The present invention relates generally to the field of pivoted hand held tools, and more specifically to a ratchet mechanism for adjusting the tension of the blades and for blade replacement of a hand pruner.
Pivoted implements having elongated members disposed for cooperative engagement about a pivotable joint are widely used. In particular tools such as pruning snips generally comprise two elongated members, typically made of stamped or forged metal or other suitable material, disposed for cooperative engagement about the pivotable joint. Typically, each member includes a jaw at the front end portion thereof, an opposed tang, and a pair of handles connected to the tangs.
An improvement to the basic hand pruner is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,697,159 entitled Pivoted Hand Tool to Linden and is incorporated herein by reference. The ""159 patent discloses a hand pruner in which one of the handles is rotatable. A transmission mechanism is provided to interconvert the rotation force applied to the rotatable handle into a rectilinear force used to draw the handles together.
As a result of wear on the blades and general use of the tool, it may become necessary to replace the blades, or remove them for sharpening and or repair. Additionally, it may be necessary to adjust the tension between the two blades for optimal operation of the pruning tool. However, the removal of the blades or adjustment of the tension requires additional tools that are difficult to carry when working in the field.
It would be desirable to provide a pruning tool that could allow for adjustment of the tension of the blades without the need for external tools. Further, it would be desirable to provide a hand pruning tool that could allow the removal of a damaged blade and installation of new blade in the field without the use of additional tools.
One embodiment includes a pivoted hand tool including a first and second handle, each handle having a jaw member extending therefrom. A pivot connects the first and second handles. A ratchet is operatively engaged with the pivot and at least one of the handles and selectively rotates the pivot in a clockwise and counter-clockwise direction by movement of the handles toward or away from one another
In another embodiment a method for adjusting a pivoted tool includes providing a first and second handle, each handle having a jaw member extending therefrom, the first and second handles being pivotally secured to one another with a threaded pivot threadably engaged with one of the handles. A ratchet assembly is attached to the threaded pivot and the ratchet assembly is linked to the handles. The threaded pivot is tightened by rotating the threaded pivot in one direction relative to the one of the handles by movement of the handles toward or away from one another.
In a further embodiment a hand pruner includes a first and second handle. A first and second blade are operatively secured to the first and second handles. A pivot connects the first and second handles. A three position ratchet is operatively engaged with the pivot and coupled to the first handle with a lever. Movement of the first handle toward and away from the second handle pivots a ratchet gear in a first and second direction about the pivot. The ratchet is adjustable between a first position in which movement of the handle toward the second handle rotates the pivot relative to the handles in a first direction, to a second position in which movement of the handle away from the second handle rotates the pivot in a second direction opposite the first direction. The ratchet includes a third neutral position in which movement of the handles toward and away from one another does not rotate the pivot relative to the handles.