I want to tighten a chrome plated hexagonal nut on a central heating radiator
valve without marking it in anyway.
(Part of a so called designer fitting.)

Any suggestions as to the best ways of doing this? I was considering getting a
spanner of the right size and if possible using some thin paper between the
spanner and the fitting.


--

Michael Chare

Mike,
try a fabric or leather strap wrench like you'd use on an oil
filter on a car.

Chris

Mike,
try a fabric or leather strap wrench like you'd use on an oil
filter on a car.

Chris

In article ,
says...
I want to tighten a chrome plated hexagonal nut on a central heating radiator
valve without marking it in anyway.
(Part of a so called designer fitting.)

Any suggestions as to the best ways of doing this? I was considering getting a
spanner of the right size and if possible using some thin paper between the
spanner and the fitting.

Use a spanner a millimetre oversize and wrap a bit of Fairy Liquid
bottle around the nut. Or wrap a bit of old leather belt around the nut
and use Mole grips or a Stilson wrench.

"Michael Chare" wrote in message
...
I want to tighten a chrome plated hexagonal nut on a central heating
radiator
valve without marking it in anyway.
(Part of a so called designer fitting.)

Any suggestions as to the best ways of doing this? I was considering
getting a
spanner of the right size and if possible using some thin paper between
the
spanner and the fitting.


--

Michael Chare



Surely a ring spanner of the right size will not mark the nut under normal
amounts of torque? The force will be distributed more evenly than with an
open ended spanner or wrench-plus-material-between-jaws.

"rrh" wrote in message
.uk...
"Michael Chare" wrote in message
...
I want to tighten a chrome plated hexagonal nut on a central heating
radiator
valve without marking it in anyway.
(Part of a so called designer fitting.)

Any suggestions as to the best ways of doing this? I was considering
getting a
spanner of the right size and if possible using some thin paper between
the
spanner and the fitting.


--

Michael Chare




Surely a ring spanner of the right size will not mark the nut under normal
amounts of torque? The force will be distributed more evenly than with an
open ended spanner or wrench-plus-material-between-jaws.

Heck of a job to get a ring spanner off a pipe fitting once all is
connected!

Michael Chare wrote:
I want to tighten a chrome plated hexagonal nut on a central heating radiator
valve without marking it in anyway.
(Part of a so called designer fitting.)

Any suggestions as to the best ways of doing this? I was considering getting a
spanner of the right size and if possible using some thin paper between the
spanner and the fitting.

What nut is it? If it's the one that goes between the valve and
the rad., then just get a well-filling spanner with smooth jaws
that fits well (even a good adjustable!), and make sure that it
really *does* fit well (your adjustable is adjusted properly,
you could even take it apart and polish the jaws!), and that
the inside of the fitting is *clean*, and that the thread is
lightly lubricated with vaseline, and that the "cone" of the
"cup and cone" of the joint is clean, blemish-free, and has a
bit of vaseline lovingly wiped onto it, and that the joint lines
up properly, and just do the thing up finger-tight, and nip it
up with your glittering adjustable. These things should *not*
need swinging on, just a nip is OK. Remember - "You cannot make
a watertight joint *more* watertight".

Apols., I forgot to mention:

You have had recommendations to use a soft packing
piece between the nut and jaws of the doing-up thing.
This is *not* on, as the soft thing *will* go through,
then the loading upon the very point of the nut will
be *greatly* increased, and the chrome will be shgged.

rrh wrote:
"Michael Chare" wrote...
I want to tighten a chrome plated hexagonal nut on a central heating
radiator valve without marking it in anyway.

Surely a ring spanner of the right size will not mark the nut under normal
amounts of torque?

It's all right if you can get it on, but afterwards you might not
be able to have it off.

Michael Chare wrote:
I want to tighten a chrome plated hexagonal nut on a central heating
radiator valve without marking it in anyway.
(Part of a so called designer fitting.)

Any suggestions as to the best ways of doing this? I was considering
getting a spanner of the right size and if possible using some thin
paper between the spanner and the fitting.

