Abstract:
A tool for removing and installing a golf spike, having a threaded stud and a cleat at one end of the stud, includes a tubular body that surrounds a cavity, pins projecting from an end wall at one end of the body, and an end cap closing the other end of the body. The pins are spaced and otherwise configured to fit into holes that are in the cleat, so that when a torque is applied to the body, it will be transferred to the spike. The cavity contains several replacement spikes. The end cap snaps onto the body, yet has the capacity to rotate on the body.

Description:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS 
     Not applicable. 
     STATEMENT REGARDING FEDERALLY SPONSORED RESEARCH OR DEVELOPMENT 
     Not applicable. 
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     This invention relates to golf tools and, more particularly, to a tool for removing and installing spikes on golf shoes. 
     Traditionally, golfers wore shoes with metal spikes to improve their footing during drives and shots from fairways and the rough. But metal spikes seemed to damage the greens, and as a consequence many golf courses have banned them. Indeed, so-called soft spikes have all but replaced the traditional metal spikes. Soft spikes have threaded studs which engage threaded sockets in the soles of golf shoes and thus may be removed and replaced when the need arises. And this occurs with some frequency, because a soft spike presents a relatively soft plastic surface to the underlying turf or pavement over which a golfer walks. 
     Moreover, a golf shoe spike, whether it be soft or metal, has two small holes, which are offset from the axis of its threaded stud, to provide a location for engaging the spike and turning it, thus enabling one to remove or install the spike, provided a suitable tool is available. And tools having prongs designed to fit into the holes in the spikes exist, but they are usually flat and or otherwise are configured such that they are difficult to manipulate. Changing golf shoe spikes is a time-consuming procedure. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     The present invention resides in a golf tool having a tubular body provided with an end wall from which axially directed projections extend, and they conform in location and thickness to the holes in a golf shoe spike, enabling the tool to be easily engaged with the spike. The tubular body is easily grasped and turned, and when turned, rotates a spike engaged with it. The body has a hollow interior which is large enough to hold several replacement spikes. The tool may include a cap that is attached to the body, although removable, and it closes the end of the cavity. The invention also resides in the tool engaged with a golf spike. 
    
    
     DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
     FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a golf tool constructed in accordance with and embodying the present invention; 
     FIG. 2 is an exploded perspective view of the golf tool along with several golf spikes; 
     FIG. 3 is a longitudinal sectional view of the golf tool containing replacement spikes in its hollow interior and engaged with a spike at its exterior; 
     FIG. 4 is a sectional view of the tool taken along line  4 — 4  of FIG. 3; 
     FIG. 5 is a sectional view of the tool taken along line  5 — 5  of FIG. 3; and 
     FIG. 6 is an end view of the tool. 
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
     Referring to the drawings, a tool A (FIG. 1) has the capacity to engage a golf spike B such that the spike may be rotated, either clockwise to install it in the sole of a golf shoe or counterclockwise to remove it. In addition, the tool A has the capacity to store enough spikes B to replace those that are first to wear on a pair of shoes. 
     The typical soft spike B may take any one of several forms. But irrespective of its form, it has (FIG. 2) a threaded stud  2  and a disk-like cleat  4  attached to one end of the stud,  2 , with the stud  2  and cleat  4  being concentric about an axis Y which is the axis of the stud  2 . Actually, the stud  2  projects from a back face  6  on the cleat  4  which also has a front face  8  that is presented away from the stud  2 . The back face  6  is relatively flat or slightly concave, whereas the front face  8  has nibs  10  projecting from it. The cleat  4  also has two holes  12  opening out of its front face  8  on each side of the stud  2 , with these holes  12  being spaced equidistantly from the axis Y of the stud  2  and located along a diameter of the cleat  4 . In one version of spike B, the stud  2  is formed from metal and has a flange at one end. The cleat  4 , on the other hand, is molded from plastic, with the flange of the stud  2  embedded within it. In this version the holes  12  pass through the metal flange on the stud  2 . In another version, the stud  2  and cleat  4  are both molded from plastic as an integral unit. 
     The stud  2  of the spike B threads into a threaded socket in the sole of a golf shoe—indeed, far enough to bring the back face  6  of the cleat  4  snugly against the bottom surface of the sole. Thus, the cleat  4  lies below the sole where the nibs  10  are presented downwardly for gripping turf and providing a better footing for a golfer, particularly when executing drives and other shots. 
     The tool A includes (FIGS. 1 &amp; 2) a tubular body  20 , a pair of projections in the form of parallel pins  22  at one end of the body  20 , and a rotatable end cap  24  at the other end where it provides a removable closure. The tool A is small enough to be easily grasped with one hand and easily fits into practically any pocket of a golf bag. Preferably the body  20  and cap  24  are molded from a polymer and are hard, whereas the pins  22  are formed from stainless steel. 
     The body  20  has a tubular side wall  30  of generally cylindrical configuration, and is thus symmetrical about a longitudinal axis X. It encloses a storage cavity  32  having a diameter that is greater than the diameter of the cleat  4  on a spike B. The body  20  also has an end wall  34  which is formed integral with the side wall  30  at one end of the side wall  30  and thus closes one end of the cavity  32 . The diameter and length of the body  20  are such that the body  20  is easily grasped with a single hand. To facilitate gripping, the side wall  30  of the body  20  has flutes  36 . The end wall  32 , on the other hand, on its exterior surface, is flat and squared off with respect to the axis X of the cylindrical body  20 . Within the cavity  32 , the end wall has (FIG. 4) two radially directed ribs  38  which extend inwardly from the side wall  34 , yet are separated at the axis X of the body  20 . Here the end wall  34  contains an aperture  40  which opens into the space that separates the two ribs  38 . Near its opposite end, which is open, the side wall  30  contains (FIGS. 3 &amp; 5) an annular groove  42  which opens inwardly into the cavity  32 . 
