The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1868-05-05

Ame FAIRBANKS ScAe :" ~A-AS'
Wherever goods are bought and sold by
weight. on either continent, there is a market
for the Platform Scale invented by Thaddeus
Fairbanks. and manufactured at St. Johns
bury by Fairbanks, Brown & Co. AS this i'm
mense mandatory is ON the line of the pro-
posed Portland and Ogdensburg railroad GIG
miles from Portland, 205 miles from Boston,
better acquaintance with the works seems Just
at this time desirable, and we copy the ioliow-
ing sketch from the Boston Post;
Thaddeus Fairbanks, the inventor, was born
in the town of Brimfeld, State of Massachu-
sets. In his early manhood, he removed to
ST. Jobnsbury in the State OF Vermont where
his elder brother Hon. Erastus Fairbanks,
late Governor OF Vermont, had previously set.
tied Thaddeus erected a carriage shop, and
subsequently engaged in the manufacture of
ploughs, but met with series of misfortunes
by fire and flood, and was therefore not very
successful. About the years 1929 and 1880 the
hemp fever broke out in New York, and
ragged extensively in Vermont, especially in
Caledonia county, where Mr.. Fairbanks re-
sided. Farmers EN- cred largely into the Guilt
walton OF hemp, and it was this agricultural
enterprise (which ultimately proved failure)
that gave birth to one of the most important
instruments in the civilized world-one which
has done more to correct the standard and to
produce uniformity in the measurements of
weights in the United States and other coun-
tries than all other agencies COMMUNICATIVE
Platform Scale Merchants and others made
contracts to purchase this hemp by weight,
and-aS 1t could not be readily weighed by the
old fashioned steel-yard, Mr.. Thaddeus Fair
banks, who possessed great inventive talent,
by this circumstance had his attention direct
ed to the science of weighing, and he at once
commenced to discover or invent way to
weigh things, especially hemp. He at first
constructed a rude apparatus which he sus-
pended in a frame building which answered
the purpose, and improving upon this he at
last hit upon the principle of leverage, upon
which the present Platform Scale is based.
n His brother ErastuS discovered at once that 1T
was valuable invention, and patent was
applied for.
Such, in brief was the commencement of
the scale business, which has now grown into
a worldwide notoriety. 1t then slowly in
creased from year to year for the first ten or
twelve years. But from 1912 to 1857 it doubled
every three years. During this latter year a
panic prevailed, and the business was much
reduced, and up to 1860 there was little prog
ress. During the latter year, however, the
business considerably more than doubled, and
has ever since been on the increase. 1t was
early in the history of this enterprise that or
ders began to be received from foreign coun-
tries, which are growing larger and larger, the
scales being adjusted to the standard of the
nation ordering the same, the latest order be-
ing from two distinct sections of China the
DGduS UelDS udIh6u WITH STOleSQu0 CUdTdC-
ters and the weights sealed according to a Civ
en- standard. The shipment is to be made this
month The yearly products of the st. Johns
bury establishment now amount to over 81,
100000 while they have other factories in New
York and Jersey City. The consumption of
iron at this factory is immense, averaging over
thirteen tons per day, while there is yearly
consumption of nearly two million feet of
lumber. The maximum number of men en-
ployed is placed at 500, and with this force,
hur fhnpa 60 a4,,,
ed 81, 132 scales, of various pa, terms In 1866
the product was nearly the same, and for the
first quarter OF the present year there is
slight increase. From twenty to thirty per
cent. of this product is exclusively for foreign
countries, including England, France, Spain,
Germany, Turkey, China, and all the South
American States. The shipments from st.
Johnsbury, given in tonnage, for the year 1867,
were, outward $3.50 tons, inward 4,757 tons,
making total of 8,127 tons, which is an aver
age OF about q tons for each working day of
the year, for the transportation of which eigh-
teen cars per week are demanded. But this
exhibit, being connected solely with the es-
adjustment at st. JohHsbury, gives but an
imperfect idea of the amount of business done
by this firm, which now consists of Thaddeus
Fairbanks, and Horace and Franklin Fair
banks, sons of Erastus or Gov. Fairbanks
Their establishments at New York and Jersey
City are very exten sive the products of which
are very large, though not equal to the parent
concern.
