Posted by Ian Easton on May 11, 2001 at 08:36:44:
Continuing the thread (on Sears strap wrenches) further down the page:
I've been using a Zyliss bottle top remover ("Strongboy") for years, on everything from trumpets to tubas. It's never failed to remove the valves easily.
I've seen others use wrenches of a similar design to the one on the Sears site. Their one big failing is that they are often hard to manoeuvre in tight situations. The Zyliss tool is basically a metal band attatched to a long handle (this allows for more turns in a tight fit) with a screw-knob at the end for tightening.
Check out http://www.zyliss.com/english/fs_00.html
Click on "Products", then "List of Products", then "Strongboy"
There is a US site, but it didn't work for me...
Cheers,
Ian Easton