Master ratchet with quick action dual drive

Claim 1

A wrench having a head portion and a handle portion, said head portion is integral with said handle portion, a rotatable hand grip adjacent the lower end of said handle portion, a rotatable shaft connected with said hand grip and having an upper end and a lower end and extending interiorly through said handle portion, a first bevel gear attached to said upper end of said shaft, a second bevel gear engaging said first bevel gear at all times, a shank having one end attached to said second bevel gear and its other end adapted to receive a socket member, said shank being supported by and rotatable in bearings in said head portion, said shank having rotational force applied through said first and second bevel gears by rotation of said rotatable shaft and by rotation of said handle portion, a gear wheel within said head portion, a locking member pivotably secured within a curved area within said head portion, said locking member being of semicircular outline and having spaced apart cavities and having teeth extending from its upper surface engageable with said gear wheel, a stabilizing pin having an end adapted to slidably contact said locking member, a spring biasing said end of said pin into contact with said locking member, a pivot pin fitting into said locking member in such a manner so that said locking member may rotate only when said pivot pin rotates, and a control lever external of said head portion adapted to disengage said teeth from said gear wheel; and wherein: said head portion and said handle portion are forged into an integral piece; and further comprising: a gear cover fixedly mounted to said head portion enclosing said fiRst bevel gear and said second bevel gear, said cover having an edge portion extending around said cover being flush with said head portion; said locking member has a bottom surface and a side surface with said cavities projecting therethrough, said cavities have adjacent first ends flush with said bottom surface, said cavities taper into said locking member from said first ends each having a deepest penetration into said locking member at ends opposite said first ends; said control lever is mounted to said side surface adjacent said first ends; said stabilizing pin has a rod with a ball end; said head portion has a first hole and a second hole connected longitudinally together with said rod positioned in said first hole and said spring positioned in said second hole, said rod being generally perpendicular to said rotatable shaft, said head portion has a tool hole projecting exteriorly from said second hole and arranged generally parallel to said handle portion, said head portion has a slot adjacent said tool hole with said lever being movable through said slot; and, said handle portion has a cylindrical hole with a first end adjacent said head portion and an opposite second end, said cylindrical hole extending longitudinally through said handle portion and receives said rotatable shaft, said handle portion has a first cavity into which said first end of said cylindrical hole opens said first cavity forming a first shoulder perpendicular to said shaft with said first bevel gear positioned in said first cavity against said first shoulder; said handle portion has a second cavity into which said second end of said cylindrical hole opens, said second cavity is cylindrical and is coaxial with said cylindrical hole forming a second shoulder perpendicular to said shaft, said shaft has a constant diameter from said upper end of said shaft to said lower end of said shaft and additionally comprising a plug integrally attached to said lower end of said shaft having a top end positioned against said second shoulder preventing relative axial movement between said shaft and said handle portion; said plug having a plug socket with said rotatable hand grip having a projection removably mounted in said plug socket, said plug having a bottom end flush with said lower end of said handle portion allowing rotation of said shaft and said plug with said hand grip removed without interference from or contact with an operator''s hand gripping said handle portion at said lower end of said handle portion additionally comprising: a plate fitted in said head portion with said shank and said pivot pin projecting therethrough; and, a snap ring fitting adjacent and exteriorly of said plate securing said plate to said head portion.