Yesterday, we talked about several new Dewalt clamping products that popped up on Home Depot’s website. Today, let’s talk a little about the Bessey clamps that are leaving the shelves at (some?) Home Depot brick and mortar stores.
When I toured my local Home Depot’s holiday tools gift center, the tool department manager mentioned that they were discounting all of their Bessey clamps and related products.
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I didn’t find this to be too surprising. I bought some Bessey clamps from Home Depot in the past, when they had good prices, but I never took these tools to be strong movers.
I remember there being Dewalt clamps on the shelves before, but maybe there are new styles now?
Following my post about Dewalt clamps, Sheldon commented:
Locally Home Depot put all their Bessey clamps on sale. An employee told me he thought they were bringing in a new brand.
Hmm, so it’s not just my store. If you happen to visit Home Depot in the next few days, would you mind checking out what the clamp section looks like at your store?
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New Dewalt clamps… Bessey clamps possibly being given the boot…
It could be a coincidence. Or not.
Dewalt and Milwaukee’s deeper forays into hand tool territory is really turning into an all-out competition for shelf space. Milwaukee has now taken over the level section at Home Depot, with their Empire Level products, and it looks plausible that Dewalt will be taking over much of the clamp section.
Other tool brands will have to up their game.
Keep in mind that Home Depot is a major customer. A few years ago, Dewalt announced new locking pliers, but never launched them. I was told something along the lines of there not being enough retailer demand. Half a year later, Milwaukee came out with new locking pliers that are now on the shelf at Home Depot stores. Dewalt eventually came out with new Euro-style locking pliers.
This topic, where Home Depot is the customer, was the focus of a post a few years ago: Dewalt vs. Milwaukee and Limited Shelf Space at Home Depot. But the same is true now.
If Dewalt clamps will be replacing Bessey ones at Home Depot stores, that will have ramifications for Dewalt and its direct competitors, but also Bessey. That will be something to think about. What happens to tool brands, big or small, if or when they lose shelf space at a major retailer, such as Home Depot, Lowes, or even Sears?
Something else to consider is that Pony Tools, which suspended operations a year and a half ago, is now owned by GreatStar. GreatStar owns Goldblatt Tools, and a whole lot of other brands, ranging from entry-level to pro-grade. They also manufacture tools for private label brands, such as Kobalt.
Perhaps Pony clamps will be coming back to Home Depot shelves?
Whatever is bound to happen, it’ll take some time before we know what’s what.
Andrew
I always need more clamps, so I guess I’m stopping by my Home Depot tonight to see if they’re on clearance.
Stuart
Some clamps are already gone.
The last time there was good pricing, I went looking for parallel clamps. There was just 1 of one size, and 3 of another size, but all 3 were missing clamp pads.
Grilmaster
Bessey clamps aren’t flying off one of my local Southern California HD. I Wouldn’t mind seeing those yellow stickers though.
Chris
Not surprising. Home Depot has never gravitated towards the serious woodworker tools and Bessey clamps straddle that line. The expensive parallel ones are not your typical Home Depot product, and Bessey doesn’t do much advertising for their brand, not close to the scale of Dewalt or Ridgid.
fred
You also don’t see the types of Bessey clamps at HD that we used in the metal /pipe fabrication business. IMO HD butters their bread on selling to homeowners, small commercial businesses and those contractors who work for them. When they started dominating the market – it was local hardware stores they drove out of business – maybe not so for specialty woodworking outlets like Rockler and Woodcraft – although a woodworking retailer called Trend-Lines did seem to go bankrupt.
Lou
From personal experience with Home Depot, the issue is typically forced exclusivity on smaller nich suppliers like Bessey. HD cannot force major tool manufacturers or major market players relative to an industry around but they try and certainly HD makes smaller players bend to their will thus limiting market access.
As a company, HD is completely ruthless and an unabashed competition killer…they try and come across as a good wholesome organization, but the reality is far from the truth.
Brian A
Its not a big deal as my Bessey collection was mostly bought online, though the set HD has of the 2×12″ and 2×6″ in the plastic pkg was nice to pickup around $20.
My problem is if the majors expand into every possible tool and steal the shelf space. What will happen to the niche brands like Bessey.
Yes anyone who knows recommends Bessey but shelf space and being able to pickup right now is just as important to longevity of the company.
