I need clamps

If you do any type of gluing up of wood pieces you know that you will quickly run out of clamps. You complicate things when you do segmented turning as well. After watching Frank Howarth do his segmented glue up I got an idea for a little “glue up station.”  

I had some 1" plywood in the shop from the previous owner. So I decided that would be a very sturdy chunk to use for this. I cut it down to 12 inches square. I got about four pieces out of it with some left overs. I need the leftovers so when I cut this on the table saw I don’t max out my cuts to use all the wood.

Now I ripped some 1.25” pieces down. Next I cut four 4” pieces and four 3” pieces. I put some Titebond 2 on the pieces and stapled them into place with 1.25” staples using my Bostitch stapler. You can see in the photo below how I arranged the “feet” on the base. I did this to give the most clamping area I could achieve and still have room for a strap to go through the centers if all the shop clamps were already in use.

After getting the feet on I went ahead and lined up the two pieces and marked the center. I cut a 1” hole in the center. I know this is a bit of over kill and it could've been a tad smaller - but that’s ok. This will be used for a piece of allthread to go up through both boards and clamp them together this way.

I made two of these. One will be a gift and one I will use around my shop.

Please comment below and if you build one or have something like it - send  a photo!

Until the next build  -  Dallas


Some things to note:

• These are not a perfect 12” square
• I sanded everything on all sides
• Plywood splinters bad going through a table saw - even when you go slow
• Forstner bit was used for the center hole & hand held drill
• Feet could be taller for the clamp heads to fit
• I need to work on my staple skills

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