here we go again

 

1. Transistor puller

   Posted by Steve_in_CA       10/30/2010  at  01:55 PM  



2. Not unless you’re dealing with a 5000 watt bipolar transistor. Most large surface mount components come off with simple de-soldering. Good guess though.

   Posted by Drew458       10/30/2010  at  02:53 PM  



3. More clues needed? Ok. It is a puller of a certain kind. The barrel is threaded so that when you turn it the jaws tighten. You need to tighten them just enough, and no more than that. I’ve seen these with a slight notch in the end of each jaw blade, because what they hold is not very thick.

   They have been around about ... I’d guess a century and a half, though the early ones were larger because the object was larger. In the early part of the 20th century they got smaller, and stayed that way from then on.

   Our high technology world has made put this tool mostly on the sidelines, though collectors still have need of them. Nurses might, because they will never give up theirs, but I don’t know if they make the effort to have repairs done when necessary. So much of our world is disposable these days. For the nurses needs, the small version of this tool is almost always used.

   Posted by Drew458       10/31/2010  at  09:22 PM  



4. Pull stoppers/caps off vials..?

   Posted by Elvula       11/01/2010  at  12:02 AM  



5. Close!

   Bill the Bunyip wrote in with the correct answer: the tool is used to remove crystals from wristwatches. The proper name for the thing is a crystal lift.

   Like I said, in the beginning they were bigger: pocket watches. Up until 20-30 years ago they were common, but with the advent of digital watches with their flat faces the tool started to fade away. Now hardly anyone wears a watch, since everyone has a cellphone in their pocket, and darn near every electronic device has a highly accurate digital clock in it. Even my coffeepot. Nurses use an analog watch with a sweep second hand to time pulses and so on, so they might need those watches repaired at some point. And of course there are the watch collectors.

   Here’s a picture of the tool from another angle. The base plate accessory tool holds the watch body.
   http://www.starstruckllc.com/page/SSL/PROD/SST-365

   At this link, there is a slightly different model 2/3 down the page. Halfway down the page is a wrench design, the Longines tool. You had to have one for every size of crystal. Not convenient!
   http://www.daveswatchparts.com/CaseTools.html

   There is also a press design. I think they are more suited to factory production. Too many little parts to keep track of.
   http://www.esslinger.com/casepresswnylondies.aspx
   

   Good guessing folks! And free caulk for Bunyip if he wants it.

   Posted by Drew458       11/01/2010  at  09:18 AM  

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