(Not) My Design for a Multitool

[supratentorial]

My condolences.

[Tom Munch]

Thanks, guys. 

Yes, my wife's dad is still alive.  He's declining too, but he should have a few years left we can fish & tell tall tales over a beer.

I've lost quite a few folks who I was close to over the last few years, so I'm not as sad as I might be at losing my wife's mother.  I buried my own father just a year & a half ago.  This is all just part of life I suppose.  As a performer I have to push it down so that I can smile & give my all on stage.  I find time to grieve though - we all do in our own way.

Tom

[Tom Munch]

I'm still working on my cardboard model of this tool.  This summer has been tremendously busy - been working 7 days a week since Memorial Day.

Tom

[Tom Munch]

I'm ready to get back to this now.  I'm sorry if I've been leading folks on a bit.  I need to find a good machine shop to do the work for me.  I'm still afraid it will be a monster & very unuseable, but it's worth a shot.

Tom

[J-sews]

Yay!!

[trickknife]

Now how to add wire cutters into that jaw - either deep in the jaw or on the back somehow like I've seen on other tools.

Any ideas, guys?

Tom

Hi Tom,

I saw some wire cutters that work in a similar manner to the wire strippers.  I'll try to explain it here.  Let me know if it isn't clear. 
1.  open up the jaw about 5-10 degrees.
2.  (with a carbide drill bit) drill a hole at angle into the jaws (away from the pivot point/rivet).  The hole must be drilled tangent to the travel of the jaws. (this is getting to hard to explain).
3.  anyway, if you then stick a wire in that same hole and close the jaws, it should cut the wire. 

If you drilled a hole straight through, that would work, but and angled hole acts as a wire stripper also.

Does that make sense?
 

[Tom Munch]

trickknife,

I've read your description several times, but I'm still not picturing what you're describing.  Do you mind sketching it a bit?

Tom

[trickknife]

Here's an attempt at drawing in 3D.

In "cutter 2" the jaw is pivoted so that the jaws will be closed (disregard the sloped hole for a second).

You open up the jaws slightly (about 5 or 10 degrees) and then drill a hole at an angle as shown in the image "cutter 1".

To use the wire cutter, you open the jaws up to this position (where you can see through the two holes) and insert your wire.

Then you close the jaws and squeeze on the handles.  It should go back to the position in "cutter 2" and the wire should sheer off.

Is that better?

Rick

[Tom Munch]

trickknife,

That's a good idea, but I don't know if either of the Knipex heads I'm looking at have sufficient overlapping material to do this.

[Tom Munch]

Maybe a wirecutter could be implemented into the back where the tools scissors a bit.

Tom

[Tom Munch]

A carbide insert could even be fastened into the jaws somehow I think.

Tom

[J-sews]

A carbide insert could even be fastened into the jaws somehow I think.

Tom

Carbide inserts, like some of the Gerber tools have?

[Tom Munch]

Is that do-able, Bob?

[J-sews]

Two questions occur to me about adding wire cutters to these tools:

1) Location of the cutters?
2) Pivot tightness?

Of the two, the Pivot Tightness question may be the real hang-up. For bypass wire cutters to work properly (and not let the wire squish in between the cutting surfaces) there needs to be very little slop between the plier jaws.

I've never handled one of these Knipex tools before. They look like the design requires a certain amount of looseness between the jaws, and between the two handles.

[Tom Munch]

That's a good point, Bob, but they are actually pretty accurate because of the locking design of the adjustable slider.  That said, it still may be very difficult to get the precision necessary to have two blades meet precisely enough to cut well.  The best we can hope for may be just the ability to cut solid wire & not stranded wire.

Tom

[Tom Munch]

Re-reading your post I agree that there is too much slop for a bypass-type cutter.  I suppose there is too much slop for a two-blade diagonal-type cutter then.  I wonder if a single blade coming in contact with a flat surface (I've forgotten the designation for this) would work.

Tom

[Tom Munch]

Oh yeah...it's Anvil.

[J-sews]

Yes, I was wondering about the anvil type myself.

[Tom Munch]

So I haven't returned to this design in quite some time.  Part of that is because I don't mind carrying a couple of specialized tools in my bag, & part of that is because I've been taking care of surgery-recovering relatives this Fall.  I promise I won't let it go completely though.  Stay tuned.

Tom

[J-sews]

We understand...great minds can't be rushed 

[Tom Munch]

Great minds - ha!  No one's ever said that about me before.

[Benner]

Great minds - ha!  No one's ever said that about me before.

Bob must want something.

[J-sews]

Great minds - ha!  No one's ever said that about me before.

Bob must want something.

Nope. I just want to cover my butt for when someone brings up a certain Spirit project that I started 8 months ago 

[Tom Munch]

Oh yeah!  Whatever happened to that? 

[J-sews]

 

[supratentorial]

http://cgi.ebay.com/FIREFIGHTER-CUSTOM-MADE-POCKET-TOOL-100-QUALITY_W0QQitemZ140189121387

According to the seller:  "It’s the next best thing to having an iPhone" 

I think we can do better.

[Tom Munch]

Yes, I think we can too. 

[damota]

http://cgi.ebay.com/FIREFIGHTER-CUSTOM-MADE-POCKET-TOOL-100-QUALITY_W0QQitemZ140189121387

According to the seller:  "It’s the next best thing to having an iPhone" 

I think we can do better.

Is it expensive bloatware? That only can be used with DRM nuts and screws? 

Dave

[J-sews]

By golly though, you have to give the fellow credit for trying!

Basically he's taken individual tools and made them into a single device which is more useful to his trade (firefighter). Quite honestly, the result appears to be more functional than some of Tim Leatherman's early prototypes

[J-sews]

...by the way, I sent off a message to the fellow, asking him to drop by and tell us about his device.