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After years of wishing my old workbench had a tail vise, I realized I could make one of my new Jorgensen Cabinet Master bar clamps do the job. All I had to do was reverse the sliding lower jaw [...]

I lost the rubber pads that came with my clamps. I liked the way the pads protected the wood, so I decided to make my own. After a couple dips in liquid plastic ($9 at a hardware store), my [...]

I needed a way to secure the tail board on the pin board for marking on a large case project while transferring the layout. So, I used two picture-frame clamps to hold both pieces square and in [...]

I recently made a couple of recipe boxes with finger joints. I didn’t have enough regular clamps to glue both boxes at once, so I decided to use band clamps. During my dry run, I discovered that [...]

Now that arthritis has a grip on me, I have trouble getting a good grip on clamp handles. My solution is easy and costs nothing. I carve grooves lengthwise on the handles using a medium-sized [...]

Tool: Miter-Tight Picture Fram Clamp [Buy Now]  Manufacturer: Rockler MSRP: $99.99 If you’d like to make picture frames—particularly with pre-made moldings—be warned: Aligning those miters can [...]

I made a clamping device for my bench that can quickly snug up a board just by swinging a lever. The lever has a cam that pushes a sliding stop tight against the board. I made all the parts from [...]

Tool: Pack Rack Clamp & Storage System Manufacturer: Rockler MSRP: $199.99 Rockler’s mobile clamp rack, the Pack Rack Clamp & Storage System,  is a sturdy and customizable rolling unit. [...]

I saw stars the last time I dropped a bar clamp on my foot. Then I saw the light, in the form of a wooden handscrew. I’d been making my own handscrews—wood threads and all—for years. Why [...]

Some objects aren’t easy to hold for drilling. When I run into a situation like this, I use a wooden-jawed handscrew that has sandpaper glued to one side of it, so it doesn’t move [...]

When your hands aren’t strong or large enough to put the last squeeze on a big clamp, try clamping the clamp. My ingenious wife, who has very small hands, invented this solution. She works [...]

Tool: Pipe Vise Manufacturer: Lee Valley Price: $65 A tail vise is an essential part of a first-class workbench. It’s used to hold work on top of the bench, between dogs. Most types of tail [...]