ART
BEAUTY & WELLNESS
CRAFT
CULTURE & HISTORY
ENTERTAINMENT
ENVIRONMENT
FOOD & DRINKS
REVERSE ENGINEERING
SCIENCES
SPORTS
TECHNOLOGY
WEARABLES
The Reusable Can Opener: A Stop on the Knife and a Rim Left to Use Again
A can hacked open is fit only to be thrown away.
Richard H. Atwell of Baltimore, Maryland, received US 86,626, dated 9 February 1869, for a can opener: a bar at right angles to a handle that carries a piercer, a hook-shaped fulcrum pin in a hole made at the centre of the piece to be removed, a concave knife in one of several holes, and a stop that limits how far the knife goes in; the edges of the opening are so turned "as to adapt the can to be again used."
This rung works out which hole leaves a usable rim, then builds the bar, pin, knife and stop and opens a can cleanly enough to refill.
Intermediate
About 3 hours
Instructions
1
1
Which hole leaves a rim
Which hole leaves a rim
Loading Jupyter Notebook...
2
2
A centre-pivot cutter before it
A centre-pivot cutter before it
The embedded blueprint cuts a round hole round a spike. Atwell adds a stop on the knife and turns the edge so the can is fit to use again.
3
3
Read US 86,626
Read US 86,626
"The edges of the opening made in the can are so turned, by this construction of knife, as to adapt the can to be again used."
"A rest or stop, D, preferably cast on the bar, and arranged between the fulcrum a and knife C, limits the insertion of the knife, and thus prevents its hanging in the tin at its shank."
4
4
Make the bar and handle
Make the bar and handle
Cut 90 mm of 25 × 3 mm flat bar and drill 5 mm holes 20, 28 and 36 mm from one end. Fix its other end at right angles into a hardwood handle with epoxy, and file a point on the handle's far end as the piercer.
Materials for this step:
Mild Steel Flat Bar1 piece
Hardwood Dowels1 piece
Two-Part Epoxy1 pieceTools needed:
Hacksaw
Center Punch
Cordless Drill
Drill Bit Set
Files (Hand File)5
5
Make the hook pin and stop
Make the hook pin and stop
Bend 4 mm steel rod into a hook and fix it through the bar's end as the fulcrum pin. Epoxy a hardwood stop under the bar between the pin and the first hole, 4 mm deep.
Materials for this step:
Mild Steel Rod1 piece
Hardwood Block1 pieceTwo-Part Epoxy1 pieceTools needed:
Bench Vise
HammerHacksawCordless DrillDrill Bit Set6
6
Make the knife
Make the knife
Cut a knife from 1 mm steel sheet with a 5 mm shank, file its cutting edge concave and its flat side toward the pin. Fit the shank through a hole and nut it on top.
Materials for this step:
Mild Steel Sheet1 piece
Hex Nut1 piece
Machine Screws1 pieceTools needed:
Tin SnipsFiles (Hand File)
Whetstone
Adjustable Spanner
Clear Safety Glasses7
7
The patent drawing
The patent drawing
US 86,626 drawing sheet, public domain (expired patent).
8
8
Open a can for reuse
Open a can for reuse
Pierce the centre of a sealed can's top with the handle's point and hook the pin in. Press the knife through to the stop and turn the bar round once. Measure the rim left and run a finger-safe check along it with a rag.
Materials for this step:
Tin Can1 pieceTools needed:
Digital Caliper 6-Inch
Stopwatch
Leather Work Gloves9
9
A knife that hangs, wanders or leaves a ragged rim
A knife that hangs, wanders or leaves a ragged rim
Reusable can opener troubleshooting.
Flow
Loading...
10
10
History and honest limits
History and honest limits
**Richard H. Atwell** of Baltimore, Maryland, received US 86,626, dated 9 February 1869. His bar may be cast in one piece with the handle or hinged to it; the knife is held from lateral pressure and bending, its edge preferably concave so it need not be pressed down to its work. When the can is not to be refilled, part of the circle may be cut and the piece bent up.
**Honest limits.** Epoxy and a hardwood stop stand in for his casting, and the knife is unhardened sheet. Your rim measurements are the result.
Materials
9- 1 piecePlaceholder
- 1 piecePlaceholder
- 2 piecesPlaceholder
- 1 piecePlaceholder
- 1 piecePlaceholder
- 1 piecePlaceholder
- 1 piecePlaceholder
- 1 piecePlaceholder
- 1 piecePlaceholder
Tools Required
14- Placeholder
- Placeholder
- 1 vendor sell this, none ship to you yetPlaceholder
- Placeholder
- Placeholder
- Placeholder
- Placeholder
- Placeholder
- Placeholder
- Placeholder
- Placeholder
- Placeholder
- Placeholder
- Placeholder
Related Blueprints
These blueprints share knowledge with this one — techniques, materials, or principles that connect them in the learning graph.
CC0 Public Domain
This blueprint is released under CC0. You are free to copy, modify, distribute, and use this work for any purpose, without asking permission.
Support the Maker by purchasing products through their Blueprint where they earn a Maker Commission set by Vendors, or create a new iteration of this Blueprint and include it as a connection in your own Blueprint to share revenue.