October 3, 2008 - Adel Clamps
For some time now, I've been dreading having to secure all the hoses, wires and tubes around the engine and behind the panel.  The reason?  Adel Clamps.  I hate installing Adel Clamps.  First of all, you have to scrounge around to find one the right size.  Then it's always a struggle to pull the clamp ends together and get a bolt through them.  You practically need three hands to do it. 
 
So, I came up with the following two part plan.  First, I ordered ten Adel Clamps of each likely size I would need from Aircraft Spruce.  I think I ordered 15 of the 3/4" size since most of the engine mount is 3/4" steel tube.  Now, finding the right size clamp should be no problem. 
 
The second part of the plan was acquiring this nifty adel clamp installation tool.
 
The tool kit is made up of the below pictured awl, used to align both sides of the adel clamp.
 
The main part of the tool kit is this modified vise grip.  It squeezes and holds the adel clamp ends together.  
 
Then you just pull out the awl and insert the AN-3 bolt.  Nice.
 
 I tried it out on my right brake line.  This is a "double" installation:  there is one 3/4" clamp on the engine mount, and another 1/4" clamp on the brake line.  The tool worked great.  A real time saver, not to mention a lot of frustration. 
 
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