How to Make A Lutherie's Clamp Experiment

How to make a Luthier Clamp. We are experimenting with making a simple clamp. This is made for light weight pressure situations. Often when working with small pieces.
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[@stephenpasinosky7611]

Somewhere in the video you said there were no right answers. James, you always have a Wright answer.

[@hubrigant]

If James doesn't, I'm sure Sara does.

[@timothymallon]

I think I would go back to the original design for the jaw alignment. Having yours start at 90 degrees, VS the original clamps what the degree they were, makes a lot of difference. If you begin at 90, when you use pressure, you go off 90 and create a small pinch point that could damage the soft woods being used on the instrument. By having the clamp be off 90 and with pressure come into 90, it gives the surface more grab with less pinch. Also, the cork is still more forgiving than leather and when compressed is very grabby so less pressure is needed. Leather will burnish too quickly over time and slip, more than grab. Overall, its a great project and I think I might make them myself.

[@Timber2Toothpicks]

I have been watching your videos from my bed in the hospital. I am a woodworker with severe disabilities. My hands shake, I am in a wheelchair and I love Bridge City Tools. This is the first I have seen this machine used. Knowing what I do about neurological disabilities I immediately saw where I could use in many things I do. You did not cover it REALLY well but you did enough that I am going to buy one. Thats now on you! Being disabled one sees things differently than others. You NAILED it with the way you explained that part or use of the machine. I owned my own Woodshop for 25 years. I love tools and I love learning to use them. My main tool is a Shopsmith. July 5 2023 I bought a Laguna Lathe. Now pretty much what I do is turning. The little bit you presented the light went on. Thank You for that. Hey stay in touch with me. When I buy my new machine I will be posting up my videos on my channel. It was a fun to watch video. You’re an ACE with hand planes. This video opened a new door for me. The light went on brightly.

[@WoodByWrightHowTo]

Thanks! I am looking forward to seeing what you make.

[@Srulio]

Very good work. I like the simplicity of a clamp that holds with friction alone. There is less risk of overclamping and glue starvation of a joint. Leather pads seem fine but you could probably salvage and reuse some wine corks easily enough.

[@johnbesharian9965]

I always find it amazing that this style of clamps are not more commonly used. Now I don't know where you're planning on getting the cork sheet(s), but, for making two surf rods, I went to the best tackle shop in town (Modern Bait & Tackle in San Francisco), bought two 13' Lamiglas blanks, one reel seat (for the spinning rod, the conventional reel clamps directly to the grip), appropriate Fuji guides and tips and a 1" wide by"X" yards long spool of adhesive backed cork tape. I used the same source for tape when it came time to R&R the clamping surfaces of any of the guitar clamps I was using at the time fixing guitars. Much easier than cutting strips from a sheet of cork, then trimming to fit, etc.

[@gregpreston7301]

Absolutely love building my own tools and jigs. This would be a great addition. Looking forward to the class.

[@JackFright]

Agreed. I'm looking at making all my own plus the tools for bookbinding

[@CodyBrandt580]

I like the idea of making my own clamps. The fewer parts required the better. Thank you for all you do for the woodworking community 🙏 ❤️

[@wouterengels7769]

I like this one, nice for a rainy afternoon with my boys.

[@kevinkult]

😂 "Comment down below" 😂 I hadn't heard that one before. Thanks for the great content James!

[@user-mc7mc4cf9s]

My thought is - wonderful. Larger ones cost much, and now I can make like 20 of them and glue boards together, thanks! Glue like a crazy person, no matter what!

[@bengtmeuller7043]

Getting rid of a leg clamp is a pain 😁. I like the lighthearted experimentering!

[@alholston-smith7631]

I have an antique large version (beam is more than 12” long) and wondered what it was originally used for, thanks. I didn’t think of making small ones for smaller project clamping, like small boxes, great idea. Cheers

[@reskridge]

Nice Saturday project! Can see many times where these would be useful

[@peregrine1970]

Never ran across those before... looks like a neat project.

[@hassanal-mosawi4235]

Thanks for sharing that and the make!

[@BAILEYWOODWORKS]

I am definitely going to make a set of those! Great video!

[@Apillicus]

I need to make some of these. Thanks!

[@christopherharrison6724]

Love to watch you playing around with these ancient designs

[@tonyp.2482]

"Sorry, leg cramp." You are hilarious. Always finding a punch line. I'm always looking forward to the end, keep them coming 😂😂😂😂

[@caneycreekwoodcarver]

Very cool Robert. That is awesome way to also use up scrap wood that you would get off of other projects.

[@dandelie2067]

I sure would like to know how to make those clamps. Great to know information.

[@snellscroft]

Good idea, will make a few of those

[@marcbarash6045]

Thanks James

[@martinkruger8724]

I love the simplicity of it and already thinking of building one. 🤔 In metric, of course. 😁

[@graywulf19]

I've never seen these before. They look like they would be good for small boxes.

[@iainmcculloch5807]

I can certainly see a use for a couple of these in my workflow. Should be fun to build.

