who makes footprints now

[Billy Bob Bob]

did not know they had gone bust even but just seen this
Archived Report - Footprint Tools, Admiral Works, Sheffield.

 

[zeebeedee]

Who are they? Seen that urban explorer site before looking at pictures of the Denbigh asylum. Still want to go visit that place

 

[Billy Bob Bob]

footprint or 28 days later?

 

[zeebeedee]

Footprint.

 

[mountainman]

Man Friday mayhap!

 

[Phil]

Who makes all the blue Footprint chisels they have on display at Tool central in Bingley? I bought one myself the other day.

 

[Billy Bob Bob]

you know zeb a footprints the grips we all use

 

[tamz]

They are still going
[DLMURL="http://www.footprint-tools.co.uk/index_home.htm"]Footprint Tools - Homepage[/DLMURL]

 

[zeebeedee]

Can honestly say I've never seen nor heard of them!

 

[tamz]

A plumber that has never heard of footprints! What is the world coming to.

 

[PlumbBobBob]

until you've used a set of footprints you haven't used a proper old school tool. i have 6", 7" and 9" sets.

 

[Billy Bob Bob]

A plumber that has never heard of footprints! What is the world coming to.

record,hilmor and kopex lets all confuse zeb LOL

 

[tamz]

What about a drift and a swager. Not many will have either of them these days but they are still used.

 

[Dannypipe]

I want some genuine Footies. My rip off ones are crap.

 

[Billy Bob Bob]

What about a drift and a swager. Not many will have either of them these days but they are still used.

now i am confused will go ask the very,old,old gas man

 

[tamz]

I'll tell ye in half an hour

 

[Billy Bob Bob]

i was talking about my old man LOL but you would probably explain it better without telling me to (now i cant swear) off:wink5: LOL he wont even join up here,he dont do computers LOL

 

[tamz]

A drift is used to make a std type B manipulative joint ie drift the end of the pipe out.
A swager (pronounced swadger) is used for kingley type B's and is used to form a ring on the pipe.
Lots of houses up here still have securex and PDM drifted fittings and many houses built in the 50's have kingleys.
You can come off an imperial drifted fitting if you hammer the nut on the pipe then drift it
You can still use a swager if you are short of an olive for a type A (compression)
Here are a couple of instruction sheets i dug out if anyone is interested how they work.

 

[Billy Bob Bob]

A drift is used to make a std type B manipulative joint ie drift the end of the pipe out.
A swager (pronounced swadger) is used for kingley type B's and is used to form a ring on the pipe.
Lots of houses up here still have securex and PDM drifted fittings and many houses built in the 50's have kingleys.
You can come off an imperial drifted fitting if you hammer the nut on the pipe then drift it
You can still use a swager if you are short of an olive for a type A (compression)
Here are a couple of instruction sheets i dug out if anyone is interested how they work.

come across that type of fitting a few times

 

[PlumbBobBob]

I want some genuine Footies. My rip off ones are crap.

have a look on ebay, that's where i got mine.

 

[Dannypipe]

To swage something out is part of my plumbing vocabulory, this is despite the fact that I've never used a swage.

For example, "what can I use to swage the hose out so I can get it on the drain off"?

 

[Phil]

So you can't buy new Footie wrenches? I have a pair but I somehow always reach over them to grab the Knippex grips.

 

[Hybrid]

I use the terms drift and swage interchangeably. I lost my drift years ago so now I use an artillery shell lol

 

[Gray0689]

I want some genuine Footies. My rip off ones are crap.

Type in plumbing footprints in to eBay
@ damnypipe

 

[Gray0689]

Danny even lol

 

[stevetheplumber]

ive only ever used a kingly tool to form the lip for a trap we used to weld extensions on in the days of copper trapps and bronze welded floats what was the name of the tank cutters we used to use for cutting holes in galvy tanks ?

A drift is used to make a std type B manipulative joint ie drift the end of the pipe out.
A swager (pronounced swadger) is used for kingley type B's and is used to form a ring on the pipe.
Lots of houses up here still have securex and PDM drifted fittings and many houses built in the 50's have kingleys.
You can come off an imperial drifted fitting if you hammer the nut on the pipe then drift it
You can still use a swager if you are short of an olive for a type A (compression)
Here are a couple of instruction sheets i dug out if anyone is interested how they work.

 

[tamz]

I used to use a cone cutter for galvy tanks if i had a drill. If not it was a brace and one of those adjustable scribe cutters. Can't remember their right name. Used the scribe one on asbestos tanks.
I had another tank cutter for plastic and fibreglass tanks that was like a punch. You drilled a 1/4" hole and screwed the 2 parts on each side and tightened it with the bar and it punched a hole through. Can't remember whatr that was called either but i lost it or somebody nicked it so i was back to melting holes with a bit copper :lol:

 

[zeebeedee]

record,hilmor and kopex lets all confuse zeb LOL

Never heard of record either

 

[Plum Bob 66]

Looks like a lot of work Tam,were these fittings standard practice before the advent of compression? how do you rate these against the newer fittings.

 

[Nostrum]

I've still got a swage tool in the bottom of my soldering bag and I'm probably younger than a lot of you. I think I've used it once or twice just for the sake of using it, it's a nightmare getting it back out sometimes. Can't actually remember how it came into my possession though!? But it it was brand new at the time. I'll dig it out and take a picture.

 

[Nostrum]

Just realised not the same as tamz has shown in the pictures though, you hammer it in and it forms a socket. Always known it as a swage but maybe it is something else?

 

[tamz]

Looks like a lot of work Tam,were these fittings standard practice before the advent of compression? how do you rate these against the newer fittings.

You can do them very quickly. Only takes a few seconds. The joints are stronger than a compression ring as it cant pull off. The old PDM fittings were the best of the drifted ones. I'll have a look later to see if i have any lying in the scrap pile.
Type B manipulative joints are still supposed to be used on any pipework underground.

 

[Guest123]

Those adjustable scribe cutters were bloody dangerous and only a wee grub screw held the arm in place on mine. When used in a electric drill, they spun like a possessed propeller.

Still got my bobbins and mandrels and all the old sheetlead and copper working tools. Better staying in the toolbox, no way do I want to run about a roof on a cold Scottish Winters morning any more.

 

[peteheat]

Tamz,

Still used in the refrigeration industry, also recommended by OFTEC for oil lines.

 

[nicro3]

Had a van broken into 15 years ago had footprints nicked. Not missed them

 

[Gray0689]

Use footprints almost every day got 4 sets

 

[nicro3]

Also f shifters never missed them

 

[Gray0689]

What's an f shifter

 

[nicro3]

An ajustable spanner

 

[nicro3]

Supplied in the old days in a plumbers tool kit.

 

[Gray0689]

F shifter
Ok just a shifter to me
And I hate the look of pump kind of things I don't own ant pump pliers

 

[Leo21]

I've got two sets of footprints, never use em. Crescent pump pliers every time. We used the swage things at tech. My old man had one of those cutters your on about, lethal. Anyone remember the gp saws plumbers used?

 

[nicro3]

F shifter
Ok just a shifter to me
And I hate the look of pump kind of things I don't own ant pump pliers

And I thought I been drinking

 

[Kimou]

The footprints are the only thing I use on plastic nuts as they don't mark them.
I see the manipulative B fittings on steam generators in dry cleaners. They're a good design. They'd be useful on outside taps to some extent in cold weather when pipes pop out the compression.

 

[Kimou]

The swaged joint was outlawed but I think they're allowed again. Strange, as the joint is apparently stronger than the copper itself, or so I'm led to believe.