US3317205A

US3317205A - Outboard motor repair fixture

Info

Publication number: US3317205A
Application number: US357536A
Authority: US
Inventors: Robert M Kerr
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 1964-04-06
Filing date: 1964-04-06
Publication date: 1967-05-02
Anticipated expiration: 1984-05-02

Description

y 2, 1957 R. M. KERR 3,317,205

OUTBOARD MOTOR REPAIR FIXTURE Filed April 6, 1964 2 Sheets-Sheet '1 INVENTOR. Posse-r M. K522 AT ORNEYS May 2, 1967 R. M. KERR 3,317,205

OUTBOARD MOTOR REPAIR FIXTURE Filed April 6, 1964 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 K26 INVENTOR. 1 ROBERT M. K522,

ATTO E N 5Y8,

United States Patent 3,317,205 OUTBOARD MOTOR REPAIR FIXTURE Robert M. Kerr, 220 N. Main St., Winter Garden, Fla. 32787 Filed Apr. 6, 1964, Ser. No. 357,536 1 Claim. (Cl. 269-46) This invention relates to devices for repairing outboard motors, and more particularly to a fixture for holding portions of an outboard motor in readily accessible positions for repair or adjustments.

The main object of the invention is to provide a novel and improved outboard motor repair fixture which is relatively simple in construction, which is easy to install, which is adjustable through an angle of rotation of 360, and which provides a reliable and sturdy support for a portion of an outboard motor requiring repair, adjustment or modification.

A further object of the invention is to provide an improved outboard motor repair fixture which is inexpensive to fabricate, which is durable in construction, which is easy to adjust, and which safely and securely supports a portion of an outboard motor thereon in a convenient and readily accessible position so that repairs, adjustments, or modifications may be made on said portion.

A still further object of the invention is to provide an improved outboard motor repair fixture which is relatively compact in size, which is easy to install, which occupies only a small amount of space, and which is provided with means for securely holding a portion of an outboard motor in any desired orientation, so that it is easy to make repairs, adjustments, or modifications of said portion.

Further objects and advantages of the invention will become apparent from the following description and claims, and from the accompanying drawings, wherein:

FIGURE 1 is a perspective view showing the various attachments and main support unit forming a typical outboard motor repair fixture constructed in accordance with the present invention.

FIGURE 2 is a perspective view showing the main support and face plate attachment of FIGURE 1, and illustrating how the face plate attachment is employed to support the main body portion of an outboard motor in position for repair or adjustment.

FIGURE 3 is an enlarged transverse vertical cross sectional view taken substantially on the line 3-3 of FIGURE 2.

FIGURE 4 is a perspective view showing the manner in which the tail assembly supporting attachment is employed with the main supporting member of the repair fixture to hold an outboard motor tail assembly in a desired position for repair or adjustment.

FIGURE 5 is an enlarged transverse vertical cross sectional view taken substantially on the line 5-5 of FIG- URE 4.

FIGURE 6 is a vertical longitudinal cross sectional view taken substantially on the line 6-6 of FIGURE 5.

Referring to the drawings, 11 generally designates an outboard motor repair fixture constructed in accordance with the present invention. The repair fixture 11 comprises a supporting base, designated generally at 12 and which consists of a horizontal bottom plate member 13 adapted to secure to any convenient horizontal supporting surface, such as a work table or the like. Perpendicularly secured to the center portion of the bottom plate 13 is an upstanding tubular post member 14, and rigidly secured on the top end of the post member 14, as by welding or the like, is a horizontally extending sleeve member 15. As shown in FIGURE 1, the sleeve member 15 is rigidly secured substantially at its mid portion to the top end of the vertical post member 14, said sleeve member 15 extending parallel to the bottom plate 13.

Welded to the horizontal sleeve member 15 are a pair of

nuts

17, 17 which are in communication with apertures in the sleeve member 15 and which support clamping

screws

18, 18, the clamping screws being threaded through the nuts 17 and engaged through the adjacent aperture in the sleeve member 15, the inner end portions of the clamping screws extending radially into the sleeve member 15. The clamping screws 18 are provided with outwardly projecting inclined handles or arms 19 for rotating the screws. The

nuts

17, 17 are preferably located in a common transverse plane and the axes of the

screws

18, 18 are preferably separated by an angle of approximately It will be seen that the

clamping screws

18, 18 extend radially relative to the axis of the sleeve member 15 and that their

inclined handle portions

19, 19 are of substantial length so as to facilitate rotating the screws either to clamping positions or to unclamping positions, as will be presently explained.

