IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINERY FOR THE MANUFACTURE OF CARTRIDGE CASES.
Year: 1867

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Edwin Ludlow, of Birmingham, in the County of
Warwick, Manufacturer, and Alfred Ludlow, of Birmingham, aforesaid,
Manufacturer, for the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINERY FOR
THE MANUFACTURE OF CARTRIDGE CASES.
Sealed the 8th May 1868, and dated the 21st December 1867.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Edwin Ludlow and Alfred
Ludlow at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with their
Petition, on the 21st December 1867.
We, EDWIN LUDLOW, of Birmingham, in the County of Warwick, Manu-
facturer, and ALFRED LUDLOW, of Birmingham, aforesaid, Manufacturer, do
hereby declare the nature of the said Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN
MACHINERY FOR THE MANUFACTURE OF CARTRIDGE CASES," to be as follows:-
Our Invention consists of the improved arrangements or combinations of
parts herein-after described of machinery for the manufacture of cartridge
the object of the improvements constituting our Invention being to
effect the opening, 'closing, rivetting, and piercing of the cartridge cases, and
their removal from the machine.
Machinery constructed according to our Invention consists essentially of the
following parts and arrangements:-A horizontal rotating table receiving an
intermittent motion at the required intervals is provided with a series of dies,
in which the cartridge cases to be perfected by the machine are put. Above
the said rotating table is a series of punches or tools, and below the said table is
a second series of punches or tools for operating upon the cartridge cases in the
dies described. The cartridges cases have their parts loosely put together

page_text: The
before they are inserted in the said dies. Four cartridge cases are simul-
taneously operated upon by the machine; the several operations herein-after
described being effected upon the four cartridges cases in succession in the
order in which they are described. The rotating table being brought to rest
after the insertion of a roughly formed case in one of the dies, the base or
metallic cap of the case being upwards, a punch descends upon the said
metallic base, at the same time a taper punch or mandril rises from below,
and entering the open mouth of the cartridge case opens it out and perfects
its tubular figure. The upper punch and lower punch or mandril retiring, the
table performs a partial rotation, and being again brought to rest the car-
tridge case is operated upon by a second pair of tools, the upper tool or punch
descending both holds the cartridge case in its place, and at the same time
introduces another and smaller punch or peg formed on its lower end into
the metallic tube or cup in the metallic base of the cartridge case.
object of the said smaller punch is to keep the said tube or cup in position,
and also to make the said tube or cup of the proper size. The lower tool or
punch, which is hollow, at the same time ascending compresses the pulp or
wad in the base of the cartridge case and gives it the required density. By
another motion of the table the cartridge case is carried between another pair
of tools, the upper tool or punch descending serves to support the base of the
cartridge case, while the lower tool or punch ascending rivets or expands the
closed end of the tube or cup in the metallic base of the cartridge case, and
thereby secures it in its place. By another motion of the table the cartridge
case is brought between another pair of tools; the lower tool, which has a hole
in its axis, ascends and supports the closed end of the tube or cup in the
metallic base of the cartridge case, while a piercing punch descending pierces
a suitable opening in the bottom of the said tube or cup, the small piece of
metal cut out falling down the hollow lower supporting tool. By another
motion of the table the cartridge case is brought over another punch or
mandril, which rising pushes the finished cartridge case partially out of the
die in which it has been fashioned and perfected. The cartridge case is then
laid hold of by a pair of forceps actuated by the machine, which wholly
remove it from the die, and carrying it out of the range of the working tools
of the machine release it and drop it into a box provided for its reception.
The motion of the upper tools or punches is effected by one ram or plunger,
and the motion of the lower tools or punches is effected by another ram or
plunger. The motions of the said rams or plungers, as well as the motions
of the table and forceps, are taken from one driving shaft. It will be under-
stood that all the tools or punches described act simultaneously, so that while

page_text: one cartridge case is being operated upon by the first pair of tools another
is being operated upon by the second pair of tools, and so on, a cartridge
case being fashioned and perfected and removed from the machine at each
motion of the working tools.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, filed
by the said Edwin Ludlow and Alfred Ludlow in the Great Seal Patent
Office on the 17th June 1868.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, we, EDWIN
LUDLOW, of Birmingham, in the County of Warwick, Manufacturer, and
ALFRED LUDLOW, of Birmingham, aforesaid, Manufacturer, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the Twenty-first day of December, in the year of our
Lord One thousand eight hundred and sixty-seven, in the thirty-first year of
Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto
us, the said Edwin Ludlow and Alfred Ludlow, Her special licence, that
we, the said Edwin Ludlow and Alfred Ludlow, our executors, administrators,
and assigns, or such others as we, the said Edwin Ludlow and Alfred
Ludlow, our executors, ádministrators, 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 "IMPROVEMENTS IN
MACHINERY FOR THE MANUFACTURE OF CARTRIDGE CASES," upon the condition
(amongst others) that we, the said Edwin Ludlow and Alfred Ludlow, our
executors or administrators, 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 the said Letters Patent.
NOW KNOW YE, that I, the said Alfred Ludlow, on behalf of myself and
the said Edwin Ludlow, do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention,
and in what manner the same is to be performed, to be particularly described
and ascertained in and by the following statement thereof, that is to say:-
Our Invention consists of the improved arrangements or combinations of
parts herein-after described of machinery for the manufacture of cartridge

