I've been stretching canvas for more than thirty-five years; it is not an easy job to do well. When I started stretching I used just my fingers, and when I started stretching a lot, I found pliers to be a big help; but I would break up to six pairs a week. I found some types that were too hard to use, other's that just didn't work at all, many that hurt to use them, I taped my hands and wore padded gloves.
Finally, I started to design my own pliers. Over the years many customers and conservators gave their insights and helped with final design implementation. Now I've got the pliers to tackle any stretching job.
All three of the designs fit in your hand very well, and comfortably. A spring opens the jaws when you release pressure. The levers multiply the force of your hand to the jaws, so the canvas doesn't slip as you try to tack it down. You can maintain even tension with ease. The jaws are also angled toward the front edge, leaving a gap at the back of the jaws for excess fabric. The fulcrum is what really gives you the power, the lever action helps you really pull tight.
I guarantee that you'll love these pliers, and that they'll last your whole lifetime." - John Annesley
We have just completed our training video "How to Stretch Canvas". We encourage you to check out this wonderful MP4 movie (sorry PC version only).
Click on any plier picture to ZOOM.
Three-inch Side-Tack Pliers
These pliers are for traditional-style stretching where canvas is tacked to the side of the stretcher bars.
$100
Three-inch Wraparound Pliers
These pliers are designed for wrapping fabric around the sides and tacking in the back of the stretcher. It works fine for primed or unprimed linen or cotton duck.
$100
Six-inch Wraparound Pliers
The third style of pliers is a larger version of the three-inch wraparound pliers. It meets the specific need where people are working with very large supports. It takes more strength in these applications. We've found that it's best to stretch unprimed cotton duck in these instances.
$125
