Spool Clamps are a great little clamp used primarily in guitar repair. They are extremely simple and easy to make. I have a repair coming up that may need these so I decided to make a few sets. They’ll be handy to have around.
I chose some Mahogany and Plastic to make my clamps. I decided to try a couple different materials and sizes to see what I like best. They’re easy enough to make, I can just make more of the size I like. I started out with a hole saw and began drilling out the discs that would make up the clamps. I drilled only deep enough for the pilot bit to go through the bottom of the disc. Then I flipped the piece over and finished drilling from the other side. This helped eliminate tear out as the hole saw exited the piece of wood.
Next I loaded all the discs onto a long bolt and secured them with a nut. This allowed me to chuck them into the drill press and sand them smooth. Before adding the cork, I used a carriage head bolt to make an indent of the square portion of the bolt. This allowed the bolt to sit flush with the wood, while preventing the bolt from turning.
Now its time to apply the protective cork. I cut out some pieces and using a punch, I punched a hole for the bolt in the middle. Since its contact paper backed, I just peeled the backing and stuck the cork to the plastic clamps. For the wood clamps, I added a little wood glue and then stuck the cork on. This worked great. I used the long bolt to clamp them together while the glue dried, then sanded it all smooth again on the drill press.
Finally I could assemble the clamps. I used 6″ Carriage head bolts to hold them together. To protect the instruments finish, I covered the threads with some shrink tubing. This should prevent the sharp threads from scratching a guitar. To tighten them down I used some flat washers and a wing nut.
These were simple to make, and will work great for repairs that need them. Check out the build video below. Thanks for watching!
— Afilliate Links to Products Used —
Cork Contact Paper – https://amzn.to/2XSGjks
1 1/4″ Hole Saw – https://amzn.to/2JOVQId
1 3/8″ Hole Saw – https://amzn.to/2Sm38qG
Titebond 2 Wood Glue – https://amzn.to/32LcXU6
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