A while back I picked up the original version of Fastcap's "Knuckle
Bender" shown here...
https://www.rokhardware.com/blog/whats-that-wednesday-fastcap-knuckle-bender-3-1-tool/

In my handyman work I run across hundreds of doors that are either
improperly installed, have sagged due to house settling, or have swollen
and are rubbing against the frame.
I can attest that the vast amount of doors I fix are due to improper
installation by lazy and/or ignorant installers who are getting paid by
the door and don't give a rat's ass if it's done correctly, or simply
were never trained how to do it right.

I'm put in situations where I must give the home-owner the option of me
removing the door and installing it correctly, which is an expensive
option. Or spending 10 minutes bending the hinges to correct a crooked
hang and possibly another 10-15 minutes readjusting/chiseling out the
strike plates to compensation for the new door angle/height.

You can guess which one makes for a more satisfied client. :-)

The original Knuckle Bender has served me well and is worth its weight
in gold. However, there were a couple of design flaws which made the
tool a bit less than perfect. It didn't work on all diameter hinges.
It could damage the casement molding at times because of its square
profile. It was difficult to move down the hinge when bending because
the previously bent knuckle moved the tool out of line with the rest of
the hinge.

Even with those flaws, it was a great tool and served me well for dozens
of door adjustments. The business end that fits over the hinge started
to bend out over time, so I emailed the company and asked them about
their warranty. Their reply simply asked for my mailing address.
Today, this version arrived via UPS.

https://www.fastcap.com/product/knuckle-bender

I look forward to trying it out, which I get to do on a job tomorrow for
a client who has a few crooked doors needing adjustment. It seems like
a pretty simple modification of a common tool, but kudos to the inventor
for perfecting it. I can tell just from visual inspection that it fixes
some of the flaws in the original design. I'll find out tomorrow how
well it works in real world application.

Thank you, Fastcap, for standing behind your products and sending me
this free upgrade.



--

-MIKE-

"Playing is not something I do at night, it's my function in life"
--Elvin Jones (1927-2004)
--
www.mikedrums.com

On Tuesday, March 13, 2018 at 6:38:15 PM UTC-5, -MIKE- wrote:


In my handyman work I run across hundreds of doors that are either
improperly installed, have sagged due to house settling, or have swollen
and are rubbing against the frame.
I can attest that the vast amount of doors I fix are due to improper
installation by lazy and/or ignorant installers who are getting paid by
the door and don't give a rat's ass if it's done correctly, or simply
were never trained how to do it right.

Right there with you. I used to hang doors for a door company, and I couldn't agree with your assessment more. OTOH, I made good money fixing expensive doors that were simply installed incorrectly by that company (!) so I don't have any complaints.

I use 12" to 16" wedges to hang doors coming from both sides of the jambs. I never, shim. Never. Result? No call backs in my memory from a door sag or loose jamb. Yes, I was trained to do it that way 40+ years ago, but I cringe when I see pieces of wood, debris and all kinds of crap stuck behind hinges because they can get the door to hang well for a while. Depending on the door, I might not wedge both sides (no need on a 2'6" A/C access door, etc.) but still, no shims. And no call backs.

I'm put in situations where I must give the home-owner the option of me
removing the door and installing it correctly, which is an expensive
option. Or spending 10 minutes bending the hinges to correct a crooked
hang and possibly another 10-15 minutes readjusting/chiseling out the
strike plates to compensation for the new door angle/height.

You can guess which one makes for a more satisfied client. :-)

The original Knuckle Bender has served me well and is worth its weight
in gold. However, there were a couple of design flaws which made the
tool a bit less than perfect. It didn't work on all diameter hinges.
It could damage the casement molding at times because of its square
profile. It was difficult to move down the hinge when bending because
the previously bent knuckle moved the tool out of line with the rest of
the hinge.

Even with those flaws, it was a great tool and served me well for dozens
of door adjustments.

OK,... why am I the last to hear of this? I can't calculate how much time that would have saved me over the years. Seriously... that little bit of genius should be in my tool box.

