I took the buy once cry once approach. I've only bought Bessey clamps. They have worked well every time I've used them. I have no regrets about buying them. Stay awesome.

Whenever I have a clamp that slips, I do 3 swipes with a triangular file in each groove on the bar. Never slips again. I do believe it's a quality control thing.

I do appreciate the review! Glad to see a KZfaqr review a tool THEY purchased. I subscribe to several woodworking channels however of late, no one does woodworking, just tool reviews. Thanks for continuing to put out woodworking videos!

I've been woodworking for 30+ years and could not get these Jorgensen 36" clamps to hold. Thank you for this video as it confirmed that it wasn't my technique but the actual tool. I'll stick with the Bessey clamps. Thanks!

Excellent comparison, Billy! Thanks a bunch! 😊 Stay safe there with your family! 🖖😊

Meters are also used on your side of the pond, my friend! Look North! Yeah, where all the smoke comes from! Thank you for all your videos! Always learning something with you!

I have a few of the Jorgensen clamps like the one in this video. I have also had issues with them not staying put. It’s almost like the black screw threads are greased up.

Interesting. I bought 12 Jorgensen's @$12/each because they are 50% cheaper in Canada than the Besseys @$14/each. My complaint about the Jorgensen's is that the quality control is lacking. Different clamps have different angles on the screw which puts the screw pad at a steeper angle when clamping which causes the work piece to move when gluing things up.

I like the Pony parallel clamps. The only thing you have to watch out for is because they don't have the little teeth like the Bessey's they will slide down onto your fingers like a guillotine.

I appreciate how you gave an honest review, and that it wasn't just gushing. It seems like most reviews I watch never go into depth, and just talk about the features and how great the product is. I have a few Bessey clamps, and not staying upright (07:25) is an issue I wish Bessey would fix and redesign (so the Jorgensen clamps win out here), but the clamps not staying tight and loosening with vibration is an issue (so Bessey win out here)

I have both brands as well. I like the Pony grip better, however, my issue with mine are that the pads keep falling off when I unclamp them or pull them off the rack and I have to hunt for them. Have never, so far, had the pad come off on the Bessey.

I use Jorgensen almost exclusively and they have never failed me. I've never experienced them loosening during a glue up. Maybe I got lucky with mine. Interesting.

I love my Jorgensen clamps. I have very arthritic hands. The Jorgensen hand grips work much better for me. I have no slipping problems with them.

I have lots of both in my shop and have had for years. They both work and I have never had a failure.

Nice review. I’ve had good luck with the Menards store brand (Masterforce) clamps. They have a 4.75” reach. 1000 lb clamping force. They are clutchless, like the bigger Bessey clamps. Best of all they are about half the price of the Jorgensen. $12 for a 12” clamp, $14 for a 24” clamp, $16 for a 36” clamp.

Great video thanks for sharing I’ve thought about buying some of these

I have the medium duty Jorgensen clamps. I have had no problems with them. It could be the threads on the heavy duty version may be causing the problem. Also, It could be slipping because too much clamping force was applied.

I bought a pack of 5 Jorgensen clamps from Lowe's when they were running a sale. Four of the five work great, but I had the exact problem you described with the last one. For me, it doesn't even take vibrations - as soon as I let off the handle, the clamp starts to unscrew and loosen.

I have a number of Bessey and Jorgensen clamps that are several years old. I really can't tell the difference in performance day-to-day and have never had the loosening issue with the Jorgensens. Maybe that's because they are older models and the newer version isn't as robust. I do reach for the Jorgensens first mainly because of the superior grip on the handle. Taking a hint from Rob Cosman I taped the handles of my Besseys with lacrosse tape (since Rob's recommended hockey tape is not available in stores down here in the South) and that has helped a lot to make up the difference.

I have both Bessy and Jorgenson. The old made in USA Jorgenson clamps are great. The new Jorgenson clamps suck. The pads pop off when they are under a lot of pressure. They unscrew from vibration from a sander. They get jammed up regularly after un clamping. I’ve been buying the Harbor Freight models. The rice is great and I like the quality.

I just bought 4 of the 6” Bessey clamps with the wood handles. I’m not paying double the price for a rubber handle. They are just fine for my woodworking projects. As I watch some of these woodworking videos, people use way too much force or pressure on the clamps.

