How do you get the carbide window punch to come out? I've tried to deploy it in various ways, but no dice.

Instructions are here (part C).

I understood the instructions (I think), but I kind of just wanted to test it. You know, I want to see it do its thing. I'm curious. Guess I have to keep trying.

Go to the junk yard and find a vehicle with an intact door window. Ask the man who owns the dog whether he would mind you destroying that window. If he minds ask how much it would cost or what the cheapest one would cost. (Don't look for a window on a vintage MG but something on an old jeep would work.) Then use some duct-tape to cover the window (this will minimize the amount of glass shards you leave in the yard. Press the center-punch against the glass until you hear a pop. At this point you should notice that the entire window has shattered into little pebble sized pieces (which will rain down on your toes if you didn't do the duct-tape thing correctly) If you hear the pop but the window still doesn't cooperate then you are probably working with a liminated window - windshields (front and back) are laminated and some of the newer tinted side windows are laminated. This will work with tempered glass but not with laminated glass.

Try the punch tool out on a glass bottle or jar. Doing this will give you an idea of how it works. Obviously, you want to do this inside a trashcan or paper bag to contain the glass shards. Be sure to wear safety glasses , as jars and bottles are not safety glass , and will shatter differently. I used this method to test my S&W 911 Rescue Tool. Unfortunately, I have the earlier version with the plastic liner lock and the more dull, less curved blade. It'll still punch through any glass, though. <img src="images/graemlins/smile.gif" alt="" />

I'm assuming that these thing work just like an auto punch, if you are holding it in your hands and trying to activate it you won't really see anything. If you want to see if it works without shattering glass you can push it into aluminum or brass, when you do it should make a click and leave a small dimple in the metal. Metal makes nowhere near as satisfying a pop as tempered glass though. HTH