claw grabbers

Hello all, so I am not sure if this is the right forum, as I am not a very active member here... So please bear with me, but I have some tools that I have been working on.

I set out about 5 years ago to design and build some kick ass grabbers, as I was unsatisfied with what was available. I made a lot of changes and versions, and have been using some of the first ones for full time use for about four years. I have about 10 of these ready to go, have the parts to build another 40 if people want them. Please let me know what you guys (and gals) think. So, they are made with 6061 aluminum, a heat resistant stainless alloy for the fingers, stainless set screws, a brass thumb screw, aluminum hardware on the front end (noticeable weight reduction), and steel hardware on the back as adjustable counterweights. Everything on these grabbers is replaceable (including the fingers). So I am currently putting together a website, and will post when it is done (tomorrow or Tuesday). Again, please comment or suggest, I need some feedback. The lampworkers I know really like these grabbers, and I love them, so I think others will too. here are a couple pics. Oh, I will sell these puppies for 180. But I will do the first ten for 160 each. I am proud of these tools, so go easy on me! I know the pics suck, I will try and get something better up soon.

By the way, the handle is about 18" long, with an over all length of around 20. They will grab anything from a 7" bubble to a 2" bubble. Also, the green vase in the pic is a very heavy 6" by 9" soft glass vase.

Attachment 53676Attachment 53677Attachment 53678Attachment 53679

those look super nice, wouldnt mind tryin a pair of them, dont think i can swing the money right now though.

Those look real nice

I'm interested.
Pm sent. Thanks.

Is that a butt plug in the last picture? Just curious.

These are great grabbers. I was lucky enough to work with Mr. Highwater on some projects that involved using his grabbers anywhere from 20 to 40 times per day. I have been trying to get my hands on a pair ever since then. So I was very excited when he finally had them ready to sell. These are definitely the nicest grabbers I have used.

those look sweeeeet...i just got a pair from griffin tools in the mail today, they seem a lot better than the ones im using, i shall see tomorrow!

if they were from griffin, they werent the same as these were they?

hey bud, i am totally down for one, i will send you a pm, thanks for making what sounds like a really decent claw :)

i can see how it read like that, not what i meant though...these look proper.

Thank you all for the kind words! Menty, that would be a most impressive butt plug. That vase is 6" by 9", and is about a half inch thick. Thanks Jusbag, those were some good times working with you. Here is a link to the site I'm building, but its still a little rough. http://steelheadglasstools.com

these look awesome

Are the first 10 @ $160 sold? The website listed them at $180 yesterday, but today they are $200. So, the demand has been good? Are you getting low on parts for the original run of 40?

Do you have any other tools planned?

I do have a couple other tools that I may seek patents for. I have a few spoken for, but still have some left for 160. I changed the price on the site to include domestic shipping. I couldn't figure out how to make paypal add in estimated shipping. I will revisit that and make it work for more accurate shipping charges.

I am really glad to see the interest in them! I can get parts quickly enough, so I am not yet concerned about backorders.

Thanks for the quick reply!

I thought this information would be valuable for everyone, which is why I asked by post instead of PM.

Looks like you're off to a great start! Hit me back on PM so we can get you moved into the proper forum category. And again, welcome to TMP! We need good tool makers in our industry that also have good customer service. I can see you doing well if you continue to answer people quickly and keep up with demand. Wishing you the best of luck. :)

The website seems to work properly with a location added. The website currently adds $20 shipping to the $200 price of the claw grabbers for a total of $220. (I didn't try any further since I wasn't planning to spend that much.)

Thanks Misha! Hi Skip, I wonder if you still had one in your cart from when they were marked two hundred? Anyhow, it seems to be working now, as your order came through correctly. I just checked again to make sure, and it was 180 on the site plus 20 s&h. I still have 5 more to go at 160 to anyone here who wants them, just hit me up via pm and I'll invoice you with paypal at that price.

Make sure to hit me back with your vendor info please! this has gone from a feedback thread to a sales thread and needs to be moved. ;)

Hi Misha, pm sent. I filled out that form last night, emailed you some pics too. Thanks again for your help!

