Spool Clamps - Making Them

Jerryc41

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I have twenty 8" 1/4-20 carriage bolts and matching wing nuts. I cut about fifty 1" X 1" round pieces. How important is it to put something on the surface of those round pieces to protect the wood? The "professional" clamps have cork or rubber on them.

Since I will be using these clamps before the top and bottom surfaces are sanded and finished, it doesn't seem like padding would be essential - especially since I don't think I have anything appropriate.
 
I've always added cork as it helps with them holding onto the parts to be clamped rather than slipping away.

Yes, that makes sense. I'll have to see if I have something lying around that is grippy. I could get cork from Amazon for about $12 if I want to wait two weeks.
 
I put cork on mine also (cheap sheet bought at the hardware store and readily available), but truth be told, it was quick, easy and kind of fun and they look almost like store bought spool clamps. As to whether they really are needed, I'm not so sure as you would really have to snug them down really tight to mar the wood. Also keep in mind Jerry that spool clamps can exert a lot of pressure and you don't want to glue starve your join. Moderately snug and you are good to go.
 
Australian sparkling wine corks will expand to a useable size after removing them from the bottle. (You can speed this up by putting them in warm water).
If your budget doesn't stretch to Australian sparkling wine I'm sure lesser French or other European varieties have similar corks.
 
Definitely use cork, especially if going to use spruce or cedar tops. When I made my spool clamps I glued on the cork to some wood and then used a hole saw(drill bit) to cut them out. This is dual purpose as it cuts out a circular block and also leaves a hole in the middle for the bolt.
 
Definitely use cork, especially if going to use spruce or cedar tops. When I made my spool clamps I glued on the cork to some wood and then used a hole saw(drill bit) to cut them out. This is dual purpose as it cuts out a circular block and also leaves a hole in the middle for the bolt.

Yeah, cork might be the way to go, but I hate shopping in stores. I wondered about using a hole say, but I thought it might tear up the cork. I bet Joan Fabric has cork, and they have curbside pickup.
 
I think the cork will compress and protect softwood like spruce tops from being marred or dented. I think $ stores may carry adhesive backed rolls too.
 
I bought a bunch of rubber furniture coasters at a hardware store, drilled a hole in the center and they work great as they grip onto the wood.

I recently had a very steep learning experience with cork for a gluing caul. I'd worked a lot on a headstock veneer with a robin inlay. It was my first try and after putting the inlay together on the 1/16" veneer I varnished and sanded it a few times then shellac'd over that until I had it looking good. When I had the rest of the uke about done and glued the veneer on, I used a flat sheet of cork backed material as a caul, covering the whole veneer. To my horror, there must have been some varnish still uncured under the shellac, and it glued the whole cork sheet to the veneer. I was able to sand it all off completely but it was a lot of work. I sure learned that one.
 
I bought a bunch of rubber furniture coasters at a hardware store, drilled a hole in the center and they work great as they grip onto the wood.

I recently had a very steep learning experience with cork for a gluing caul. I'd worked a lot on a headstock veneer with a robin inlay. It was my first try and after putting the inlay together on the 1/16" veneer I varnished and sanded it a few times then shellac'd over that until I had it looking good. When I had the rest of the uke about done and glued the veneer on, I used a flat sheet of cork backed material as a caul, covering the whole veneer. To my horror, there must have been some varnish still uncured under the shellac, and it glued the whole cork sheet to the veneer. I was able to sand it all off completely but it was a lot of work. I sure learned that one.

That's a nightmare! I'm still waiting for my pack or cork squares to arrive. I figure it will cost about $1.05 per clamp. With 8" bolts, I could cut off some inches and make more, but I I'll have twenty without making or buying more bolts.
 
To my horror, there must have been some varnish still uncured under the shellac, and it glued the whole cork sheet to the veneer. I was able to sand it all off completely but it was a lot of work. I sure learned that one.

Yes, horrors... I use waxed paper under wood blocks (whatever) as glue cauls. Never had a problem.
 
I used the excellent help of one company to produce high-quality toggle clamps. If you need this information, to check it out here https://www.sandfieldengineering.com/toggle-clamps/. I think that now many things contain the work of these clamps, so this relevance is still present today. I think this is good news because humanity has not yet been completely replaced by robots and machines, which means that you can create a lot of cool things.
 
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Yes, that makes sense. I'll have to see if I have something lying around that is grippy. I could get cork from Amazon for about $12 if I want to wait two weeks.

You should be able to buy cork tiles from any hardware store. That's what I used when I made my spool clamps.
 
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