KC8QVO

If you have to ask why... Just because. That's why. I didn't have any.

They work really well, too.

I've been trying to use conventional wrenches and pliers for some work but they aren't the right tools. So I figured I'd make some better ones.

The base material is 1/8" A36 plate (36k PSI steel). I ran weld beads with a 70k PSI welding rod to harden key areas - like the jaws and the outside of the shape then cut and ground things flat again. Filing the weld material is easier said than done - its pretty tough.

I have an axle here laying around that I test-fit the jaws on. One side was 14.8mm and the other was 15.5mm. So I ground the jaws to be a tight fit on the 15.5mm flats. I am hoping that suits. If not I can lay more material down and regrind.

79pmooney

Nice! I have a soft spot for A36, My first job as engineer with steel fish boats was with a yard that used A36 for the vast majority of its plate. Just not 1/8" 5/16 or higher for hull plating. For my housewarming, the CADCAM operator I worked with brought a 1/2" 3' X 4' plate with pre-drilled holes (laser cut) for my bench vise. I could but a frame in it and straighten, Nothing moved! Sadly, the plate stayed with the house when I moved.

KC8QVO

I get my steel from a local fab shop and all they really work with is A36. There is another place a buddy of mine that does some machining uses. He works with a lot of odd aerospace aluminums and has been able to get the place he uses to source everything he's needed. I have not checked with the place yet, but I might. I have some project ideas that may be able to benefit from higher grade steels as well as aluminum (probably T6061) and possibly stainless steel.

For being steel, A36 is quite pliable and forgiving. That is a good thing for general purpose fabrication, but a bad thing for hard-use/wear surfaces like bearing plates, races, and bushings - or wrench jaws...

Though, the 70k PSI filler might still not be well suited for wrench duty, but it darn sure is magnitudes tougher than A36. We'll see how long they hold up.

Thomas15

What do you think would happen if you took some old inexpensive (flea market) open end wrenches and used your grinder to make them thinner for use as cone wrenches?

JohnDThompson 

Seems like a lot of work for something that isn't that expensive off the shelf. Unless they're hardened, I suspect they won't last too long in use.

dscheidt

Works fine. cones aren't usually very tight, so the wrench doesn't need to be terribly strong. They might spread open with repeated use, but they work fine in a pinch.

KC8QVO

The only time there is "torque" on a wrench on a cone is when you are setting the jam nut on the outside because you are holding back the torque on the cone so the torque of the jam nut doesn't change the position of the cone. If you are torquing a cone on to a hub with any real "torque" you are doing it wrong and will screw up a lot of things in the hub, probably even before you get to feeling any "torque" on the wrench...

Gresp15C

I made my own for Sturmey-Archer and Bendix hubs. Just a couple cuts with a hacksaw, bend the piece back and forth till it breaks out, clean up with a file. Works like a charm.

KC8QVO

I ended up making a 2nd set for 13mm. For those I used 1/16" steel and laid a bead of the 70k psi weld only on one side - it penetrated all the way through the steel (and blew thru in one place).

The jaws still dent when under a fair amount of torque so the 70k psi weld material still isn't quite hard enough, but they still work enough to to a few random hub jobs.

icemilkcoffee 

Great work. While you got the welding rig out, you should weld a hook or clamp fixture on one of the handles. That way you can hold the cone nut on one side stationary while you dial in the adjustment on the other side.

easyupbug 

I agree, but have to say it's probably a labor of love or just desirer to craft, plan and execute, which I think ends with building craftsmanship skills that can and I bet pays off in the long term.

guy153

Nice work! Always fun to make something. I wonder if you could heat treat them. I think you just heat it up to hot AF, dunk it, and then heat it up again until it just stops being magnetic and then let it cool slowly. Always wear safety glasses when using homemade heat treated steel products

I made a tap wrench for BB taps today. Not hardened or anything. You shouldn't be turning it that hard to chase BB threads anyway.