A chain tool is a small mechanical device used to "break" a bicycle chain in such a way that it can be mended with the same tool. A bicycle chain has links and plates that are pinned together; these pins can be pushed out with the chain tool. Because the pins are pushed out gradually with a screw, they can be partially removed or fully removed, depending upon the intention of the user.
The chain tool has two positions where a chain can be inserted perpendicular to the tool, one close to the movable screw portion, and one lower down just above the fixed end. In each position, there are a pair of protruding tabs; one fits into the center of one link of the chain, the other fits into the center of the next link. With the chain properly in place, the pin is held in the center of the tool, so that the tip of the movable screw can press on the end of the pin. The end of the screw is slightly narrower than the pin, so that it can press the pin through the link. Often the end of the screw is a removable piece which can be replaced when worn.
Read more about Chain Tool: Variations and Alternatives, Gallery
Famous quotes containing the words chain and/or tool:
“Nae living man I’ll love again,
Since that my lovely knight is slain.
Wi ae lock of his yellow hair
I’ll chain my heart for evermair.”
—Unknown. The Lament of the Border Widow (l. 25–28)
“One of the great reasons for the popularity of strikes is that they give the suppressed self a sense of power. For once the human tool knows itself a man, able to stand up and speak a word or strike a blow.”
—Charles Horton Cooley (1864–1929)