The Best Parallel Clamp for any Budget
I grabbed the most popular parallel clamps and put them to a head-to-head test to find out what was the best clamp for most people. I chose 24-inch clamps for this test. I tested jaw deflection, bar deflection, and durability (drop test). I then give my overall thoughts on the build quality of each. I'm picking my budget pick, the best overall, and one I DO NOT recommend purchasing. You can watch the comparison video linked at the bottom of this post, but more information is included in this written report that isn’t in the video.
Click the links beside each clamp title to see them for yourself. Amazon and other affiliate links may be used in this post to help support my website so I can bring you more tests like these.
My Parallel Clamp Test Results
Bessey Parallel Clamps - Best Overall Winner.
2-Pack 24-Inch Bessey Clamps https://amzn.to/3U2caIM
Better deal - 4-Pack (2 24-inch and 2 40-inch) https://amzn.to/3DfqiZx
Bessey parallel clamps performed the best overall taking everything into consideration. Price, build quality, drop test, clamping pressure, and warranty. Bessey has the highest rated clamping pressure out of any of those tested at 1,700 pounds. The build quality on the Bessey clamps is very good. The plastics used in the jaw head feel thicker, and nicer than that used in the budget pick, the Bremen. Bessey also uses solid steel rivets to hold the top jaw in place. During the drop test, the Bessey only sustained minor cosmetic damage (as all of the clamps did). Bessey has a limited lifetime warranty.
Harbor Freight Bremen Parallel Clamps - Best Budget Pick https://bit.ly/3B5WBqX
I was pleasantly surprised at how well the Harbor Freight parallel clamps performed. The jaws had minimal deflection, they performed well on the panel test, and minimal bar deflection while the jaws remained parallel. A few reasons kept this from being the top pick. 1. The build quality isn’t as good as the Bessey. It’s obvious when placing them side by side. The plastic on the Bremen clamps appears to be of lesser quality than the other brands (with the exception of Bora). Also, the jaw head attaches with a pin that can become (and did) dislodged during the drop tests. The Bessey’s are attached with several rivets. The handle design is also not as good. It has an egg-shaped handle while the others are all round. This doesn’t sound like much, but it’s not as comfortable to use when applying pressure. Overall, though, this clamp is a very good value at only $35 each. If you have the budget I recommend the Bessey at only about $15 more each, but if you’re on a budget, these are a great option.
Pin in jaw of Harbor Freight Clamp after drop testing 4 times on concrete from waist high.
Jet Parallel Clamps - Very Good But Expensive https://amzn.to/3BvoKZV
I liked the Jet clamps a lot. Despite the terrible shipping experience I had with them. They performed on par with the Bessey and Bremen brand. I did like the unique trigger design that releases the jaw to slide up and down the bar. On the drop test, the handle end cap popped off. Not a huge deal, but Jet was the only clamp that had this end cap design on the handles. All of the others had solid handles. Jet also performed the best in the glue test. The glue easily peeled off of the bar after leaving it on overnight. That is due to the glossy finish the Jet bar has versus the others with a satin finish. Overall I think the Jet clamps are excellent clamps, but at about $80 each, I think you get more bang for the buck out of the Bessey’s.
Ehoma and Semble Parallel Clamps - Basically The Same Clamps
Ehoma - https://bit.ly/3eDYuDI
Semble - https://bit.ly/3qqnHnV
Ehoma and Semble clamps appear to be the same clamp with different coloring. I don’t know this for a fact, but they do appear extremely similar. For that reason, I lump them together here. They performed almost identically in all of the tests. The only exception is the Semble clamp handle can pivot 90 degrees giving you extra leverage when you need it. The semble clamps did have a minor failure during the drop test. The back of the bottom jaw popped off. Nothing major and not any kind of structural damage, but it’s something to consider. The pricing of each of these clamps is about the same at around $65 each. Semble clamps are sold by Woodpeckers and Ehoma at a few retailers including Woodcraft. I could not find warranty information on Ehoma and did not get a response from Woodcraft customer support when I emailed. At first, I was told by Woodpeckers that the Semble brand had a 1-year warranty (sometimes more). When I replied back that it was interesting most brands have lifetime warranties and would have thought Woodpecker’s would be the same, I got a reply stating that it is a limited lifetime warranty. So I was getting mixed signals there. Both clamps did well in the tests but I think with confusing warranty information and their price of $65 each, the Bessey is a better option.
Jorgensen Parallel Clamps https://amzn.to/3TXHgS2
Jorgensen clamps have my favorite handle design. You feel like you can get a solid grip when applying pressure. My favorite F-Clamps are Jorgensen. But the Jorgensen parallel clamps leave a lot to be desired. They are priced well at $42 each. However, they don’t stay parallel during the panel test and had major jaw deflection. The slick bar design isn’t great either because the jaw can slide down and crash into your hand. In my opinion, you would be better off going with the Harbor Freight Parallel clamps instead of these.
Irwin Parallel Clamps - https://amzn.to/3TYnrKg
Irwin clamps had the same slick bar as the Jorgensen. Actually, the Irwin and Jorgensen parallel clamps were so similar in design that if they were the same color, it’d be hard to tell them apart. There are some subtle design differences in the jaw heads, but they performed about the same. Also both of the slick bar designs from Jorgensen and Irwin had noticeable damage to them from the jaw head after pressure was applied (see picture below). So if these were used a lot, you would see that up and down the bar. I am making an assumption in thinking the metal for the bars is softer than the other clamps in this test. Since these are priced similarly to the Jorgensen, I would suggest the Bremen brand again instead of these.
Bar damage after jaw deflection test. This is present up and down the bar each time the clamp applies pressure to stock being clamped. This only happened on Jorgensen and Irwin clamps.
Bora Parallel Clamps - https://amzn.to/3eENeHj
By far the worst performing clamps in this test. I am not a fan of these clamps and at $57 each, you’d be MUCH better off buying the Bessey clamps at $53 each. Bora's jaws were more narrow than any of the other clamps, they were out of square with the bar out of the box. Bora was a full 1/2” out of parallel during the panel test. Bora also had major jaw deflection and moderate bar deflection. Bora also only carries a 1-year warranty. For those reasons, I personally can’t recommend them.