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Multipurpose
Clamp Aids
By Brad Holden
The "universal clamping block" really lives up
to its name. It’s just a flat aluminum bar with a
loop on one end, yet it can be used to clamp a
mitered frame, a workpiece on a drill press, the
sides of a mitered cabinet and more. It’s the kind
of simple tool that makes you mutter, “Why
didn’t I think of that?”
Let’s look at the mitered
frame operation. You can put
direct pressure across a joint
of almost any angle using two
Universal Clamping Blocks,
due to their round loops. A
series of ridges on the Blocks
keep them from slipping. Of
course, the ridges may dent
your wood, in which case
you just slip a neoprene pad
between the Block and the
workpiece. (Pads are included
with the Blocks.)
On a drill press, the Blocks work like cantilevered
hold-downs. You’ll just need to add T-bolts and knobs,
which aren’t included. As for the cabinet with long
miters, here’s where the hole in the loop
comes in—it’s for a 3/4" o.d. pipe. To clamp
that joint, you slide a number of Blocks onto
the pipe, then clamp the outer blocks to the
cabinet. To see how this works, and many
other clever applications, visit the manufacturer’s
website listed below.
Source
Blokkz, blokkz.com, 714-267-8440, 2 Universal
Clamping Blocks (includes 2 neoprene pads), #UCB5R20.
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