Hot Rod Forum banner
Status
Not open for further replies.

How to disassemble air ratchet?

36K views 20 replies 8 participants last post by  oldred 
#1 · (Edited)
Hey guys,

Can anyone provide me a quick rundown on how to disassemble an air ratchet? Specifically a Snap-On FAR72B.

I bought it used and I want to replace the muffler (S) as its bent to crap, that and perhaps re-grease the internal gears? I bought the tool used so I want to maintain what is left of it.

Btw, I got it for $20usd :)



She looked like this when new.....



Now it looks like this... but with a dent on the exhaust and some rust on the big locking nut :(

 
See less See more
3
#4 ·
The proper way to lubricate those things is with a few drops of Marvel Air Tool oil in the air hose then run it for a couple of seconds. FWIW, buying one of those things used is a cr@# shoot IMHO. They see a lot of very heavy use and generally wear out pretty quick if used day in, day out. I went through about five or six of those in the time I was making a living as a mechanic...yes some were Snap-On.

Vince
 
#6 ·
Taking it apart and cleaning it is probably a good idea since oiling will not remove much of the built up crude but beware that air tools have a lot of tiny parts such as balls, springs, pins etc, that tend to pop out unexpectedly. When this happens, and it will, these small parts tend to run off and hide in places where they will never be found, either that or they are quickly eaten by the gremlins that live in everyone's garage! The point is that some of these parts are spring loaded and others simply fall out when the housing is opened so it is extremely easy to lose parts. Be sure and look out for this and try to disassemble it in an uncluttered area where tiny parts can easily be found, just ask me how I learned this! :mad:
 
#7 ·
Lol, line inside a cardboard box. Make sure you make a note of how the vanes are installed and reassemble them the way they came apart or you may loose the seal and in turn power. there kinda like rings on a piston, they develop a wear pattern and putting them back in the wrong way does the same thing basically as putting new round cylinder rings in worn oval shaped cylinders.
 
#8 ·
lol @ oldred.. I guess I should clean up my workbench prior to taking it apart.

How did you guys end up taking it apart though? Did you put the lower section in a vise and take a big wrench to the middle nut? or somehow remove the head section first?
 
#9 ·
So I removed the ratchet head mechanism as I take it this is where the most wear and tear occurs.

Everything looks fine except for the Ratchet Head (Label "N" on above image). The teeth dont seem to be broken however a few are "eaten" for lack of a better word. Since pictures are worth a thousand words take a look at the following and let me know if its a wise idea to replace the ratchet head.

Part: Ratchet Head
P/N: FAR72B-8B
Cost: $20.00







 
#12 ·
Here are my tips on taking it apart.

1. Take it apart inside at the kithen table this way if you drop a part it may be easier to find.

2. Take it apart inside an old cake pan this will catch small loose parts.

3. Keep a strong magnet handy to hold small parts.

4. During disasembly and reassembly keep the schmatic that you posted handy it can be a big help if the mystery part wont come out.
 
#13 ·
metalmeltr said:
Here are my tips on taking it apart.3. Keep a strong magnet handy to hold small parts.


I have one of those magnetic pans from Harbor Freight and that thing is handy as an extra $10 dollar bill! You can drop small metal (steel anyway) parts along with small screws and such into this thing when disassembling something and they will stay right there even if you manage to tip it over. I have also found it to be very helpful when something has to be oriented in a certain way for reassembly or it has to go back in the same orders as disassembled, the parts can be oriented like they came out or arranged in the order they came out and they will stay that way in the pan.
 
#14 ·
I've had one of those trays for a few years.. got it on sale at my local Canadian Tire (Cdn version of Sears) for $5cdn (about $3usd)

Anyways, over this weekend I ended up sandblasting and painting black the ratchet head mechanism, Clamp nut and air inlet nut. I also sandblasted the handle and polished it on my buffing wheel. I'll post pics when im done :) It should somewhat look good as new.

On a side note, I was at my local Princess Auto (Harbour Freight equiv) and I was told to do the following after putting my ratchet together (as its re-greased, ect). Is the following true or do they not know what they are talking about?

"All Air Tools are packed in grease to prevent corrosion of internal parts during shipping and storage. We recommend cleaning away grease to obtain optimum performance from your new air tool. SprayWD-40 or similar chemical into air inlet and run tool under no load until exhaust appears clear."
 
#18 ·
We don't, at least not in the motor area.

The question with WD-40 as a lubricant (or any other oil for that matter) is if it is compatible with the plastic/resin used in the vanes. For the most part- if you don't saturate the motor for a prolonged time it really shouldn't matter, but it could lead to gumming up the cylinder and premature vane wear.

I'm sure thats why (aside from legal and profit reasons) IR only recommends its own brand of air tool oil.
 
#19 ·
WD40 really is not a lubricant so much as it is a solvent, it is in fact a poor lubricant, and regular use as an air tool lube will ruin the tool! Clean all the parts with a good solvent then lube them with air tool oil before reassembly, after that just use the air tool lube as directed by the manufacturer. Regular air tool oil is all you need unless the manufacturer specifically recommends grease on any of the parts.
 
#20 ·
WD40 is one of the worse things you can put in an air tool. After the carrier solvent has evaporated what is left behind is a yellow goo. Marvel Air Tool oil is made for air tools and is the ONLY thing I ever used on all my air tools. A few drops in the whip hose every morning before starting work and your good to go. Once a week I would liberally run some into the the air tool and let it sit over the weekend. Monday morning I would hook up the air tool and run it unloaded for several seconds to remove any residual. As noted, air ratchets never need grease in the geared sections, a complete waste of time IMHO.

Vince
 
#21 ·
302 Z28 said:
WD40 is one of the worse things you can put in an air tool. After the carrier solvent has evaporated what is left behind is a yellow goo. Marvel Air Tool oil is made for air tools and is the ONLY thing I ever used on all my air tools. A few drops in the whip hose every morning before starting work and your good to go. Once a week I would liberally run some into the the air tool and let it sit over the weekend. Monday morning I would hook up the air tool and run it unloaded for several seconds to remove any residual. As noted, air ratchets never need grease in the geared sections, a complete waste of time IMHO.

Vince


Marvel, IMO, is THE oil to use! That heavy dose once a week in addition to a few drops every day will keep the tool flushed out and clean inside and doing that more often will not hurt a thing.
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
You have insufficient privileges to reply here.
Top