Aldi clamps

**Spyro** · 31st May 2020, 12:35 AM

I was next door today so I popped in to have a look at the hole saws, but I must have the Saturdays mixed up because there were none. Instead I bought a portable air compressor, glue gun, corded rotary tool, right angle drill attachment and a torch, total $130.

The compressor was particularly interesting to me, because my bog standard Ryobi compressor from Bunnings died recently and i was very hesitant to replace it as I wasn't really using it much. Just one of those things, I rarely need a compressor but when I do I really need it, just for staples and brads really, but it was taking up too much space and although it had wheels it seemed difficult to move around. So the idea of a portable one seemed appealing. They only had one left in the Mentone store and they'd lost the box and instructions, and it also came with a pump and a lot of pump attachments, so given its small size, lack of info and pumping focus I started to get a sinking feeling I was basically buying a glorified bicycle pump. Stab in the dark.

Here it is in the shed
Pretty compact and light, the hose and AC cable fold inside and you can fit the whole thing in a drawer for storage.
Plastics and hose seem well made. "Ferrex" probably means "Stuff we make for ALDI" in Chinese

It also came with all those brass bits, which I usually turn into excellent ferrules for my awls

I have no idea what any of that means, best guess is "don't count on me for anything important"
I probably invalidated the 3 year warranty in the next half hour

Ok first thing cut the hose and replace the crappy whatever coupling with proper nitto ones

Nailer on, and.... *drumroll*
Yep it drives 32mm staples! Aaaaand that's all I need really.

I could get an electric nailer I guess but they're pretty bulky and expensive, plus I have a couple of other air tools I might occasionally use.

I pushed it a little hard for a while to see what it does. The way I understand it, it doesn't seem to have any tank, it just works continuously and it has a valve that opens almost immediately once the air in the hose is compressed, and you either use it or it hisses straight out. Obviously perfectly unsuitable for anything that requires continuous airflow, and it's noisy, and it gets hot after 5-10 minutes, but it's perfectly fine for nails and anything else that can work in short bursts and low flow. The idea of not having a tank is probably a solution for me, frees up the space and not having to empty it is one less thing to worry about. Plus I get to take it everywhere I might need it.

Honestly I love it, it's perfect for my needs.

The glue gun is a hobby glue gun, but it's bigger than the hobby glue gun I've been using all these years so I'm happy to have it.

This $20 rotary tool is also very good, tiny but pretty lively.
It will have the burnishing bit permanently bolted on and will live in my leatherworking tool chest. Thanks Aldi!

**Treecycle** · 31st May 2020, 10:25 AM

I have a small Ingersol Rand continuous flow compressor and I tried a nail gun on it just to see what it would do and it worked fine. Because a nail gun uses very little air they work just fine. Does yours have any way to regulate the outlet pressure?

**aldav** · 31st May 2020, 10:33 AM

This thread has headed well off course, but in the interest of the longevity and safe operation of your compressor Spyro I hope you weren't operating it standing up as pictured.

**Treecycle** · 31st May 2020, 10:38 AM

Originally Posted by aldav

This thread has headed well off course, but in the interest of the longevity and safe operation of your compressor Spyro I hope you weren't operating it standing up as pictured.

So why does it have feet on the bottom? Is that just a safety message in case it falls over and breaks your hand

**aldav** · 31st May 2020, 10:59 AM

Originally Posted by Treecycle

So why does it have feet on the bottom? Is that just a safety message in case it falls over and breaks your hand

I guess it's only to be stood on its feet for storage Dallas. Don't ask me I didn't make it or design and place the sticker on it.

**Spyro** · 31st May 2020, 12:38 PM

No thankfully I noticed the sticker and put it on its side before I fired it up. And no, it doesn't seem to have any way to regulate the airflow, or any other settings anywhere. Just the on/off button.

