BESSEY VAS-23+2K, 23 ft Variable Angle Strap Clamp with 4 Clips

Steve Ramsay on YouTube recommended this, I just found my first use for it. I am making a raised bowl for my Great Dane and I needed to glue the half lap supports to the legs. I used this to ensure I was gluing them together square. It is a bit tricky to get set into place, but then it tightens easy and works well.

I was unsure about the product because some reviews said it broke when it was being tightened. Answer: Just don't tighten it so much like you're trying to secure it to a space shuttle. It's only a wooden frame that's getting held together while glue dries--no need to tighten it so that the veins bulge out of your forehead while doing it! That's my take on the reviews that say it broke on them. It's a plastic mechanism, not forged steel. Handle it as such and you'll be more than satisfied with how it keeps edges aligned and prevents warping in a frame. A few reviews also said that it didn't have instructions. Well, it doesn't. But I say if you need instructions telling you how to use this tool, then you probably shouldn't be doing whatever project it is in the first place. Just my opinion. As I look at all the tools in my shed, almost none of them ever had instructions. Do yours? OK--anyway--this is a super price on this tool and unless you want to buy a metal version for ten times this cost, just respect that it's plastic and use it accordingly. It will repay your efforts.

Great little vise. Took me a few minutes to get used to using it, but it’s a quick learning curve. The strap can handle some solid tension. The feet are able to articulate to handle different angles. Overall, exactly what I was looking for. Not sure about the long term quality because it’s made of a lot of plastic parts, but we shall see.

This was my first time using wood molding to make a frame for a project, and I read about using a strap clamp when gluing the four pieces together after cutting the 45° angles in a miter box. It was faster to buy this on Amazon Prime than ship-to-store with the big hardware store that didn't have this particular model in stock (it had the best features of all the strap clamps), and it came in perfect timing. It was easy to use, and the corner pieces that have just the feet touching the wood, and not the strap, makes it super nice. I ran a couple of dry runs first, which I recommend since the first one I tightened too much and the frame popped apart like that game where all the pieces go flying - oops! I also recommend watching a YouTube video about how to use it, if you haven't use one before, since it doesn't come with any directions. You loosely put it around your project, place the corner pieces in place, use the rotating reel handle to reel in the strap tight, and then turn the large handle to the right to tighten it as much as you need. The length is longer than the others, which will come in handy with future frame projects, and the edges are better than the others, and the tightening mechanism is much better and faster than manually pulling each side of the strap like others have. And the cost is better than many with fewer features, plus the brand is reputable. Definitely worth getting!

I was a little skeptical this clamp would be as good as some of the jigs and frame clamps I've seen but I was wrong. This clamp works pretty much perfectly. The reel is a little tight but manageable. Very easy to fit and tighten around a frame and provides really precise clamping. Once you set the clamp, you can make any adjustments to each corner to get a prefect fit. Very affordable. Plus, this tool is really compact and takes up very little space to store.

This clamp worked exactly as I expected. There are no instructions so takes a little intuition and practice. Each of the corner brackets have 2 tabs that the strap fits into. I’m using for small boxes and did several dry runs before my first glue up. I saw questions about how small it will go without any good answers so I’ll attempt one... I used on 6”x6” boxes. The smallest I could go looks to be determined by the width of the main body of the clamp which is 3” plus the width of 2 corner brackets, approx 2”. So seems like the smallest box/frame on the clamp side would be 5”. the perpendicular side would be defined by the 2 corner brackets only , 2”. So when using the corner brackets, looks like could work down to 5x2”. Used without the corner brackets it appears as if it could go somewhat smaller, e.g 3x3, 3x2, and the equivalent for items without 90 degrees.

There is no reason to ever buy any other brand of clamp. Once you have used a Bessey you will never want anything else. Its built well, easy to use and your project stays together with this clamp. I've given away or sold my cheap clamps and replaced them with Bessey. Well worth the price.

Oh my gosh. Save yourself the frustration of perfectly lining the miters up for your frame during the glue up only to have them slip out of place when you begin tightening down on your clamps. This strap clamp will actually save your life. Seriously. You just position the corner pieces and badabing badaboom, tightening this clamp pulls all the corners together with such ease and makes it very simple and quick to reposition your frame so everything is perfectly square and flush. This has saved me so much time and frustration. I've actually enjoyed every part of making frames now thanks to this trusty strap clamp. I will soon be investing in another one of these so I can make my frames extra doubly fast!