[@jefferycre]

I might have to give it a go! Great video 👊

[@kennethnielsen3864]

Thanks for sharing.

[@paco_vazquez]

One mere project to the list! Thanks James

[@cheryldawkins7486]

Enjoyed it. Thank you

[@J.A.Smith2397]

Love you experimenting

[@toddellner5283]

Roubo's 18th century book _With All Precision Possible_ , one of the great old woodworking tomes, shows a clamp which works on exactly the same principle but made of ~1/2" iron square stock rather than wood.

[@MatthewHarrold]

Now I know what I'm doing next weekend. I've got enough oak scraps to make two of these. Cheers mate. $0.02

[@MrDNG55]

II’m going to try this! Thanks 🙂

[@MCsCreations]

Brilliant little clamp, James! Fantastic work!!! 😃 I may try to make a few as well! Stay safe there with your family! 🖖😊

[@glencrandall7051]

A nice tool. Easy DIY project. You can never have too many clamps. Thank you for sharing. Have a great day and stay safe.🙂🙂

[@nelsvantoor5159]

That's a neat li'l clamp for light work that's easy/cheap to make as well.

[@JustinShaedo]

That saw at 0:45 looks like it fits your hand perfectly 😉

[@JustinShaedo]

Gluing leather on clamp faces; what great idea!

[@red58impala]

Interesting clamp concept. I'm curious to see how well it would work compared to a more "traditional" luthier's clamp with the cam clamp portion. I look forward to future videos and the build video on this. I need some light duty clamps and these just might fit the bill.

[@WoodByWrightHowTo]

Oddly enough this is the traditional luthier's clamp. The cam design is considerably newer. But a while ago the cam design came out and most people considered it to be the superior design and so most switched over to that.

[@red58impala]

@@WoodByWrightHowTo Thanks for clarifying. I figured I'd be wrong calling the cam clamp "traditional", which is why I put it in parenthesis as I wasn't sure, but I do think the cam clamp version would be more versatile. If you do decide to do some comparisons, you'll definitely get a view from me.

[@walterrider9600]

thank you

[@llaroque211]

Good job.

[@danielfasang4983]

Damn it, since I don´t quite get how they work I´ll have to build a set of them just to find out... Thanks for That James 😂 Great Video as always thanks and keep it up. Best chanel on KZbin!

[@bigdragon261]

I would love to make some. That is very interesting.

[@toddellner5283]

Feels like there should be a stop that keeps the moving jaw from getting too close to the fixed jaw. If you can't get a hammer in there to give it a whack you could end up with a clamp stuck and unable to be removed without sawing.

[@johnfreiler6017]

that looks great and I'd love to see a measured drawing.

[@TheBottegaChannel]

Gave me an idea to suggest. Dare ya to make a wooden wrench combined with a mallet. 😂

[@alanfarnworth2802]

could you do a video on how these are used in practice . they look really interesting

[@jt2988]

Should try and make one with longer tabs on the back to help squeeze the clamp tighter

[@dpmeyer4867]

thanks

[@Kevin.odonnell]

Now do again with a cam! Also if you’re interested in hand tool guitar making… I’m not saying that it’s my favorite thing ever… but it totally is something I would love to share resources about

[@will72588]

Yess those are usually used to clamp the bridge. 3 are normally used and they have a cam lock to apply pressure. Bc there's no room in the sound hole... It's not a hand hole. :))

[@jimbucket2996]

See Englers video on cam clamps for ideas. He's always thorough. I'm making a bunch of square wooden ones for my shop when I get to it.

[@WoodByWrightHowTo]

I've done a few other videos on cam clamps. Those are always fun.

[@neoanderson5027]

Great

[@KevinOMalleyisonlysmallreally]

The algorithm has now been fed

[@scottswineford6714]

Seems like it ought to be ideal for epoxy joints

[@deezynar]

James Krenov liked those.

[@noahfreeman8115]

insightful clamp comment!

[@alextopfer1068]

You joke, but oak is an exotic imported timber around here edit: i wonder if i can adapt the design for gluing up hidden tang knife handles

[@nikolausreinke9966]

I think the extra pieces in the sliding mortise are there to prevent that mortise from wearing. At least I was thinking about wearing issues just before you showed the original clamp. That made sense to me, then. What do you think?

[@HansWurst12345]

hammer tap on the back easily quadruples the clamping force, same principle as a holdfast. i do that on my cam clamps all the time

[@Mikey__R]

Down below!!

[@user-mg7yd9wk8r]

And when u do can u send me the sizes of woods and size and what wood to go buy please love ur work its exactly what I wanna do after level 2

[@Adamant4160]

Down below!

[@PedroPereira-ut6pp]

I was expecting the classic phrase: you can't never have enough clamps!

[@user-mg7yd9wk8r]

Nice Wright let me no when ur class is I think I'm at the stage in college now I should be able to do just how do I get ur waxy finish from😊😊😊😊

[@grumpyoldsodinacellar3518]

Comment added 😊

[@ianpearse4480]

Well, I do need to get grip! LOL.

