The Olneyville times. (Olneyville [Providence, R.I.]) 1887-1917, 1906-01-26
THIMBLE OK GOLD
k'1C= or METAL ALLOWED DOWN
TO FOURTEEN CARATS.
The ProceUs of Manufacture, From
the InHots of Pure Gold Fresh From
the subtreasury to the Finished
ShininK Product.

the subtreasury to the Finished
Shining Product.
Out Of whatever part Of the earth II
may originally have been dug, the gold
from which thimbles are made in Phil
adelphia was bought at the United
States subtreasury In the city in the
form Of snug little ingots, brick shaped
and about two and half inches long
an inch and quarter wide and about
an inch thick.
These little ingots would be Of con-
venlent size for paperweights. But
they would be rather heavy for such
use and probably too expensive for
most people, for each one contains, OF
| pure gold, "a carats fine, metal Of the
! value Of about $500.
Gold of this fineness would be much
too soft for thimbles, and 1t Is alloyed
/ down t. II carats, in which condi-
ton it Is rolled into sheets Of suitable
thickness. In the first process of man.
! ufacture u sheet OF this gold is run
into machine which cuts out Of it a
disk in size sufficient to form thim-
BILE, the same machine stamping this
disk also into the form of a straight
sided capsule with irregular edges.
Then the thimble blank goes into an
other machine, In which die stamps it
into its conical shape. out Of this ma
chine II goes into an anneallng fur
mace for tempering and from that into
an acid bath for cleaning and the re-
moval Of the fire coating
Then the thimble is put into a lathe
to be turned down to its final shape
and dimensions. 1t is dull colored
when it goes into the lathe, but at the
first touch Of the keen edged cutting
tool 1t shows glistening narrow band
OF bright gold surface, which is widen
ed in a moment to cover the whole
length Of the thimble as the skillful
worker shifts the tool along.
With repeated application Of the tool
the operator brings the crown Of the
thlmble into its perfect form and cuts
down along the thimbe's sides to bring
the walls Of the thimble to the requi-
site thickness, and he defines and fin
lshes the smooth band that runs around
the lower part Of the thimble and
brings into relief the rounded rim that
encircles the thmble at its opening at
once to give it n finishing ornamental
grace there and to stiffen it, The glls-
tening little gold shavings that he cuts
off i'm these various operations all fall
into canvas trough suspended be-
tween him and the bench upon which
stands the lathe.
With that last touch to its rim in this
stage Of making the former has grown
marvelously more thmble-like in APP
pcarance, but somehow it still lacks the
breath, so TO speak, of thimDle life; 1t
lacks yet the familiar indentations in
its surface that serve to support the
needle and to hold it In place. These
the thmble maker now proceeds to
make. and the making of these is nice
work indeed.
1t is done with a tool called a knurle.
There is au end knurle and side
knurle. An end knurle is simply ham
die having set in it a tiny, thin revolv-
ing wheel Of steel. upon whose periph-
cry Is Il continuous encircling row Of
little bosses or knobs corresponding In
size to the indentations to be made.
The side knurle has in place of such
wheel little steel cylinder Of a length
sufficient To cover that section Of the
thimblc that is to be indented on its
sides, this cylinder having knobs all
over its surface, rs the end knurle
wheel has around its edges, and turn
Ing. like the wheel, on its axis.
The thmble in the lathe is turning
with $500 revolutions n minute. and 1t
seems as though the application to Its
surface of any sort of tool with pro-
tuberancCS on il must leave there only
Il tangled and mixed up lot Of irregular
marks. But now with the end knurle
the thmble maker makes an indenta-
tion in the center Of the top of the thin
bic, and then he proceeds rapidly and
with perfect certainty with the end
knurle to describe around that center
conccntric rings of indentations, with
the indentationS NIL perfectly made and
the rings all perfectly spaced, from the
center TO the circumference Of the top.
lou may SEE ullu 10 lllS, out you
can't tell how he Is able 10 do ii. And
then with the side knurle he makes the
indentations in the sides of the thin
bic. making there rs WELL as he deftly
presses the tool against IL, indentations
that run absolutely uniform and true
and that end at their lower edge in a
perfectly true cncircling line.
1t is astonishing and pleasant thing
10 see how it develops and comes to
itself with the making OF these IA
miliar indentatious. and now there re-
mains TO he done TO il only the polish
ing inside and out and you have the
finished gold thimble.-Philadelphi
Press.