Oversized open ended spanner with two small pieces of plywood in the jaws.

Why do you not want to mark it?

"ben" wrote in message
. uk...
Michael Chare wrote:
I want to tighten a chrome plated hexagonal nut on a central heating
radiator valve without marking it in anyway.
(Part of a so called designer fitting.)

Any suggestions as to the best ways of doing this? I was considering
getting a spanner of the right size and if possible using some thin
paper between the spanner and the fitting.

Oversized open ended spanner with two small pieces of plywood in the jaws.

Why do you not want to mark it?

Because it's a "*chrome plated* hexagonal nut", I assume on show?

"Chris Bacon" wrote in message
...
rrh wrote:
"Michael Chare" wrote...
I want to tighten a chrome plated hexagonal nut on a central
heating
radiator valve without marking it in anyway.

Surely a ring spanner of the right size will not mark the nut
under normal
amounts of torque?

It's all right if you can get it on, but afterwards you might not
be able to have it off.
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

ROFLO!!!!!!

On Thu, 22 Sep 2005 21:35:22 +0100, Chris Bacon wrote:

rrh wrote:
"Michael Chare" wrote...
I want to tighten a chrome plated hexagonal nut on a central heating
radiator valve without marking it in anyway.

Surely a ring spanner of the right size will not mark the nut under normal
amounts of torque?

It's all right if you can get it on, but afterwards you might not
be able to have it off.

Won't matter if he buys enough ring spanners.

In message , john
writes

"rrh" wrote in message
o.uk...
"Michael Chare" wrote in message
...
I want to tighten a chrome plated hexagonal nut on a central heating
radiator
valve without marking it in anyway.
(Part of a so called designer fitting.)

Any suggestions as to the best ways of doing this? I was considering
getting a
spanner of the right size and if possible using some thin paper between
the
spanner and the fitting.


--

Michael Chare




Surely a ring spanner of the right size will not mark the nut under normal
amounts of torque? The force will be distributed more evenly than with an
open ended spanner or wrench-plus-material-between-jaws.

Heck of a job to get a ring spanner off a pipe fitting once all is
connected!

Better to leave it there as part of the designer fitting

plus you know where to find it when the thing leaks

--
geoff

ben wrote:
Michael Chare wrote:

I want to tighten a chrome plated hexagonal nut on a central heating
radiator valve without marking it in anyway.
(Part of a so called designer fitting.)

Oversized open ended spanner with two small pieces of plywood in the jaws.


wood slips have always worked well for me. But if the wood begins to
break through, stop, release pressure, or it'll mark. Obvious nuff
really. Hardboard generaly works, ditto formica, thin ply can split.


NT

raden wrote:

Better to leave it there as part of the designer fitting

May I suggest Snap-On or Auto-Pro as designer spanners which would
complement the designer fittings.

My other choice would be Facom for a more Europen styling.

Britool for a traditional "english" style

Draper or stanley or anyother market stall brand for your typical
wickes/B&Q (Thatcherised)council house.

--
http://gymratz.co.uk - Best Gym Equipment & Bodybuilding Supplements UK.
http://trade-price-supplements.co.uk - TRADE PRICED SUPPLEMENTS for ALL!
http://fitness-equipment-uk.com - UK's No.1 Fitness Equipment Suppliers.
http://gymratz.co.uk/hot-seat.htm - Live web-cam! (sometimes)

Suz wrote:

Because it's a "*chrome plated* hexagonal nut", I assume on show?

All these crazy ideas.
If the spanner is the correct size and of suitable quality and the nut
is not done up by a ham-fisted gorilla it will not be marked anyway.

It's not like it's made of wax or anything.


--
http://gymratz.co.uk - Best Gym Equipment & Bodybuilding Supplements UK.
http://trade-price-supplements.co.uk - TRADE PRICED SUPPLEMENTS for ALL!
http://fitness-equipment-uk.com - UK's No.1 Fitness Equipment Suppliers.
http://gymratz.co.uk/hot-seat.htm - Live web-cam! (sometimes)

On Thu, 22 Sep 2005 20:41:01 +0100, Rob Morley
wrote:

In article ,
says...
I want to tighten a chrome plated hexagonal nut on a central heating radiator
valve without marking it in anyway.
(Part of a so called designer fitting.)

