The present invention concerns an improvement in securing a tire stem assembly. Specifically, a rubber packing piece, washer and securing nut-containing rubber packing piece are employed in this assembly, which cause the tire stem to bind tightly to the hub when the inner tube is inflated. The merit is that air cannot escape quickly from the space between the stem and the hub when the inner tube of a tire is punctured by a sharp object, thereby allowing the motor-driven vehicle to continue to op...

An implant for a hip or other joint is provided. Briefly stated, a intramedullary stem is provided having flexibility which is comparable to that of the surrounding bone. A bore is disposed in the stem portion with the stem wall thickness uniform or varying from the proximal end to the distal end, depending upon the amount of flexibility desired. This flexibility therefore distributes the loading forces from the joint more uniformly over the supporting cortical bone with the result that bone deg...

A tapered, collarless femoral hip joint prosthesis formed of Co-Cr-Mo alloy with highly polished surfaces is provided.

An apparatus and method for polishing combustion engine valves. The machine includes a rotating deburring wheel for on contact with the valve stem and a regulating surface which provides support and applies a rotational force to the valve stem. A pair of guide blades and a guide plate cooperate with the regulating surface to contain the valve stem when contacted by the deburring wheel. The guide blades are positioned at an angle with respect to the axis of rotation of the regulating surface to b...

An adjustable bicycle stem is disclosed for use on a bicycle having a handlebar and a stem sleeve. The bicycle stem comprises a substantially vertical member having a first end and a second end, the first end being removably receivable within the sleeve. A first substantially horizontal member is attached to the vertical member second end, and a second substantially horizontal member is pivotably connected to the first horizontal member. A mechanism is provided for pivoting the second horizontal...

A packing system for the operating stem of rotary valves includes first and second packing assemblies engaged with the stem at axially spaced locations. The first assembly is adjustably compressed into sealing engagement with the stem by a first packing nut which carries both the second packing assembly and a second packing nut for adjustably compressing the second packing assembly into sealing engagement with the stem independently of the first packing assembly. The space between the first and ...

A method and apparatus for installing a knee prosthetic component on a patient's tibia includes the selection by a surgeon of one of a plurality of reamers, each of the reamers having a different cutting size diameter such as for example between ten and twenty-two millimeters of cutting diameter. The reamer is initially selected as a very small reamer and the surgeon places progressively larger cutting diameter reamers in the patient's intermedullary canal until resistance or until the reamer be...

Apparatus includes a mold cavity and a molten plastic inlet channel for communication with the mold cavity for transmission of molten plastic to the mold cavity. A valve stem is provided with substantially no net resulting forces on the valve stem due to melt pressure acting on the projecting area of its upstream and downstream faces.

Once a new oil well has been drilled and cased, a test string is set in place for the purpose of evaluating the production potential of the chosen formation. One way of controlling the operation of the various tools included in the downhole test string, including the opening and closing of the downhole valve itself, is by changes in the pressure differential between the tubing and the annular space which surrounds it in the well, but this requires the provision and maintenance of a fixed "refere...

A stem cutting device for cutting the stems of roses and other plants, which includes a barrel fitted with a handle at one end and a cutting head having a slot at the opposite end, a handle lever pivotally attached to the handle and to a plunger slidably disposed in the barrel, with a blade and block combination located at the opposite end of the plunger from the handle for both cutting and retaining a stem positioned in the slot. In a preferred embodiment both the handle lever and the blade are...