Sourcing a step wrench

oldbilbo

oldbilbo

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I have a handful of bronze seacocks to remove and, probably, several bronze through hull fittings, so I can check, clean and fettle them. Certainly one or more of the combinations can be turned a little bit 'by hand' and that persuades me that I need to get 'em off and peered at.

I believe I need a 'step wrench', or a sound DIY alternative.

For the DIY idea, I'm imagining a strip of 5 x ~35mm mild steel bent to 90°, the width to fit the 'ole.

Suggestions for sourcing - and any better ideas - are wanted, pleez. :)
 
When I changed all mine, the smaller seacocks came off (1" and smaller) but the 2" one had to be cut with a disc cutter. All the skin fitting (after some trying / swearing and many blooded knuckles were cut off too. The ring nuts ground right through in a couple of places. They were gits to remove. Good luck with yours and hope they are nothing like I found.
 
Got mine off with a piece of hardwood of suitable size hammered into the outside and held whilst I unscrewed from the inside. This worked well but depends on at least two things:

1. Someone outside to hold the piece of wood
2. A fitting that is not siezed on solid

Nice piece of kit, a step wrench and if nothing else will work then probably worth the money but try alternatives first. Anything that will fit and hold the piece steady will do the job.

Chas
 
I have a similar job to do this weekend, and have just made myself a set of "seacock spanners" by cutting slots into the sides of old unwanted sockets. Only exception was for 1.5" where I didn't have a big enough surplus socket (only good ones I wasn't going to butcher) so I made something similar out of plumbing parts.

Pete
 
Ripster said:
When I changed all mine, the smaller seacocks came off (1" and smaller) but the 2" one had to be cut with a disc cutter. All the skin fitting (after some trying / swearing and many blooded knuckles were cut off too. The ring nuts ground right through in a couple of places. They were gits to remove. Good luck with yours and hope they are nothing like I found.
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Skipper Stu proposed an alternative to the 'brute force and angle grinder' method a few years ago. It seems elegant and easy to me.

Select a hole saw just bigger than the OD of the threaded part of the fitting, i.e. the size of the hole it fits in. Bang a piece of softwood into the outside of the fitting to take the pilot drill of the hole saw. Cut through the flange of the fitting. Knock the threaded part into the boat from outside.
 
Easiest is just to use an angle grinder to remove the outer flange. With care you can do it without damaging the hull. Knock the whole fitting through from the outside. Bronze skin fittings are not expensive compared with valves.

Does not work of course with Blake type fittings.
 
oldbilbo said:
I have a handful of bronze seacocks to remove and, probably, several bronze through hull fittings, so I can check, clean and fettle them. Certainly one or more of the combinations can be turned a little bit 'by hand' and that persuades me that I need to get 'em off and peered at.

I believe I need a 'step wrench', or a sound DIY alternative.

For the DIY idea, I'm imagining a strip of 5 x ~35mm mild steel bent to 90°, the width to fit the 'ole.

Suggestions for sourcing - and any better ideas - are wanted, pleez. :)
Click to expand...
The handle of a "thumbturn" pipe wrench is normally used by plumbers as a very good alternative to a step wrench. Get the right size and you will own a cheap and versatile tool.

Daniel
 
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Blimey, half of you are advocating cutting it to pieces - and he only wants to inspect and rebed them! I like to use ring spanners as you can put a rod through the other end to get a bit more oomph - combination wrenches just don't work as well. I only butted in because when I did a couple of mine, they had screws through the flange into the hull to further prevent rotation, so I suggest you scrape off the flange to check before ripping a messy lump out of the GRP.

Rob.
 
rob2 said:
I only butted in because when I did a couple of mine, they had screws through the flange into the hull to further prevent rotation, so I suggest you scrape off the flange to check before ripping a messy lump out of the GRP.
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That check won't be fool-proof - the ones I fitted to KS's cockpit drains had a lug in the angle between the flange and the tube which fitted into a corresponding cutout filed in the edge of the hole in the hull. The fitting thus cannot turn at all - it's the nut on the inside that you undo. As it should be anyway - I assumed the need for some kind of spanner to grip the skin fitting was to stop it turning while doing up the nut, not to unscrew the fitting.

Pete
 
rob2 said:
Blimey, half of you are advocating cutting it to pieces - and he only wants to inspect and rebed them! I like to use ring spanners as you can put a rod through the other end to get a bit more oomph - combination wrenches just don't work as well. I only butted in because when I did a couple of mine, they had screws through the flange into the hull to further prevent rotation, so I suggest you scrape off the flange to check before ripping a messy lump out of the GRP.

Rob.
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Yes Rob, I agree. No need to destroy the skin fitting. I used an odd piece of wood to jam in the fitting whilst unscrewing the nut from the inside. A step thingy would be more refined tho. I found a problem was getting my stillsons (which I have now lost) around the nut on the inside as these things are not usually installed in easily accessible areas. I notice that the guys from the yard use a big box spanner.
 
oldbilbo said:
I have a handful of bronze seacocks to remove and, probably, several bronze through hull fittings, so I can check, clean and fettle them. Certainly one or more of the combinations can be turned a little bit 'by hand' and that persuades me that I need to get 'em off and peered at.

I believe I need a 'step wrench', or a sound DIY alternative.

For the DIY idea, I'm imagining a strip of 5 x ~35mm mild steel bent to 90°, the width to fit the 'ole.

Suggestions for sourcing - and any better ideas - are wanted, pleez. :)
Click to expand...

Assuming the step wrench is intended to engage with the little nodule inside the skin fitting, to hold the fitting still, I improvised that function with a toolmaker's clamp, assembled inside out so to speak.
In one case though, I've found it easiest to dremel and drill the backing nut, until it can be snapped. As the nuts are not technically in the water, brass ones are OK in my book.
 
Tranona said:
Easiest is just to use an angle grinder to remove the outer flange. With care you can do it without damaging the hull. Knock the whole fitting through from the outside. Bronze skin fittings are not expensive compared with valves.

Does not work of course with Blake type fittings.
Click to expand...
But, if I am right, with the Blakes seacocks all you heed to do is remove the bolts and the "flange" should come away from outside since it is not a part of the seacock itself ? Then just knock the seacock in from the outside as for a skin fitting.

Boo2
 
oldbilbo said:
This is all good stuff! At some point in the near future, I'll put my money where your mouth(s) is.... :D
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Bit of thread revival, but did you ever find a source of one? I'm planning on changing half a dozen seacocks next winter so getting a step wrench over the summer would be pretty handy.

Searching on the web I can find several sites that sell something like this: http://www.jamestowndistributors.com/userportal/show_product.do?pid=3676 which would suit me fine. Trouble is, they're all in the US and it is a good little earner for An Post to slap on a few customs charges and an exhorbitant handling fee on parcels coming in to Ireland from the US.

I can't find a source in the EU. Is there another name more commonly used this side of the pond?
 
I had to remove two yesterday, a cold chisel and hammer and the nuts simply turned loose with fairly gentle taps at one corner. After about three turns up the fitting my large socket (~60mm) was long enough to bring it right up the thread of the thru hull.

When removing a thru hull with a securing bolt on the anti weed grill they leave the boat easier when that also is undone !
 
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