IMPROVEMENTS IN SPINNING
Year: 1855

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Samuel Cunliffe Lister, of Bradford, and James
Warburton, of Addingham, both in the County of York, for the Invention
of "IMPROVEMENTS IN SPINNING."
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Samuel Cunliffe Lister and
James Warburton at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with
their Petition, on the 23rd November 1855.
We, SAMUEL CUNLIFFE LISTER, of Bradford, and JAMES WARBURTON, of
Addingham, both in the County of York, do hereby declare the nature of
the Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN SPINNING " to be as follows:-
Our improvements relate to what is commonly called the counter or under
motion, which gives the necessary tension to the yarn in self-acting mules.
Hitherto the proper stress has been given by weights acting upon all the
threads, but in that case the stress has not been equal upon each thread.
thus breaking some of them and creating waste. In order to avoid this, fine
yarns are usually spun upon hand mules, the stress upon the yarn being
regulated by the hand of the workman.
Our improvements consist in placing upon the counter or under faller a
lover, say, twelve inches long, and arranged so as to ride upon what we call a
shaping bar; this is so formed as to allow the counter faller to rise or fall at
any point of the backing or winding on. Below we have a second faller or

page_text: drag wire to give a proper tension to the yarn when winding on, which is
regulated by the under faller or shaping bar; this wiro acting at a suitable
angle, and close up to the cop or bobbin, allows of the yarn being hard wound
on without laying stress upon the other part of the yarn. We find it still more
advantageous. to place upon the counter faller wire a separate stretcher to each
thread, the stretcher being just sufficiently heavy to give the proper degree of
tension to each separate thread. We would observe that this may be modified,
and instead of acting upon cach thread, it may be made so as to act upon two
or three, but not upon any large number, as is now done.
Another improvement consists in constructing the spindles and flyers of
throstle spinning frames so that the upper parts thereof whereon the spools are
placed are made much thinner than is now the case, so that the spool may be
of smaller diameter than heretofore, and consequently admit of a larger quantity
of yarn being wound thereon with a given size of flyers; and in order to prevent
vibration in respect to the upper and thinner parts of the spindles, the upper
parts of the flyers are made with tweedlers or coiléd guides, which turn in
holes. or bearings in a rail, by which the upper part of the spindles and flyers
are supported and retained correctly in position when rotating.
We find it a great advantage when spinning flax or similar fibre to spin
it upon spools or tubes in preference to bobbins. We also find tubes or spools
made of gutta percha, or india-rubber, or similar material, especially any
composition that will resist moisture, of great advantage.
1.Wo also find it 'highly useful to spin cotton wet; and in order to do so,
instead of covering the rollers with leather, as is now practised, we use gutta
percha; but other kinds of rollers may be used.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, filed
by the said Samuel Cunliffe Lister and James Warburton in the Great
Seal Patent Office on the 22nd May 1856.
TO. ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, we, SAMUEL
CUNLIFFE LISTER, of Bradford, and JAMES WARBURTON, of Addingham, both
in the County of York, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the Twenty-third day of November, in the year of our
Lord One thousand eight hundred and fifty-five, in the nineteenth year of Her
reign, did, for Herself, Ier heirs and successors, give and grant, unto us, the
said Samuel Cunliffe Lister and James Warburton, Her special licence that

page_text: we, the said Samuel Cunliffe Lister and James Warburton, our executors,
administrators, and assigns, or such others as we, the said Samuel Cunliffo
Lister and James Warburton, our executors, administrators, and assigns,
should at any time agree with, and no others, from time to time and at all
times thereafter during the term therein expressed, should, and lawfully might
make, use, exercise, and vend, within the United Kingdom of Great Britain
and Ireland, the Channel Islands, and Isle of Man, an Invention for "IM
PROVEMENTS IN SPINNING," upon the condition (amongst others) that we, the
said Samuel Cunliffe Lister and James Warburton, our executors or adminis-
trators, by an instrument in writing under our or their hands and seals, or
under the hand and seal of one of us or them, should particularly describe and
ascertain the nature of the said Invention, and in what manner, the same was
to be performed, and cause the same to be filed in the Great Seal Patent
Office within six calendar months next and immediately after the date of tho
said Letters Patent.
NOW KNOW YE, that we, the said Samuel Cunliffe Lister and James
Warburton, do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention, and in what
manner the same is to be performed, to be particularly described and ascer-
tained in and by the following statement thereof (that-is to say)..
Our improvements relate to what is commonly called the counter or under
motion, which gives the necessary tension to the yarn in self-acting mules.
Hitherto the proper stress has been given by weights acting upon all the
threads, but in that case the stress has not been equal upon each thread, thus
breaking some of them and creating waste.
In order to avoid this, fine yarns
are usually spun upon hand mules, the stress upon the yarn being regulated
by the hand of the workmen.
Our improvements.consist in placing upon the counter or under faller a
lever, say, 12 inches long, and arranged so as to ride upon what we call a
shaping bar; this is so formed as to allow the counter faller to rise or fall at
any point of the backing. or winding on. Below we have a second faller or
drag wire to give a proper tension to the yarn when winding on, which is
regulated by the under faller or shaping bar; this wire acting at a suitable
angle, and close up to the cop or bobbin, allows of the yarn being hard wound
on without laying stress upon the other part of the yarn. We find it still
more advantageous to place upon the counter faller wire a separate stretcher
to each thread, the stretcher being just sufficiently heavy to give the proper
degree of tension to each separate thread. We would observe that this may
be modified, and instead of acting upon each thread, it may be made so as to
act upon two or three, but not upon any large number, as is now done.

