Beta project 15 (Lapstrake Clamp)

I started messing with this idea quite a while ago. I was clamping something and needed a bit more reach than the standard Jorgensen clamp I was using could provide. A bit of googling uncovered a wooden boat building rabbit hole at the bottom of which was the lapstrake clamp. Look it up if you are curious, some people make simple ones, and some make really beautiful ones.

I made this one.

Of course I first had to make these two…



I thought I needed the holes to keep the layers aligned but instead I made a little jig with pins.

Here are a few in progress shots.







I needed a bunch of clamps to make my clamps. The jig was two pieces of plywood with holes to match the outline of the clamp half. I stacked them so the kerf would essentially cancel out and the pins would not wobble.

The layout is a bit tricky to get all the parts to fit and move as they should but the final SVG looks like:

Of course the post would not be complete without a video of fascinating cam clamping action.