Hello Everyone

I bought my first Bessey K body clamps in Germany after seeing my friend, Norm Abram, using them. I spent 5 years away from home and retained my sanity by watching 'my friend', Norm, on the TV.

In my first Bessey video I describe the K Body Revo clamps. I have 16 (or so) of the original K Body clamps and have recently got 4 of the new Revo ones. I thought that I might make a video of them before they get covered in glue, scratched and splashed with stain.

Here is the link:



I have bought most of my Bessey clamps from Axminster Power Tools and they have never given me any clamps free of charge (their prices are quite good though which is why they had a mention in the original video).

Peter

Edit:

I made a small error on the film and have replaced it with a corrected copy. PP

Good review, but I always found that with the older Parallel clamps from Bessey that the silver piece that engages the clamp was never where I wanted it to be or that it wouldn't engage and I would have to back it out. For me it's all about the Ponies, Eric

I have been lurking at these for a while, how do you feel they compare with T-bar clamps in ways of sturdiness and pressure you can apply with the handle compare to the lever of T bar clamps.

Would you use these for gluing up large table tops and things like assembling furniture or gates/doors?

I had some old 'T' bar clamps before my Bessey days. They were quite sturdy but I never really needed to exert tons of force in my woodwork and I hope that most people would find that the K Body clamps had ample power to spare. I have done a couple of table tops a while ago and the Besseys were easily up to the task. I did a gate, less than a year ago and published on the front cover of a national magazine, using extra large dominos which I had machined a fraction too large. I had some hydraulic locking with the glue due to the tight fit but the old K bodies still managed.

If a woodworker needs to apply more force than these clamps can provide them maybe there are other issues that need to be addressed. I know that with green oak work that a bit of brute force can be useful but maybe that is not what you have in mind.

Peter

Another interesting accessory for these clamps are these corner blocks, that apparently you can use to glue mitres. Haven't tried it but how hard can those blocks be to make?

I have a set of the KP blocks. In answer to your question, If you're talking about making them out of wood, my observation would be that the upright dividing prongs would be prone to breaking off.

My KP blocks are relatively strong and not subject to wear at all. That is one of their advantages as far as I can see.

I had some hydraulic locking with the glue due to the tight fit but the old K bodies still managed.

That's what I like to hear, mostly I do cabinets that don't need major force. But occasionally I'll get something that needs a bit of extra to close the joint. As always after watching your videos my shopping list increases!

I'm very much looking forward to it!

Now for your next review, I'm really close to caving and buying a Kapex. I see you've got one. Is it truly worth the money and how does it rack up across the board in terms of mitres for frames, skirting boards, compound cuts and perhaps mitred trenching for beaded faceframes - a masons mitre I think its called? I know there is a wealth of info about the Kapex online but I'd love to get your take on it if you had any time.

How does the mitre clamping work with the blocks? Any Good?

It works all right. The blocks are extremely convenient as a staging area which is exactly what they were designed for. As far as clamping goes, the trick is to not apply too much pressure and also to make sure the clamping pressure is even all the way around or the mitre(s) or they have a tendency to slide.

On mine the pads on the top and the bottom of the jaw without the hand screw are the same and they both slide on and off.

the jaws are mostly the same, there is a small lip in the red plastic that the black piece engages with and slide onto.

If someone damaged that lip they may have stuck those pads on with some adhesive, but they should just slide.

Some of the pads have a tendency to stick more than others. A quick blow with a block of wood usually liberates them.

Some of the pads have a tendency to stick more than others. A quick blow with a block of wood usually liberates them.

There is a simple way to remove 'stuck' pads...

Push the clamp up against the side/edge of a bench so that pressure is only exerted on the black slide-on insert. Then carefully push and the insert should slide off. The joint between the clamp and the insert is like a sliding dovetail.

Peter

Years ago a local woodworking group made a group buy from Bessey. I was able to get in on it, and - like slcd_steve I picked up 8 of most clamps and even got 4 of the 8-footers. I love the fact that they hold everything absolutely square for flawless assembly.

The Besseys are one of those cases - like Festool - where the tool really does make you a better / more efficient professional.

Wow, I totally agree. Bessey, Festool, Veritas planes (and more if I think about it)

Peter

Don't get suckered into thinking that a brand name guarantees quality.

Bessey has been moving toward the bottom for some time now. At this point, their tradesman clamps are still made in Germany and are very good. The very good K-Body clamps were replaced by the K-Body Revos, which are a Gross-Stabil design cheapened after Bessey bought Gross-Stabil. NOT as good as the Gross-Stabil parallel clamps and NOT as good as the Bessey K-Bodys. Not bad but not great either. It is simply sad that Bessey bought Gross-Stabil in order to quash their competition. At this point the Gross-Stabil parallel clamps are long gone but Harry Epstein still has some of the excellent Gross-Stabil metalworking and heavy duty clamps available. This does not help a woodworker much.

Bessey is really a mixed bag of quality at this point. The good stuff is gradually being replaced by mostly stuff that relies on the good reputation of Bessey in order to sell. I would grab as much of the made-in-Germany tradesman clamps as you think you will ever need before they bring that line to the bottom. Lowes, in their infinite stupidity, is discontinuing Bessey products in most stores and some of it is available at good prices. You can pretty much tell the good stuff by looking where it is made.

Bessey vises have hit the absolute bottom, even while they have brought out a new line of Bessey Industrial vises. These are made in Germany but are not quite up to the standard of the Heurer Vises or the ones sold in the US under the Ridgid name. All of the above made in the same factory in Germany but made to different standards. Do not confuse a Ridgid F series vise with the junk sold under the Ridgid name by Home Depot.

Additionally, there are lots of junk Canon DSLRs and L-series lenses. Grex has a nice series of pinners in the P-6xx series but makes a bunch of junk also. Some of the Grex nailers have been complete junk. Grex makes nothing and some of their vendors have made products that are not even acceptable. OK, Famag only makes great stuff so I guess they are better than Festool, who has made a few, even if it is very few, turkeys........

Peter, if you ever make a second part to this or revisit the topic you might want to mention the K-body Revo Vario (KRV) (Link to Bessey) clamps which have a movable front face.

I bought four of the 1,5m variety and love them when you can centre the workpiece on the clamp by moving the front face down the rail and have perfect balance along the clamp.

Covering a complete range of sizes with a smaller inventory of pieces was a selling point for the Vario. A store could cover a range of sizes by stocking several of each bar length. A customer could buy one sliding end, one clamping end, and the bar of whatever length they wanted.

The only store I ever saw selling them that way stopped doing that. I think Bessey doesn't even mention that feature in their brochure: http://www.besseytools.com/pdfs/sales_sheets/en/BESSEYKBodyREVOVarioENGJan2012.pdf

Being able to center the jaws seems like a big advantage in balancing heavy clamps, particularly in the longer lengths.

For an extension to the length you could buy the clamp bar connectors (Link to Bessey) and join your 1500mm one and an 600mm one to land at something long enough.

Thanks Reiska. I will look out for a couple the next time I am at my Axminster store.

Peter

I have the older ones and new ones as well and the self moving jaw on the older ones is annoying.  Another negative is its impossible to remove the jaw so hard to soak in vinegar to remove glue.

@Cheese I have about 6 of the older one pictured in 24" and another 6 or so of the newer same size. I wish they were all the newer style but I just learn to work around the clamp head dropping on its own. I just last week cleaned all of mine up, waxed the bars, and lubricated the metal bits inside the clamp heads. They are smooooooth.

How do you clean them?  need to do the same for mine