IMPROVEMENTS IN THE CONSTRUCTION OF PORTABLE HORSE RAKES
Year: 1879

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to William Henry Sleep, of Crofthole, in the Parish of
Sheviock, in the County of Cornwall, for the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS
IN THE CONSTRUCTION OF PORTABLE HORSE RAKES."
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said William Henry Sleep at
the Office of the Commissioners of Patents on the 14th May 1879.
WILLIAM HENRY SLEEP, of Crofthole, in the Parish of Sheviock, in the
County of Cornwall. "IMPROVEMENTS IN THE CONSTRUCTION OF PORTABLE HORSE
RAKES."
The object of this Invention is to simplify the construction of portable horse
rakes without affecting the efficiency and utility of the rake itself.
To this end I make the axle in three separate parts, the middle part being made
of tubular iron, and the two ends or outer parts which carry the wheels of solid
bar of such proportions as to slide in and out of the tubular or middle part for the
purpose hereinafter described. At each end of this tubular or middle part of the
axle are placed bosses, through which set screws pass for the purpose of securing
the herein before described outer or solid parts of the axle.
Connected to each of these bosses (or made in the same) is a vertical piece,
rising so far above the axle and then turned at right angles and carried forward to
receive the shafts.
Close to the bosses in these vertical pieces use in each a vertical slotted hole,
and at the top or parallel part of the said vertical pieces a round hole; by means
of these holes I attach moveable bearings, made partly of flat and partly of round
iron, setscrews passing through the aforesaid slotted holes and attaching the flat
part of the bearings to the vertical pieces, and the round part of the bearings
having a screw cut in the same passes up through the round holes of the parallel
part, and is secured thereto by a nut on the top, so constructed for raising or
lowering the tines or teeth parallel. These bearings are so placed as to take the
common fulcrum tine bar, also made of tubular iron, and extending at both ends a
little beyond the bereinbefore described tubular part of the axle, with a boss and
set screw at each end for securing the adjustable ends or parts of the rake, as
hereinafter described.

page_text: To this fulcrum tine bar I attach stays or bracket arms secured by clamps around
the fulcrum bar, which stays or bracket arms are extended forward to take another
tubular bar, which carries the sections to which the tines or teeth are fastened.
These stays or bracket arms also carry uprights to which the lever is attached, and
through which passes a rod or rods for the purpose of making the tines rigid if
required.
I also pass through two or more of these uprights a rod or foot piece, to act as
a foot leverage when the attendant is riding. Each tine section before mentioned
has two bearings or holes in the ends or heads through which the hereinbefore
described front tubular bar passes to make them secure, and to which they are
hinged or hung, each section carrying two tines, each tine fastened independent of
the other in the following way:-At the back or hind part of cach section I fasten
across by means of set screws, rivets, bolts, or welded in same, a part extending a
little beyond each angle of each section, and which part has a hole at each end,
which holes run parallel with the sides of the section and through which the ends
of the tines or teeth pass, which tine or teeth ends are extended forward by each
side of each section and secured thereto by a bolt, thus setting or securing each
tine or tooth independent of the other, as before mentioned.
In order to expand the rake or make it to any given width required for working,
I first slide out the solid parts of the axle with the wheels from the tubular or
middle portion of the axle the required distance; I then attach two adjustable
parts or ends formed by sections made on the same principle as the herein before
described middle part and hinged to a front bar, which front bar is attached to the
fulcrum bar by stays or bracket arms, as and for the same purpose hereinbefore
described, and this fulcrum and front bar of cach end fit into the fulcrum tine and
front tubular bars of the herein before described middle portion, securing the same
thereto by set screws as and for the same purpose before mentioned, thus making
the head complete and perfectly rigid to any required widtb.
To make the rake portable for travelling through narrow lanes and gateways,
I remove the aforesaid adjustable parts or ends and slide the solid parts of the
axle into the middle tubular part towards the centre of the rake, securing the same
thereto with the same set screws, as and for the saine purpose before described,
thus contracting the wheels for the above mentioned portable purpose.
As an easy and an efficient method for attaching the adjustable ends of the rako
for working or removing the same for travelling I use a standard, made of wood
or iron, having a wide foot to prevent penetrating the ground, and a forked head
in which the back end of the shaft rests, and at a suitable distance from the head
or foot of the standard I attach a second fork carried back to take the vertical piece
before described. The standard being longer than the distance from the shaft to
the ground, and standing forward at the foot to secure a given angle, the horse is
moved a little forward, and the second fork passing back takes the aforesaid
vertical piece, the standard at the same time assuming a perpendicular position
and raising the wheel sufficiently high to clear the ground, and thus holding the
rake rigid for the purpose of adjusting the ends and sliding the axle and wheel in
or out.

