IMPROVEMENTS IN BRACE BUCKLES OR BRACE FASTENINGS, AND IN SUSPENDING THE BACK TABS OF BRACES
Year: 1882

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Thomas Walker, of Birmingham, in the County of
Warwick, Manufacturer, for an Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN BRACE
BUCKLES OR BRACE FASTENINGS, AND IN SUSPENDING THE BACK TABS OF
BRACES"
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Thomas Walker at the '
Office of the Commissioners of Patents on the 21st January 1882.
THOMAS WALKER of Birmingham in the County of Warwick Manufacturer.
"IMPROVEMENTS IN BRACE BUCKLES OR BRACE FASTENINGS AND IN SUSPENDING
THE BACK TABS OF BRACES."
In constructing a brace buckle or brace fastening according to one of my
improvements I make on the lower edge of the frame of the buckle or fastening
and in one piece therewith a pendent plate of metal to which the front tabs of the
brace are to be connected. At the lower part of this pendent piece is a disc and
from this disc I make by dies and pressure the tubular part or stem of an eyelet
fastening. In connecting the front tabs of the brace to the buckle or fastening the
said tubular part or stem is passed through holes in the upper ends of the tabs and
a ring or washer being placed upon the said tubular part or stem its narrow open.
end is expanded and turned down or eyeletted upon the said ring or washer and
the tabs are thereby connected to the buckle or fastening the said tabs being
capable of turning upon the tubular stem as a centre.
Where the sheet metal from which the frame or lower part of the fastening is
made is too thick for the convenient manufacture of an eyelet therefrom I make
the tubular part of the eyelet of a separate piece of metal and pass it into a hole in
the disc end of the pendent piece a depression in the said disc end of the pendent
piece receiving a flange on the wide end of the said tubular part. The separate
eyelet is secured to the pendent piece by a shallow cap or flanged disc being closed
over the disc part of the pendent piece in which the tubular part has been inserted..
A similar shallow cap may be closed upon the eyelet when it is made in one piece
with the frame of the buckle or lower part of the fastening but in this case the
function of the said cap is only to cover the eyelet.

page_text: The improvements described are applicable both to brace buckles and the
brace fastenings, commonly called lever buckles as well as to brace fastenings
generally.
In applying my improvements to the suspending of the back tabs of braces, I
connect the ends of the brace bands or webs to a rectangular metallic. loop and to 5
the lower bar of the said loop I connect a pendent piece having an eyelet fastening
constructed in either of the ways herein before described. Or the metallic loop and
pendent part carrying the eyelet fastening may be made in one piece.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Lotters Patent filed
-by-the-said. Thomas Walker in the Great Seal Patent Office on the
14th July 1882.
THOMAS WALKER of Birmingham in the County of Warwick Manufacturer.
"IMPROVEMENTS IN BRACE BUCKLES OR BRACE FASTENINGS AND IN SUSPENDING
THE BACK TABS OF BRACES."
In constructing a brace buckle or brace fastening according to one of my
improvements I make on the lower edge of the frame of the buckle or fastening,
and in one pieco therewith, a pendent plate of metal to which the front tabs of the
brace are to be connected. At the lower part of this pendent piece is a disc and
from this disc, I make by dies and pressure, the tubular part or stem of an eyelet
fastening. In connecting the front tabs of the brace to the buckle or fastening,
the said tubular part or stem is passed through holes in the upper ends of the tabs
and a ring or washer being placed upon the said tubular part or stem its narrow
open end is expanded and turned down or eyeletted upon the said ring or washer
and the tabs are thereby connected to the buckle or fastening, the said tabs being
capable of turning upon the tubular stem as a centre.
Where the sheet metal from which the frame or lower part of the fastening is
made, is too thick for the convenient manufacture of an eyelet therefrom, I make
the tubular part of the eyelet of a separate piece of metal and pass it into a hole in
the disc end of the pendent piece, a depression in the said disc end of the pendent
piece receiving a flange on the wide end of the said tubular part. The separate
eyelet is secured to the pondent piece by a shallow cap or flanged disc being closed
over the disc part of the pendent pieco in which the tubular part has been inserted.
A similar shallow cap may be closed upon the eyelet when it is made in piece with
the frame of the buckle or lower part of the fastening, but in this case the function
of the said cap is only to cover the eyelet:
The improvements described are applicable both to brace buckles and the brace
fastenings commonly called lever buckles as well as to brace fastenings generally.
In applying my improvements to the suspending of the back tabs of braces, I
connect the ends of the brace bands or webs to a rectangular metallic loop and to
the lower bar of the said loop I connect a pendent piece having an eyelet fastening.
1
.

