Combination tool for use in hanging wallpaper

Claim 1

A combination tool having utility in applications where wallpaper is to be applied to a surface, comprising: a box member having a substantially hollow interior; said box member including an upstanding front panel, a back panel, left and right side walls, and a top and bottom wall; a slot formed in said top wall; a pair of fixedly mounted, closely spaced, vertically aligned plate members positioned downwardly of said slot; said plate members being spaced apart a distance slightly greater than the thickness of a knife blade so that a knife blade inserted into said slot and thereby positioned between said plate members can be broken when bent sufficiently; said hollow interior of said box member providing a receptacle for the broken off portions of blades inserted into said slot and broken; an elongate, horizontally disposed opening formed in said front panel; a blade holder positioned rearwardly of said opening, in abutting relation to an inside surface of said front panel; a plurality of blades positioned within said blade holder so that a side of an outermost blade is accessible through said opening; a bias means for urging said blades within said blade holder into abutting relation with said opening, said blade members having a size greater than the size of said opening; an exit slot formed in a side wall of said box so that a blade can be removed from said blade holder by sliding it through said exit slot upon engaging it through said opening; a false bottom formed interiorly of said box so that blades snapped off by said plate members accumulate atop said false bottom and not atop the inside surface of the bottom wall of said box; a cavity formed between said false bottom and the bottom wall of said box; said bias means being specifically configured and dimensioned to occupy said cavity.