page_text: cases, the object of the improvements constituting our Invention being to
effect the opening, closing, rivetting, and piercing of the cartridge cases and
their removal from the machine.
Machinery constructed according to our Invention consists essentially of
the following parts and arrangements :-A horizontal rotating table receiving
an intermittent motion at the required intervals is provided with a series of
dies in which the cartridge cases to be perfected by the machine are put.
Above the said rotating table is a series of punches or tools, and below the
said table is a second series of punches or tools for operating upon the
cartridge cases in the dies described. The cartridge cases have their parts
loosely put together before they are inserted in the said dies. Four cartridge
cases are simultaneously operated upon by the machine, the several operations
herein-after described being effected in succession in the order in which they
are described. The rotating table being brought to rest after the insertion of
a roughly formed case in one of the dies, the base or metallic cap of the case
being upwards, a punch descends upon the said metallic base, at the same
time a taper punch or mandril rises from below and entering the open mouth
of the cartridge case opens it out and perfects its tubular figure. The upper
punch and lower punch or mandril retiring the table performs a partial rotation
and being again brought to rest, the cartridge case is operated upon by a second
pair of tools the upper tool or punch descending both holds the cartridge case
in its place and at the same time introduces another and smaller punch or
peg formed on its lower end into the metallic tube or cup in the metallic base
of the cartridge case. The object of the said smaller punch is to keep the
said tube or cup in position, and also to make the said tube or cup of the
proper size; the lower tool or punch which is hollow at the same time
ascending compresses the pulp or wad in the base of the cartridge case and
gives it the required density. By another motion of the table the cartridge
case is carried between another pair of tools, the upper tool or punch
descending serves to support the base of the cartridge case, while the lower
tool or punch ascending rivets or expands the closed end of the tube or cup
in the metallic base of the cartridge case, and thereby secures it in its place.
By another motion of the table the cartridge case is brought between another
pair of tools. The lower tool which has a hole in its axis ascends and
supports the closed end of the tube or cup in the metallic base of the cartridge
case, while a piercing punch descending pierces a suitable opening in the
bottom of the said tube or cup, any metal detached or separated falling down
the hollow lower supporting tool. By another motion of the table the
cartridge case is brought over another punch or mandril, which rising pushes

page_text: the finished cartridge case partially out of the die in which it has been
fashioned and perfected; the cartridge case is then laid hold of by a pair of
forceps actuated by the machine, which wholly remove it from the die, and
carrying it out of the range of the working tools of the machine release it
and drop it into a box provided for its reception. The motion of the upper
tools or punches is effected by one ram or plunger, and the motion of the
lower tools or punches is effected by another ram or plunger. The motions.
of the said rams or plungers, as well as the motions of the table and forceps,
are taken from one driving shaft. It will be understood that all the tools or
punches described act simultaneously, so that while one cartridge case is
being operated upon by the first pair of tools another is being operated upon
by the second pair of tools, and so on, a cartridge case being fashioned and
perfected and removed from the machine at each motion of the working tools.
Having explained the nature of our Invention we will proceed to describe,
with reference to the accompanying Drawings, the manner in which the
same is to be performed.
Figure 1 represents in front elevation, Figure 2 in vertical section, and
Figure 3 in plan (partly in horizontal section) a machine for the manufacture
of cartridge cases constructed according to our Invention. Figures 4, 5, 6, 7,
and 8 represent the principal tools or punches of the machine on a larger
scale, and Figures 9, 10, 11, and 12 represent a cartridge case in its several
stages of manufacture. The same letters of reference indicate the same
parts in each Figure of the Drawings.
a is the horizontal rotating table of the machine fixed to the axis band
receiving an intermittent motion at the required intervals in the manner
berein-after explained. The said table is held in its place, during the
operation of the punches or tools in the manner herein-after explained. In
the said table a a series of dies c is fixed, in which dies the cartridge cases
to be fashioned and perfected are placed, and in which they are operated upon
by the tools or punches herein-after described. One of the dies c is repre-
sented in section on a larger scale in Figure 8, from which Figure 8 the shape
of the said dies will be readily seen. Above the rotating table a are four
punches or tools marked respectively d, e, f, g, and below the said table is a
second series of punches or tools marked respectively d, e, f, g, for operating
upon the cartridge cases in the dies c. Below the table a is also a punch or
mandril h for partly removing the finished cartridge case from its die; the
punches or tools above the table are carried by the ram or plunger i, and the
punches below the table are carried by the ram or plunger k. The two series
of, punches or tools (with the exception of the punch or mandril h) are repre-

