This invention is concerned with plastics clips of a type for resiliently holding an elongated article (e.g. a pipe or cable) having means to enable the clip ^" to be fixed to a support and an article-receiving portion which is arranged to extend round more than 180° of the . article and provides a seat against which the article rests and two arms disposed to bear on the article at either side of the seat.

Such a clip, moulded in thermoplastic resinous material, commonly takes the form in which the article- receiving portion provides a continuous arcuate surface embracing more than 180° of the article, introductionof the article being permitted by the resilience of the material from which the clip is moulded. It is generally the case that the article is as easy or difficult to dislodge as it is to assemble, and therefore, if the clip is designed to give a high degree of resistance to withdrawal of the art- icle, the article is usually difficult to assemble. Such difficulty can be especially undesirable in the case of plastics pipes ^' , for example for break fluid, such as are commonly used in motor vehicles and which, while requiring to be firmly anchored, would be subject to the risk of damage, with potentially serious consequences, if they are too difficult to assemble.

It is accordingly an object of the invention to provide an improved clip suitable for plastics pipes which,

while capable of firmly anchoring the pipe, involves little risk of the pipe being damaged on assembly.

The foregoing object is achieved in accordance with the invention in that one of the arms has a yieldable article-engaging finger normally disposed in an article- holding position and arranged to be deflected towards said seat when an article is introduced to the clip and to re¬ vert to its article holding position after the widest part of the article has passed It, and In that a flexible strap of a length substantially the same as that of the periphery of the article which lies between said finger and said seat extends between said seat and the tip of the finger, the strap permitting the finger to deflect as aforesaid when an article is introduced to the clip but resisting deflect- ion of the finger away from the seat from its article- holding position such as would release the article.

Preferably, in a clip In accordance with the invention,' the strap extends about an arc of a radius slightly smaller than -that of a cylindrical pipe for which the article-engaging portion of the clip is intended so that the strap is held in tension when a pipe is in posit¬ ion, thus to ensure that vibration of the pipe Is absorbed by the clip. It is also preferred that the tip of the finger has a rib to engage the article, the rib running parallel to the article.

A clip in accordance with the invention may con¬ veniently have a projection extending from the arm which is less yielding than the finger to act as a guide to fac¬ ilitate assembly of the article. Such an arm is prefer- ably also sufficiently yieldable for the projection to be used, by application of a thumb thereto, to assist opening of the clip to enable an article to be removed without damage. Preferably, such an arm with Its projection lies adjacent the support to which the clip is secured. A clip in accordance with the Invention may be provided with any suitable means to secure it to a support, e.g. a longitudinally grooved hole through it to enable it to receive grippingly a threaded stud welded to a support,

and two article-engaging ^" portions symmetrically disposed on opposite sides of said hole with their less yielding arms adjacent the support. . ,- ^■ *

There now follows a description of a plastics clip embodying the invention and selected to illustrate the invention by way of example and not of limitation. In the accompanying drawings:-

Figure 1 is a view in side elevation of a clip in accordance with the invention and illustrative thereof by way of example; and

Figure 2 is a plan view of the clip shown in Figure 1.

The illustrative clip shown in the drawings is made by injection moulding in any suitable resilient ther - oplastic resinous material, for example polyacetal resin. The clip has a body portion 10 having means, exemplified by a longitudinally grooved hole 12 extending though the body portion of dimensions suitable for gripping a welded stud T having a screw thread or annular grooves with steep ridges Inbetween, to enable the clip to be secured to a support S.

The illustrative clip Is designed for holding two break fluid pipes P., , P of equal diameters and is accord¬ ingly shaped symmetrically on either side of the body.jport- ion 10 with pipe-engaging portions II., Λl.. Each portion II. has a seat bounding the body portion and presenting an arcuate surface of the same radius as the pipe it is int¬ ended to engage, and this surface continues along a lower, yieldable, arm 18 which terminates in a projection 20. At the other side of the seat, an upper arm 22 projects from the body portion.10 and includes a depending, flexible and resilient finger 2J. arranged to bear upon a pipe in the clip at such a locality that the arm 18, seat 16 and finger _% embrace more than 180° of the pipe, and preferably more than 270°; in the embodiment shown in the drawings they embrace about 300° of the pipe. From the tip of the finger 2% to the seat 16, there extends an arcuate strap 26 which provides an Inner surface continuous with that of

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the seat 16 but 0.005 - 0.01 inches smaller in radius. The strap is thin, compared with the lower arm 18, and because of its slightly smellier radius, is held ^" in tension by ^" a pipe accommodated in the portion 1JL|.. The finger has a ridge 28 extending along most of its length parallel to the pipe, where it engages the pipe. The strap 26 has a central strengthening rib 30 xnirining along its outer sur¬ face.

Assembling of a pipe e.g. P.,, in the illustrative clip will now be described. The lower arm 18 is less yieldable than the finger 2k, and with its projection 20 guides a pipe P., into the embrace of the portion Λi. and Into engagement with the seat 12. Meanwhile, the finger 2_. is deflected towards the seat, the flexible strap bend- Ing to allow it to do so, until the widest part of the ^' pipe T?y. has passed it, and it is restored to Its initial posit¬ ion. With the finger 2_\. thus restored to the position shown in Figure 1, the pipe P,, is held tightly because first the portion 1ij. embraces the pipe for 300° around its surface and secondly because, the strap 26 being in its natural condition slightly smaller In radius than the pipe, when the pipe P^ is forced into it the strap is in tension. The clip is thus able to absorb vibration of the pipe P.,. Moreover, the strap 26 prevents the finger 2J+ from being deflected away from the seat 12. Thus, while it Is relat¬ ively easy to assemble a pipe P_ _j in the portion H., it is much more difficult to remove it.

However, in addition to guiding a pipe P_, into the portion IJ., the projection 20 can readily be depressed by the thumb to facilitate release of the pipe P.. from the clip.