Trad Gang
Main Boards => The Bowyer's Bench => Topic started by: Buemaker on March 16, 2015, 03:49:00 PM
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From time to time the issue of using rubber bands as clamping comes up. If you use only one strip as a clamping spacer the tightened rubber bands gives a lot of clamping force at the edges and little in the middle. So I think this way is better: Cut three strips of a suitable material ( I use 1/8 " thick strips of hard building plates, they are flexible enough) the widest is sligthly narrower than the lams to be glued, then the next. a little narrower and the third narrower again. Use them as a step pyramid. I use this both with rubber bands and clamps and I think it works fine. I'll post two pics. Bue--.
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(http://i1289.photobucket.com/albums/b506/timian46/image.jpg1_zpsamv0t0fc.jpg) (http://s1289.photobucket.com/user/timian46/media/image.jpg1_zpsamv0t0fc.jpg.html)
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(http://i1289.photobucket.com/albums/b506/timian46/image.jpg2_zpsbdmvemxl.jpg) (http://s1289.photobucket.com/user/timian46/media/image.jpg2_zpsbdmvemxl.jpg.html)
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Good tip Beau :thumbsup:
I once had the brainy idea of using surgical tubing to clamp layers of overlay material on the back of the riser area on a bow. Just like you said, more pressure was applied to the edges and I ended up with a void in the middle where I could slip a piece of paper under the center of the overlay when the glue dried. I had to grind off those overlays and start over. Won't make that mistake again.
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That is a great idea. I'm definitely going to adopt this approach. I've been using 1 pressure strip, but I really like the idea of a stack of them.
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Thanks for the tip. Interestingly I have not experienced the issue you mention (yet). Maybe it's because I have always used two 1/8" thick strips of aluminum as flat clamping surfaces??? I place one aluminum strip on the form, place my lams on it, then place the other aluminum strip over the top, then I criss-cross stretch my continuous rubber band over the whole thing. It definitely provides a lot of clamping strength as I have actually broken off the dowels at times while stretching the band over them.