Idling device for lever hoist

An idling device for a lever hoist including a change gear provided on a driving member threadedly engaged on a driving shaft for driving a sheave winding up thereabout a chain, rope or the like for a load, an operating lever rockable about said driving member by a hand, a winding-up driving pawl engageable with teeth of said change gear and driven by said operating lever in a winding-up direction for the load, and a braking assembly preventing said change gear from being driven from a side of said sheave and being clamped and released by rotative movement of said driving member relative to said driving shaft, said device comprising an anchoring member fixed to an end of said driving shaft on an opposite side of said braking assembly with respect to said driving member, a manually operatable knob arranged between said driving member and said anchoring member and fitted rotatably and axially slidably on said driving shaft relative thereto, a brake releasing torsion spring arranged between said manually operatable knob and said anchoring member to rotate said manually operatable knob into a brake releasing direction relative to said driving shaft, a brake clamping torsion spring arranged between said driving member and said manually operatable knob to rotate said driving member into a brake clamping direction relative to said manually operatable knob, engagement protrusions formed in said driving member and said manually operatable knob, respectively, and engaging with each other by urging by said brake clamping torsion spring to couple said driving member and said manually operatable knob, brake clamped position holding means for preventing said driving member from rotating into a brake releasing direction when said braking assembly is clamped, and brake over-released preventing means for preventing said driving member from further rotating into said brake releasing direction when said braking assembly is suitably released.