Designated generally at 20 is a first fixture attachment comprising a substantially vertical apertured bracket plate 21 adapted to be attached to the body of an outboard motor, for example, the outboard motor body 22 shown in dotted view in FIGURE 2, by bolts 23 engaged through selected apertures 24 provided in the bracket plate 21. As shown in FIGURE 1, the apertures 24 are distributed over the area of the bracket plate in a manner such that at least some of the apertures 23 will be aligned with tapped openings in an outboard motor main body 22 to allow the main body to be detachably secured to the bracket plate by bolts 23.

Rigidly secured to the center portion of the bracket plate 21 and projecting perpendicularly therefrom is a tubular shaft 24 adapted to telescopically fit inside the sleeve member 15, and therefore having an outside diameter slightly smaller than the inside diameter of said sleeve member. The tubular shaft member 24 is of sufiicient length so that it will be receivable in the sleeve member 15 and can be clampingly engaged by the

clamping bolts

18, 18 when they are tightened to hold the bracket plate 21 in any desired position of angular orientation. This enables the outboard motor body 22, clamped to the bracket plate, to be supported in any desired position of angular orientation, as required for making the necessary repairs or adjustments thereon.

In using the attachment 20, the bracket plate 21 is secured to the body 22 of the outboard motor in the manner above described, namely, by engaging bolts 23 through selected apertures 24 so as to engage in tapped openings in the outboard motor body 22, whereby the body can be clampingly secured to the bracket plate 21. The shaft 24 is then engaged into the sleeve 15 and the attachment 20 is then clamped in a desired position of angular orientation, as required to make the necessary repair or adjustment on the outboard motor body 22, employing the

clamping screws

18, 18 in the manner above described.

Designated at 25 is another attachment for use with the main supporting member 12, for the purpose of supporting the tail assembly of an outboard motor in position for repair or adjustment. The attachment 25 com.- prises a longitudinally slotted horizontal support bed consisting of a pair of

opposed angle bars

26, 26 rigidly .connected at one end by a transversely extending vertical cross plate 27, whereby to define a generally U-shaped structure wherein the top flanges of the angle bars 26 are in the same plane and wherein the vertical flanges of said angle bars are in vertical parallel planes in the horizontal position of the bed 25, illustrated in FIGURE 1. The inner opposing longitudinal edges of the top flanges of the

angle bars

26, 26 are spaced apart sufliciently to define a longitudinal slot 28 of sufiicient width to receive the substantially vertical portion 29 of an outboard motor tail assembly in the manner illustrated in FIGURE 4, from which it will be seen that the horizontal fin portion 30 of the tail assembly can be supported on the horizontal flanges of the

angle bars

26, 26.

Opposing angle brackets

31, 31 are welded to the

angle bars

26, 26, the vertical legs of the brackets 31 being welded to the vertical flanges of the angle bars and the horizontal arms of the angle brackets extending inwardly toward each other, substantially in the same transverse plane, and being spaced above the horizontal flanges of the angle bars 26 sufiiciently to receive the outboard motor fin 30 between the horizontal arms of angle brackets 31 and the top flanges of angle bars 26 in the manner illustrated in FIGURE 4. The inner end portions of the horizontal arms of angle brackets 31 are apertured and have nuts 32 welded thereon in registry with the apertures to receive vertical clamping bolts 33, the clamping bolts being engageable on longitudinally extending rectangular rigid pad elements 34 which are inserted beneath the horizontal arms of the angle brackets in the manner illustrated in FIGURE 4. Said pads 34 are provided on their bottom surfaces with suitable yieldable linings 35, which may be of rubber or other resilient deformable material, said linings preventing damage to the subjacent surface of the outboard motor fin 30 engaged thereby.

Similar linings

37, 37 are provided on the top surfaces of the hori zontal flanges of

angle bars

26, 26.

