How To Repair Stanley Tape Measure

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I was trying to measure how long a piece of PVC piping was with my EDC Milwaukee keychain record measure, and I pulled the tape out as well far. I pulled the record so far and then hard that I bankrupt the spring tab that attaches the blade to the internal machinery.

I wasn't immediately aware that something was wrong until I heard the telltale sound of the spring unwinding inside the tape measure case.

Stuart'south Note: I've had that happen in a drill press bound curlicue earlier. Information technology's a very dejecting sound enough to pause one'southward spirits!

Unfortunately, I can't find a replacement Milwaukee keychain record locally and I didn't want to look for one to send. I was really bummed, not but because I broke i of my favorite tapes, but because I was having a bad mean solar day.

So if I couldn't replace it that twenty-four hour period, I was going to endeavour to gear up the tape — I needed a win to plow the day around no thing how small and how futile the win was. At the very to the lowest degree I was going to get to take something apart which always cheers me up a petty.

I examined the blade, and it looked like it was undamaged. I then removed the 5 screws that hold the case together and opened the tape mensurate. I noticed right away that in that location was a cleaved slice of spring steel that is supposed to hold the tape.

To make the tape piece of work again, I needed to create a new tab to hold the tape in place. At first I tried to cut the leap with a pair of side cutters and constitute that it simply dented the spring. I knew that trying to cut the cloth with a saw wasn't going to work without completely supporting information technology.

I sandwiched the jump steel betwixt ii pieces of woods, and made two shallow cuts on ane side with a fine tooth hacksaw blade. So I flipped the jump over and made two more cuts.

When I was washed with the cuts, I bent the tabs until they bankrupt off. The result? A new blade retention tab. The blade retention spring is now shorter and has some jagged edges, so it probably won't be equally robust as is was earlier, simply information technology'll work for at present.

Once I hooked the bract back on the the bound tab, I wrapped the blade tightly around the spool. Past this point I don't have whatsoever pictures, because you need three or 4 hands to hold everything in place with the spring wound, only I tin can still depict the process.

Looking at the photo higher up, the inner coil bound on the reel fits into the slot of the divide center shaft integrated into i side of the example. Y'all tin can also see how the inner spring is bent over to preclude it from slipping through the split up shaft.

Just putting the reel in place with the spring through the shaft doesn't provide enough recoil to become the tape back into the case when you pull it out. You'll need to wind upward the spring very tightly. By trial and mistake, I used pliers to wind the spring up tighter and tighter to become the correct amount of recoil.

I found out that I had to wind the bound at least two more rotations than I thought was physically possible, and so slip the spring end into the split shaft without the bound exploding outwards.

I still don't think I got it tight enough, as the tape nevertheless doesn't have the same snap it used to. In one case yous get the spring on the shaft, y'all slip the spring cover over the reel and supersede the other side of the case, all while making sure zip unwinds and the lock is in the right location.

Once the other side of the example is on, it'south easy to replace and tighten all the screws.

Observations

My beginning observation is that it's much easier just to not break the record in the first identify. Don't pull the blade out past the multilingual "caution" and "end" markings.

Speaking of the finish of the record, this tape was built so you can supersede the bract, just when was the terminal time y'all saw a replacement blade for sale? I doubtfulness we'll see one for a keychain-sized tape measure that retails for $4 or so, but what about for 25′ tapes and other popular sizes?

Sure, I can detect some replacement tapes online after some deep searching, just I swear I remember seeing them in brick and mortar stores. When I was a child, I recollect my dad replacing the blade in one of his old tape measures.

Accept record measures simply go another disposable item, or are they so specialized that it's non worth it?

Stuart'southward Note: Could it be because some tapes are designed to exist cheap and most disposable, and more premium models are designed to suffer much more abuse?

I was very surprised at how thin the tape lock was. It doesn't seem like it'south thick plenty to stand the abuse, but somehow it works.

Finally, I'd like to posit that you never really own something until you lot fix it or modify it. Of form I mean that more in the metaphorical sense. Personally, I usually become more attached to things that I have more intimate knowledge of, and one good style to get that knowledge is to break information technology.

Buy Now(via Hd, or not, every bit it keeps going between in-stock and unavailable)

Prophylactic Annotation: When working with springs and things that can fly up at your face, wear safety glasses. Ben's showing y'all how he fixed his tape measure. How you utilize his guidance is at your own risk. Also, non all record measures might exist fixable.

Source: https://toolguyd.com/overextended-broken-milwaukee-tape-measure-how-to-fix-it/

Posted by: baldwinaunity.blogspot.com

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