Stanley’s new 2×4 bar clamp hardware (STHT83166) attaches to standard 2×4 lumber to create any size clamp you need.
Slide both pieces along a 2×4 beam, hand-tighten the locking foot, and you have an instant clamp that can provide up to 400 pounds of clamping force. Add a few screws to get up to 850 pounds of clamping force at your disposal.
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Both clamp components have non-mar pads to help protect work surfaces.
Need a spreader instead of a clamp? No problem, just reverse the direction of the jaws.
The clamp is simple, but ingenious. I’m not ready to throw away my bar clamps or pipe clamps, but can definitely see why a set or two of these clamps would be excellent at construction sites.
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The 2×4 clamp is available in the USA and Canada for about $20-25.
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http://youtu.be/EXBRUWS4Z30
John S
Definitely like the ease of using these clamps. 2x4s are rather easy to find on a job site, I would bet 🙂 haha
Robert
If they’re durable, these could be a neck saving solution in a pinch in the absence of “traditional” clamps. I could see them for temporary lighter duty support beams and a host of other quick but vital applications.
It’s always good to have backup solutions. At that size and price, it’s seems like a practical approach for a number of potential job site scenerios. These combined with a couple of 2×4 sawhorse brackets, and you’d have an instant simple work station. You’d just need a little creative thinking.
Once it’s determined that they are halfway durable, I’ll probably pick up a set. They could’ve saved me on more than one occasion.
Robert
John Sullivan
I’m really hoping that these are all-metal construction. There’s a plastic-ish look that makes me nervous, and you _know_ that the inevitable orange & black Harbor Freight knock-offs will be plastic.
matt
Where can one buy a straight 2×4 at?
Pipe clamps still seem like a much more rigid and straight design to me..
LORDDiESEL (GJ Forum)
I laughed when i saw the guy using one with a 2×4 as a straight edge. All this 2nd and 3rd growth wood is just garbage.
Phil
Not a bad idea. A pair of sawhorses can become an instant “workmate.”
LORDDiESEL (GJ Forum)
I’m a carpenter, and i can’t see me using these clamps at work.
Charlie
I’d have to agree that it should be made of metal, especially when it has a $24 price tag for each clamp.
Jerry
If it works, it would be a clever idea.
RKA
I like the idea, but it seems a little too basic. I’ll echo the comments about the plastic vs. metal though I suspect nobody at dewalt really cares. Secondly, I wish they had incorporated a pivoting jaw that could be swung out to the side of the body. This gives you the option to clamp something vertically as well as horizontally. And if it had a detent to stop at 45 degrees out you could clamp something at a angle to the top support on the sawhorse. Of course clamping force would probably be reduced if you pivot it off to the side, but we’re not doing glue ups with these. For all practical purposes, these things serve as a third hand, so it should be fine. Finally, a ratcheting mechanism would be much easier to work. The problem with the screw clamp is the stock it’s mounted on interferes with the rotation unless you placed it on the end of the stock. Yes, you can do 180 degrees at a time and slide the handle, but that’s a pain (which they do an admirable job of demonstrating in their video).
Stuart
Agreed. It looks like the screw clamp’s T-handle will be an ENORMOUS pain to adjust. Yes, it allows for greater torque when slid to either side, but very slow to adjust. Maybe they should have went for a hinged handle design that could be twirled when held straight.
It’s probably easier to slide one of the clamps along the 2×4 for long adjustments and just use the screw clamp for finer adjustments.
Alexander Christie
I am very interested in purchasing some of these clamps. However, I will hold off on making the purchase until I can be sure that they are not all plastic.