Snapring or circlip extraction from bicycle hub

A circlip (a

portmanteau A portmanteau word, or portmanteau (, ) is a blend of words is a type of

fastener A fastener (US English) or fastening (UK English) is a hardware device that mechanically joins or affixes two or more objects together. In general, fasteners are used to create non-permanent joints; that is, joints that can be removed or disman ...

retaining ring A retaining ring is a fastener that holds components or assemblies onto a shaft or in a housing/bore when installed - typically in a groove - for one time use only. Once installed, the exposed portion acts as a shoulder which retains the speci ...

consisting of a semi-flexible metal ring with open ends which can be snapped into place, into a

machined Machining is a process in which a material (often metal) is cut to a desired final shape and size by a controlled material-removal process. The processes that have this common theme are collectively called subtractive manufacturing, which utilizes ...

groove Groove or Grooves may refer to: Music * Groove (music) * Groove (drumming) * The Groove (band), an Australian rock/pop band of the 1960s * The Groove (Sirius XM), a US radio station * Groove 101.7FM, a former Perth, Australia, radio station ...

on a

dowel A dowel is a cylindrical rod, usually made of wood, plastic, or metal. In its original manufactured form, a dowel is called a ''dowel rod''. Dowel rods are often cut into short lengths called dowel pins. Dowels are commonly used as structural ...

pin or other part to permit

rotation Rotation, or spin, is the circular movement of an object around a '' central axis''. A two-dimensional rotating object has only one possible central axis and can rotate in either a clockwise or counterclockwise direction. A three-dimensional ...

but to prevent axial movement. There are two basic types: internal and external, referring to whether they are fitted into a bore or over a shaft. Circlips are often used to secure pinned connections.

Details

When used to retain piston wrist pins or gudgeon pins, the clips are known as wrist pin clips, wrist pin retainers, or gudgeon pin clips. The most commonly used circlip for this application is a simple spring steel circlip, or plain wire ring. The term "Jesus clip" comes from the propensity of the clip's spring action to launch the clip at a high velocity when removing or installing, leading to remarks such as, "Oh Jesus, where did it go?"

E-clip

Common examples include e-clips (e-ring) and the (both internal and external) snap ring or circlip. These general types of fasteners are sized to provide an interference fit onto (or into, in the case of an internal fastener) a groove or land when in use, such that they must be elastically deformed in order to install or remove them.

Installation and maintenance

The name snap ring generally refers to circlips which have the ends formed to aid installation and removal, and which are not formed from wire (i.e. do not have a round cross-section). These rings are designed to be installed and removed with special pliers. Some of these special pliers can be configured for internal or external clips, while in other cases one pliers is used for internal and another for external clips. For expediency in the field, a pair of

needle-nose pliers Needle-nose pliers, also known as long-nose pliers and snipe-nose pliers, are both cutting and holding pliers used by artisans, jewellery designers, electricians, network engineers and other tradesmen to bend, re-position and snip wire. Their name ...

(for internal clips) or leverage with a flat-headed screwdriver (internal or external) is sometimes used. Since most snap rings are stamped from sheet steel, one side is slightly rounded and the other has sharp, rough edges. This is due to the stamping die behaving like a

cookie cutter A cookie cutter in North American English, also known as a biscuit cutter outside North America, is a tool to cut out cookie/biscuit dough in a particular shape. They are often used for seasonal occasions when well-known decorative shapes are ...

and causing a slight rounding of the upper edge of the cut clip. The snap ring must always be installed such that force is transmitted to the retaining groove from the rounded side of the ring, not the rough/square-edged side. If a snap ring is positioned such that its flat side is pressed into the rounded edge of the groove then when load or force is applied, the flat edge of the snap ring will "bite" into the rounded edge of the retaining groove. The snap ring will distort and ride up the rounded edge, spreading an external snap ring and compressing an internal snap ring. This leaves the clip prone to being forced out of its groove and failing at its retaining function. The accompanying images illustrate the correct orientation of the snap ring in its groove. Wet or dry lubrication is recommended to reduce friction against the circlip and maintain function. File:Si-ri-zange-ring.jpg, Circlip pliers holding an internal circlip File:Internal_Snap_Ring.jpg, Correct orientation an internal snap ring in its groove. File:External_Snap_Ring_Orientation.jpg, Correct orientation of an external snap ring in its groove.

References

External links

{{Commons category, Circlips
Definition with pictureHistorical background
Fasteners