Gearless Right-Angle Socket Adapter
By Benjamen Johnson
When you’re working in tight quarters, you can never have too many options — one tool you might want in your arsenal is the CalVan gearless 90-degree socket adapter. Available in both 1/4″ and 3/8″ square drives, the patented gearless drive turns smoothly while exceeding the ANSI torque specs for universal socket adapters. You can find either the 1/4″ or 3/8″ right-angle drive adapter for as low as $10.
From the supplied picture, we’re not exactly sure how the mechanism works. If you have one of these adapters, or if you have any insight into its inner workings, we’d be interested to hear about it in the comments.
Street Pricing [Google Products]
1/4″ Drive Via Amazon
3/8″ Drive Via Amazon
May 30th, 2008 at 11:41 am
I’ve never seen one of these before, but here’s my guess:
The outside does not move, just the inside. There are two inner “L”s shown in the picture. Though they look like different sizes, I imagine that they are not. The inner pieces at the ends, which spin, have holes these Ls sit in. They can freely spin in these holes and can also move in and out of them. So, as you spin one end, the inner L moves around the outer L, becoming the outer L. Again, this is all conjecture.
May 30th, 2008 at 12:41 pm
The “Two inner L’s” you see in the picture are really a reflection I believe. I have no clue, unless it is cable driven?? If so, can’t last but so long…
May 30th, 2008 at 12:50 pm
I’m guessing the outside housing and the large center shaft are stationary and the two small L’s rotate around the center to transfer the work.
May 30th, 2008 at 1:12 pm
I think there are at least six “inner L’s” (hidden behind each other), but I otherwise agree with Jason. Each of the cylinders probably looks like cylinder of a revolver (you know, the gun). In each “chamber” of the cylinder, you have the end of one “L”. As you rotate one cylinder, the L’s slide in and out of it but also rotate around. It’d be cool to watch a video.
May 30th, 2008 at 1:25 pm
Mike is correct, that is how it works.
May 30th, 2008 at 9:20 pm
This is almost the same thing, an elbow engine.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5ZRKNlY7enM
May 30th, 2008 at 11:15 pm
Anybody ever used one? The mechanical loss involved must be huge. No grunting a fastener down with this puppy.
May 31st, 2008 at 6:04 am
Guess I don’t get out much, but I don’t see a practical application for this thing. It’s shape alone makes it awkward and seems to me, would limit access, not enhance it. Yet another gimmick that’s destined to wind up at the bottom of the toolbox with the Gator Grip and Metrinch set.
May 31st, 2008 at 6:51 am
I could find sellers, but not the manufacturer’s Website. My ‘guess’ is as A1cntrler’s in that it is cable driven with the innermost “L” a tube with a cable in it. The outermost “Ls” are for support.
May 31st, 2008 at 10:39 am
[...] This Toolmonger post about a novel right-angle socket adapter led me to the interesting concept of Hobson’s Coupling, in which round rods bent to a right angle transfer torque around a ninety degree corner, because they’re all free to turn in their mounting holes on each leg of the coupling. [...]
May 31st, 2008 at 1:35 pm
My concern is the size.
If I have that much room to put that in, why won’t the head of a normal drive wrench fit?
It would be a very rarely used item.
I’ve worked on a lot of cars and made quite a few specialty tools during a job.
I can only think of one situation where is useful - if the entrance to the vertical line allows for absolutely no swing of wrench. In which case, good luck getting the bolt / nut back in place for assembly.
May 31st, 2008 at 2:57 pm
The principle for this dates back to the ancient Greeks - perhaps Archimedes.
There are 6 L-Shaped pins. The center pin serves as the axis of rotation and does not move. The 5 outer pins move in and out (they do not rotate) along 2 spiral ramps housed at each end. As you turn the drive end (and hence its ramp the motion of the pins forcer the ramp at the other end to turn.
June 6th, 2008 at 11:29 am
There are lot of ratchets that do the same thing. I brought a sidewinder about 10 years ago. You just turn the top part of the handle and it will turn the socket. I paid about 30 dollars. The next one I brought was made by stanley. You just twist the handle and it turns the socket. I paid around 19 dollars. They do come in handy when you are working on cars.