The Superior times. [volume] (Superior, Wis.) 1870-1912, 1892-06-04
The Manufacture of Fin at st. Louis.

The Manufacture of Fin at st. Louis.
For the benefit of the Free Trade
Democracy of this country who have
been declaring, in season and out OF
season, that there were 10 TIN plate
manufactures in this country and new
er would or could be, we print the fol
living descriptive article which we
find in the Scientific American of the
18th ult., the illustrations only being
omitted, the works illustrated and de
scribed being those of the st. Louis
Stamping Company, which originally
app cared in the Iron Age, thus giving
us undisputel authority for the state
mentS made:
The works have been completed at
Il cost of s.5A, 900 for the tin plate mill
alone, but, including forge, bar mills,
warehouses, etc, the investment Is
over $500 900 and we take pleasure in
LAYING before our readers views OF the
different departments taken from pho
tograPhs.
The st Lou:s tin plate plant com
prIses sheet mill loo feet long by 100
feet wide; an aEnealiag department
$50 by Is fit, and Il timing department
30 by 30 #, The steel Hate bars are
made in the order departments of the
works IN the forge mill the hiliets
and bars are prepared and rolled to
suitable thickness, width, ard length,
after which they are taken 10 the tin
plate works, where they are rcheated
and rolled TO about No. 10 gG"ge IHey
are then doubled. re-roll.d three times
and shearcd 10 the different sizes. The
doubler and shearcr used by the coIa-
pany is of their own design, and is in
use nowhere else. An upright bar,
jointed at It's base has two arms, one
forming the doubler and the other the
shearer, which work alternately with
the motion Of 4 cam al the top. There
are four mills in the sheet mill depart
ment, Il m!ll consisting of Il ruughlng
and Il finishing roll. The sheets are
then cut to the size required, after
WHICH tieN tthtH u Tic
machine or agitator. to remove the
scales and other impurities from the
surface eff the sheet, and allowed to
remain there from ~ 10 - minutes
The agitator is capable of picking
sheets fer 700 boxes of tin plate a day.
After being picked, the sheets are
taken to the annealing department,
where they remain in the furnace for
t.,l- l,,I
TO the rolling mill to be cold rolled, in
order to make their surface perfect to
receive the coating. After this they
are annealed again. and repickIed in
the SO called white pickle. after which
they are placed III water tanks 10 pre-
vent oxidation, beng then ready for
timing
The process OF Timing is compare
lively simple. The sheets first go to
the thinning, next to the wash, and last
10 the finishing or greaS" pot, i'll which
they are run through rollers which
strip them of stpertluous tin. They
are then taken to the cleaning boxes
and finally rubbed with the woollv side
of sheep skin. after which they are
ready 10 be packed.
Ten thinning pots or stacks are now
in operation III these works, producing
about so boxes Il day, to which Will
immediately be added six more, and
with these 10 stacks the company will
he able 10 turn ous over GOO boxes Of
lin plate daily. The stacks now in op-
Grafton are producing half bright tin
plates. which are largely used III the
company'S own works. save What are
sold TO the retail trade. The balance
nf the production is roofing or tCrne
plates. The roofing plates are I'll sold
10 dealers and the company say that
consumers report the plates are much
better than English plates OF the same
grade Ii may be Of interest II note
that the Government building al the
World'S Fair al Chicago, is covered
with these plates
There are ii furnaces III the anneal-
ing department running Oh sheets for
the timing department, To which VIII
soon be added four more, when suite
tent quantities of sheets can he am
nealed 10 run the thinning department
1ull. Arrangements have also been
completed for the erection OF 4 coll
rolling house, with y Sets ut rolls. for
finishing tie sheets before they are
sent Ia The Timing house. TINS viii
give the company two more mills i'll
The MI proper How being used for
r;,ia :ull,nL. which VIII increase their
capacity about onc.thiul.
IN addition 10 the Improvements
noted. the company Is soon 10 erect a
new steel plant, which will bv locate, 4
1t Granite tlty. Il rev town beng
luilt by the \eldrirg CLAUS Bros uppo-
site the city et 81 Louis. The Steel
! liant Viii produce steel hot ly th,.
open hearth and Htss, ncr process. and
Viii contain boiler. sack ana natl plate
mills. The nail plate mills Will ~ ran
IL prepare llate tor II" tn plate mills.
where they VIII he rolled 10 the thin
sheets as above described.
The company intend 10 he able TO
control tie entire process OF the man
i,faciurirag operations step Ey sep,
from the production OF the steel inrot
Ia the finished TIN plate The location
TOR !: steel plant ut Granite City. as
for other manufactures, is unSurpasS
I'd. taat Mil cost about 0ne-t!irG the
price i'll Wales The leading railroad
systems of the country connect at this
JOINT, and labor IS plentiful and OF 4
high grade. The total production o.
this concern : ',u. :. ,ilo}. iii the buck.
It e"nrare,! with The aggregate COS.