E-Z prop

Abstract

A workholder for home building and improvement as an all-purpose appliance that eliminates unnecessary nailing and eases the labor required in handling structural components for bracing against gravitational influences. The appliance is affixed to the end, side or face of any piece of lumber used in bracing or propping by striking the self-contained nail. It's then clamped to the braced piece by hand-pressing it onto any 4-inch (3 1/25″) dimensional lumber. Common applications include: acting as a quickly affixing stabilizer to prop unhinged doors upright or horizontal on saw horses for paint preparation and finishing; allows for quick propping of structural framing by attaching to the studs without having to nail a brace into them; infinite uses as a temporary support appliance for installing any construction related component, sub-assembly or aid in preparation for repair, placement or finishing.

Description

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

[0001] This invention relates to devices whose function it is to temporarily hold construction related components in place for preparation, finish, assembly and/or installation. At least one of those components must be 4″ dimensional lumber (I.E. 1×4, 2×4, 4×4, ETC.)

[0002] The workholder is designed for countless bracing functions without having to spend as much effort in traditional (temporary) nailing, specifically, however, some primary functions include:

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

[0003] It is an object of this invention to minimize the process of nailing during the installation of temporary props and braces in lumber based construction, repair remodeling and home-improvement by providing a simple clamping device to securely hold the temporary component, white saving labor, time and minimizing structural damage caused by temporary nailing.

[0004] provide a clamping assembly which basically replaces the nail in the employment of temporary props and braces

[0005] Placing the however, its primary design was to

[0006] Various bracing and propping techniques require nailing, sometimes compromising the structural integrity of the component being nailed. With the workholder, a single nail is used on one part and the clamping feature used on the other part. The clamping feature may be used on the brace or the component being held, depending on the

[0007] The

[0008] The On the wide portion or bottom of the device, are two {fraction (11/16)} holes, one in the approximate center and another centered between the center hole and one corner (providing an offset hole). of the

DRAWINGS

[0009] FIG. 1: A single drawing, depicting the dimensions and construction of the EZ Prop workholder. The forward view illustrates the broad view of the workholder and its two components. The top view depicts the overhead view of the workholder to illustrate placement of the components, installation and auxiliary bracing holes.

[0010] Photo 1 Depicts the process of door hanging with the workholder to illustrate the manner with which the device is used to support them.

[0011] The EZ-Prop is formed from a flat, 7″ long×1¼ wide, piece of 16 gauge galvanized steel. Pressed or formed onto a die, the EZ-Prop is formed into a (squared 90°) u-shape to accommodate 4″ (3¼″ inside dimension) construction dimension lumber with ¼″ inward facing dimpling on the sides of the u-shape, fashioning a clamping feature. The dimpling is more of a gradual inward bending from the corner of the u-shape to approximate mid-height on each side.

[0012] After forming, the EZ-Prop is detailed with two {fraction (11/64)}″ holes in the wide portion of the device. One hole is centered and the second is placed on a symmetrical angle, midway between the center and one corner of the device.

[0013] Two components are then added; one ⅛″ nylon flange bushing is inserted from the inside of the device and crimped to provide clamping force for a single 1″ galvanized roofing nail, which is then inserted through the bushing from the inside of the device.

[0014] When used, the bracket is affixed (by striking the component nail) onto any type of lumber (and portion thereof) used to prop, temporarily support or otherwise locate a single 4″×such as used in structural framing, or any other use requiring lateral support/stabilization. The second hole exists to accommodate a second nail, should there exist a need to keep the bracket from spinning on the center nail.

[0015] Field of Search:

[0016] A workholder device that that, when affixed between a brace and article to be braced by nailing it onto the desired portion of one component and clamping it onto the 4 inch (lumber dimension) characteristic of the other component eliminates most needs for traditional nailing.

[0017] The workholder is a u-shaped, bracket-like, piece of galvanized steel whose two upright portions are bent inward at the middle to provide a clamping feature to fit 4″ dimensional lumber. There is included, a 1-inch roofing nail, held fast through a nylon flange bushing located in the workholder's approximate center.

[0018] The workholder is designed to clamp onto 4″ dimensional lumber after it has been nailed into the other component for bracing or propping reducing the need to employ nailing.

Claims

1- During new construction, interior doors are sometimes staged in the garage for preparation and painting. To save time in this process, install a scrap 1×4 or 2×4 board, overhead, high enough to nail downward through and into the tops of upright doors, holding them in a vertical position for painting. However, nailing through the overhead boards into the tops of the doors is awkward, time consuming and would typically take two people. Removal of the doors once ready to install is equally difficult. The workholder solves this difficulty very simply. With the overhead board in place, the bottom of the door is set on a 2×4 scrap to keep it off the floor and then leaned toward the installer. The workholder's single nail is struck into the approximate center of the top of the door, the door is then leaned into a full upright position, engaging the workholder's clamping feature onto the overhead board, holding the door firmly in place. The amount of time is comparatively miniscule to conventional methods of door preparation and painting, it takes only one person and, the workholder's flange bushing not only holds the nail for striking, it keeps the workholder from contacting the painted edges of the door, eliminating process related flaws.

2- During the framing of wood structures, each wall is normally framed on the floor in a horizontal position and then raised and braced for placement with an abutting frame. Normally, the single frame is easily compromised through raising and braces nailed to it to keep it in place. The processes of raising and nailing braces unsets nails and may weaken the structure or cause it to be out of plumb. Holding it in place while nailing braces also takes more cooperation. With the use of the workholder, the bracing of framing can be done quicker, without unnecessary hammering. This would speed the process, lessen the chance of compromising the structural integrity of the frame and save time and labor by eliminating nailing. An offset hole is drilled into the workholder, should the user require stabilizing it with a second nail.

3- During temporary framing to accomplish repairs or install headers, ETC, temporary studs are firmly placed by attaching a workholder onto the upper or both ends of the stud if there is a horizontal 2×4 (one can be nailed in place) available on the lower end of the project. The temporary stud is quickly installed by putting it into the opening at an angle enough to clear insertion. Set the bottom of the stud in place and push the upper end into place, anchoring the stud. If no workholder was used on the bottom of the stud, a single toe-nail is normally sufficient to hold the stud in place.