I bought a toolbox full of stuff at a swap meet, and this one has me stumped. WHen I squeeze the handles, the "jaws" come together. Does any know what it is?
THanks,

Joel

It's for piston rings...

I was thinking that, but it shrinks when you squeeze it, not expands. How is that supposed to work?

It's a ring installer.

OK, from that picture, I see how it works. When the outer ends of the jaws are blocked from contracting by a piston ring, the inside jaws expand the gap. Without a ring in it, just operating it empty, it only contracts.

THanks!

This is what my simple old one looks like. I think I'll like this new one better!

You’ll like it LOTS bester!

I bought one like that to try and went back to my old way of putting them on by hand.

The first motor I ever put rings and bearings in, the owner bought me "all" the motor overhaul tools...A ring expandor (like the one pictured) a ring compressor, a ridge reamer, and a click style torque wrench.
I probably used the expandor on the first 3 or 4 motors and then just started putting the rings on by hand. Its probably sitting in one of the seldom opened drawers in my tool box, I haven't done motors for years. I could probably be persuaded to separate with it, should anyone feel a need to own one. Gene

The cantilever design of the other tool spreads the ring gap more gracefully, this one is easier to break a ring from over-expanding it.

To clarify .... fixed

i just used expandable snap ring pliers

Joel, they work great until they don't
My message is I have worn one out, I'm going to buy another one

I used to do rings by hand but always was worried about breaking a ring. The. One time, snap, I broke one. Not the end of the world but I’m a firm believer of right tool for the job. I went to parts place to by the simple ones shown with red handles. Parts guy was amazed anyone still worked on their own engines.

Ole CB wore one of the NEW FOUND ones out ? ... how many sets of rings was that ?

And breaking JSTA ONE RING can be a PITA ! Never happened to me but it did twice to bud in Michigan.

Buying ONE RING isn’t a PITA ? ... luckily when it happened to him my shop in Detroit was TWO DOORS away from a Sealed Power warehouse!