A clamping assembly for clamping one or more knife elements onto a woodworking machine, said clamping assembly including: a first clamping component having, as seen in cross section, two ends and opposite sides and being sized and shaped to have at least three discrete contact positions, said discrete contact positions comprising a first surface portion defining a fulcrum located generally at one end of the first clamping component, a second surface defining a first knife abutting portion located generally at the other end of the first clamping component for abutting said one or more knife elements, and a third surface portion defining a bearing surface located on said first clamping component separate from said fulcrum and between the fulcrum and the knife abutting portion; said first surface defining said fulcrum and said first knife abutting portion being located on the same side of said first clamping component; a second clamping component including a surface defining a second knife abutting portion for engaging a surface on said one or more knives that is opposite the surface thereof engaged by the first knife abutting portion of the first clamping component to clamp said one or more knives between the clamping components; and a substantially planar contact surface located to engage the bearing surface of said first clamping component; an actuator for applying a clamping force to clamp said first clamping component towards the second clamping component, along clamping axes extending through both the first and the second clamping components and located intermediate of said knife abutting portion and said fulcrum of the first clamping component; said fulcrum of the first clamping component being formed as a substantially planar surface, wherein a line normal to said fulcrum is at an acute angle to said clamping axis; said bearing surface of the first clamping component and said contact surface of the second clamping component being formed as substantially planar surfaces being substantially parallel to the clamping axes and such that a line normal to said bearing surface and said contact surface intersects said line normal to said fulcrum at a location farther askew of said clamping axes than said fulcrum; characterized in that the first clamping component has a larger length in cross section than the second clamping component, such that when positioning the first clamping component against the second clamping component such that the clamping axes of the first and second clamping components are aligned and the bearing surface and the contact surface abut, the fulcrum of the first clamping component is located a distance outside of the second clamping component. a first clamping component having, as seen in cross section, two ends and opposite sides and being sized and shaped to have at least three discrete contact positions, said discrete contact positions comprising a first surface portion defining a fulcrum located generally at one end of the first clamping component, a second surface defining a first knife abutting portion located generally at the other end of the first clamping component for abutting said one or more knife elements, and a third surface portion defining a bearing surface located on said first clamping component separate from said fulcrum and between the fulcrum and the knife abutting portion; said first surface defining said fulcrum and said first knife abutting portion being located on the same side of said first clamping component; a second clamping component including a surface defining a second knife abutting portion for engaging a surface on said one or more knives that is opposite the surface thereof engaged by the first knife abutting portion of the first clamping component to clamp said one or more knives between the clamping components; and a substantially planar contact surface located to engage the bearing surface of said first clamping component; an actuator for applying a clamping force to clamp said first clamping component towards the second clamping component, along clamping axes extending through both the first and the second clamping components and located intermediate of said knife abutting portion and said fulcrum of the first clamping component; said fulcrum of the first clamping component being formed as a substantially planar surface, wherein a line normal to said fulcrum is at an acute angle to said clamping axis; said bearing surface of the first clamping component and said contact surface of the second clamping component being formed as substantially planar surfaces being substantially parallel to the clamping axes and such that a line normal to said bearing surface and said contact surface intersects said line normal to said fulcrum at a location farther askew of said clamping axes than said fulcrum; characterized in that the first clamping component has a larger length in cross section than the second clamping component, such that when positioning the first clamping component against the second clamping component such that the clamping axes of the first and second clamping components are aligned and the bearing surface and the contact surface abut, the fulcrum of the first clamping component is located a distance outside of the second clamping component.