How to Replace a Mini Tubing Cutter Wheel

Cutting piping in tight spots requires a mini tubing cutter.

Standard-sized tubing cutters do not fit into some of the small areas you may encounter when renovating the plumbing of your home. Mini tubing cutters fit into tight spots found under sinks or inside of framed wall cavities. The hardened cutting wheel connected to the retractable arm of a mini tubing cutter dulls during use. Replacing a dull cutting blade increases the cutting speed of the tubing cutter and reduces the bur left on the tubing after the cut.

Things You'll Need

• Needle-nose pliers
• Small screwdriver set
• Replacement cutter wheel
• Silicone lubricant

Instructions

1. Pull the C-clip from the retaining pin running through the dull cutting wheel with needle-nose pliers. If your mini tubing cutter does not have a C-clip attached to the retaining pin, skip this step.

2. Flip over the mini tubing cutter. Select a screwdriver from a screwdriver set that matches the head of the retaining pin. Turn the screwdriver counterclockwise to loosen and remove the retaining pin from the mini tubing cutter.

3. Turn the mini tubing cutter upside down. The dull cutting wheel will fall from the cutting arm.

4. Grasp the replacement cutter wheel with a pair of needle-nose pliers. Make sure the jaws of the pliers do not cover the opening in the center of the wheel.

5. Spray silicone lubricant into the cutter wheel opening. Slide the cutter wheel into the center of the cutting arm. Slide the retaining pin through the cutting arm and the cutter wheel. Turn the retaining clip clockwise with a screwdriver to install the new cutter wheel.

6. Push the C-clip onto the end of the retaining clip with a pair of needle-nose pliers.

References

• Reed Manufacturing Company: Mini Tubing Cutters
• JB Industries, Inc: Tubing Tools