page_text: 1
sented on a larger scale in Figures 4, 5, 6, and 7. The punches d, e, f, g,
in the ram i, and the punches d, e, f, g, in the ram k, operate simultaneously
upon four cartridge cases in different stages of manufacture in the dies c, and
the punch h at the same time partly removes a finished cartridge case from
its die. In order that the action of the machine may be the better under-
stood we will only describe the successive action of the punches or tools upon a
single cartridge case in the table a. The rotating table a being brought to
rest and fixed a roughly formed cartridge case of the kind represented in
Figure 9, that is with its parts loosely put together is inserted in one of the
dies c of the table a. By the descent of the flat-ended punch d and the
ascent at the same time of the taper punch or mandril d³ into the open mouth
of the cartridge case, Figure] 9, the said case is opened out and its tubular
figure perfected. The upper punch d and lower punch de retiring the table a
performs a partial rotation, and being again brought to rest and fixed the
cartridge case Figure 9 in the table is now situated between the punches e, e².
The upper tool or punch e descending both holds the cartridge case in its place
in the die c and at the same time introduces a smaller punch or peg marked e³
into the metallic tube or cup in the metallic base of the cartridge case. The
lower hollow tool or punch e² at the same time ascending compresses the pulp
or wad m in the base of the cartridge and gives it the required density.
The cartridge case after it has been operated upon by the punches e, e³, and
e has the Figure represented in Figure 10. By the operation of the smaller
punch or peg the tube or cup is kept in position and made of the proper
size. The punch e, e³, is a compound one, that is, it consists of two parts, the
inner part or peg e³ being capable of a limited sliding motion within the outer
part e. On the descent of the compound punch e, ³, the bottom of the outer
part e bears upon the top of the metallic base of the cartridge case, and holds
it in its place, after which the inner peg e³ descends and preserves the shape
and position of the cup 7 during the compression of the wad m. The two
parts of the compound punch are connected together by the pin and slot e.
On the rising of the compound punch the outer part is arrested and brought
into position for the next operation by means of the fixed forked arm m². Or
the outer part e may be forced downwards on the rising of the punch by a
coiled spring. On the retiring of the upper and lower punches e, e, a further
motion is given to the table a, and the cartridge case, Figure 10, is carried
between the punches f, f. By the descent of the upper tool or punch f the
base of the cartridge case is supported, while the lower tool or punch f
ascending rivets or expands the closed end of the tube or cup 1, and thereby
secures it in its place. The cartridge case after it has been operated upon by

page_text: the pair of tools f, f, has the shape represented in Figure 11. The tools
ff, retiring a further rotation is given to the table a, and the cartridge case,
Figure 11, in the die is brought between the pair of tools g, g. The upper
tool or punch g constitutes a piercing punch, and the lower tool is made
hollow as represented. On the lower tool 92 ascending it supports the closed
end of the tube or cup l, while the piercing punch 9 descending pierces an
opening in the bottom of the said tube l, any metal separated or detached
falling down the hollow tool 9. The cartridge case finished by the operations
of the tools g, g, is represented in Figure 12. The lower tool g³ may be
dispensed with during the piercing of the tube or cup 1. When the lower
tool g² is not used the head of the cartridge case is only supported by the die c.
On the retiring of the tools g, g, the table a makes a further motion, which
brings the finished cartridge case over the lower punch or mandril h on the ram,
k, which mandril rising pushes the finished cartridge case partially out of the die
in which it has been finished and perfected. The said case is then seized by.
a pair of forceps p (see Figure 1), which wholly removes it from the die, and
carrying it out of the range of the working tools carried by the rams i, k,.
release it and drop it into a box or receptacle. The operations which we
have described as being performed upon one cartridge case only are being
performed in succession upon several cartridge cases in the dies c, c, of
the table a, that is to say, the tools and punches carried by the upper and
lower rams i, k, operate simultaneously upon five cartridge cases, four being.
fashioned in the dies c, and the fifth being removed from its die, and carried
away by the forceps p at each motion of the machine.
We will now describe the manner in which the motions of the several parts
of the machine are effected. q is the driving: shaft, to which is affixed the
toothed wheel r. The said toothed wheel r gears with the toothed wheels on
the cam shaft t, and the said wheels gears with the wheel u on the crank
shaft v. The wheel r also gears with the toothed wheel w on the crank shaft x..
The motion of the ram i is effected by the crank on the crank shaft-v
through the crank rod and links v', and the motion of the ram k is effected
by the crank x3 on. the crank shaft x the crank rod a being jointed to the
lower end of the said ram k. The intermittent rotary motion of the table a is
effected in the following manner :-Underneath the said table and on one side
5. thereof is a disk y carrying a pall z, the said disk turning loosely on the
axis 1. A reciprocating motion is communicated to the pall disk y by means
of the lever 2, actuated by the cam 3 on the cam shaft t. .On the axis 1 is a
ratchet wheel 4 with which the pall z engages. By the reciprocating motion.
of the pall disk y the pall alternately advances the ratchet wheel 4, and slips