Rigidly secured to the intermediate portion of the vertical cross plate 27 and projecting perpendicularly therefrom is a tubular shaft member 24', similar to the tubular shaft member 24 employed with the bracket plate 21, and previously described. The shaft 24 is telescopically receivable in the sleeve and may be clamped therein by the

screws

18, 18.

In using the attachment 25, the fin 30 of the tail assembly 29 is engaged on horizontal flanges of

angle bars

26, 26, with the vertical portion of the tail assembly received in the slot 28, the fin being then clamped in the slot 28 by means of the

pads

34, 34 and the

clamping screws

33, 33 engaged on the top surfaces of the pads, in the manner illustrated in FIGURES 4 and 5. The clamping bolts 33 are provided with square top ends 37, engageable by a conventional wrench or similar implement for rotating the screws. With the

screws

33, 33 tightened, the tail assembly 29 is firmly secured in the fixture attachment 25, so that the shaft portion 24 may then be inserted in the sleeve 15 and locked in any desired rotated position therein by means of the

clamping screws

18, 18. Thus, the tail assembly 29 may be supported in any desired position of angular orientation required to perform the necessary repairs or adjustments thereon. The tail assembly 29 may be easily removed whenever desired, by loosening the

clamping screws

33, 33, allowing the tail assembly to be disengaged from the attachment, since the clamping pressure on the fin 30 is released.

While a specific embodiment of an improved outboard motor repair fixture and typical attachment therefor have been disclosed in the foregoing description, it will be understood that various modifications within the spirit of the invention may occur to those skilled in the art. Therefore, it is intended that no limitations be placed on the invention except as defined by the scope of the appended claim.

What is claimed is:

The combination, with the work table having an upper surface, of an outboard motor repair fixture, for use with the tail portion of an outboard motor having horizontal fin elements, the outboard motor repair fixture comprisa supporting base secured to the upper surfaceand having a top side;

an upstanding post fixed to the base and extending vertically from the top side thereof;

a substantially horizontal arranged, tubular sleeve member, having an inner end and an open outer end, secured substantially medially of said ends to the upstanding post;

an elongated, substantially tubular supporting projection telescopically fitted within the tubular sleeve and of a length to extend substantially from end to end thereof and including a portion extended outwardly of the open outer end of the sleeve member;

the sleeve having a pair of radially spaced openings formed therein adjacent its inner end;

a connection element fixed to the sleeve and having a threaded opening therein arranged about each of the sleeve openings, said threaded openings being aligned with the sleeve openings;

a clamping screw threadedly engaged at each of said threaded openings and extended through the sleeve openings into the sleeve to releasa-biy lock against the supporting projection;

The clamping screws having handle means thereon to facilitate turning whereby the projection is secured in any desired orientation with respect to the sleeve;

a support bracket adapted to be detachably fastened to a portion of an outboard motor whereby the motor is positioned in repair position with respect to the work table, the support bracket being connected to the supporting projection at its portion outwardly of the open end of the sleeve remote from said connection elements;

the support bracket including a substantially vertical cross plate fixed to said portion of the supporting projection;

opposed angle bars rigidly connected to the. vertical cross plate and extending outwardly therefrom at spaced locations to define a U-shaped structure with a longitudinal slot therein;

the angle bars including top flanges;

substantially L-shaped angle brackets secured to the angle bars, the brackets including horizontal arms extending inwardly towards each other and spaced above the horizontal flanges of the angle bars;

lining means on the horizontal flanges;

pad elements adapted to overlie portions of the horizontal flanges; and

the horizontal fin element of the outboard motor being clamped between the flanges and the pads, and changeable fastener means extending through the angle brackets to releasably clamp the horizontal tail element between the pads and the horizontal flanges.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,216,552 2/1917 Dodge 269296 1,274,074 7/1918 OBrien 26978 1,398,096 11/1921 Frair 26976 1,495,894 5/1924 Du Bois 26976 1,614,697 1/1927 Snook 26976 2,188,433 1/1940 Friese 269296 2,973,198 2/1961 Marks 26968,

HAROLD D. WHITEHEAD, Primary Examiner,