I understand about the same day out of the box review JKM did a review on CTM forstner bits so I bought a set and was really disappointed as they hardly cut at all. Thank you for doing your do diligence for this review.

I like Bessey clamps. I also like orange. War Eagle

I have both; I prefer the besseys though. These days, I want the lightest, most compact tool that will do the job, and throat depth is more important to me than slightly bigger pads. That said, I do prefer the 4" light duty jorgensens over the bessey equivalents. One thing to keep in mind about build quality, the bessey is lighter and smaller yet is rated at a higher clamping force than the jorgensen, so that could be an indication of inferior materials being used in the jorgensen, though it's more likely that the jorgies are just conservatively rated. Jorgensen didn't really close, they were sold to great star international who moved production overseas and kept the brand going. Some products have suffered in quality because of this, but they still have some excellent ones as well. edit: I see you covered this; my bad for commenting before fully watching. Final edit: great presentation and video quality btw, subscribed. 🙂

Im with David at make something in this one. Harbor freight for $3 and lifetime warranty no questions asked is perfectly fine with me

The pads on the Bessey clamps come off easily. At least they do on my 10 year old clamps. Bessey has never responded to my requests to buy replacement pads.

The clutch style Bessey is a Jorgensen copy. I have the American made Jorgensens and German made original Bessey's. They both have their advantages and disadvantages depending on the situation. I tend to prefer clutch clamps because they hold their settings. Other than that, they each do what they're designed to do. Squeeze things together. My opinion after years of woodworking is this. Whatever brand or clamp type you have, learn it's strengths and weaknesses and learn how to use them. The knowledge you gain is far superior to the brand name.

they work fine. their performance is as good or better than Bessey. I dislike the wood handles on the Bessey small clamps.

Ill know soon i own lots of bessey and just order a full set of Jorgensen in each category 4 of each to start so probably 30 clamos total

Great review, Billy. How do the screw diameters compare between the two clamps? Also, all of my Bessey F-style clamps (which are a lot older) have the sliding clutch rather than the style of clutch you have on yours. Bill

Excellent review, liked the wee nod to your cousins on the other side of the Atlantic, too.😊

I have the smaller pony clamps and the biggest issue I have is after clamping something the clamp shoots out of the non marring pads. I think it's something to do with the slick orange paint not grabbing the rubber. It's happened a few times and after the last time the clamp flew across my work bench and hit me! Didn't hurt but was caught off guard by it so I took all of the pads off and never had another mishap. I'm thinking about plasti dipping them so they are non marring again.

Maybe too much grease/lubricant on the screw? I don't want your clamps to rust, but maybe try wiping them down, or spraying with some non-chlorinated brake cleaner? I had ONE Bessey that was over lubricated and I had it loosen on me many times. I finally figured it out and now it works just fine. I have two Jorgensen clamps like yours, but at least 5 years old, and they work decently. Thanks for another great video/review!

I use the Harbor Freight clamps. Not those new ones either.

"450kg, a tonne of force!" Well, half a tonne😅

Brand new they are not always easy to open unless you hold them a certain way like they're always too tight even using dry lube.

Interesting, I have both brands and have never had a Pony loosen like that, and here in Australia, the Pony’s cost less than the Besseys

If the price of two is identical, I would go Bessey. But if Jorgensen is cheaper, I would take it.

about the only thing Lowes sells that is useful are the Jorgensen clamps.

Good, surprising review. Keep 'um comin'. How does a person in Michigan become to like orange/white? I'm about 20 minutes from the heart of Big Orange Stadium. JimE

"450..53 kilos. Again a ton of force.." Erm... No. A (metric) ton would be 1000 kilogram (kilos).

which one is made in china?

It's a matter of right tool for the right purpose or application. Both clamps are not made for dynamic demands, only static ones. The slipping or loosening is the logical consequence of using those clamps for the wrong purpose. This video is nothing more than advertisement and local patriotism!!!

Bessey all the way. I'll take German engineering over anybody's any day. Love their specialty clamps as well. Got the Bessey Band clamp and corner clamp and they are awesome. You can instantly tell when just inspecting a Besssey clamp that the quality is miles above Irwin or Pony/Jorg clamps. Just like their cars!

I was sure you were heading towards the Pony. 😲 The Pony has 2 strikes in my opinion. I don't think I've ever had a screw type clamp come loose, that's very strange. That 1/2" difference on depth is also a negative for me. Thanks for the review.