Type in your dogbone end geometry, load, and test temperature. Build A Grip sizes a clevis grip against it, checks every failure mode, and hands you a STEP file and a dimensioned engineering drawing — in about a second.
Most grip problems are geometry problems. You already know your specimen — we start there, and everything else is derived and checked.
Width, thickness, pin hole diameter, and edge distance of your dogbone tab. Add the load, the test temperature, and the threaded interface on your load train.
Ear thickness, lug width, bore, shank, and thread engagement are solved against net-section tension, bearing, shear tear-out, pin double shear, pin bending, and thread stripping — using temperature-corrected allowables.
A watertight STEP AP214 solid you can drop straight into your CAD assembly, plus a two-sheet PDF: dimensioned orthographic drawing and the full stress calculation record.
Every field updates the solid model, the strength checks, and the downloads immediately. Nothing leaves your browser.
Allowables below are the values the configurator actually uses. Room temperature is 293 K, LN2 is 77 K, LHe is 4 K.
Pin-loaded double-shear clevises for flat, sheet, and dogbone specimens. Sized to your tab, not to a catalogue.
Button-head and threaded-end specimen adapters. In the configurator queue — talk to us in the meantime.
4 K and 77 K load trains with differential-contraction clearances built into the fit stack.
M16, M30, and 1.250”-12 interfaces to bridge whatever is already bolted to your frame.
Configure your grip above, then hit the button — it opens an email pre-filled with the full parameter record so we can quote without a back-and-forth.
These govern every purchase and quotation. Please read section 4 in particular: it limits what we are responsible for, and test fixtures carry loads that can injure.
Effective EFFECTIVE DATE.
These Terms govern your purchase and use of anything supplied by ENTITY NAME ("Build A Grip", "we", "us") through buildagrip.org (the "Site"). By creating an account, purchasing a Design Package, or requesting a quotation, you agree to them. If you are agreeing on behalf of an organisation, you represent that you are authorised to bind it.
Design Package — a downloadable STEP solid model and a two-sheet engineering drawing in PDF, generated from parameters you enter. Delivered electronically and immediately on payment.
Manufactured Hardware — physical test fixtures machined, heat treated and supplied to your order. Hardware is supplied only under a separate written quotation that we issue and you accept. Nothing on the Site is an offer to sell Hardware, and no Hardware order exists until we confirm it in writing.
Access is by a single-use link sent to your email address. You are responsible for the security of that mailbox and for everything done through your account. Tell us promptly at legal@buildagrip.org if you believe it has been misused.
Design Package prices are shown on the Site and charged in US dollars through Stripe. We do not receive or store your card details. Hardware is priced per quotation and remains valid for the period stated on it.
Prices exclude sales tax, VAT, GST, customs duties and import fees, which are your responsibility unless the quotation says otherwise.
On payment in full you receive a perpetual, worldwide, non-exclusive, non-transferable licence to:
You may not:
We retain all intellectual property in the models, drawings, the configurator and the underlying engineering methods. Nothing transfers ownership.
Parts you have manufactured under this licence are yours. We claim no interest in them and no royalty.
Design Packages are generated automatically from the parameters you supply. They are produced by closed-form static analysis only. They do not include finite element analysis, fatigue life, fracture mechanics, preload analysis, dynamic or impact loading, corrosion, creep, or non-destructive examination. Threads are modelled as plain cylinders; the drawing callout governs.
You are responsible for:
We do not know your machine, your specimen, your laboratory or your standard. A Design Package is engineering data for you to evaluate, not a certification that a fixture is fit for your purpose.
Where we supply Hardware:
REGISTERED ADDRESS) unless the quotation states otherwise;You are responsible for complying with all applicable export control laws, including the US Export Administration Regulations.
Maraging steel and certain nickel alloys are controlled materials. Designs and hardware in these materials may require a licence before export, re-export or transfer to a foreign national, and may not be supplied to certain destinations or end users at all. We may decline or cancel any order, before or after payment, where we believe supply would breach these controls, and we may require an end-use statement before shipping.
You warrant that you are not on any restricted party list and that nothing we supply will be used in connection with nuclear, chemical, biological or missile applications.
We may suspend or close an account that breaches these Terms. Licences granted for Design Packages already paid for survive, except where the breach is of §1.4.
These Terms are governed by the laws of the State of STATE, without regard to conflict of laws principles. The UN Convention on Contracts for the International Sale of Goods does not apply. Disputes are subject to the exclusive jurisdiction of the state and federal courts located in STATE.
All sales of Design Packages are final. No refunds are given.
The files are generated and delivered immediately on payment and cannot be returned. The Site lets you configure a design, review the geometry, the 3D preview and every strength check before you pay. You are asked to satisfy yourself before purchasing.
Purchases remain downloadable from your account indefinitely, so losing a file is not a reason to buy it again — sign in and download it.
Changing any input produces a different design and is a separate purchase.
If Hardware we supply does not conform to the drawing supplied with the order, tell us within 14 days of delivery with photographs and inspection data. Where we agree it does not conform, we will remake and reship it at our cost, or where a remake is not practical, credit the amount you paid for the non-conforming items.
This is your sole and exclusive remedy for non-conforming Hardware. We do not give cash refunds for Hardware, and we do not accept returns of conforming custom-made items — they cannot be resold.
We are not responsible for non-conformity arising from parameters you supplied, from a design you directed, from modification after delivery, from misuse, or from use outside the load and temperature stated on the drawing.
