The Calhoun chronicle. [volume] (Grantsville, W. Va.) 1883-1984, 1895-04-09

cast IN ingots in IA iron mold about
six feet long, three inches wide and
hall as thick. These bars are rolled
into sheets about one-eighth of an inch
thick. The pressure of the rolls makes
the metal inAex:ble and somewhat brit
tie, and the bars are rnnealed or SOFT
ened by heat and sloYt cooling several
times while being rec cd from ingots
to sheets. When the sheets have
reached the required thinress they are
passed through Sitting rolls, which
slice up the sheets into rods one-eighth
of an inch square and these reds are
drawn into wire. One end of the rod
is pointed so that 1t will pass through
a round hole in the steel draw plate.
A pair of powerful nippers grasps the
pointed end of the rod, and as the
nippers are on revolving reel the rod
is drawn through the hole and comes
out on the other side round wire,
smaller In diameter than the square
rod was. The reel of wire is annealed,
and then drawn through another and
smaller hole and this process is con-
tinued, the wire being annealed each
time, until the size required for the
pin is reached.
The metal, though somewhat stiff,
is too soft to spring ont straight, and
rs the drawing reels are of smaller
diameter, tho wire is kinky and "set"
and must be Strengthened before it is
ready for the pin-making machine.
The kinks are taken out of the wire
by pulling it through a series OF small
or III,
and vertical rolls alternating in the
series. The wire is then wound on
large reel which is hung over the won.
derful pin-m0king machine.
In this machine the pin is cut from
the wire, headed, pointed, shnrpened
and polished. 1t is complicated, in
teresting combination of steel fingers,
rollers, cams, toggle joints, headers,
revolving files and belts. The wire,
caught by pair OF rollers, is drawn
forward into the machiNe, and quick
as n flash the wire is cut juNt the right
length; then como two raps from n
cam and toggle and the head is on the
pin. A steel finger puts the headed
blank on wheel under the heading
dies and the pointless pin is carried
down between two revolving steel
disks One of them revolves faster
than the other, so that the pin is
turned around as it travels forward.
Just at this point it comes in contact
with four revolving files, which point
the pin, and then an emery belt puts
the first polish on the household ne
cessity. The pins drop from the ma
chine at the rate of 100 minute and
faster, and fall into a hopper, from
which they are taken to the timing
room.
In passing through the pin-making
machine The pins become covered with
oil ard dirt, and This IS removed by
putting them into L revolving iron
barrel with eawdust, where they are
tumbled about for ten minutes end
thoroughly secured. They are then
ready 50 ne timed. OK +our hours
they ere boiled in preparation of
pure tn, and are then washed with
strong s0apsuds TO give them smooth
surface. After another tumbling in
the sawdust they ere ready TO be
stuck into the papers.
The sticking machine 10 another in.
genious piece Of mechanism, for it
crimps Che paper and sticks n the
pins at the same time. TIE pins are
put in a hopper which feeds the stick
ing machine. An inclined STEEL plate,
furrowcd with little "rrns" or chan
nels, leads from the hopper to the
machine. The pins are caught by
revolving steel fingers and pushed for
ward upon the inclined plate which
moves slightly back and forth across
the rows of slots. This "cutting-oT
plate catches the pins, and when the
holes are full II number OF little rams
or hammers shove the pins into the
crimp of the paper, which is formed n
second before the pins are stuck IN.
The more expensive pins are stuck
in thirty to the row and twelve rows
TO the paper, but the cheaper pins
are stuck in twenty to the row and
fourteen rows to the paper. The slick
ing machine for the cheap pins sticks
100 rows a minute. The paper is fed
in from a roll and is cut up to the
proper length for q paper Of pins
after the pins have been stuck i'm.
These pins we're formerly stuck in pa
pers by hand. The paper was first
creased between rolls and then the
people of the town or the farm girls
would take home number of papers
with the pins and pass the evening
sticking In the pins, getting six cents
for "A dozen papers.
Black or mourning pins are made
from iron wire and iapaunsd The old
form Of pin was made in two parts.
The head was made of two turns Of
twisted fine wire which was pressed
upon the shank under "a die. A length
OF the fine wire was wound spirally
upon steel rod which was Just the
size OF tho pin shank This long
spiral was then cut mp into sections
for the head, each section taking two
turns of the wire. After the hea lis had
been softened by annealing they we're
dumped In n heap before n boy, who,
taking number OF the shanks i'm his
fingers, plunged them into the heaped
Up heads Such of the shanks which
caught heads were handed to work
man who pu5 them into die and the
head md shank were pressed tightly
together under T. dropped weight
Chioego Record