bulgie 

Best, if you can make it fit, is one that attaches to one jaw of a bench vise, with the "half pipe" attached to the other jaw. Attached as in bolted in where the vise jaws attach. Most vises are too bulky for this to fit into narrower stays, especially close to the BB shell. But further from the shell and/or bikes that already have more space there, it can be nice to have the rigidity of the vise. The indenter will always point directly at the center of the half pipe, so you have fewer moving parts you need to hold in alignment while squishing. This style is the clear winner for doing individual stays before building the frame.

Another decent option I've seen is indenter welded to one jaw of a vise-grip pliers, half-pipe welded to the other jaw. Been meaning to make one of those but haven't had a need for one yet.


I made mine with a C-clamp, but I should have used a stronger and better-quality C-clamp. I used a generic Chinese clamp, and the threads are already feeling kinda grindy after just a few uses.

Andrew R Stewart is a regular here; he'll probably show you the one he made, which is godlike. More steel than you might want to use, but it is strong and rigid, and the design holds it in alignment while squishing.
EDIT: Ah yes here it is, scroll down to post #20

Mark B in Seattle