From https://www.kevincaron.com – Artist Kevin Caron shows some great ways to clamp pipe and other odd-shaped metal ….
A viewer, Steve, emailed Kevin Caron and asked, “How do you clamp a pipe? Every time I put a clamp on it, it rolls. Do you have any ideas?”
There are several ways to clamp a pipe. Welding magnets have a number of angles on them. They’re really nice for smaller diameter pipes. You can jig them up in a number of ways. Just make sure the metal is straight by checking it with a straight edge. Once you have it straight, tack weld the metal in a couple of places, roll it over, do it again.
The fact is, though, that they are magnets, and you are working with metal. The magnets pick up all kinds of shavings and dingleballs and such. You’re always cleaning them. They almost never want to sit flat on the bench, but they will work if you keep them clean.
A better way? Put a piece of angle iron on the welding clamps and lay your metal right on it. As long as your cut is straight, you can just let your metal sit right on the angle iron.
Do you want to clamp the metal? That’s a good idea. Kevin Caron shows an old Vise-Grips welding clamp he modified by grinding an angled groove in each jaw. The jaw centers itself on the metal and catches the bottom of the “V” on the angle iron to give a good grip.
Another kind of clamp to consider is Kant-Twist clamps.They also have a groove in their jaws to help hold irregularly-shaped metal tightly.
If you are working with a 45 degree angle, a Bessey Corner Clamp might come in handy. If your pipe is small, you can use it as intended. For larger metal, you can back off the clamp on the Bessey, use another clamp to secure the Bessey to the bench, then put the larger pipe against the outside walls, and use another clamp to lock down the meta.
Kevin Caron is ready to go back to work, so you have time to go to https://www.kevincaron.com , sign up for his newsletter, and check out some more how-to videos and his wild work.
Well, you might want to stick around for another moment to see Kevin Caron emulate a jack in the box ….
“Inspired sculpture for public & private places.”
Artist Kevin Caron has been sculpting full time since 2006. You can see his more than 45 commissions in public and private places coast-to-coast and online at https://www.kevincaron.com.
Please follow me!
Twitter: https://twitter.com/kevincaronart
Facebook:
https://www.facebook.com/kevincaronstudios
Post time: Jul-29-2017