I look forward to trying it out, which I get to do on a job tomorrow for
a client who has a few crooked doors needing adjustment. It seems like
a pretty simple modification of a common tool, but kudos to the inventor
for perfecting it. I can tell just from visual inspection that it fixes
some of the flaws in the original design. I'll find out tomorrow how
well it works in real world application.

Hope you post back your findings! And BTW, I do metal doors as well, and typically I shim the hinge where possible with 30ga sheet metal. Do you think that would bend a standard thickness (.143") 4" commercial hinge?

Robert

On 3/13/18 6:57 PM, wrote:
On Tuesday, March 13, 2018 at 6:38:15 PM UTC-5, -MIKE- wrote:


In my handyman work I run across hundreds of doors that are either
improperly installed, have sagged due to house settling, or have
swollen and are rubbing against the frame. I can attest that the
vast amount of doors I fix are due to improper installation by lazy
and/or ignorant installers who are getting paid by the door and
don't give a rat's ass if it's done correctly, or simply were never
trained how to do it right.

Right there with you. I used to hang doors for a door company, and I
couldn't agree with your assessment more. OTOH, I made good money
fixing expensive doors that were simply installed incorrectly by that
company (!) so I don't have any complaints.

I use 12" to 16" wedges to hang doors coming from both sides of the
jambs. I never, shim. Never. Result? No call backs in my memory
from a door sag or loose jamb. Yes, I was trained to do it that way
40+ years ago, but I cringe when I see pieces of wood, debris and all
kinds of crap stuck behind hinges because they can get the door to
hang well for a while. Depending on the door, I might not wedge both
sides (no need on a 2'6" A/C access door, etc.) but still, no shims.
And no call backs.

Explain the wedges. I'm picturing them as just longer shims.
Am I seeing it wrong?



I'm put in situations where I must give the home-owner the option
of me removing the door and installing it correctly, which is an
expensive option. Or spending 10 minutes bending the hinges to
correct a crooked hang and possibly another 10-15 minutes
readjusting/chiseling out the strike plates to compensation for the
new door angle/height.

You can guess which one makes for a more satisfied client. :-)

The original Knuckle Bender has served me well and is worth its
weight in gold. However, there were a couple of design flaws which
made the tool a bit less than perfect. It didn't work on all
diameter hinges. It could damage the casement molding at times
because of its square profile. It was difficult to move down the
hinge when bending because the previously bent knuckle moved the
tool out of line with the rest of the hinge.

Even with those flaws, it was a great tool and served me well for
dozens of door adjustments.

OK,... why am I the last to hear of this? I can't calculate how much
time that would have saved me over the years. Seriously... that
little bit of genius should be in my tool box.


It is a serious time saver! Great when I'm doing it "per job" but not
so much when I'm on the clock. :-)
I used to use a big pair of pliers to bend the knuckles, but it was too
easy to scratch polished brass hinges. They also make shims for
hinges, but that's more work than bending them.
I also put some of the blame on manufacturers trying to save money by
making everything thinner (weaker). I've taken off older brass hinges
that weighed almost twice as much as newer ones.


I look forward to trying it out, which I get to do on a job
tomorrow for a client who has a few crooked doors needing
adjustment. It seems like a pretty simple modification of a common
tool, but kudos to the inventor for perfecting it. I can tell just
from visual inspection that it fixes some of the flaws in the
original design. I'll find out tomorrow how well it works in real
world application.

Hope you post back your findings! And BTW, I do metal doors as well,
and typically I shim the hinge where possible with 30ga sheet metal.
Do you think that would bend a standard thickness (.143") 4"
commercial hinge?

Robert


This new version will definitely work, since it's adjustable.
I'm looking forward to that feature.
Sometimes the older version was not only too small, but too big.


--

-MIKE-

"Playing is not something I do at night, it's my function in life"
--Elvin Jones (1927-2004)
--
www.mikedrums.com

-MIKE- wrote:
A while back I picked up the original version of Fastcap's "Knuckle
Bender" shown here...
https://www.rokhardware.com/blog/whats-that-wednesday-fastcap-knuckle-bender-3-1-tool/

In my handyman work I run across hundreds of doors that are either
improperly installed, have sagged due to house settling, or have swollen
and are rubbing against the frame.
I can attest that the vast amount of doors I fix are due to improper
installation by lazy and/or ignorant installers who are getting paid by
the door and don't give a rat's ass if it's done correctly, or simply
were never trained how to do it right.