Patrick McIntosh
Spot on Brian A, Bessey are to me one of the better clamps on the market, with a range that suits every trade. DeWalt, Irwin and the rest of the Wannabe’s all have a “Range” that suits part of the user profile of clamps, but none of them are up to the Bessey range. Shelf space is the war game here, DeWalt will have offered to buy back all of the Bessey stock or else taken the cheaper option of covering the discounts that HD are offering on the Bessey range, so that they can get their product on the shelf. This action sees the rise of another mediocre product at the expense of a good product. That’s how it is nowadays, money talks, not quality. As I have always said, DeWalt, it’s just Black & Decker with a college education….
Lance
A sad example of big companies getting bigger, and smaller companies ceasing to exist. The margin on DeWalt’s clamps is probably a little better than Bessey, and with people so obsessed with buying “their” brand it really doesn’t matter to a lot of them if the quality takes a hit or not… it’s yellow (or red) and that’s cool.
Also, if the two aren’t allowed to coexist on the shelf then there’s no chance for them to compete. One of them just gets the boot.
I’ve always liked Bessey products. Good quality and nice to use.
Chris
They become more niche or they disappear. The average joe homeowner doesn’t recognize Bessey like they know Dewalt and they have no use for an $80 parallel clamp. It’s a specialty tool and will exist at places like Woodcraft and online.
Ray S.
Coincidentally I was in a local Home Depot this past Sunday specifically looking at clamps. I didn’t see any yellow clearance stickers and supplies looked normal. But what is carried in one HD store can vary quite a bit from another just a few miles away. Knipex pliers is one example I know about. Maybe I’ll get lucky enough to capture a couple of Bessey parallels when they hit clearance. In my experience things can be on clearance in one store and not another.
John
Bessey clamps have only been on HD shelves since Lowe’s stopped carrying them about 3 years ago. Back then Lowe’s clearance prices were crazy good…I think they were selling Bessey for under 20 cents on the dollar. I believe they sold Irwin clamps at HD before they flipped brands with each other.
Jason
I cleared out 4 Lowes stores when they did the Pony closeout a while back. I’m set for a while now thankfully,.
fred
For the mixed crowd that shops in Home Depot Dewalt has much better brand recognition. We are not talking about woodworker hobbyists or professionals – but the person who just needs a few clamps for an upcoming job. One might also guess that HD may have cut a better deal with SBD for the Dewalt clamps than what they were getting from Bessey. Add the two things up and HD may think it means more sales at a better margin. Pity – one less big outlet for Bessey may mean less competition and no bargain year-end sales.
David
I was at my local Home Depot in western Michigan today and the Bessey clamps are not on sale as of yet. There is quite a bit of yellow in the clamp section though.
Chris
Hi, I am the typical Home Depot shopper and ToolGuyd reader. I am upset that Home Depot is dropping the Bessey brand because I really like them. I “like” brands like Bessey because I’d love to own their products. By “Like” I mean I “like” buying them on clearance after the retailer has admitted its mistake, meaning they didn’t sell their stock so they put them on an endcap.
So I REALLY wish Home Depot would keep carrying them, but I will only buy them after the retailer is clearing them out a a loss so I can get them for less than the normal Home Depot price, because that yellow price sticker makes me feel like I got a bargain. I love bargains. My backup plan is if it’s a dollar cheaper, I’ll buy it on Amazon after checking it out in person at my local Home Depot, of course. I’m also the reason why eventually we’ll have nothing but Amazon and Harbor Freight. But I love Bessey clamps.
David
Chris,
I was already going to my local Home Depot today to exchange a Ridgid tool box that was defective when I received it shipped to my house. I had read this article earlier in the day and thought I’d look one aisle away from where I was getting another tool box to see if the Bessey clamps were on sale since it was so close. I did this because I was curious and wanted to thought I would give feedback to this post.
Regarding the Bessey clamps, they are a lesser known brand and a higher price than what many of the typical Home Depot shoppers are willing to pay. Therefore, they would not be earning, in a sense, their shelf space. That would be why (if they actually are) they are being discontinued at Home Depot. Having worked as a data analyst for a large retailer, I can tell you that shelf space is very important and is planned according to performance and other factors beforehand (in the case of where I worked, months in advance). If a product does not perform well and undersells or another product has the potential to outsell then the sad fact is the former product will be replaced or demoted to lesser shelf space or shelf rank. If this is the case for the Bessey clamps then it is just a matter of low performance and/or a potential for increased return by replacing them another similar item. It is sad to see a higher quality brand leave the shelves at Home Depot but it does not come as a great surprise to me as it does not fit the ideals of the main demographic that frequents Home Depot. It does make sense to me though, for Bessey clamps to remain on the shelves of a store like Woodcraft as they better fit the ideals of the average shopper there.
