Circular tension tool ?

[RangerF150]

Hi , i have seen some "circular tension tools" out there .
I guess they replace the standard tension tool when pickin .
Are they better?
Anyone use them ?

Just wondering , they look nice But are they any use !

Good luck

[Romstar]

I've used them, I think I still have one or two of the things, but I never use them anymore.

They are best used for when you have to have a certain amount of metered tension on the lock. How do you know how much to use? Simple, practice.

Just like a normal tension wrench.

I would say you are probably just as likely to get good with the normal wrench as you are with a circular tool.

Romstar

[RangerF150]

Thanks for you time dude !

I figured , hey thay look cool !
But not sure if they are any use , i'll stick with the standard kit so .

Think i better learn how to use that first !

Good luck

[henal]

there are not that good

the normal ones ar butter

[S3rratedSp00L]

Just out of curiosity, has anyone here made a circular tension tool? Doesn't look like it would be that hard to make one of the non-spring/solid type. A couple pieces of rod bent in an L shape and then the circular part with some holes. A couple of set screws, and some time. Probably not the best, but it could be interesting. The circular part could probably be scavenged from someplace.. auto part, or something. just drill some holes, tap the holes for set screws and see what happens. I think they are way overpriced for what they are.. (but what isn't?)

[Romstar]

Yes, they have been made, no they aren't too hard.
The simple answer is.......

Roller or needle bearings.

Good luck, and have fun.
Romstar

[Murph]

I'm working on a circular design myself just to see if I can create one. S3rratedSp00l gave me a couple ideas in his 03 Aug 04 post. I'm designing it on paper first. Yesterday I attempted to make a prototype using a scotch tape refill as my circular part to only give me a mockup until I can find something more permanent. It didn't turn out like I hoped. So I'm still scavenging for the circular part.
I'll keep you all posted on my project. Bear in mind, I'm not trying to re-invent the wheel or anything of sort, I just thought it would be an interesting challenge for myself. When I post it, perhaps as a group, we can all improve on it.
I set up a URL for posting pix and stuff for LP101 in the future.

[S3rratedSp00L]

Hmmm... roller or needle bearings!? Aren't they basically the same thing? That does sound interesting!... I was actually thinking about making a rigid circular tool, but now that you mention it, spring loading a bearing of the proper size and adding some wire to stick in the keyway might work ok! The bearing could come from a motorcycle part or something. A single bearing that big isn't cheap... Having something machined at that emachineshop.com site might be cheap enough if you were to make a few at a time.

Someday I will try making something strange like this. If I do, I will have to take some pics and post them, of course! Until then I will have to wonder. If any of you guys make one of these, please give us all a look at it!

it might be a good idea to make a rigid circular tool first because of the simplicity, and then make a spring loaded one after that.

I was just admiring the springs in this key in knob lock that I have sitting here.. The same spring works in both directions. That is definitely something I would want in a circular tool as well! wouldn't it be funny to make a circular tension tool out of an old knob lock! BWAHAHAHA!

[S3rratedSp00L]

Hmmm... maybe a spring loaded circular tool could be made in such a way that it would also double as a plug spinner!?

hehe that may be going too far!

[Romstar]

So far none of the homemade circular tension tools have ever functioned as a plug spinner.

I would assume that one could be made, but you would basically taking the rollers out of the race, and replacing it with a flat clock spring.

You would need one for left, and another for right.

If I get the time, I will whip up a few more of these things. Pictures will have to wait until I get a digital camera.

Man, sometimes I hate not having things.

Romstar

[S3rratedSp00L]

Yeah, I was kinda thinking out loud again. I have been toying with the idea of making a plug spinner lately and I find myself looking at springs. I was admiring the spring in a door lock because of the way it used a single spring for both directions... It should be possible to do this for a tension tool or a plug spinner. It might not be the best design. There is probably a trade-off, but it interests me, anyway.

I would surely like to see what people come up with! In my opinion, it is a good design if it works for who and what it was designed for.. The rest is just personal preference. (Which can also be pretty important.)

Pictures certainly cannot hurt either!

[Romstar]

The problem with using a double spring is two fold.

1. You don't have a lot of space to work with, and...
2. The spring might be pretty weak because of that.

If I could overcome the second problem it might be doable, but it's going to be a while before I can dedicate a lot of time to playing with it.

I'll see what I come up with.

Romstar

[S3rratedSp00L]

Yes, I guess it depends on how small you want to make things. Depending on how you use a spring, it may only get smaller as more tension is applied. Maybe a spring with less turns and made out of thicker wire would help overcome the weakness problem, but would possibly take up more space..

I think the hardest part will be getting it to work "just right". It sounds like you take pride in what you do, want it to work well, and are willing to experiment to get it that way! That certainly helps!

[Romstar]

Yes, I guess it depends on how small you want to make things. Depending on how you use a spring, it may only get smaller as more tension is applied. Maybe a spring with less turns and made out of thicker wire would help overcome the weakness problem, but would possibly take up more space..

I think the hardest part will be getting it to work "just right". It sounds like you take pride in what you do, want it to work well, and are willing to experiment to get it that way! That certainly helps!

I take extreme pride in what I do. As a matter of fact, I recently finished making a few replacement pick sets because I was unhappy with the ones I let leave here.

I don't expect for them to break any time soon, it was more of an aestetics issue than anything else.

I spent a long time debating how I was going to price my picks for selling. I was torn between the attention to materials and craftmanship, and the desire to actually make sales.

In the end, I decided that my time, and the attention I paid to the picks was more valuable to me than simply making a sale.

Everyone else can buy stamped and premade picks. Me? I make custom hand made and tested picking instruments.

I can't guarantee that they WON'T break, especially when you consider the gorilla fisted picker, but I can guarantee that in the hands of a good pick artist, they are superb.

I recently finished a set in heavy stainless steel bar stock. They are obviously hand ground, satin finish and carry integral handles. This was made possible by the thickness of the original stainless stock.

The balance is mostly in the handle, and it allows the user to maneauver their pick blade with an enhanced feel. The sound from these picks while in use is almost identical to the sound a dentist's pick makes while he's working on your teeth. A slight "pinging" sound as the energy is transfered through the blade and picked up by the solid handle.

I will get the time to work on that circular tension tool though. Just to see if I can make an all-in-one tool.

Thank you for your ideas as well.
Romstar