scmrak's Full Review: Adjustable Clamp 1/2" Pony Bar Clamp Fixture Set f...
Peek into any serious woodshop and you'll find yards of wall space devoted to storing clamps of every description. Chances are good you'll find a large assortment of what looks like simple black pipes with orange doodads on their ends. That's exactly what they are: black pipes with bright orange fittings. You're looking at a woodshop staple, ½-inch Pony Pipe Clamps, a versatile tool of which most of us have a pair or ten.
Pony Pipe Clamps are heavy cast-iron bodies threaded to fit the common black pipe used for natural gas. The clamp comes in three pieces: fixed and moving "stops" and a little coil to prevent the moving stop from slipping off. The head- and tail-stop are enameled with "Pony Orange" increase visibility. You buy pipe separately, meaning you customize each pair to pipe lengths of up to five feet. Since heads can be moved from one pipe to another, a single set could be used on different lengths.
The sliding tail-stop grasps the pipe with a spring-loaded clutch, yet releases easily to let the stop slide. The fixed head-stop's clamping face is mounted on an arm that moves through a range of about three inches as you turn a crank-driven screw. Clamp faces are smooth enamel-coated cast iron, about 1½" square. Plastic slip-on pads for the faces are available to protect wood surfaces. If you have the room, though, it's better protection to use wooden clamp blocks. The bottom edge of both stops has "feet" that allow the clamp to rest on a flat surface, yet provide clearance underneath.
Pairs of Pony Pipe Clamps are also available for ¾-inch diameter pipe. The larger size is better-suited to long runs of pipe; once I'm over about three feet long I prefer the larger size. A minor disadvantage of pipe clamps is that it's easy to over-torque them and damage work pieces; even bend a pipe: I have one long ½" clamp with a suspicious curved shape.
Assembling clamps is simple, but a little preparation can't hurt: the black pipe has a coating that should be wiped off to avoid staining wood. The pipe threads are also tapered, so over-tightening of the headstop could damage it and render it unusable on another pipe. A few drops of oil will keep them functioning smoothly.
The weight of long clamps can be considerable, so using them requires some muscle. A five-foot pipe has a useful length of about 4½ feet, but it's common to string several together to span longer distances. I've been known to tie together a couple of four-footers and a two-footer to span eight feet. Black pipe is commercially available in lengths of up to twenty feet, but five feet is about as long as most woodworkers will need.
Long-time woodworkers often say that you can't have enough clamps (I agree!). With an assortment of pipes and a few ½-inch Pony Pipe Clamp sets, though, even a weekend warrior can get partway there.
This clamp fixture is the most commonly used of the pipe fixtures for light construction and do-it-yourself projects. It is used with ordinary black p...More at Home Depot
Fantastic prices with ease & c...(Stock status: N/A)
1/2" Pony Bar Clamp Fixture Set For Black Pipe, Baked Enamel Finish 1 Set Makes 1 Clamp Exclusive Extended Clutches, Clamping Faces Approximately 1-1/...More at Amazon Marketplace
Features multiple-disc-clutch design which allows a secure hold at any point along the pipe No slipping, no pipe crushing - just instant adjustment to...More at Sears
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