Surgical instrument and method of assembly thereof

Claim 1

A surgical instrument comprising an elongated tubular sheath having a passage therethrough, a jaw assembly detachably connected to said sheath at one end thereof, a fixation housing secured to the opposite end of said sheath, said housing having a plunger chamber communicating with said passage, a plunger disposed within said chamber and having an axial bore therethrough aligned with said passage, an actuation rod extending through said passage and bore and operatively connected at one end to said jaw assembly, spring means urging said plunger in a direction extending axially and outwardly from said chamber, stop means at the outer end of said rod opposite from said one end thereof, said stop means projecting laterally relative to the axis of said plunger and normally engaging the plunger's outer end for precisely limiting the extent of outward travel of said plunger without preventing axial inward movement of said plunger independently of said rod and stop means, said outer end of said plunger being externally threaded, and a terminal member detachably connected to said plunger and having a recess receiving both said outer end of said plunger and said stop means, said terminal member being internally threaded for threadedly receiving the plunger's outer end and confining said stop means within said recess to secure said plunger and rod against independent axial movement, said stop means being separable from said rod and being exposed for separation when said terminal member is detached, whereby, upon detachment of said terminal member from said plunger, said plunger may be shifted inwardly independently of said rod to permit removal of said stop means, and upon removal of said stop means, said jaw assembly may be detached from said one end of said sheath and said actuation rod may be axially withdrawn from said housing and plunger.