Any suggestions as to the best ways of doing this? I was considering getting a
spanner of the right size and if possible using some thin paper between the
spanner and the fitting.

Use a spanner a millimetre oversize and wrap a bit of Fairy Liquid
bottle around the nut. Or wrap a bit of old leather belt around the nut
and use Mole grips or a Stilson wrench.

In my expereince the fastest way to mark a nut is using mole grips

I'd go with your orignal idea.

Rick

Pet @ www.gymratz.co.uk ;¬) wrote:
Suz wrote:

Because it's a "*chrome plated* hexagonal nut", I assume on show?

All these crazy ideas.
If the spanner is the correct size and of suitable quality and the nut
is not done up by a ham-fisted gorilla it will not be marked anyway.

It's not like it's made of wax or anything.

have to disagree, it /is/ made of /something/

In article ,
rrh wrote:
Surely a ring spanner of the right size will not mark the nut under
normal amounts of torque? The force will be distributed more evenly
than with an open ended spanner or wrench-plus-material-between-jaws.

Difficult to use a ring spanner where pipes are involved...

--
*Nothing is foolproof to a sufficiently talented fool.

Dave Plowman London SW
To e-mail, change noise into sound.

In article ,
Michael Chare wrote:
I want to tighten a chrome plated hexagonal nut on a central heating
radiator valve without marking it in anyway. (Part of a so called
designer fitting.)

Use a good quality tight fitting spanner whose jaws are as wide as the nut
to spread the load.

Any suggestions as to the best ways of doing this? I was considering
getting a spanner of the right size and if possible using some thin
paper between the spanner and the fitting.

Trouble is any soft material is likely to allow the spanner to rotate and
damage the edges of the nut.

You could try one of those rubber strap wrenches, but I'm not sure it
could provide enough torque.

--
*Keep honking...I'm reloading.

Dave Plowman London SW
To e-mail, change noise into sound.

In article .com,
wrote:
wood slips have always worked well for me. But if the wood begins to
break through, stop, release pressure, or it'll mark. Obvious nuff
really. Hardboard generaly works, ditto formica, thin ply can split.

I'd go for aluminium. That's the traditional materiel for soft jaw vices.

--
*Why is the man who invests all your money called a broker?

Dave Plowman London SW
To e-mail, change noise into sound.

In article , news@pen-y-
geulan.com says...
On Thu, 22 Sep 2005 20:41:01 +0100, Rob Morley
wrote:

In article ,
says...
I want to tighten a chrome plated hexagonal nut on a central heating radiator
valve without marking it in anyway.
(Part of a so called designer fitting.)

Any suggestions as to the best ways of doing this? I was considering getting a
spanner of the right size and if possible using some thin paper between the
spanner and the fitting.

Use a spanner a millimetre oversize and wrap a bit of Fairy Liquid
bottle around the nut. Or wrap a bit of old leather belt around the nut
and use Mole grips or a Stilson wrench.

In my expereince the fastest way to mark a nut is using mole grips

Mine too - but not if you use it as I said :-)

Michael Chare wrote:
I want to tighten a chrome plated hexagonal nut on a central heating radiator
valve without marking it in anyway.
(Part of a so called designer fitting.)

Any suggestions as to the best ways of doing this? I was considering getting a
spanner of the right size and if possible using some thin paper between the
spanner and the fitting.


--

Michael Chare

Wrap some electrical insulating tape around the spanner. I have used
this method with a good success rate on all my rads.

HTH

Cheers

Richard

On Fri, 23 Sep 2005 08:06:52 GMT,
=?ISO-8859-1?Q?=22Pet_=40_www=2Egymratz=2Eco=2Euk_=3B=AC=29=2 2?=
wrote:

Suz wrote:

Because it's a "*chrome plated* hexagonal nut", I assume on show?

