Apparatus for preassembling a cable and dead anchor

Claim 1

Apparatus for pre-assembling a dead anchor into wedging engagement with one end of a post-tensioning cable, said dead anchor including a tapered shell, a reaction plate surrounding same, and a tapered jaw cluster formed of jaw segments disposed within said shell, said shell and jaw cluster each having larger ends and opposite smaller ends and with the larger end of the jaw cluster being presented toward the larger end of the shell, said jaw cluster having teeth, said apparatus comprising a front wall, a rear wall, and two side walls to provide an open frame-like structure, said front wall being formed with a slot therein for receiving said shell with said larger end thereof being presented toward said rear wall, said front wall having means cooperating with said reaction plate for retaining said shell against movement in a direction away from said rear wall, a fluid power cylinder disposed with said frame-like structure and engaging the rear wall of same, means mounting said fluid power cylinder on said rear wall, the piston of said fluid power cylinder extending toward said front wall, and an elongate tubular ram mounted on said piston having an inner diameter sufficiently large to receive the end of said cable and having an outer diameter sufficiently small as to extend into said shell at the larger diameter end thereof and engage the larger end of said jaw cluster, said tubular ram being sufficiently long as to accommodate the free end of said cable whereby actuation of said cylinder will cause said jaw cluster to be forced by the ram into wedging engagement with the inner surface of said tapered shell and the surface of said cable such that the teeth bite into the cable an amount sufficient to prevent cable movement in either direction.