Irwin XP, One handed bar clamps/spreaders

Dick, you have discovered one of the companies in the year 2008 that really wants to be a supplier.
I have seen a torrent of great stuff comming from them and they deserve my support.

Bob

-- A mind, like a home, is furnished by its owner

I couldn’t live without them. Not long ago, I built a 10×10 deck with a 5×7 landing without any help….. except for a few of these clamps. I was working on a slope too. They are very handy.

-- JJ...... I guess you could say I'm a 54 year old "juniorjock". — Make things with wood.

These are great to have around. I bought some cheap knockoffs of these at Harbor Freight for an unbelievable $2 each. I knew they would be flimsy, and they are, but they were handy enough to convince me I should get some good ones.

-- Charlie M. "Woodworking - patience = firewood"

I have some little 6” ones that don’t reverse, and they are usually the first ones I grab.

-- Gary, East TX -- The longest journey begins with a single step.

I’ve got about 12 of these and they sure come in handy.

-- Sawhorse - Sulphur Springs, TX - www.sawhorseworkshop.com

Cool Clamp indeed! Thanks for the tip.

-- Carpe Lignum - Seize The Wood,

I love this style of clamps. It would be hard to operate without them.

I have simular clamps, mine are from Wolfcraft – Mine ratchet in and ratchet out. I think I have about 20 of these at the moment, varying in size from a few inches to nearly 30”.

These are normally the first clamps I reach for, when not gluing up furniture parts. I have cheaper versions – costing a few $, but these are rarely used, the quaility in not good enough and I cannot rely upon them to give the performance needed.

-- Tony - All things are possible, just some things are more difficult than others! - SKYPE: Heron2005 (http://www.poydatjatuolit.fi)

thanks for the good idea!

-- life can always be weaved into a song.

Dick you now know what you have been missing – these things are handy as pockets on a shirt. Glad to hear you are enjoying them.

-- Bill - "Suit yourself and let the rest be pleased." http://www.cajunpen.com/

It takes awhile for us “old dogs” to pick up something new, sometimes.

-- -** You are never to old to set another goal or to dream a new dream ****************** Dick, & Barb Cain, Hibbing, MN. http://www.woodcarvingillustrated.com/gallery/member.php?uid=3627&protype=1

I have a few of this type of clamp and use them a lot. They are great for holding without a lot of pressure or vibration. Beware of cheap versions that have poor holding power.

-- Grumpy - "Always look on the bright side of life"- Monty Python

I have had two pair of the 6” Irwin Quick Grip clamps for years (in fact one pair is black in color instead of blue perhaps indicating just how old they are). One clamp in each pair wasn’t gripping well so I wrote to Irwin explaining the problem. They responded and told me to send the faulty clamps to them and that they would replace them. Not only did they replace the clamps but they sent me 2 12” clamps instead of the 6” ones I had returned. Very nice customer service! I was a big fan of Irwin tools before this and now am even more so!

Don’t you just love hearing about a company that provides good customer service!!!

JimC

After I broke three cheap chinese-made clamps with only one hand in about two minutes, I got a pair of these.
I now have four pair of differents lenght and love them.
The fact that the jaws are not parallels cause me some problems when I glue small parts.

After the Canadian Home Workshop show last year, Irwin sent me home with about 20 of the XP’s (I was using them for my expo) in different sizes….I’ve since given away all my other one-hand clamps…they are really a great product.

BTW, I don’t know if they are south of the border yet….but Irwin also sent me home with 10 of the paralell clamps….EVERY bit as good as my Bessey K’s (believe it or not) and in some ways they are actually better (smooth bar, no glue interference, etc)

If you find some, give them a shot :)

Ryan

-- If you can't set a good example, at least serve as a horrible warning... www.rarewoodcreations.com