Ju Work upon the scale, after the material is
all delivered at the factory, first commences in
the foundry, where all the castings are made,
this branch of the business being in charge of
Mr.. Frank Walker, who has been connected
with the establishment from his boyhood, and
who has reduced the science of moulding by
his many improvements to a nicely This
foundry is new building, measuring 115x175
feet, and contains three large cupolas for melt
ing the pig. In these cupolas an average of
thirteen tons of iron are melted every day,
which Mr.. Walker converts into castings of
various designs and magnitude for the scales.
On being removed from the moulding pits
these castings are first taken to the cleaning
room where they are placed in the vitriol watts
for the purpose of removing all roughness.
When taken from these watts the castings are
so perfect, the surfaces are all SO smooth and
even that no filing is needed to fit them for the
finishing process which they receive from the
painter and japaner. On leaving the vitriol
room all castings are taken to the large black
smith shop, containing from Is to so FORCES,
where they are drilled, the wrought irons
forged and the parts thoroughly fitted for the
next process. We are next introduced into
large machine shop for cutting bolts and
screws, which is done with nice and peculiar
machinery invented by Mr.. Thaddeus Fair
banks. The threads upon the screw are the
same as those cut twenty years ago-and SO
are all other parts of the scale then used.
everything in fact being brought up to per-
feet standard, so that in case any part of the
scale is broken or lost, be the same in Paris or
San Francisco, it can at once be supplied. In
this same apartment, the neatly polished brass
beams, which are perhaps the most SNOWY part
of the scale, are fixed with the long and short
graduating marks, by means of oEe of the most
he neee Ct aae bsns t to of
Mr.. Fairbanks-he having discovered that the
old process OF marking the beams, by means OF
chisel and mallet, heightened the BEAM and
therefore created an lnaccuracy in weighing
There are many designs for these beams, but
new pattern OF double beam for weighing
the tare, wagons, trucks, etc., will be sent TO
Boston this week.
1t may not be generally unders TODD, but like
the fine works of Frodsham watch, all the
nice jewel work of the platform scale is entire
ly out of sight. These jewels, for we know of
no better term to use, inasmuch as they do the
same work as the jewels of watch, consist of
loops with finely polished steel surfaces and
small steel shoulders or arms with highly pol
ished knife edges, which when adjusted rest
upon the steel surfaces of the loops. This is
done to avoid friction, which is the great OBJ.
stacle to be overcome in making correct bal
ance. These loops after being milled are all
carefully filed with a revolving file of the very
finest character, SO that if any scratches are
lett upon the surface of the loop, now as clear
as mirror, they will be at right angles to the
knife edge of the pivot resting therein By
this arrangement, which is perhaps the most
important thing connected with the mechan-
ism of the scale, friction which, we repeat is
the greatest obstacle that the correct SCALE
maker has to contend with, is reduced to it's
fullest extent. This branch of the business is
under the immediate control of Mr.. Thomas
Spooner, who has also been connected with
the works from his early boyhood. -
When the various pieces of the scale leave
this department, all the nice and accurate work
for avoiding friction and securing correct
balance is completed. In another department
the parts are now put together and the nice
time consuming labor of sealing commences,
which consists not only in the sealing of weights
which is done with tie greatest of accuracy,
but in the filing of pivot here and there, and
the adjusting OF distances from one bearing to
another, which is sometimes SO minute that
the mere touch of fine Arkansas milestone
upon the knife edge of pivot will alter the
distance from one bearing to another. But all
this work is done-done with the greatest care
and when finished everything must be SO &C
curate that the maximum load that the scale
is intended to weigh must be indicated exactly
from the four corners of the platform. This
done the scale is ready for the finishing rooms
the painters, laDaners and XynrlarS in mood