Shenandoah herald. [volume] (Woodstock, Va.) 1865-1974, 1893-10-13

4 Il
ten-sav "lathbolter, which cuts the
/ fsections into one and one-half inch
strips. From the bolter the strips
pass to n gang lath-mill which cuts
four laths at once, and from there to
the lath-binder, where the bundles are
tied by hand These are placed in
bundle and lath-trimmer and cut into
any length from four feet to SIX
inches.
While the slabs are moving to tho
right into the lath machinery the
boards are sent to the left. Rudolph
Mintz, the "edger-man, takes them
as they fall upon the table and runs
them through an adjustable edger
which has four saws on one side for
ed9ing and ten saws on the other side
placed one inch apart for making
flooring. A "cent, which IS a stick
of timber six inches thick and four
teen inches wide, is run through the
ten saws aud comes out eleven strips
of flooring six inches wide and ono
inch thick. The boards are passed
through the other side of the edger,
and. without loss Of time, go over n
roll to a train of chain carriers run
ming to the left. The chains take the
boards to the trimmer" where
Trimmer Steadman cuts them into
ten, twelve, fourteen and sixteen-f60t
lengths by simply pressing down foot
pedals.
"Thls is a model mill, " said II. II.
Mitchell the millwright, who put itup.
"We would like to operate it all day
long, for n saw-mill seems to be n nov
city to a majority of the visitors who
come here. We could cut up a big
pile Of logs in day. Finnegan has
record of slabbing 1860 logs in n run
of ten hours, and that is a lot Of lum
ber."
At the Centennial all the saw-mill
machinery was of the circular saw
order, with enc exception. w. L.
Covel. who has been in the saw-mill
business ever since he was able to file
buck saw, spoke OF the exception as
the beginning of the change in the
form of saws.
"Thc first band saw, said Mr.. Covel,
"was little one, with a inch blade,
and about ten feet long, made in France
about twenty-five years ago. 1t at
tracted little attention. But an old
man, in America, came to the Centen-
NAL with the first band saw ever saw.
1t was a large mill with a 12-ihch
blade, with the pulleys so arranged
that it would cut at any angle. Saw
mill men regarded it with astonish-
ment. but it failed to do its work IN
such way as to compete successfully
with the circular saw. Manufacturers.
however, examined it closely, saw its
weak points and went home to I'M
prove on it. About a year after the
Centennial | heard Of a band saw at
South Bend, Ind, that could cut
Is, 600 feet of white ash in ten hours.
That was looked upon as wonderful
A few days ago, in the State OF WASH
ington, band saw turned out l33, 49O
feet of boards, eighty-fye per cent. OF
them one inch thick. in twelve hours.
"This astonishing increase in capa-
city is entirely due 70 improved
methodist in manufacture. The original
band-saws were made, fitted, sharpened
and turned by hand. Now all that Is
done automatically by machinery. The
earlier blades hardly had two teeth
alike, all varied one way or the other,
but even then makers saw that the cir
culars were out of date. They soon
found that it was necessary for all the
teeth to be alike and that the blade
must be loosened in the center by ham,
mering it so as to make it spread.
This makes the edges run straight over
the pulleys and gives straight cut.
Then they found that their mills were
too light. so built them heavier, and
now band-saws are used in every large
and modern mill except few IN the
South. CHICAGO Record.