Shopsmith Forums

The other day I found a coupon from Harbor Freight for 12 inch clamps maximum 7 per customer at $1.99 per clamp. Eureka the deal of the year:D After trucking 25 mi Thur las Vegas traffic (one way). I found the clamps also picked up some other shop essentials. You can always find essentials at harbor freight.
Now I am home and try one of the clamps the squeeze handle breaks off. I think to myself "WOW I must be strong cool".
Now I am helping the 8 year old neighbor girl fix her doll house, hand her one of my brand new Harbor Freight clamps and she breaks the squeeze handle off.
Just saying you get what you pay for.
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Thanks, for the FYI as I almost went for this rip off deal.

One big box 'M' store in the Midwest is offering the big blue 'I' brand clamps on sale with a rebate.

I have gone to our local H/F to pick up some of those, and they were always out. Glad they were.

Yeah, I borrowed a few of these from a guy at work and they all either had the same problem before I got them or suffered the same fate once used.

Oh - and HD has irwin clams, as does rockler. Sometimes rockler has a decent sale, so you might try price matching at home depot.

I bought about a half dozen a year or 2 ago for $1.99 each & had one fail & they replaced it & they've been fine since & I've used them a lot. Maybe they've changed vendors.
The other thing you have to remember with this style clamp is that you won't get the kind of pressure you get with crank tight clamps, but that shouldn't mean the handles should break that easily.

POS. Same problem. Crap clamps. There are few things I buy from them. The rest, well, they can keep it. Had a drill press from them and it took time to get right. Never buy anything cordless from them or you might as well just give your money away.

I've got several, use 'em all the time. You can't really crank down on them, but I've only had problems with a couple. With one, I don't remember what was wrong, but I opened it up and put a steel nut where a plastic one was and it's now better than ever. In fact, I intend to "upgrade" the rest of them soon.
Still, I wish I had some of those really good (really expensive) ones.

I've had the same problem - and ran across an article that showed a method of repairing these clamps. You basically replace the broken plastic handle axle with a machine screw.

You can find the article at: http://www.bt3central.com/showthread.php?t=50271

Once repaired with the machine screw, the clamp works reasonably well as a light clamp again. I actually drilled an tapped the opposite side instead of using an external nut.

Jim

The orange handle has a recess on both sides that a nub(too flimsy to be called a pivot!) on both sides fits into and the handle rotates when squeezed. I put a aluminum spacer the same sizes the recess and then ran a bolt through the spacers and the sides. The spacers are a better 'bearing' that the original 'nub'.

Once repaired this way they do not break. The clamp slip mechanism limits the amount of clamping force. They are not for heavy duty use. The plastic orange pads are soft and make the clamping spongey!

I tried these in the store when they first came out and broke two of them. It didn't take much pressure. My plastic Irwin clams I can squeeze as hard as I can and they don't break.

I have lots of Harbor Freight clamps that I have only had one problem that was a defect. A spring that wasn't quite right and caused the sliding jaw to jam. They replaced it without question.

I broke one of their deep throat pipe clamps but that was my fault.

I have put there bar clamps through some hard use and never had one fail. Al though I do prefer the old style with the chrome plated bars and wood handles over the new ones with the painted bars.

I find plastic clamps of any type to have very limited use.