**GraemeCook** · 31st May 2020, 04:30 PM

Originally Posted by burraboy

I see Aldi has a range of clamps coming up soon. Has anyone got any opinions on whether it's worth grabbing a couple?Assorted Bar Clamps

Assorted Bar Clamps

Hi Burraboy

I had a look at the Aldi ad. and am little wiser. Pretty useless. They show a single price of "ea $9.99*" and photos of packets of 2 and 4 quick-grip type clamps and packets of 2 F-clamps. No idea if price is per clamp or per packet, or what that asterix means. Shoddy advertising!
Assorted Bar Clamps - ALDI Australia

But the gold standard for the quick-grip type clamps is still, IMHO, Irwin Quick-Grip clamps and both M10 and Bunnings discount them every six months or so at $29.95 per four-packet. About $7.50 each.

I would use that $7.50 price for any quality/price trade off decision.

**Beardy** · 31st May 2020, 05:05 PM

I would hope they are better than the Craftright ones. I had a big clamp up job and bought 20 of them. They did the job but none have lasted 12 months
My Irwin ones last a lot better and have much more clamping power

**aldav** · 31st May 2020, 07:22 PM

Originally Posted by Beardy

I would hope they are better than the Craftright ones. I had a big clamp up job and bought 20 of them. They did the job but none have lasted 12 months

Thank you Bunnings, home of complete c!@p tools! Unfortunately that's all Aldi feel they need to compete with.

**Slave** · 31st May 2020, 07:24 PM

Graeme the price is per pack as stated on their website.

**DaveVman** · 31st May 2020, 07:37 PM

Last time ALDI had these quick release clamps I was travelling so I got a friend to buy me about 10 packs or so. Which you can see here:
YouTube

This gave me a good number of clamps at low cost. These are mostly what I use while I more slowly acquire more specialized clamps. I recommend tbis approach as a way to get started. I've only had one fail and that one only partially. Although I agree they are not the best quality. You get what you pay for. The release button can require a bit of force etc. But buying a lot of clamps when you are starting out can add up.

Sent from my SM-G935F using Tapatalk

**damian** · 3rd June 2020, 03:04 PM

I went to aldi today for the hole saw kit and was told they didn't come in and no idea when. I looked at the F clamps. Possibly ok 2 for $10 but you have to buy a pack with a large and small and I'd never use the small ones.

There are places in teh world for cheap and expensive tools. If you buy the craftright option you shouldn't complain it's not as good as something 4X the price. When I'm buying something new I often buy cheap to give it a try. If I use it a lot I go back and buy a quality version. I bought an ozito router then bought a couple of good ones. It served it purpose. I also bought a saxon hand mattock which is now my most used gardening tool. It's so good i don't know if I'll bother upgrading.

**Cgcc** · 3rd June 2020, 03:28 PM

I use the craftright F-clamps. Have a big pile of them. Never the slightest problem and they work well.

I also have some pricey Bessey clamps but for most tasks the craftrights are fine.

**RSD** · 3rd June 2020, 04:56 PM

An Aladdin's Cave for inexpensive but reasonable quality is Sedy's in Melbourne - Sedy Tools - Australia's Tools & Hardware Store

- - - Updated - - -

An Aladdin's Cave for inexpensive but reasonable quality is Sedy's in Melbourne - Sedy Tools - Australia's Tools & Hardware Store

**Spyro** · 3rd June 2020, 05:27 PM

Originally Posted by damian

When I'm buying something new I often buy cheap to give it a try. If I use it a lot I go back and buy a quality version.

I follow the same decision tree. If I'm buying a new (to me) tool, say I buy my first belt sander, and there is an Ozito available I will always go for the Ozito or something from Aldi.
And I don't change it unless a) it breaks b) I convince myself in practice that there is something I simply cannot do with it, or c) I use it so often that a better tool would save me significant time.

Based on this process eventually I usually end up with Makita or similar, but it's amazing how many Ozito/Aldi tools have survived this decision process. My belt sander, angle grinders (2 sizes), rotary tool, SDS drill, compressed air pump and blow gun, tree lopper, most clamps etc are still Ozito/Aldi, and I bought them years ago. And probably more that I can't remember right now. If you give those tools an honest chance sometimes they can surprise you.

And very rarely I find the need to get a real high end tool. But honestly if there's something I can't do with a Makita or similar level tool, it's usually me that's the problem.

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