IMPROVED MACHINERY FOR CUTTING MITRES
Year: 1871

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Richard George Shute, of Cook's Court, Lincoln's
Inn, in the County of Middlesex, Joiner, for the Invention of
"IMPROVED MACHINERY FOR CUTTING MITRES."
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Richard George Shute
at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition,
on the 8th February 1871.
I, RICHARD GEORGE SHUTE, of Cook's Court, Lincoln's Inn, in the
County of Middlesex, Joiner, do hereby declare the nature of the said
Invention for "IMPROVED MACHINERY FOR CUTTING MITRES," to be as
follows:-
The object of my Invention of improved machinery for cutting mitres
is to form or cut with speed, facility, and accuracy the angles which
) form the corners of mouldings or other pieces of wood used in joinery,
so as to cause the several members of such mouldings to fit with
accuracy when they are put together, as in forming the moulded archi-

page_text: traves and other parts of doors or windows, or the moulded plinths,
cornices, and other parts of articles of furniture.
To this end my improved machinery consists of a pair of side standards,
between which is secured a strong wooden or other bed plate on which
is placed and firmly held. the moulding or other piece of wood to be
operated upon. The cutting tool is a guillotine chisel which works up
and down guides in the framing and placed at an angle of 45°. This
tool is worked by means of a hand lever to which it is jointed and which
has its fulcrum at the upper part of the side standards. In operating
with the machine, the moulding or other piece of wood is placed on the
wooden or other bed, and (the end being made to project beyond the
inclined guides to the required extent according to the length of the
piece) the guillotine chisel or cutting tool is brought down on to the
wood and made to cut off the end to the required angle, so that when
two pieces so cut are brought together they will fit accurately and
produce a perfect mitre joint.
"
If it be desired to cut mouldings which require to be "sprung
the wood instead of being placed flat on the bed is held at a bevil by
placing behind one part of it (that is, the upper part) a piece of wood
of the required thickness according to the bevil or "spring" desired.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent,
filed by the said Richard George Shute in the Great Seal Patent
Office on the 8th August 1871.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, RICHARD
GEORGE SHUTE, of Cook's Court, Lincoln's Inn, in the County of
Middlesex, Joiner, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria by Her
Letters Patent, bearing date the Eighth day of February, in the year of
our Lord One thousand eight hundred and seventy-one, in the thirty-
fourth year of Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give
and grant- unto me, the said Richard George Shute, Her special licence,
that I, the said Richard George Shute, my executors, administrators,
and assigns, or such others as I, the said Richard George Shute, my
executors, administrators, and assigns, should at any time agree with,
and no others, from time to time and at all times thereafter during

page_text: 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 "IMPROVED
MACHINERY FOR CUTTING MITRES," upon the condition (amongst others)
that I, the said Richard George Shute, my executors or administrators,
by an instrument in writing under my, or their, or one of their hands
and seals, 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 Richard George Shute, do hereby
declare the nature of my said Invention, and in what manner the same
is to be performed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and
by the following statement, reference being had to the Drawings here-
unto annexed, and to the letters and figures marked thereon (that is to
say):-
The object of my Invention of "Improved Machinery for Cutting
Mitres" is to form or cut with speed, facility, and accuracy the angles
which form the corners of mouldings or other pieces of wood used in
joinery, so as to cause the several members of such mouldings to fit
with accuracy when they are put together, as in forming the moulded
architraves and other parts of doors or windows, or the moulded plinths,
cornices, and other parts of articles of furniture.
To this end my improved machinery consists of a strong metal frame
provided with fixed or moveable fences or guides, and between which
is secured a strong wooden or other bed plate on which is placed (and
firmly held) the moulding or other piece of wood to be operated upon.
The cutting tool is a chisel or curved blade which works either up and
down guides in the framing placed at any suitable angle or the guides
may be placed horizontally or nearly so. Or the cutting tool or knife
may be made in the form of a curved blade or blades, which may be
secured in any convenient manner to a vibrating lever so that when
operating it will produce a drawing cut. These tools are worked by
means of hand levers to which they are connected and which have
their fulcrums at any convenient part of the framing.
In the accompanying Drawings I have shewn three different arrange-
ments of mechanism for effecting the object of Invention.
my