page_text: constructed in either of the ways hereinbefore described. Or the metallic loop and
pendent part carrying the eyelet fastening may be made in one piece. :
I will now proceed to describe with reference to the accompanying Drawing the
manner in which my Invention is to be performed.
Figure 1.represents in front elevation and side elevation, a brace buckle and
the front tabs of a brace, the said brace buckle being constructed and the
tabs connected to it according to my Invention; Figure 2 represents a vertical
section of the buckle frame drawn to a larger scale, before the front tabs
are connected to it; Figure 3 represents in front elevation and vertical section,.
and Figuro 4 in vertical section, the eyelet fastening of the buckle frame in course
of manufacture; Figure 5 represents the eyelet detached and Figure 6 represents
the shallow cap or flanged disc used for connecting the separate eyelet to the
buckle frame or for covering the eyelet when made in one piece with the buckle
frame.
I will first describe the arrangement of my Invention in which the eyelet is made
separately from the buckle frame and connected to it.
To the lower edge of the buckle frame a and in one piece therewith I make the
pendent piece 6 having a perforated disc shaped end c, best seen in Figure 3, to:
which the front tabs of the brace are connected. In one face of the said disc
shaped end C, I make a circular depression d for receiving the flange 6 of the
separate eyelet e, represented in Figure 5, the said eyelet being made in the
ordinary way by dies and pressure.
"
In connecting the eyelet e to the disc shaped end c of the buckle frame, the stem
of the eyelet is passed from the front through the perforation in the disc end c and
its flange & made to seat itself in the circular depression d in the said disc end c as
represented in Figure 4. The separate eyelet e is secured in its place by the shallow
cap(shown separately in Figure 6) being placed over the front of the eyelet e
and disc end c as represented in Figure 4, and its edge f* closed over the edge of
the disc part c of the buckle frame as represented in Figure 2. The eyelet e is
thereby fixed in its place and the buckle frame is ready to receive the front tabs
g, h, Figure 1.
In connecting the tabs g, h to the buckle frame thus provided with an eyelet
fastening, the upper ends of the tabs are perforated and their perforated ends are
passed onto the tubular stem of the eyelet e (see Figure 1). A washer or perforated
disc i (shown separately in Figure 7) being placed on the contracted end of the
eyelet e and against the tabs, the said contracted end of the eyelet is expanded or
rivetted upon the said washer i the extreme end of the eyelet being expanded into
and occupying the recess in the face of the washer i (see Figure 7). The tabs g, h
are thus fixed between the disc end c of the buckle frame and the washer i, the said
tabs being capable of turning upon the tubular stem of the eyelet as a centre as
will be understood by an examination of Figure 1.
Figure 8 represents a cross section of a buckle frame constructed according to
my Invention in which the eyelet e is made in one piece with the disc part c of
the buckle frame instead of separately as before described. In this case the shallow
cap f, Figure G, is used only to cover the front of the eyelet e.
The improvements described and illustrated may be applied to lover buckles and
brace fastenings generally.
Figure 9 represents a front elevation of a back tab brace suspender constructed
according to my Invention and Figure 10 represents the same, without the tabs,
drawn to a larger scale.
k is the metallic loop of the suspender through which the bands or webs of the
brace are passed. I make in one piece with the loop k or attach to the said loop
a pendent piece b with a disc shaped end as described and represented in Figure 3
with respect to a buckle frame and I secure to the said disc shaped end either a
separate eyelet as represented in Figure 2, or make in one piece with the said disc
shaped end an eyelet as represented in Figure 8, and connect the back tabs to the
eyelet in the manner described with respect to the front tabs g, h of the brace buckle.

page_text: Having now described the nature of my Invention and the manner in which>
the same is to be performed I wish it to be understood that I claim as my
Invention..
First The improvements in brace buckles or brace fastenings herein before
described and illustrated in Figures 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7 and 8 of the accompanying
Drawing for the purpose of connecting the front tabs of the brace to the said
brace buckles or brace fastenings; that is to say, making at the lower edge of the
frame of the buckle or fastening and in one piece therewith a perforated disc shaped
end and forming from the disc shaped end an eyelet, or connecting a separate eyelet
to the said disc shaped end, the front tabs of the brace being passed onto the eyelet
and secured thereto and to the frame of the brace buckle or brace fastening sub-
stantially as described and illustrated.
Secondly the improvements in suspending the back tabs of braces hereinbefore:
described and illustrated in Figures 9 and 10 of the accompanying Drawing ;. that
is to say, the adaptation of the eyelet fastening claimed in the preceding claim to
the back tab suspenders of braces whether the pendent piece carrying the eyelet
fastening be made in one piece with the metallic loop of the suspender or be
connected to it..
In witness thereof I the said Thomas Walker have hereunto set my hand
and seal this Twelfth day of July in the year of our Lord One thousand
eight hundred and eighty two.
Witness
GEORGE SHAW.
THOMAS WALKER. (LS.)