Alpena weekly argus. [volume] (Alpena, Mich.) 1871-1893, 1880-02-11
Points About Pins.


dates from 1924, when an Ameri-
can they are nearly always Ameri-
cans who do these things), named
Wright, exhibited in London his
machine, which, during the revo-
luton OF q single wheel, produced
a perfect pin. OF course, 10 the
long interval between 1924 and
1879, many improvement. have
been made on this machinery, and
the one now in use is that Of Me.srs.
Taylor. which is only "a inches
wide, 80 inches long and Is inches
high-a vsritable Liliputisn giant.
A pin, Invested Of all sentiment, is
8 piece of polished brass wire, tin
ned over, with a point on one end
and a head on the other, and is pro-
duced thus: The brass wire is
fed on to the machine by reel,
and the first operation is to give it
8 head, which il done by the wire
being forced into 8 recess and there
meeting steel punch and die. The
head on, the wire is suddenly nip
ped in the middle, according 10 the
proposed length Of the embryo pin,
snd slides down q grooved incline
into 8 tray with a slit in the bot
tom. Through this slit the headed
pin-wire is bound to 60; but, as
the head prevents its entirely drop
ping through, it is left dangling
Though for an infnitesimal period
only over a revolving roller Of
steel, garnished with a number of
teeth like files. Before the pin
has had time TO consider its situa-
ton, the end touching the roller
is pointed, smoothed and polished,
and at the same moment that the
operation is finished, it is pushed
through the slit by its successor, fol-
lowing in the same track, and drop
into a tray clean as the new pin that
tits. The subsequently processes are
comparatively slight ones. The pins
are frightened by boiling in weak
beer, so as TO thoroughly purify the
surface,and then exposed to solu-
ton Of grain tin, by which they
acquire a coating of that metal,
and sre finally shaken in a barrel
with bran or sawdust, which makes
them pretty and bright. Perhaps
not the least curious part of the
performance j. represented in the
pspering-which formerly cost both
time and money, not less than 3ld.
per paper, when done by hand.
Twelve sheets of paper had to be
folded, in each sheet OF which
there were "a double folds, and in
TO these were stuck carefully aud
laboriously, IA rows Of pins, with
SO il each row, in all 5,616. But
by the action Of very simple
piece Of machinery, the paper,
with makers name ready printed
on il, is actually crsmped, and the
pins stuck into it in rows, much
faster than these lines can be
written. Perhaps the lady readers
Of this article and pin consumers,
as all women are, will look with
more respect on these unconsider-
ed tribes when they think of the
extraordinary ingenuity that has
been lavished upon them, and that.
small as they are, nearly quarter
million pounds sterling are annual
ly spent upon them by purchasers.
Pins, like needles, have many other
differences besides those Of thick
ness and length. Mourning pins
are not made Of brass at all, but of
iron wire, and are "bluedv by
heating them in a peculiar furnace
called "muffle." Then there are
corked pins Of 81 inches in length,
hair pins, safety pins for dresses and
shswls. not to speak Of entomology
cal pins, without which the collec-
tor Of insects is utterly lost. Some
Of these are comparatively very
costly, fetching at the rate Of lbs.
to 1885, per pound, while the ordi-
nary pin is sold at Is. Cd. to Is. I'd.
for the same weight.
Three Jolly Husbands.
a.