Engine-powered tool with a tube for guiding a starter pull rope

1. A tool comprising:

an engine;

a shaft extending from the engine;

a recoil starter pulley coupled to the shaft for rotation about an axis;

a starter pull rope for winding and unwinding around the recoil starter pulley to start the engine;

an air chamber shroud extending about at least a portion of the pulley, the rope extending from the pulley through the shroud; and

a tube enclosing a portion of the rope and extending from a location adjacent to and aligned with the pulley to a location at an exterior of the shroud that is axially offset from the pulley,

wherein the tool is a blower/vac, and

wherein the blower/vac has an air chamber space; wherein the plane of the recoil starter pulley intersects the air chamber space; and wherein the tube and the rope do not penetrate the air chamber space.

2. The tool of claim 1 , wherein the engine is a half-crank engine.

3. The tool of claim 1 , wherein the tube is substantially completely inside the shroud.

4. The tool of claim 1 , wherein a first end of the tube is adjacent to the recoil starter pulley.

5. The tool of claim 1 , wherein a second end of the tube is adjacent to the casing.

6. The tool of claim 1 , wherein the tube is made of metal.

7. A tool comprising:

an engine;

a shaft extending from the engine;

a recoil starter pulley coupled to the shaft for rotation about an axis;

a starter pull rope for winding and unwinding around the recoil starter pulley to start the engine;

a housing having a scroll air chamber space extending about at least a portion of the pulley; and

a tube enclosing a portion of the rope and extending from a location adjacent to the pulley to a location outside of the scroll air chamber of the housing, without penetration of the air chamber space.

8. The tool of claim 7 , wherein the tool is a blower/vac.

9. The tool of claim 7 , wherein the recoil starter lies in a plane and the tube has ends, allowing passage of the starter pull rope out of the housing and forming a trajectory within the housing, wherein a part of the trajectory is substantially offset from the plane.

10. The tool of claim 7 , wherein the tube has ends, and at least one of the ends is flared to prevent wear of the starter pull rope.

11. The tool of claim 7 , wherein the tube has ends and the scroll air chamber is at least partially defined by a first scroll and a second scroll, and one end of the tube is clamped between the first and second scrolls.

12. A tool comprising:

a shroud having a scroll air chamber space extending about at least a portion of the shroud;

an engine part inside the shroud;

a shaft powered by the engine part;

a recoil starter pulley coupled to the shaft and lying in a plane;

a starter pull rope wound around the recoil starter pulley and including a first rope end fastened to the recoil starter pulley and a second rope end fastened to a pull handle; and

a tube having ends, allowing passage of the starter pull rope out of the shroud to a location outside of the scroll air chamber, without penetration of the air chamber space, and forming a trajectory within the shroud, wherein a part of the trajectory is substantially offset from the plane.

13. A tool comprising:

a shroud having a scroll air chamber space extending about at least a portion of the shroud;

an engine part inside the shroud;

a shaft powered by the engine part;

a recoil starter pulley coupled to the shaft and lying in a plane;

a starter pull rope wound around the recoil starter pulley and including a first rope end fastened to the recoil starter pulley and a second rope end fastened to a pull handle; and

a tube having ends, allowing passage of the starter pull rope out of the shroud to a location outside of the scroll air chamber, without penetration of the air chamber space, wherein the ends of the tube are flared to prevent wear of the starter pull rope.