The Scranton tribune. [volume] (Scranton, Pa.) 1891-1910, 1896-04-15
PREPARING RUBBER TIRES
Description Of an Interesting Depart
ment Of Bicycle Making.
MASSIVE MACHINERY REQUIRED
To Establish Plant Capable of Produce
ing 400 Tires Day Necessitates mn
Investment Of More Than
Thirty Thousand Dollars.
From the Peoria Journal.

From the Peoria Journal
The rubber tires on a bicycle are
prObab the most important part of the
silent. steel steed. There Is no part
Of bicycle, unless 1t he the bearings,
on which such care Is expended or
which 1t Is more important should be as
perfect as mechanical skill can make
them. Only wheelman who has had a
tire collapse with him on hot day five
miles beyond the end of the street car
line, can denounce in fitting and appro-
pirate words the spurious goods of the
manufacturer of inferior rubber tires.
There have been bicycle factories in
Peoria for years, but until within the
past few weeks rubber tires were not
made in this city. Now. the new BIZ
cycle factory In Richwoods township
has installed big rubber plant and 400
tires a day will be turned out by the
workmen in charge.
The process of preparing rubber tires
Is an interesting one and contains many
surprises for the uninitiated. 1t Is a
rather startling statement yet none the
less true that the Peoria factory was
obliged to place machinery in their rub
her department as big and massive. re-
QGiring as much power and resembling
in many ways the massive machinery
of a steel rail mill. The machinery is
attached directly to the main power
shaft of the manufactory and the big
gest machine--a calendar-cost some
thing like $500 while the smallest was
purchased for $780, The rubber from
the time it enters the factory until II
assumes the shape of completed rub
ber bicycle tire passes through no less
than ten different pairs of hands. a
nj N n no nt n
the Peoria plant cannot be constructed
for less than $4,000.
RUBBER HAMS.
Possibly a description of the process
from first to last would not be without
interest. AS Is well known the crude
material Is secured from the rubber
tree or rubber plant native in tropical
countries. large quantities being OBJ
tained in South America. The gum or
sap Is taken from the trees by natives
at the auspicious season. When the
gum starts to run it looks not unlike
milk and the natives catch 1t on stick.
A slow fire Is builded, the seed of a
tropical plant being used for fuel. The
fire thickens the gum as 1t Is turned
and twisted on the stick and makes 1t
of q consistency easy to handle. The
crude gum Is in chunks now and is
taken to the seaboard for shipment to
the markets.
1t may be said right here that the eX-
act output Is known every year and Is
bought up by single country. the
others being Obliged to pay the price
demanded. Millions of dollars have
been made handling rubber and there
Is still millions in it. The natives are
careless in obtaining the gum and kill
pff nd
the supply grows more limited each
year.
The Peoria factory gets its supply
Of raw material through the Boston
and New York brokers. The stuff Is now
selling for "a cents per pound. AS II
arrives in the factory it is in the shape
Of what is called rubber hams
and they look not unlike a ham cut In
two The crude rubber smells not un-
like old and decaying smoked meat. AS
soon as the rubber is received 1t Is put
into cleansing vat. Here 1t Is thorough
ly soaked and steamed to remove i'm
purities.
THE CRUSHING MILL.
1t is next taken to a crushing mill
This mill can be best described by COM
pairing it to a clothes wringer, except
that the rollers are about ten inches ir
diameter of steel and instead Of being
propelled by the brawny arm of g
washerwoman are driven with illesisti
BILE force by steam power. The roller:
are not one above the other, but side
to side and one is smooth, while tht
surface of the other Is corrugated like
the surface of washboard. The com
! parison to washing utensils Of this ma
chine Is not at all inapt as the process:
is one Of washing and cleaning, {
stream of water flowing down into thu
rolls during the process.
When the rubber comes from thi!
mill 1t Is as dry as cork and looks no
at all unlike great sheets of dark brown
bark, although not possessing brittle
qualities. 1t goes upstairs now and /:
kept in q store room of regular temper
ature. For three or four weeks 1t re
mains in this room drying out and cur
ing.
1t next comes back to another big
| mill. This mill Is similar in appear
| ance to the one described. except tha
both rollers are of polished steel and a
smooth as tempered steel can be made
These rollers are hollow and are so ar
ranged that either hot or cold waite
may be introduced into them to keel
their temperature normal. 1t Is durin.
the process of crushing in this mill tha
sulphur and other elements are grount
| into the stock to cure 1t. This Is gen
orally what Is called compounding TIL
rubber, but the bicycle tire made il
Peoria is not a compounded one. 81
that this part of the process and intro
duction of sulphur and other element
-