I'm put in situations where I must give the home-owner the option of me
removing the door and installing it correctly, which is an expensive
option. Or spending 10 minutes bending the hinges to correct a crooked
hang and possibly another 10-15 minutes readjusting/chiseling out the
strike plates to compensation for the new door angle/height.

You can guess which one makes for a more satisfied client. :-)

The original Knuckle Bender has served me well and is worth its weight
in gold. However, there were a couple of design flaws which made the
tool a bit less than perfect. It didn't work on all diameter hinges.
It could damage the casement molding at times because of its square
profile. It was difficult to move down the hinge when bending because
the previously bent knuckle moved the tool out of line with the rest of
the hinge.

Even with those flaws, it was a great tool and served me well for dozens
of door adjustments. The business end that fits over the hinge started
to bend out over time, so I emailed the company and asked them about
their warranty. Their reply simply asked for my mailing address.
Today, this version arrived via UPS.

https://www.fastcap.com/product/knuckle-bender

I look forward to trying it out, which I get to do on a job tomorrow for
a client who has a few crooked doors needing adjustment. It seems like
a pretty simple modification of a common tool, but kudos to the inventor
for perfecting it. I can tell just from visual inspection that it fixes
some of the flaws in the original design. I'll find out tomorrow how
well it works in real world application.

Thank you, Fastcap, for standing behind your products and sending me
this free upgrade.




Fastcap has replaced several tape measures for me. Their customer service
it top notch.

-MIKE- wrote:
A while back I picked up the original version of Fastcap's "Knuckle
Bender" shown here...
https://www.rokhardware.com/blog/whats-that-wednesday-fastcap-knuckle-bender-3-1-tool/

In my handyman work I run across hundreds of doors that are either
improperly installed, have sagged due to house settling, or have swollen
and are rubbing against the frame.
I can attest that the vast amount of doors I fix are due to improper
installation by lazy and/or ignorant installers who are getting paid by
the door and don't give a rat's ass if it's done correctly, or simply
were never trained how to do it right.

I'm put in situations where I must give the home-owner the option of me
removing the door and installing it correctly, which is an expensive
option. Or spending 10 minutes bending the hinges to correct a crooked
hang and possibly another 10-15 minutes readjusting/chiseling out the
strike plates to compensation for the new door angle/height.

You can guess which one makes for a more satisfied client. :-)

The original Knuckle Bender has served me well and is worth its weight
in gold. However, there were a couple of design flaws which made the
tool a bit less than perfect. It didn't work on all diameter hinges.
It could damage the casement molding at times because of its square
profile. It was difficult to move down the hinge when bending because
the previously bent knuckle moved the tool out of line with the rest of
the hinge.

Even with those flaws, it was a great tool and served me well for dozens
of door adjustments. The business end that fits over the hinge started
to bend out over time, so I emailed the company and asked them about
their warranty. Their reply simply asked for my mailing address.
Today, this version arrived via UPS.

https://www.fastcap.com/product/knuckle-bender

I look forward to trying it out, which I get to do on a job tomorrow for
a client who has a few crooked doors needing adjustment. It seems like
a pretty simple modification of a common tool, but kudos to the inventor
for perfecting it. I can tell just from visual inspection that it fixes
some of the flaws in the original design. I'll find out tomorrow how
well it works in real world application.

Thank you, Fastcap, for standing behind your products and sending me
this free upgrade.



Got my knuckle-duster today and it really works! Two doors in a new
addition have always sagged a little. Not enough to really scrub, but
a tight fit at the top. Pulled the pin and started bending the top
door knuckle and the hinge popped off the door. The screws were only
1/2" long. Went and got some 1 1/4" replacement screws and bent the
knuckles a bit and now both doors look great. Suggest you check the
screw length on new doors before using the bender.

--
G Ross