page_text: over the teeth of the said ratchet wheel, and thus communicates: an inter-
mittent motion to the said ratchet wheel, which motion is transmitted through
the toothed wheels 5, 6, and 7 to the table a. The said table a is released
and fixed at the proper times by means of the cranked lever 8, 8, (see Figure 3),
the pointed end of the arm 8* of which engages in the notches represented
in the edge of the said table. The said cranked lever is worked from the
cam 10 on the shaft t. The arms of the cranked lever 8, 8, may be jointed
together, and a spring be placed between them so as to permit of some play
between the said arms. A rigid lever as represented however answers satis-
factorily. The forceps p for removing the finished cartridge cases are con-
structed and actuated in the following manuer:-The said forceps consist of
two jointed blades pressed together by a spring. The said forceps p are
capable of sliding up and down the square bar or rod 11 (see Figure 1).
This sliding motion is effected by a lever 12, the fork 13 of which engages
with collars 14 on the said bar 11, to which the forceps p are affixed. The
forked lever 12 is worked by an excentric 15 on the shaft t. When the
finished cartridge case has been partially lifted from its die c by the action of
the plunger h in the manner herein-before described and as illustrated in
Figure 1, the forceps p descend upon the said cartridge case by the action of
the forked lever 12. On passing over the head of the cartridge case the
blades of the forceps are opened, and as soon as they have passed over the
said head they close upon the cartridge case, and grip it firmly between them.
By the further action of the forked lever 12 the forceps p are raised upon the
rod or bar 11, and the cartridge case is thereby wholly removed from its die.
The forceps p are now turned aside, and the cartridge case released from
them in the following manner :-On the top of and fixed to the rod or bar 11
is a lever 16 turning on the joint 17. This lever is connected to a cranked
lever 18, the latter being worked by the cam 20 on the shaft t. As soon as
the forceps p have wholly removed the cartridge case, from the die c the rod
or bar 11 is turned aside by the action of the levers 16 and 18 and cani 20, and
the forceps are thereby brought into a position at right angles to that repre-
sented, and the cartridge case carried out of the range of the working tools
of the machine. On the forceps assuming the position last described a pin
21 passing through one of the blades of the forceps strikes against the framing
of the machine at 22, and causing the said pin 21 to act upon the other blade
of the forceps opens the said forceps and releases the cartridge case therefrom,
which drops into a box or receptacle provided for it. After the cartridge
case has been released from the forceps the forceps are closed by their spring,
and are returned to the position represented ready to remove the cartridge

page_text: case next finished. Over the punches ƒ and g is a plate 23 for stripping the
cartridge cases from the said punches should they adhere to the said punches.
Although we have described and illustrated our Invention in connection
with the manufacture of a Boxer cartridge, yet our Invention is equally
applicable to various kinds of central-fire and other cartridges. In the
manufacture of some kinds of cartridges the whole of the processes herein-
before described will not require to be used.
Having now described the nature of our Invention, and the manner in
which the same is to be performed, we wish it to be understood that we do
not limit ourselves to the precise details herein described and illustrated, as
the same may be varied without departing from the nature of our Invention ;
but we claim as our Invention of improvements in machinery for the manu-
facture of cartridge cases,
Firstly. The combination of the rotating table having an intermittent motion
with the upper and lower sets of punches or tools for the purpose of operating
simultaneously upon several cartridge cases carried by the said table, so as
thereby to effect the opening, closing, rivetting, and piercing of the said
cartridge cases, or some of the said processes according to the kind of cartridge
cases being manufactured, substantially as herein-before described and illus-
trated in the accompanying Drawings.
Secondly. The construction and arrangement of parts of mechanism for
removing the finished cartridge cases from the dies of the rotating table, and
carrying them out of the range of the working tools of the machine, and
releasing them from the carrying mechanism, substantially as herein-before
described and illustrated in the accompanying Drawings.
Thirdly. The general arrangement or combination of the parts of machinery
for the ma facture of cartridge cases, herein-before described and illustrated
in the accompanying Drawings.
In witness whereof, I, the said Alfred Ludlow, have hereunto set my
hand and seal, this Fifteenth day of June, in the year of our Lord One
thousand eight hundred and sixty-eight.
Witness,
GEORGE SHAW.
ALFRED LUDLOW. (L.S.)