All these crazy ideas.
If the spanner is the correct size and of suitable quality and the nut
is not done up by a ham-fisted gorilla it will not be marked anyway.

It's not like it's made of wax or anything.

But knowing "designer" fittings it will probably be chrome plated
monkey metal and hence, easily marked..

sponix

"s--p--o--n--i--x" wrote in message
...


But knowing "designer" fittings it will probably be chrome plated
monkey metal and hence, easily marked..

Monkey metal.

Haven't heardthat for ages!

Ah, nostalgia isn't what it used to be ...

Mary

sponix

Michael Chare wrote:
I want to tighten a chrome plated hexagonal nut on a central heating radiator
valve without marking it in anyway.
(Part of a so called designer fitting.)

Any suggestions as to the best ways of doing this? I was considering getting a
spanner of the right size and if possible using some thin paper between the
spanner and the fitting.


--

Michael Chare

I've always used a cotton cloth with an adjustable pipe spanner without
problems.

"Dave Plowman (News)" wrote:

In article ,
rrh wrote:
Surely a ring spanner of the right size will not mark the nut under
normal amounts of torque? The force will be distributed more evenly
than with an open ended spanner or wrench-plus-material-between-jaws.

Difficult to use a ring spanner where pipes are involved...

Not if you use ones that can be unlatched - aircon specialists use
them a lot.


--

john wrote:

Heck of a job to get a ring spanner off a pipe fitting once all is
connected!

Or did he mean a crow foot spanner?
A ring spanner with a gap to get it off the pipe, for them as never seen
one :-)

Dave

On Thu, 22 Sep 2005 20:26:07 +0100, "Michael Chare"
wrote:

I want to tighten a chrome plated hexagonal nut on a central heating radiator
valve without marking it in anyway.
(Part of a so called designer fitting.)

Any suggestions as to the best ways of doing this? I was considering getting a
spanner of the right size and if possible using some thin paper between the
spanner and the fitting.

Ask the missus - I'm sure she'll be an expert at tightening nuts
without marking them

(:-)

Graham

Chris Bacon wrote:
Apols., I forgot to mention:

You have had recommendations to use a soft packing
piece between the nut and jaws of the doing-up thing.
This is *not* on, as the soft thing *will* go through,
then the loading upon the very point of the nut will
be *greatly* increased, and the chrome will be shgged.

I see your point, ut have to disagree - I've had success using an
adjustable spanner with a single layer of insulation tape over the top
(on visible pipe fixings).

Chris

--
Spamtrap in use
To email replace 127.0.0.1 with blueyonder dot co dot uk

On Thu, 22 Sep 2005 20:26:07 +0100, "Michael Chare"
wrote:

I want to tighten a chrome plated hexagonal nut on a central heating radiator
valve without marking it in anyway.
(Part of a so called designer fitting.)

Any suggestions as to the best ways of doing this? I was considering getting a
spanner of the right size and if possible using some thin paper between the
spanner and the fitting.

http://www.knipex.de/index.php?id=559&L=1
http://www.knipex.de/en/pliers-abc/how-does-it-work-animated-graphics/86-03-250-plier-wrench.html


Thomas Prufer

In message , Thomas Prufer
writes
On Thu, 22 Sep 2005 20:26:07 +0100, "Michael Chare"
wrote:

I want to tighten a chrome plated hexagonal nut on a central heating radiator
valve without marking it in anyway.
(Part of a so called designer fitting.)

Any suggestions as to the best ways of doing this? I was considering
getting a
spanner of the right size and if possible using some thin paper between the
spanner and the fitting.

http://www.knipex.de/index.php?id=559&L=1
http://www.knipex.de/en/pliers-abc/h...ted-graphics/8
6-03-250-plier-wrench.html


Cor ...

I always wondered how you do nuts up

Hi Thomas

--
geoff

On Sun, 25 Sep 2005 15:55:52 GMT, raden wrote:

I always wondered how you do nuts up

Expensively!

That thing's forty to fifty Euro, depending on size...

Nice though. Some folks said they stopped using spanners once they got one.

Cheers,

Thomas Prufer