Miniature electric soldering iron

Claim 2

A thermal tool comprising a pencil grip handle, a power lead entrance at the rear of said handle and a handle and a resistance heated tip member disposed at the front end of said handle, said tip member further comprising a hairpin loop with leg end portions of the loop extending rearwardly inside said handle into an electrical connection with said power leads and a front looped end formed as a thinned down blade flat, the electrical connection between said tip member and said power leads further comprising a spring-biased connector means inside said pencil grip handle movable axially relative to said pencil grip, with said leg end portions securing to the connector means, said connector means and tip member being biased forward whereby pressure exerted against the front end of said tip member causes resilient rearward movement of said tip member and connector means against the spring bias thereof.

Claim 3

A thermal tool as in claim 1 wherein said connector means includes a friction grip member for holding said tip member therein, permitting thereby quick release replacement of said tip member.

Claim 4

A thermal tool comprising a pencil grip handle, a power lead entrance at the rear of said handle, and heating tip member means disposed at the front end of said handle, said pencil grip further comprising a hollow handle with power leads extending therein to form the rear end thereof and the tip member means extending thereinto from the front end thereof, a connector housing fixedly secured in the front end of said handle, and a spring-biased electrical connector means mounted in said connector housing at the terminus of said power leads and to which the tip member means is electrically secured, said connector means directly electrically connecting said power leads to the tip member means, said connector means and tip member being movable axially relative to the handle and being biased forward by the spring bias of the connector means, whereby pressure exerted against the front end of said heating tip member causes resilient rearward movement of said tip member and connector means against the spring bias thereof.

Claim 5

A thermal tool comprising a pencil grip handle, a power lead entrance at the rear of said handle, and heating tip member means disposed at the front end of said handle, said pencil grip further comprising a hollow handle with power leads extending therein to form the rear end thereof and the tip member means extending thereinto from the front end thereof, a connector housing fixedly secured in the front end of said handle, and a spring-biased electrical connector means mounted in said connector housing at the terminus of said power leads and to which the tip member means is electrically secured, said connector means directly electrically connecting said power leads to the tip member means, said connector means and tip member being movable axially relative to the handle and being biased forward by the spring bias of the connector means, whereby pressure exerted against the front end of said heating tip member causes resilient rearward movement of said tip member and connector means against the spring bias thereof.

Claim 6

A thermal tool as in claim 3 wherein the electrical connector means further comprises a pair of connector pins extending longitudinally of the hollow handle joined at their rear to the power leads and having at their front end a quick release grip member adapted to grip said tip member means.

Claim 7

A thermal tool as in claim 4, wherein said connector housing has an apertured base portion thereon, said connector pins slidably passing through the apertures on the base portion and wherein a control block is fixed to said connector pins at a location thereon adjacent the rear side of the apertured base portion of said connector housing, said block being movable relative to said connector housing and handle, whereby pressure applied against said tip member means causes the tip member means, connector pins and control block to move rearward relative to said handle as a unitary whole, the block normally bearing against the base portion acting thereby as a forward stop.

Claim 8

A thermal tool as in claim 5 wherein the apertures in the base portion of the connector housing open into wells in the housing and wherein a coil spring is seated in each said well annularly around the connector pin passing through said aperture, said coil spring bearing against the housing and said grip member biasing the connector pin in a forward direction.

Claim 9

A thermal tool as in claim 3 wherein said tip member means further comprises a hairpin loop with the leg end portions of the loop extending rearwardly into said electricaL connector means and with a front looped end formed as a blade flat, the blade flat being disposed at an angle relative to the plane of said hairpin loop tip member as a whole.

Claim 10

A thermal tool as in claim 3 wherein the electrical connector means further comprises a pair of connector pins extending longitudinally of the hollow handle joined at their rear to the power leads and having at their front end a quick release grip member adapted to grip said tip member means and wherein said connector housing has an apertured base portion thereon, said connector pins slidably passing through the apertures on the base portion and wherein a control block element is fixed to each of said connector pins at a location thereon adjacent the rear side of the apertured base portion of said connector housing, said block being movable relative to said connector housing and handle each control block serving to limit forward movement of its pin, whereby pressure applied against said tip member means causes the tip member means connector pins and each control block to move relative to said handle.

Claim 11

A thermal tool as in claim 8 wherein a single control block has both connector pins fixed thereto whereby the tip member means, connector pins and control block constitute a unitary assembly movable relative to said handle.