Improvements in Clips for Billiard and like Cue Racks.
Year: 1898

page_text: Improvements in Clips for Billiard and like Cue Racks.
I, GEORGE ARTHUR WALKER, of the Firm of Henderson and Walker, of
Cambridge Works, Bradford Street, in the City of Birmingham, Manufacturer, do
hereby declare the nature of this invention to be as follows:-
Usually the clips of billiard and like cue racks and stands consist of a horse-
shoe shaped piece of metal with rollers at the free ends forming the entrance to it.
Such rollers sometimes mark and otherwise injure the cues on being passed into
and removed from the clips, by reason of them exercising a compressing force in
keeping the entrance of the clip closed. The object of my invention is to prevent
any such discolorment or injury of the cues and this is accomplished by providing
the entrance or mouth of the clip with independent flexible or yielding gates made
of rubber, leather or pliant material, and which gates constitute closures to the
entrance or opening of the clip and are secured upon the free ends of the said clip
by gripping ends formed by bending the metal of the said ends into U-section
edges set at a right angle or nearly so relative to the sides of the clips and which
are closed down upon and nip the outer edges of the material constituting the said
gates.
Thus, the holder consists of a horse-shoe or U-shaped clip with the entrance
closed by a pair of yielding doors or flaps made preferably of soft material and
which, after the introduction or withdrawal of a cue, spring back to their normal
position, but are of sufficient stiffness or strength to prevent the cue from falling
out of the clip unless drawn by hand.
The mouth of the clip may be closed by a single yielding gate or flap instead of
two, whilst instead of making the flap or flaps entirely of rubber or like soft
substance, the bodies of the gates may be made of ivory, wood or other rigid or
semi-rigid material, and the joints only of rubber or leather.
Dated this 27th day of January 1808
I, GEORGE ARTHUR WALKER, of the Firm of Henderson and Walker, of
Cambridge Works, Bradford Street, in the City of Birmingham, Manufacturer, do
hereby declare the nature of this invention and in what manner the same is to
[Price 8d.1

page_text: be performed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and by the following
statement:.
Usually the clips of billiard and bagatelle and like cue racks and stands con-
sist of a horse-shoe shaped piece of metal with rollers at the free ends forming
the entrance to it. Such rollers sometimes mark and otherwise injure the cues
on being passed into and removed from the clips, by reason of the spring metal
sides of the said clips exercising a compressing force in keeping the entrances of
them closed. The object of my invention is to prevent any such discolorment or
injury of the cues and this is accomplished by providing the entrance or mouth
of the clip with independent flexible or yielding gates made of rubber, leather or
pliant material, and which gates constitute closures to the entrance or opening of
the clip and are secured upon the free ends of the said clip by suitable means
such as by gripping ends formed by bending the metal of the said ends into
U-section edges set at a right angle or nearly so relative to the sides of the clip
and which are closed down upon and nip the outer edges of the material con-
stituting the said gates.
Figure 1 of the accompanying drawing represents a part of a billiard cue rack
provided with a series of cue clips constructed according to my invention.
Figure 2 is a front elevation of one of the said clips, shewn separately and upon
an enlarged scale.
Figure 3 is a side elevation of the same.
Figure 4 is a topside plan of the clip, shewing the clip being held thereon.
Figure 5 is a like view as Figure 4, but showing the cue in the act of being
withdrawn from the clip.
Figure 6 represents a plan of the metallic body part of the clip separately.
Figure 7 represents in front elevation and also in edge view, the flexible or non
metal closures or gates which keep the cue in place in the clip.
The same letters of reference indicate corresponding parts in the several figures
of the drawing.
a is the body of the cue clip, which is of a U or horse shape and is secured to
the cue stand b, by means of small screws, nails or otherwise.
The front entrance a¹, is closed by a pair of yielding doors or flaps c, made of
india-rubber or other flexible material and which, after the introduction or with-
drawal of a cue, spring back to their normal position, but are of sufficient stiffness
or strength to prevent the cue from falling out of the clip unless drawn by hand.
The inner edges cl, of the yielding closures come nearly together, whilst the outward
edges, take with vertical grooves or clips a³, disposed on the opposite sides of the
entrance, and are there retained by closing down the metal of the said grooved
edges and thus causing them to nip and securely hold the closures in their assigned
positions, although I wish it to be understood that I do not confine myself to this
particular method of securing, as the ends may be nipped between opposed metal
plates connected together and to the arms of the clip by screws or rivets, or other
means may be employed for this purpose.
As a modification of my invention, the mouth of the clip may be closed by a
single yielding gate or flap instead of two, whilst instead of making the flap or
flaps entirely of rubber or like soft substance, the bodies of the gates may be
made of ivory, wood or other rigid or semi-rigid material, and the joints only of
rubber or leather.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said inven-
tion, and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what I
claim is:-
First: In billiard cue and like clips, providing the entrances of the same with
yielding gates or closures, made of rubber or other flexible material, and secured
to the body of the clip by nipping them between turned-over parts or opposed
nlates

page_text: Secondly: A billiard cue or like clip, having the entrance thereto closed by
yielding gates or closures made of rubber and secured thereto by nipping the outer
sides thereof in vertical grooves or U-sectioned edges at the ends of the arms of
the clip, substantially as herein described and set forth.
Thirdly: The modified form of billiard-cue or like clip herein described, in
which the body of the closure or gate is made of ivory, wood or the like, whilst the
joint only is made of rubber or similar yielding material.
GEORGE ARTHUR WALKER,
By Henry Skerrett,
24, Temple Row, Birmingham, Agent for Applicant.