If you dispute a charge with your card issuer without first contacting us at legal@buildagrip.org, we may suspend your account and decline future orders.
Effective EFFECTIVE DATE. ENTITY NAME, REGISTERED ADDRESS, is the controller of personal data described here. Contact legal@buildagrip.org.
You give us: your email address; and, if you request a quotation, your name, company, phone number, delivery details and any notes you write.
You create by using the Site: the configurations you generate, the designs you purchase, quotation requests and their status.
Collected automatically: standard server logs including IP address, browser type and pages requested, retained briefly for security and diagnostics.
We do not use advertising or analytics trackers. The only cookie we set is a sign-in session cookie, which is strictly necessary for the Site to work and is deleted when you sign out.
We never see your card details. Payment is handled entirely by Stripe.
| Purpose | Basis (UK/EU GDPR) |
|---|---|
| Creating your account and signing you in | Performance of a contract |
| Delivering purchased Design Packages | Performance of a contract |
| Preparing and sending a quotation you asked for | Performance of a contract / steps prior to it |
| Manufacturing and shipping Hardware you order | Performance of a contract |
| Keeping records of sales, tax and orders | Legal obligation |
| Security, fraud prevention, keeping the Site working | Legitimate interests |
We do not send marketing email. If that changes we will ask for your consent first, and every message will carry an unsubscribe link.
We do not sell personal data. We do not share your contact details for anyone else's marketing.
We share the minimum necessary with:
Our infrastructure is provided by US-based suppliers and data may be processed in the United States and other countries. Where we transfer personal data out of the UK or EEA we rely on the applicable safeguards, including Standard Contractual Clauses where required.
| Data | Retention |
|---|---|
| Account and purchase records | While the account is open, then 7 years for tax and warranty |
| Quotation requests | 3 years from last contact |
| Design configurations | Indefinitely, so purchases stay downloadable |
| Server logs | 30 days |
Depending on where you live, you may have the right to access, correct, delete, export or restrict our use of your personal data, and to object to processing based on legitimate interests. California residents have rights under the CCPA including to know and to delete, and we do not sell or share personal information as those terms are defined there.
Write to legal@buildagrip.org and we will respond within the period the law requires. We may need to verify your identity first, and we may retain what tax or legal obligations require us to keep.
You may also complain to your data protection authority — in the UK, the ICO.
Data is encrypted in transit. Sign-in links and session identifiers are stored only as cryptographic hashes, so a copy of our database cannot be used to sign in as you. Access to production data is limited to ENTITY NAME personnel who need it.
No system is perfectly secure, and we cannot guarantee absolute security.
The Site is for business use and not directed at anyone under 18. We do not knowingly collect data from children.
EVERYTHING WE SUPPLY IS PROVIDED "AS IS" AND "AS AVAILABLE", WITHOUT WARRANTY OF ANY KIND. TO THE FULLEST EXTENT PERMITTED BY LAW WE DISCLAIM ALL WARRANTIES, EXPRESS, IMPLIED OR STATUTORY, INCLUDING THE IMPLIED WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY, FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE, ACCURACY, AND NON-INFRINGEMENT.
We do not warrant that a design is suitable for your application, that calculations are free of error, that a fixture will withstand any particular load, or that the Site will be uninterrupted.
Design Packages are automatically generated engineering data. They are not a professional engineering opinion, are not offered as the practice of engineering in any jurisdiction, and are not sealed or stamped by a licensed Professional Engineer unless we state so in writing for a specific order.
Where your application, employer or jurisdiction requires review by a licensed engineer, obtaining it is your responsibility.
TEST FIXTURES CARRY LARGE LOADS AND STORE SIGNIFICANT ELASTIC ENERGY. FAILURE CAN CAUSE SERIOUS INJURY, DEATH, OR DAMAGE TO PROPERTY AND EQUIPMENT.
You are responsible for assessing the risk of the test, for guarding, for personal protective equipment, and for operating within the rated load and temperature marked on the drawing. Do not exceed them. Inspect fixtures before each use and withdraw anything damaged, corroded, deformed or of unknown history.
TO THE FULLEST EXTENT PERMITTED BY LAW, ENTITY NAME AND ITS MEMBERS, OFFICERS AND AGENTS WILL NOT BE LIABLE FOR ANY INDIRECT, INCIDENTAL, SPECIAL, CONSEQUENTIAL, EXEMPLARY OR PUNITIVE DAMAGES, OR FOR LOSS OF PROFIT, REVENUE, DATA, TEST RESULTS, SPECIMENS, EQUIPMENT USE, OR BUSINESS INTERRUPTION, ARISING OUT OF OR RELATING TO ANYTHING WE SUPPLY, WHETHER IN CONTRACT, TORT, STRICT LIABILITY OR OTHERWISE, EVEN IF ADVISED OF THE POSSIBILITY.
OUR TOTAL AGGREGATE LIABILITY FOR ALL CLAIMS RELATING TO A PARTICULAR ORDER WILL NOT EXCEED THE AMOUNT YOU ACTUALLY PAID US FOR THAT ORDER.
Nothing in these Terms excludes liability that cannot lawfully be excluded, including liability for death or personal injury caused by negligence, or for fraud.
You will indemnify and hold ENTITY NAME harmless from claims, damages and costs (including reasonable legal fees) arising from your use of anything we supply, your breach of these Terms, parameters or instructions you supplied, or any manufacture, modification, heat treatment or use of a design carried out by you or on your behalf.