Quick adjust wrench

A quick-adjust wrench comprising:

• (a) an elongated shank having a handle end, and a head end mounting a fixed jaw;
• (b) a sliding casing slidably mounted on said shank and defining a sliding jaw slidable on said shank alternatively toward or away from said first jaw;
• (c) said shank having a jaw side and having an elongated converging groove defined longitudinally in said jaw side and extending at least a portion of the length of said shank parallel thereto, said groove converging from wider to narrower in the direction of increased penetration into said shank;
• (d) a pawl frictionally engaged in said groove such that said groove serves the double function of acting as a guideway for said pawl and multiplying the frictional forces between the pawl and groove as a function of increased convergence of the grooves;
• (e) a rocker captured between said casing and said pawl such that said pawl has a first end contacting a first location on said casing and a second end contacting a second location on said pawl, said first and second locations being spaced from one another to define a between-locations spacing such that the longitudinal component of the spacing in the direction longitudinally of the shank and normal to the sliding direction of said sliding jaw is less than the lateral component of the spacing transverse of the shank and the longitudinal component so that a longitudinal compressing force on said pawl is reacted as an amplified lateral force, such that as expansive forces are applied between said jaws, said pawl is driven into tighter frictional engagement with said groove with a compound mechanical advantage due to the leveraged orientation of the rocker and the converging sides of the groove on which the pawl bears.