page_text: Fig. 1, Sheet I., is a side elevation of a machine in which the cutting
tool is made to work up and down guides set at an incline or angle
of about forty-five degrees to the horizon. Fig. 2 is a front elevation
of the same.
a, a, are the side standards to which the inclined guides b, b, are
attached. These standards may either be made in one casting or they
may be cast separately and firmly bolted to a metal foundation plate.
Between these standards is secured a wooden bed plate c, on which the
moulding e to be operated upon is placed and is firmly held while being
cut by the knife d which is capable of being moved up and down the
inclined guides b, b, by means of the hand lever d', which has its
fulcrum at the upper end of the side standard a, a, as shewn at Fig. 1,
and to which the knife d is jointed or connected by the link d³, as
shewn in the Drawing.
In operating with this machine, the moulding e or other piece of 1
wood is placed on the wooden or other bed c, and (the end of the
moulding being made to project (as shewn at Fig. 1) beyond the inclined
guides b, b, to the required extent (according to the length of the piece)
the guillotine chisel or cutting tool d is brought down on to the wooden
moulding e, and made to cut off the end to the required angle, as shewn 2
in the Figure.
It will be obvious that when two pieces of moulding so cut are
brought together they will fit accurately and produce a perfect mitre.
joint.
If it be desired to cut mouldings which require to be "
"
sprung the 2
wood instead of being placed flat on the bed is held at a bevil by
placing behind one part of it (that is the upper part) a piece of wood
of the required thickness according to the bevil or "spring" desired.
Mouldings are usually required to be cut to an angle of forty-five
degrees, but occasionally it may be requisite to cut them to a different 3
angle. For this purpose I sometimes mount the inclined guides b, b,
on centre pins at their lower ends, and I provide them at their upper
ends with quadrant guides and cross pins so that they may be set at
any angle and temporarily secured there.
Fig. 3, Sheet II, is a front elevation; Fig. 4, a plan view, and Fig. 5, 3
an end view of another form of mitreing machine. In this instance the
knife or cutting instruments d is secured in any convenient manner to
a hand lever d', which is mounted on a centre pin at the lower part of

page_text: the foundation plate, and is capable of rocking in a vertical plane and
is kept steady by pins which work in a curved slot 7 formed in the
foundation plate. Blocks f, f, f, are secured to this plate and serve as
guides or supports to the moulding while it is being operated upon. The
hand lever is provided with a knive having two cutting edges one on
each side so that it may cut both ways or at opposite angles or right
angles. In this construction of machine the fence blocks f,f¹, can be
made adjustable so that mouldings can be cut at a greater or less angle
than forty-five degrees, as may be required. It will be seen that from
the curved form of the knive, and being mounted on a rocking lever
a drawing cut will be imparted to the knive.
Fig. 6, Sheet III., is a front elevation, and Fig. 7 is a plan view of
another construction of mitreing machine.
In this instance the knives or cutting instrument d, d, are secured
to a moveable block or plate d³ which is capable of moving along
horizontal guides b, b, affixed to the foundation plate, as seen best in
the transverse vertical section Fig. 8. The block d³, with its knives d, d,
is moved to and fro in the guides b, b, by means of the hand lever d³,
which is connected to the block & by the link d³. In this instance
the fences ff, are made adjustable as regards their angle, to which end
they are attached to the foundation plate by a centre pin f' on which
they are capable of turning in a horizontal direction, and they can then
be fixed at any desired angle by means of the quadrant pieces g, g,
and set screws adapted thereto. This machine cuts in both directions
like that shewn in Sheet II.
Having now described my Invention of "Improved Machinery for
Cutting Mitres, and having explained the manner of carrying the same
into effect, I claim as the Invention secured to me by Letters Patent
as aforesaid, the general construction and arrangement of parts herein
shewn and described for cutting mitres.
I claim particularly mounting the knife or cutting instrument in
inclined guides set at any fixed angle or capable of adjustment at any
desired angle as herein set forth.
I further claim, fixing the knives or cutting instruments on each
side of a vibrating hand lever so that the cutting instruments may be
made to act in both directions and operate on the wood with a drawing
cut as herein set forth.

page_text: I also claim adapting a knife or cutting instrument to each end of
a reciprocating plate or block which is capable of being moved along
horizontal guides so as to cut or operate both at the forward and return
stroke if required.
In witness whereof, I, the said Richard George Shute, have here-
unto set my hand and seal, the Eighth day of August, in the year
of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and seventy-one.
stroke if required.
In witness whereof, I, the said Richard George Shute, have here-
unto set my hand and seal, the Eighth day of August, in the year
of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and seventy-one.
RICHARD GEORGE SHUTE. (L.S.)