I do not think we will ever only be stuck with only Amazon and Harbor Freight because there are still quite a few of us who know that everything at HF is below low quality!
All this being said, since I have been planning on expanding my clamp collection yet again, I would be foolish to let these prices go by the wayside. Yes, I would and have bought these clamps at full price but now that I know they will more than likely go on clearance, why wouldn’t I buy them at this price to save a few dollars?
Hope the response wasn’t nauseatingly too long.
Michaelhammer
If you end shopping clamps online, may I suggest Jet clamps? Far superior for similar price. The handles are more suitable to tightening, the action is a lot smoother and they don’t slam down on your hand giving you a blood blister when you go to hang them on the rack. Oh yeah, and they’re way easier to engage. You won’t go through half the threads trying to tighten the darn thing.
David
I have been doing some research on different brands of clamps but do not have much experience in the realm of parallel clamps yet. My next purchase of clamps will likely be parallel clamps. Are you referring to Jet clamps as a whole or the parallel clamps? Any feedback would be appreciated if you have experience with both brands. Thanks!
Robert
Full price in 2 Manhattan locations. What’s the actual discount, 25%?
Robert
Chelsea manager matched price when I showed her photo. I got 2 50s and 2 24s.
MT_Noob
Only 2 of the Bessey clamps had yellow tags on the rack and that was only for two dollars off… (South east MI).
I will need to keep checking back for the day that they actually mark them down.
SteveT
I’m in South West Mi and my 2 Home Depots had the same thing. A dollar or two off, and no idea about any closeouts. I’ll have to keep an eye on them also.
Bryan
That picture looks like the Watchung, NJ Home Depot, because that’s how the clamp rack looked like when I was there last week.
Chris
Anyone have a list of discounted SKUs? My local HD is willing to match.
RF
BESSEY 50 in. K-Body REVO Parallel Clamp with Composite Plastic Handle and 3-3/4 in. Throat Depth
Model# KR3.550
Internet #204986216
Store SKU #1000039555
BESSEY 24 in. K-Body REVO Parallel Clamp with Composite Plastic Handle and 3-3/4 in. Throat Depth
Model# KR3.524
Internet #204986215
Store SKU #1000039553
Chris
I was just there yesterday in Jersey and all the german made wood handle bar clamps were gone.
MATT_ROB
I read somewhere that Bessey was redesigning their clamps again as the new design was inferior to the Jet clamps and had problems staying parallel and slipping with the plastic faces.
Chris
Bessey is in the process of updating their K-body line to the new REVOLUTION models. The Model numbers have KRE in place of the current KR. I haven’t seen them in the US just yet.
Not that I’m saying that has anything to do with what’s going on with Home Depot’s Bessey inventory, but it is worth being aware of.
Chris W
Just after posting my comment as “Chris”, I noticed there’s another Chris who’s been heavily involved in the discussion. Nothing seems to indicate the difference between the 2 (or more?) Chris’s. Kind of confusing. I’ll have to be more specific in the future.
ACalz
I don’t want to see another Bessey clamp, I gave a wall and drawer full of them after Lowe’s got rid of them years ago. Killer deals back then.
Brian
It’s Dewalt clamps, in all sorts of styles. Also getting more Dewalt hand tools, mostly pliers. Have already seen it in some stores.
Michaelhammer
Did anyone notice the mention of the prospect of Pony coming back? I found that to be the most intriguing hypothesis. The Pony cam clamp is hands down the best clamp ever invented and I would very much like the opportunity to purchase more. I have become to my cam clamps like Gollum to the ring that binds them all. My precious.
D
Unfortunately Not on sale in West Nyack Ny
EMILIO E GONZALEZ
I was disappointed to see that most Bessey clamps are made in China. The more expensive, heavy duty clamps are still made in Germany. Sad to see a German brand outsourcing to Asia. After USA tools, I really like German quality tools. I end up buying older, vintage tools, USA and Europe. The Chinese made Bessy clamps are well made, but I just don’t like to see made in China on my tools.