Alright, so that's the end of the intro price. Thank you everyone! I can't wait for you all to get your grabbers. They will be 180 each plus shipping from here on out. I could cut a deal if you wanted two or more though...

Thanks again,

Dan

should be tomorrow for me, i will have to make something big and heavy to try em out :)

I'm very interested to hear some reviews.

Just want to say this thing, although pretty large, is pretty light too. its very nicely made and can hold almost anything. I imagine it will work great for many years.

Also we had a shipping mix-up and highwater was extremely fair in sharing the burden of unexpected brokerage fees over the border, thanks again :)

That's why I never us UPS to Canada.
Frikken robbers !

Thanks hash! I have done everything I could think of to save weight without sacrificing strength. I actually made one grabber with titanium fingers, but they made crazy marks on the glass...
Yeah gold fire, I think ups comes comes pretty well on that brokerage deal.

UPS is the worst on brokerage fees form the U.S i find.

These things are nice! Mine arrived today and feels well balanced and nice and big! Here's a pic.Attachment 54084

Thanks Crow!

Time to make some big stuff!

I have a bunch more ready to go...

I should mention that these grabbers are designed for BIG work. I have used them on bubbles down to 2" but they are not ideal for small work. They really shine when it comes to the big stuff. I usually don't use them on anything under 3", as there are plenty of other grabbers for smaller work.

Thanks Dan these are great. Here's a cool flame shot.
Attachment 54569
It's about a 7" bubble.

^^that would make a badass avatar!

Thanks Justin!

That is a sweet pic...

I've always wondered...Can a grabber with fingers shaped like these go inside the end of an open straight tube and hold it well? If so what size is the smallest inner diameter yours will do this with?

ummm, i don't think iso grabbers work like that do they? i have a cheap set of inside out grabbers....that don't grab anything on the inside worth shit.

ISA247...

I've seen the "I/O" ones with like straight 90* fingers used in the end of a straight tube like straight off the shelf in a few videos and it worked(seems like one size inner dia. tube might work best or like they could pull off fairly easy but still worked to some degree...Hard to tell when a pro uses a tool even if not made for that application because they can tend to make things look easy when adapting a tool for a diff. use) ...So that's not what they are for? What are they used for then because that's the only way I have ever seen them used...Do I/O grabbers have something to do with being used in the actual I/O tech then? I mean looks like you could pull the tube off of them fairly easy & everything, but was hoping for something to hold the end of a tube(Even if I have to keep pressure against it), I've seen Herbert Arnold's tube grabbers & however incredibly sweet looking...They are just too expensive for me at the moment... I've seen ones with fingers like the ones in this thread used on the inside of a hole in a bubble(In addition to the way pictured in this thread thus far) ...But was wondering if this style fingers would work to any degree (Even If Small) on the inside of a straight tube? I currently only have the regular claw grabbers, so have no experience with any of the other types...So Thanks For All The Help!

i use these on mugs on the inside, they wont go a lot smaller. might get them in 50 x 5, not sure.

Ok, so I finally am getting around to it...

Here is a demo of these claw grabbers in use on the inside of three different sizes. The first size is 50 x 3.5, and there is a good amount of wiggle room, so I think getting them into 50 x 5 would be no problem at all. Then there is 65 x 3.2, and these first two sizes of tube they handle easily. Then I tried some 100 mil, which it wanted to pop out of if you spun them horizontally. If the tube is tapered at all (like a wine glass) to the inside they really grab rock solid. I hope this helps! There is another longer demo video on my site, too if you want to see more gripping action... Sorry for the aweful quality video btw. I will get around to making something better.

Thanks,
Dan

http://youtu.be/A96X4Oea2mI

Wow what a wonderfully helpful video HighWater...

Answered my questions!! I think this will help me hold my 50mmX5mm immensely, because i have very weak wrists from being sick so when things start getting big like that I'm sure it will help a ton to have one of these tools...I'm officially starting to save up for one! :) Beautiful craftsmanship by the way!...& Thank you for getting back so quick with such an informative answer...I'm sure you will sell many of these(one of which will be to me at one point the near future that's for sure!)