     The pins  22  project from the end wall  34  where they lie parallel to each other and to the axis X of the body  30  (FIGS.  1 - 3 ). Indeed, they are embedded in the end wall  34  at the ribs  38 , each one extending into a separate rib  38 . The pins  22  have a diameter slightly smaller than the diameter of the holes  12  in the cleats  4  of the spikes B. Moreover, the spacing between the pins  22  corresponds to the spacing between the holes  12 . Finally, the pins  22  are spaced equidistantly from the axis X and the aperture  40  that is along the axis X. 
     The end cap  24  has (FIGS. 2 &amp; 3) a cylindrical core  44  and an enlarged head  46  at one end of the core  44 , with the core  44  and head  46  merging at a shoulder  48 . The outside diameter of the core  44  is slightly smaller than the diameter of the cavity  32  in the body  20 , so that the core  44  slides easily into the cavity  32 —at least initially. In this regard, the core  44  on its cylindrical exterior surface has an annular rib  50 , the diameter of which is slightly greater than the diameter of the cavity  32 , but not so great that it cannot be advanced with moderate force along the surface of the cavity  32 . Moreover, the rib  50  is slightly smaller than the annular groove  42  in the side wall  30  of the body  20 , and the spacing between it and the shoulder  48  corresponds to the spacing between the groove  48  and the open end of the side wall  30 . Thus, as the rib  50  advances along the surface of the cavity  32 , it will encounter the groove  42  when the shoulder  48  approaches the end of the side wall  30 . Indeed, the rib  50  will snap into the groove  42  and retain the end cap  24  on the body  20 . Nevertheless, the engagement of the rib  50  with the groove  42  is such that it does not impede rotation of the cap  24  relative to the body  20 . The cap  24  spins easily on the body  20 . 
     The enlarged head  46  projects beyond core  44  and closes the hollow interior of the core  44  as well as the end of the cavity  32  in the body  20 . The diameter of the head  46  corresponds to that of the side wall  30  on the body  20 , thus leaving small areas of the shoulder  48  exposed at the ends of the flutes  36  (FIG.  1 ), so that the head  46  may be grasped within several of the flutes  36  and pulled away from the body  30 . A moderate amount of force applied in this manner will release the annular rib  50  from the groove  42  and permit withdrawal of the cap  24  from the body  30 , thus exposing the open end of the cavity  32 . 
     The cavity  32  contains enough spikes B to replace those that are most likely to wear down first on a pair of golf shoes. To replace a worn spike B, the user aligns the pins  22  at the end wall  34  of the body  20  with the holes  12  in the cleat  4  of the worn spike B (FIG. 2) and inserts the pins  22  into those holes  12  (FIG.  3 ). The user, gripping the body  20  with fingers and thumb of one hand in the flutes  36  of the body  20  and the palm of that hand against the head  46  of the end cap  24 , rotates the body  20  counterclockwise. The torque applied is transferred to the spike B which rotates. Indeed, the user rotates the body  20  through enough rotations to back the threaded stud  2  of the spike B completely out of its threaded socket in the sole of the golf shoe. While the body  20  rotates, the end cap  24  remains stationary against the user&#39;s palm, owing to its capacity to rotate easily on the body  20 . The user removes the worn spike B from the pins  22  and discards it. 
     Thereupon, the user withdraws the end cap  24  from the body  20  simply by gripping the head  46  of the cap  24  from within several of the flutes  36  and pulling it away from the body  20  with enough force to dislodge the annular rib  50  from the annular groove  42  in the body  20 . The rib  50  slides over the remaining surface of the cavity  32  and reaches the end of that surface, whereupon the cap  24  will lift freely from the body  20 . With the cap  24  removed, the end of the cavity  32  is exposed, and a new spike B is retrieved from the cavity  32 . 
     The threaded stud  2  on the new spike B is engaged with the threaded socket in the shoe sole and rotated a turn or two. Then, with the end cap  24  replaced on the body  20  to close the end of the cavity  32 , the pins  22  on the tool A are engaged with the holes  12  in new spike B, and the body  20  is rotated clockwise enough turns to bring the back face  6  of the cleat  4  snugly against the sole of the shoe. Again the end cap  24  remains stationary against the palm of the user&#39;s hand while the body  20  rotates on it under a torque applied through the fingers and thumb of that hand. 
     The tool A may also remove or install metal spikes. Each metal spike has a cleat in the form of a single conical projection directed away from, but axially aligned with, the threaded stud of the spike and a flange between the projection and stud. The flange contains two holes which align with and receive the pins  22  on the end wall  34  of the tool A. The aperture  40  in the end wall  34  accommodates the conical projection when the pins  22  are received in the holes of the flange. 
     QUICK POINT PARTS LIST 
     A tool 
     B golf spike 
     X axis of tool body 
     Y axis of spike 
       2  threaded stud 
       4  cleat 
       6  back face 
       8  front face 
       10  nibs 
       12  holes 
       20  body 
       22  pins 
       24  end cap 
       30  side wall 
       32  storage cavity 
       34  end wall 
       36  flutes 
       38  ribs 
       40  aperture 
       42  annular groove 
       44  core 
       46  head 
       48  shoulder 
       50  annular rib