Customer Reviews

Bessey HS-8 8-Inch Wood Handscrew Clamp

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I ordered a pair of 8" Bessey Handscrews on the basis of owning Bessey Bar Clamps which are excellent well made standbys in my shop, and to compare with the Bailey, Grizzly and Jorgensens, some of which I've used for over thirty years. The Besseys turned out to be surprisingly similar to the Grizzlys which I bought a few years ago for around $5-6.00 in the 8" size and I actually prefer to use the Grizzlys and they perform very well and, the ones I have, are made of Hard Maple. Bear in mind my Grizzlys are a few years old and craftsmanship and quality may have changed.
Based on my comparison I decided to buy several pairs of Jorgensens, whose craftsmanship and quality have not changed, and I was not disappointed as they are far superior in performance to the other brands and appear to be made of higher grade Hard Maple, as they should be, rather than the fairly low grade "hardwood" of the others, which are made in China. The Jorgensens are made in Chicago, USA.
The Jorgensens are a pleasure to use, are extremely well-aligned and balanced. The finish on the handles allows one to use all of one's grip to tighten. Oddly, the Besseys have a varnish of some type on the handles that causes grip-slippage and,consequently, occasional slippage of the work clamped,a definite shortcoming.
Surprisingly, because of their relatively lower cost, the Grizzlys came in second of the four brands I use in performance and quality and I suspect, after close examination, may have been manufactured in the same facility in China as the Bessey and Bailey (Stanley).
My hearty recommendation is: buy the Jorgensens and enjoy using an absolutely superior product. As well, help keep jobs in the USA.