clamps,
but I too seldom use them. You make a good point.. having a gadget that
just takes up space is a cost as well.
I intended my statement to be more hypothetical.. If I really needed
some parallel clamps, and price was a big issue, HF would have to be
$10 for me to even consider.. But you made the right call. Not worth it
at any price, since they are just junk that takes up room. Certainly
not worth it at only $4 savings of a full price Bessey (and when HF is
more than a Bessey on sale).
Haven't bought anything from HF in about 3-4 years now. My blood
pressure is considerably lower. LOL
This page shows a "direct compare" to the red ones... One
can only assume that it's the same clamps.
http://www.woodcraft.com//family.aspx?familyid=5903&HomePageDeal=True
They sure "look" the same.
Andy wrote:
> Has anyone had a chance to play with the new Woodcraft parallel-jaw
> clamps (made by Bessey)? Are they really just green k-body clamps, or
> is there a reason they're cheaper than the red ones? The plastic
> handle and slightly rounded top jaw are the only differences I can see
> in the photos - unfortunately, I don't have a Woodcraft nearby to go
> check them out in person.
> My first reaction upon seeing them in the flyer: I've occasionally seen
> k-bodies on sale cheaper than that, but if THESE go on sale, it'd be a
> real deal. However, it would make my clamp rack look like Santa's
> Workshop.
> Thanks,
> Andy
>
[...snip...]>
>I just received a catalog from Harbor Freight
>and they are now selling parallel jaw woodworking clamps.
>
>The catalog is B&W, so I can't tell the color.
>
[...snip...]
I saw some at a HF store, they just had the 12" version. They were
red, looked like they could be good clamps. IIRC they were Pittsburg
branded. But since the asking price was $30, I didn't purchase any.
Maybe if they have them for 50% off, I'll go for it.
On 3 Oct 2006 09:42:30 -0700, "PTC" <[email protected]>
wrote:
>Andy,
>
>The Woodcraft parallel clamps were manufactured on contract by a third
>party (Groz of India) to Bessey's specifications. These clamps are
>designed and manufactured to Bessey's standards to be a price point
>alternative to the regular K-Body manufactured by Bessey Tools in
>Germany. I have personally used these clamps on several occasions since
>we first received the initial prototypes and I have to say that I truly
>believe they are of a quality that far exceeds the price. That being
>said if you want the absolute best parallel jaw clamp on the maket then
>I would suggest that they buy the original K-Body.
If you want the best parallel jaw clamp on the market, you might want
to look at the Jet clamps...
<URL:http://www.amazon.com/Jet-70411-Parallel-Clamp-Set/dp/B000F79022/sr=1-1/qid=1159903784/ref=pd_bbs_1/104-1649942-5707147?ie=UTF8&s=hi>
"Pat Barber" <[email protected]> wrote in message
> This page shows a "direct compare" to the red ones... One
> can only assume that it's the same clamps.
>
> http://www.woodcraft.com//family.aspx?familyid=5903&HomePageDeal=True
>
> They sure "look" the same.
It will be interesting to see if Bessey continues to have their once or
twice yearly discount sale on their clamps and at what price?
But they're not. Do a little research.
"Pat Barber" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> This page shows a "direct compare" to the red ones... One
> can only assume that it's the same clamps.
>
>
"bf" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
>
> Bruce Barnett wrote:
>> Pat Barber <[email protected]> writes:
>>
>> > Based on a prior e-mail...it is safe to say that they
>> > are NOT the exact copy of the red models.
>>
>> I just received a catalog from Harbor Freight
>> and they are now selling parallel jaw woodworking clamps.
>>
>
> Wow, the problem is that why would you pay $30 for a HF clamp when you
> can get a Bessey on sale in the $22-30 range easily.. Heck, isn't full
> price on a Bessy $34 or $35?
>
> If the HF ones were $10, I might take a chance, but they've burned me
> too many times.
>
I have a number of HF clamps, but don't use them unless I have to. They are
well priced and not TOO bad, but I don't like them. I don't think I would
buy HF parallel clamps for any price; storage space to just too dear for
crap.
Now... I also bought some Homier clamps, and they disintegrated the first
time I used them; the HF ones are just not good, which is an great deal lot
better.
"Andy" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> Has anyone had a chance to play with the new Woodcraft parallel-jaw
> clamps (made by Bessey)? Are they really just green k-body clamps, or
> is there a reason they're cheaper than the red ones? The plastic
> handle and slightly rounded top jaw are the only differences I can see
> in the photos - unfortunately, I don't have a Woodcraft nearby to go
> check them out in person.
> My first reaction upon seeing them in the flyer: I've occasionally seen
> k-bodies on sale cheaper than that, but if THESE go on sale, it'd be a
> real deal. However, it would make my clamp rack look like Santa's
> Workshop.
> Thanks,
> Andy
>
The handles appear to be plastic and hollow as opposed to wood. This
might result in your hand slipping when tightening down. I do not
personally think the handles would be as comfortable to use and the
original.
"Andy" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> Has anyone had a chance to play with the new Woodcraft parallel-jaw
> clamps (made by Bessey)?
Don't know, but I bought some small imitation Bessey clamps at Woodcraft and
returned them. They were well priced, but didn't hold at all.
I won't be among the first to try these new ones.
"Jim Weisgram" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> [...snip...]>
>>I just received a catalog from Harbor Freight
>>and they are now selling parallel jaw woodworking clamps.
>>
>>The catalog is B&W, so I can't tell the color.
>>
> [...snip...]
>
> I saw some at a HF store, they just had the 12" version. They were
> red, looked like they could be good clamps. IIRC they were Pittsburg
> branded. But since the asking price was $30, I didn't purchase any.
> Maybe if they have them for 50% off, I'll go for it.
Do these look like what you saw?
http://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/ctaf/displayitem.taf?Itemnumber=93876
Based on a prior e-mail...it is safe to say that they
are NOT the exact copy of the red models.
Somebody posted a full explanation of the India built
models for Woodcraft using the Bessey design.
David wrote:
>
> I might be wrong, but the handles look different that Bessy K body
> handles. It appears from photos that there's more than just a color
> change.
>
> Dave
Pat Barber <[email protected]> writes:
> Based on a prior e-mail...it is safe to say that they
> are NOT the exact copy of the red models.
I just received a catalog from Harbor Freight
and they are now selling parallel jaw woodworking clamps.
The catalog is B&W, so I can't tell the color.
They have three of them, 12", 24" and 36"
http://da.harborfreight.com/cpisearch/web/search.do?keyword=parallel+clamp&Submit=Go
But there are no pictures on the web page yet.
I'm not sure if they are Bessey clones.
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