dsc48212.jpg

Overall view of the hand tool carrier.

Picture 1 of 2.

This is the front of the carrier when the carrier was attached to the Lunar Roving Vehicle. The exact lunar surface tools carried varied slightly from one mission to another, but many tools were carried on all three missions.

From left to right, the tall tools which extend over the top of the carrier are the LRV soil sampler, adjustable scoop (the scoop portion inside of the retainer), tongs, and extension handle (which could be attached to a variety of tools to extend the astronauts' reach).

Note the two, low V-shaped clip retainer bracket slots (flanking the scoop's retainer) which secured the handles of LRV soil sampler and tongs. The scoop and extension handles had larger, customized retainers.

The low, rectangular tray just left of center held the hammer, and the cone-shaped cup to its left and the retainer clips above the cup held the gnomon.

About one-third of the way down the carrier, running horizontally from center to left and center to right, are the left and right retention bars, which could be swung open to allow access to tools on the carrier and swung closed (as seen here) to help keep tools in place (the retention bar at left is holding the hammer's handle).

The vertical bracket to the left of the retention bar at left in this photo, sticking out and up from the carrier, would hold a flat sample bag dispenser.

The carrier was designed to attach to the LRV aft pallet assembly (which, itself, also held tools). The side of the carrier visible in this photo would face the pallet when the carrier was installed and in a closed position.

The there are two hinge halves (ears) on the carrier's right side in this photo which were inserted into corresponding clevises on the pallet assembly, where pip pins would automatically engage. (These are the dark brackets in the upper- and lower-right corners of the carrier.) The carrier was was secured by a latch keeper (ear) on the top left side (dark bracket at the top left of the carrier in this photo), again being inserted into a clevis on the pallet assembly and restrained by a pip pin.

Because the part of the carrier visible in this photo faced the aft pallet assembly, the latch was on the right side of the LRV when one was standing behind it in the closed position, and the hinges were on the left side.

When the astronauts needed to access tools on the carrier or the pallet assembly, they lifted a handle upward until the pin cleared the hand tool carrier's latch keeper ear and the carrier could be swung open to the left.