page_text: Another improvement consists in constructing the spindles and flyers of
throstle spinning frames so that the upper parts thereof whereon the spools
are placed are made much thinner than is now the case, so that the spool
may be of smaller diameter than heretofore, and consequently admit of a
larger quantity of yarn being wound thereon with a given size of flyers; and
in order to prevent vibration in respect to the upper and thinner parts of the
spindles, the upper parts of the flyers are made with tweedlers or coiled guides,
which turn in holes or bearings in a rail, by which the upper part of the
spindles and flyers are supported and retained correctly in position when
rotating.
-}
We find it a great advantage when spinning flax or similar fibre to
We also find tubes
spin it upon spools or tubes in preference to bobbins.
or spools made of gutta percha, or india-rubber, or similar material; especially
any composition that will resist moisture, of great advantage.
We find it also highly useful to spin cotton wet; and in order to do so,
instead of covering the rollers with leather, as is now practised, we use gutta
percha; but other kind of rollers may be used.
Having thus stated the nature of our said Invention, we will proceed more
fully to describe the manner of performing the same.
"
EXPLANATION OF THE DRAWING.
Hitherto the fallers of self-acting mules have been worked as is showi
in A, Figure 1. a is the upper faller; b, the counter or under faller; the top
faller a is regulated by a dead weight; the under faller 6, by a spring, both
being connected by a chain, so that when the under faller descends the upper
faller rises to a certain degree; on account of this, the weight for large self-
acting mules of 400 or 500 spindles has to be very heavy, so that many of the
ends are broken when winding on.
Our improvement consists in placing upon the counter or under faller b',
see B, Figure 2, a lever about 12 inches long, and arranged so as to ride.
upon what we call a shaping bar; this is formed so as to allow the counter
faller to rise and fall at any point, and to carry the upper faller a¹ to any point
Below we have another.
we think proper at the backing and winding on.
faller or drag wire d, to give a proper tension to the yarn when winding on,.
which is regulated by the under faller or shaping bar; this wire acting at a
suitable angle, and close up to the cop or bobbin, allows of the yarn being hard
wound without laying stress upon the other part of the yarn.
In our second improvement, shewn at C, Figure 3, we place upon the counter
faller wire a separate stretcher c to each thread, the stretcher being just

page_text: sufficiently heavy to give the proper degree of tension to each separate thread.
We would observe that this may be modified, and instead of acting upon each
thread it may be made to act upon two or three, but not upon any large
number, as is now done. By this means the fallers a and b can rise and fall
to any distance without causing any more stress upon the thread than what
the weight of the lever c will allow.
D, Figure 4, shows our improvement in constructing the flyer of a throstle
spiuning frame with a tweedler top to revolve in the upper rail b, so that the
part of the spindle where the spools or bobbins are placed can be made much
thinner than is now the case, so that the spool may be of a smaller diameter
than heretofore, and consequently admit of a larger quantity of
yarn being
wound thereon with a given size of flyer, and prevent vibration in the upper
and thinner part of the spindle.
When spinning flax or other fibre, we find it a great advantage to spin
it upon spools, tubes, or bobbins made of gutta percha, india-rubber, or
compounds containing those matters, especially when spinning wet, as they will
be found to resist the moisture better than wood, and the bobbin can be mado
lighter and to hold more yarn; but we make no claim to the use of spools,
tubes, .or bobbins of this description...
Another part of our Invention has for its object the spinning of cotton wet.
We have discovered by a series of experiments that cotton may be
advantageously spun when in a wet state, and that stronger and finer, that is,
higher numbers of cotton yarn may be readily spun.. For this purpose, the
cotton having been properly carded and prepared, and rendered fit for
spinning as heretofore, is then wetted and spun wet in the following manner:-
a is a trough containing water (which we prefer to be warm), through which
the rovings are passed, E being a small tin roller or other guide to hold them
under the surface of the water; the rovings then pass through the guide wire
D to the fluted brass rollers A', A³, (which are drawn to half the working
size,) and through B', B³, also made of brass, which act as carrying rollers, and
then through the rollers C¹, C, the upper roller C¹ being by preference made
of gutta percha, on an iron shaft, as is well understood, the lower roller C³
being made of brass fluted; the draft betwixt the rollers C¹, C³, and A', A³,
being about ten, depending upon the cotton, but the like cotton when spun wet
will allow of more draft than when spun dry. Wo would remark, that although
we have been thus particular in describing the arrangement of mechanical
parts preferred to be used by us in carrying out our Invention, at the same
time we would state that we do not confine ourselves thereto; and it should

page_text: be stated that we find that the "rack" or "ratch," when spinning cotton wet,
should be slightly longer than when spinning like cotton dry.
Having thus described the nature of our Invention in respect to spinning
cotton, and the manner of performing the same, we would have it understood
that we are aware that flax, hemp, and other similar vegetable fibrous
matters, when they have been reduced to a state to be spun by splitting or
backling processes, and which are by wetting and drawing capable of being
separated into finer fibres than those to which they have been previously
reduced by splitting or hackling, have heretofore been spun wet, we do not,
therefore, claim wetting such fibrous vegetable matters after hackling and then
spinning such fibres in the wet state; but what we do claim is, the wetting and
spinning wet cotton which has been previously prepared for spinning. Wo
also claim the use of gutta percha drawing rollers when spinning cotton in a
wet state.
In witness whereof, we, the said Samuel Cunliffe Lister and James
Warburton, have hereunto set our hands and seals, this Sixteenth
day of May, in the year of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and
fifty-six.
Witness,
C. F. YESSEN, of Addingham,
in the County of York.
S. C. LISTER.
(L.S.)
JAMES WARBURTON. (L.s.)