US3083004A - Cylinder head supporting fixtures - Google Patents

Description

March 26, 1963 J. 'r. CLARK CYLINDER HEAD SUPPORTING FIXTURES Filed Sept. 21, 1961 FIG. 2

v INVENTOR. JAMES I T. CL'A'RK EEK FIG. 6

ATTORNEY United States Patent ()fiice Patented Mar. 26, 1963 3,083,004 CYLINDER HEAD SUPPORTING FIXTURES James T. Clark, Fort Morgan, Col0., assiguor to Clark- Feather Manufacturing (30., Fort Morgan, (1010., a corporation of Colorado Filed Sept. 21, 1961, Ser. No. 139,736 1 Claim. (Cl. 269-51) This invention relates to a shop fixture supporting the cylinder head of an automotive engine in convenient positions to be worked upon by the shop mechanic.

Cylinder heads are heavy, bulky and of inconvenient shapes and are exceedingly difficult to handle on a conventional work bench. For instance, when removing and replacing the valves in the head, the latter must be turned on edge and propped up so that a conventional spring compressor can be placed against the spring on top of the head and the valve on the bottom of the head. It is difficult to maintain the head in position during the spring compressing operation. After removal of the valves the head must be completely inverted for inspection and grinding of the valve seats and then turned upright for inspecting the valve stem sleeves spark plug removal and other shop operations. All of this requires continual lifting, turning and propping of the head.

The principal object of this invention is to provide a simple easily used and highly efiicient bench fixture consisting of two simple parts, a bench portion which is permanently attached to the work bench and a head portion arranged for quick temporary attachment to a cylinder head, which, when the two parts are assembled together, will rigidly support the cylinder head in convenient working position in front of the bench.

A further object is to provide a cylinder head supporting fixture as above described which will enable the position of the head to be quickly changed to any desired one of a plurality of positions without requiring lifting of the head and without the use of tools and which will rigidly support the head in any of the selected positions.

Other objects and advantages reside in the detail construction of the invention, which is designed for simplicity, economy, and efliciency. These will become more apparent from the following description.

In the following detailed description of the invention, reference is had to the accompanying drawing which forms a part hereof. Like numerals refer to like parts in all views of the drawing and throughout the description.

In the drawing:

FIG. 1 is a top view of the improved cylinder head supporting fixture in place on a typical work bench supporting a conventional engine cylinder head in an inverted position;

FIG. 2 is an enlarged detail top view of the assembled fixture;

FIG. 3 is a side elevational view of the bench portion of the fixture;

FIG. 4 is a side elevational view of the head portion of the fixture;

FIG. 5' is a cross-section through the head portion, taken on the line 5-5, FIG. 3; and

FIG. 6 is a similar cross-section through the head portion, taken on the line 66, FIG. 4.

In FIG. 1 a typical 4 cylinder head is indicated at 12 with its valves at 13, spark plugs at 14, and cap screw openings at 15, and a portion of the top of a conventional work bench is indicated at 16. This invention is designed to adjustably support the head 12 from the bench 16.

The bench portion of the improved fixture comprises a base plate 17 and a tubular bearing sleeve 18. The base plate is preferably rectangular and of greater length than width and is provided with suitable bolt holes 19 for receiving suitable bolts 26 by means of which the base plate may be rigidly attached to the top of the work bench 16.

The bearing sleeve 18 compresses a steel tube substantially corresponding to the base plate in length and is welded to or otherwise permanently aflixed along the longitudinal center line of the top of the base plate 17. The rear extremity of the bearing sleeve is swedged to form a hexagonal rear terminal portion as shown at 21.

The head portion of the fixture comprises a hexagonal shaft 22 consisting of a length of hexagonal steel bar stock having a somewhat rounded rear extremity 23 and provided with a stopflange 24 welded circumferentially adjacent its forward extremity. The length of the hexagonal shaft from the flange to the rear extremity corresponds to the length of the bearing sleeve 18. Thus, it can be seen that when the hexagonal shaft is fully inserted in the bearing sleeve, its rear extremity will enter the hexagonal terminal portion 21 of the sleeve to prevent rotation of the shaft and if the shaft be drawn forwardly a distance equal to the width of the terminal portion it can be freely rotated in the sleeve.

A cap screw 25 is threaded into one of the flat sides of the hexagonal shaft forwardly of the flange 24 by means of which the rear extremities of two elongated bracket arms 26 and 27 are adjustably clamped to the forward extremity of the hexagonal shaft.

The arm 26 is an elongated flat bar provided at the outer extremity with an elongated bolt slot 28 in which a head clamp bolt 29 is suspended. The arm 27 is similar to the arm 26 in that it also is provided with an elongated bolt slot 36 to receive a second head clamp bolt 31. The arm 27, however, is vertically offset, as shown at 32, so that, although its inner extremity overlaps the arm 26, its outer extremity will be in the same plane as the outer extremity of the arm 26.

In use, the bolts 29 and 31 are slipped through two of the cap screw holes 15 in the head at one extremity of the latter and are adjusted along the slotted bolt holes 28 and 30 to position the shaft substantially in alignment with the center line of the head. The bolts 29 and 31 and the cap screw 25 are securely tightened and the shaft 22 is inserted in the sleeve 18 so that the cylinder head will be cantileverally supported from the base plate 17.

The only time the head need be lifted is when the shaft 22 is initially installed in the sleeve 18. From then on, the head can be rotated to six different positions by simply drawing it forwardly to release the hexagonal shaft from the hexagonal portion 21 and rotating it to the desired position.

While a specific form of the improvement has been described and illustrated herein, it is to be understood that the same may be varied within the scope of the appended claim, without departing from the spirit of the invention.

Having thus described the invention, what is claimed and desired to be secured by Letters Patent is:

A cylinder head supporting fixture comprising: a base plate; means for securing said base plate to a supporting surface; a horizontal bearing tube rigidly in said base 3,083,004 3 4 plate; an indented hexagonal rear extremityon said beartudinally movable along said bracket arms for attaching ing tube; a hexagonal shaft in said bearing tube, the rear the latter to a cylinder head. extremity of said shaft engaging the hexagonal rear ex-t tremity in said bearing tube; a flange formed on said References Cited in the file of this Patent shaft adjacent its forward extremity; a cap screw threaded 5 UNITED STATES PATENTS into one of the. fiat sides of the hexagonal shaft forwardly 243,262 Howie June 21, 1881 of said flange; two bracket arms pivotally mounted at 1,274,074 Obrien July 1919 their rear extremities on said cap screw so as to swing in 2 5 3 50 Montague Sept 13 5 the plane of said flat side; and attachment means lon gi- 2,707,819 Silliman May 10, 1955

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