Crowbar
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A crowbarTemplate:Efn is a lever consisting of a metal bar with a single curved end and flattened points, used to force two objects apart or gain mechanical advantage in lifting;[1] often the curved end has a notch for removing nails.
The design can be used as any of the three lever classes. The curved end is usually used as a first-class lever, and the flat end as a second-class lever.
Designs made from thick flat steel bar are often referred to as utility bars.
Materials and construction
A common hand tool, the crowbar is typically made of medium-carbon steel, possibly hardened on its ends.[2]
Commonly crowbars are forged from long steel stock, either hexagonal or sometimes cylindrical. Alternative designs may be forged with a rounded I-shaped cross-section shaft. Versions using relatively wide flat steel bar are often referred to as "utility" or "flat bars".
Etymology and usage
The accepted etymology[3][4] identifies the first component of the word crowbar with the bird-name "crow", perhaps due to the crowbar's resemblance to the feet or beak of a crow. The first use of the term is dated back to c. 1400Script error: No such module "Check for unknown parameters"..[5] It was also called simply a crow, or iron crow; William Shakespeare used the latter,[6] as in Romeo and Juliet, Act 5, Scene 2: "Get me an iron crow and bring it straight unto my cell."
In Daniel Defoe's 1719 novel Robinson Crusoe, the protagonist lacks a pickaxe so uses a crowbar instead: "As for the pickaxe, I made use of the iron crows, which were proper enough, though heavy."[7]
Types
Types of crowbar include:[2]
- Alignment pry bar, also referred to as Sleeve bar
- Cat’s claw pry bar, more simply known as a cat's paw
- Digging pry bar
- Flat pry bar
- Gooseneck pry bar
- Heavy-duty pry bar
- Molding pry bar
- Rolling head pry bar
See also
Notes
References
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- ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
- ↑ a b Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
- ↑ OED: crow-bar Script error: No such module "webarchive".; crow Script error: No such module "webarchive"., sense 5a
- ↑ AHD: crow Script error: No such module "webarchive".
- ↑ Snopes: crowbar Script error: No such module "webarchive".
- ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
- ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
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