Hello to (probably very few, haha) jewelry making friends who have found your way here. In today’s video I discuss my search for a way to improve my sawing by making it less painful. I have arthritis in my thumb from years of computer work, which makes it hard to hold tiny things, and that really gets in my way when I need to saw. As with my paper crafts, I seem to be drawn to tiny, intricate designs and sawing them has been a difficult task.
I spoke about my experience with my Knew Concepts bench pin, which helped a bit, but I knew I really needed a clamping system. The one that I wanted was out of stock, and I was thinking I still might need a smaller clamp and so I bought the Swanstrom clamps system along with the Gary’s clamp. Almost immediately I understood some of the complaints that others made with their usage, but since I didn’t really have any idea for an alternative, I decided to try to tweak them. If you decide to do the same, I am sure this will void warranties, etc so proceed at your own risk 😉
I walk you through my progression of different things I did including clamping the clamp down instead of using the little screw on the Swanstrom bench pin.
I show you different ideas for replacing the screws/bolts (they are #6-32) and where I finally ended up at the end. I like to turn the clamps upside down when I place my metal piece in them. It seems easier to maneuver the piece into place without the bolts etc in the way. I also demonstrate how I made my own polyurethane washers from a Pepe Tools mat (which I also use to cut up for use with impression dies for a hydraulic press). I feel like these are only necessary if you are doing piercing in side of a design, whereas for the most part I am sawing the teeny tiny item out of a piece of metal. So replacing the original plastic washers might not be a critical piece for you.
I like how my clamps are working now and decided to keep them. I will still order the other system because like I said I feel like for the work I do, I will still need these. Stay tuned for that tool discussion when I am able to order it!
Enjoy!
