Sacramento daily record-union. [volume] (Sacramento [Calif.]) 1875-1891, 1883-11-24
MAKING OF STEEL PENS,

Nearly everybody uses steel pens, aud
yet few are familiar with the method in
which they are made 80 perfect and yet
sold so cheaply. The Scientific american
gives the following interesting information
upon the subject The steel pen is mod
ern invention, not many years having
elapsed since it was introduced, and, like
many other innovations, it met with much
opposition and had number of rivals. OF
these the quill pen was the most formid-
able, and to this day the quilts of geese are
used by some old stagers. Pens of silver
and of gold, the latter especially, have
been great favorites with those who admire
much hexi0ility in pen, and the handy
self feeders, such as the stylographic, have
plenty of users. But, after all, the steel
pen is the most generally used, and, unlike
most inventions, the method OF its manu-
facsure has not been essentially changed
or improved. The steel from which
pens are made is the finest
crucible cast steel rolled into sheets
1000 of an inch thick. From this the
blanns are cut by means of punch and die
in presses worked by hand or foot, the
operators being girls. The side Sits In the
pen, the central oval or semi-circular hole,
the corrugations or embossings, the curved
or semi. circular form to the originally Hat
blank, and the stamp of the pen or the
maker, are all formed and produced by
similar means-the screw hand press or
the lever foot press-by the use of punches
and dies, each pen being handled separate.
Is. These corrugations and Sits aud Gen.
trail cuts are not merely fanciful ornaments,
but are intended to adapt the pen TO the
user. Some want resisting pen, very
stiff and allowing considerable pressure
without opening the nibs wide enough to
make heavy mark Others yielding pen
that requires but touch to open the nibs.
Then there are many degrees of these quail
ties required, as well as differences in
sizes; so that q single establishment
makes no less than forty six styles OF steel
pens. OF course cast-steel of such ex
treme tenuity becomes hardened by these
successive DRESSINGS and punchings, and
must be annealed. This is done by plac-
ing the blanks or unfinished pens, in cast
iron box, which is then covered by larger
box leaving a space all around of half an
inch or more, which is filed with ashes or
fine charcoal The whole is then sub
jected TO glowing red heat for about two
hours, and allowed to cool. When an.
nealed these blanks may be rolled up by
the fingers Just like so many bits of tea
lead, which they much resemble in soft
ness. In heating for hardening the same
method is used-packing in double boxes
six or eight inches square-and when the
pens are red hot they are poured into
tank of animal oil. When taken out
from this bath they must be handled
carefully, as they are not only stiff
and brittle, but crumbly they can be
squeezed to minute fragments between
thumb and finger. They are then placed
within cone-shaped sheet iron receptacle,
open at the large end aud mounted on
spindle, and are rotated over a glowing
fire until they turn to full or "low
blue. They are then chilled in oil, and
when cool are ratified in sawdust until
they are quite clean and bright The next
process Is the grinding of the nibs on
minute wheels of fine emery and of ccrun-
dunn. and lastly comes the essential pro-
cess that completes the pen and makes 1t
pen-the sitting OF the nibs. This Is done
by pair of shears acting the same as the
presses and punches. THIS splits the steel
| from point to central hole without remov-
ing a particle of material. The pens are
then lecquered, straw or brown, blued or
BACKED, or left bright, as the style de-
| mands, and packed TOR the market.