[@urgamecshk]

The top mortise shouldn't be wedged. It's usually cross pinned There's also another "stop" pin on the bottom to stop the moving jaw from falling off completely.

[@WoodByWrightHowTo]

That is all what I am experimenting with.

[@toddellner5283]

The metal version - see post from 29 October above - puts the moving jaw on the bar and then upsets the end so it won't come off.

[@tatehogan5685]

I felt oddly pressured to watch this😂

[@JackFright]

wait, wait, white oak? Mythical material of the gods? ;)

[@gordonmccall5263]

Comment down below! Cool project!

[@robohippy]

So, are you going to make a guitar/banjo/mandolin/ukulele????

[@WoodByWrightHowTo]

Some day I will make another one.

[@johnford7847]

Did you make one/some without finishing the bar? If so, did you find it makes any difference in how well the clamp holds? I was kind of shocked to see you apply BLO, let alone wax, to the bar. Looking forward to more about this.

[@WoodByWrightHowTo]

I have not noticed a clamping difference with or without finish and paste wax.

[@michaelgreen429]

These are neat clamps. I wouldn't mind building a set. Do they provide enough clamping pressure to work with pva glues? Or just hide glues and epoxy? Thanks

[@WoodByWrightHowTo]

In the application where you'd be using these you don't need the full strength of the PVA glue. You'd be talking about gluing together the body of something with quarter inch or thinner material. In that case the glue strength really isn't that important.

[@user-tl3dk1wr8f]

Just curious: why didn't you cut the mortise before you cut the two heads apart? That way you didn't have to "glue" the two heads together. Looks like a fun project!

[@tarbucktransom]

Having made this exact project before, the answer very well may be "yeah, oops." If there's a pragmatic reason, then it's probably about accuracy over that long of a narrow mortise?

[@entretantosmundosgaming4974]

Would clamps like these work for electric guitar building? I’ me referring to the gluing part.

[@WoodByWrightHowTo]

For electric guitar most of the time you are just doing structural gluing. These are great for small delicate pieces but you don't need the clamping strike.

[@richardtyler-5119]

Comment down below 👍

[@urgamecshk]

As a luthier... These are just called Cam Clamps.

[@jimbucket2996]

That looks similar to a cam clamp it's just missing cam.

[@WoodByWrightHowTo]

The anti-cam clamp

[@Hansenomics]

Working for The Clamp Down!

[@vince55sanders]

this one time at Band Clamp...

[@andrewjohnson9610]

How long have those stalactites been growing from the lid of your oil jar?!?

[@WoodByWrightHowTo]

LOL about 8 years on that one.

[@bigpoppajeff]

Comment down below

[@jwydubak9673]

Comment down below.

[@opotime]

Its Time for a viseless video...@0:53 the vise push a bow to the workpeace that wanted to be flat. Im sure you know better because you still get it flat that way...but there are better ways to show. Sorry for the way im talking, im mean ... No no i mean it nice ;-) Greatz from Germany and have a nice Day opo

[@mx_nana_banana]

is it just me or does james seem high strung in this episode?

[@j.davidbennett8373]

a fine Luthier pun

[@InternalizedSun]

Indeed it is - LMAO 😂

[@RobEdinger]

Down Below!

[@ykkfamily]

Already clicked like and watching 😁

[@blacknorce]

Not my style. Maybe if you can tap it tighter but it looks like it wouldn't last long if someone is hitting it a lot. Still looks fun to make.

[@WoodByWrightHowTo]

Yeah this isn't for anything that means clamping force. It's for small light delicate things.

[@jeffs.3527]

One might worry that a woodworker without a lot of friendth was a luthier.

[@steveshapland8846]

I put a cam on the sliding jaw of the set i made.

[@thebulletproofpoet1744]

Is this where I comment?

[@JackFright]

Okay, answering your questions. Yes, would love to make this sort of thing. Very much interested in making all of my own tools. As I mentioned below, I am interested in making all of my bookbinding tools as well. Any techniques that I could transfer would be great. I'm all for the class.

[@ssrattus]

Comment down below, below.

[@JohnColgan.]

Oops💪😉

[@hundertd]

You've titled this one, an "experiment..." Will you be doing a video on how to make one that is not an experiment?

[@WoodByWrightHowTo]

Yes. I am planning on doing a live class as well.

[@ping170]

Comment down below down below down below :P

[@cindyharrison4191]

What is a Luther?

[@paco_vazquez]

A luthier is a person that builds string instruments, from violins to big basses and anything in between. It’s a fascinating mix of musician and specialized woodworker. An art in its own right, and one that takes decades to develop.

[@SimonWillig]

A Luther on the other hand was a kind of influencer back in the days. Two were especially succesful - both were coincidently named martin

[@warrenmunn3224]

😜

[@robertberger8642]

Comment down below. Or, up above? To the side? No? Then how about the other side? Hm. In front of? Behind? 90 degrees from reality?