page_text: SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent filed by
the said William Henry Sleep in the Great Seal Patent Office on the 14th
November 1879.
WILLIAM HENRY SLEEP, of Crofthole, in the Parish of Sheviock, in the
County of Cornwall. "IMPROVEMENTS IN THE CONSTRUCTION OF PORTABLE
HORSE-RAKES."
The object of this Invention is to simplify the construction of portable horse
rakes without affecting the efficiency and utility of the rake itself.
To this end I make the axle in three separate parts, the middle part being made
of tubular iron, and the two ends or outer parts which carry the wheels of a solid
bar, of such proportions as to slide in and out of the tubular or middle part for the
purpose hereinafter described. At each end of this tubular or middle part of the
axle are placed bosses through which set screws pass, for the purpose of securing
the hereinbefore described outer or solid parts of the axle.
Connected to each of these bosses (or made in the same) is a vertical piece, rising
as high as the shafts above the axle, and then turned at right angles and carried
forward to receive the shafts.
Close to the bosses on these vertical pieces I use in each a vertical slotted hole,
and at the top or horizontal part of the said vertical pieces a round hole; by
means of these holes I attach movable cradles or bearings made partly of flat and
partly of round iron; set screws passing through the aforesaid slotted holes and
attaching the flat part of the cradles or bearings to the vertical pieces, and the
round part of the bearings having a screw cut in the same passes up through the
round holes of the horizontal part of the vertical pieces, and is secured thereto by
a nut on the top, so constructed for raising or lowering the tines or teeth parallel.
These bearings are so placed as to carry the common fulcrum tine bar, also made
of tubular iron, and extending at both ends a little beyond the hercinbefore
described tubular part of the axle, with a boss and set screw at each end for securing
the adjustable ends or parts of the rake, as hereinafter described.
To this fulcrum tine bar I attach stays or bracket arms, secured by clamps
around the fulcrum bar, which stays or bracket arms are extended forward to take
another tubular bar (which I call the front bar) which carries the sections to which
the tines or teeth are fastened or hung. These stays or bracket arms also carry
uprights to which the lever is attached, and through which passes a rod or rods for
the purpose of making the tines rigid if required. I also pass through two or more
of these uprights a rod or foot piece, provided with a loop to act as a foot leverage
when the attendant is riding. Each tine section, before mentioned, has two bearings
or holes in the ends or heads through which the hereinbefore described front tubular
bar passes to make them secure, and to which they are hinged or hung, each section
carrying two tines, each tine fastened independent of the other in the following
way-At the back or hind part of each section I fasten across by means of set
screws, rivets, bolts, or welded in same, a part extending a little beyond each angle
of each section, and which part has a hole at each end, which holes run parallel
with the outsides of the section and through which the ends of the tines or teeth
pass, which tine or teeth ends are extended forward by each side of each section,
and secured thereto by a bolt, thus setting or securing each tine or tooth inde-
pendent of the other, as before mentioned; or instead of this cross piece just
described I may, by preference, use a clamp independent of the section and placed
at a suitable distance from the tine head, for the purpose of holding the two tines
together in order to secure the required firmness.
In order to expand the rake or make it to any given width required for working,
I first slide out the solid parts of the axles with the wheels from the tubular or
middle portion of the axle the required distance; I then attach two adjustable
parts or ends formed by sections made on the same principle as the hereinbefore

page_text: described middle part and hinged to a front bar, which front bar is attached to the
fulcrum bar by stays or bracket arms as and for the same purpose hereinbefore
described, and this fulcrum and front bar of each end fit into the fulcrum tine bar
and front tubular bar of the hereinbefore described portion, securing the same
thereto by set screws, as and for the same purpose before mentioned, thus making
the head complete and perfectly rigid to any required width.
To make the rake portable for travelling through narrow lanes and gateways I
remove the hereinbefore described adjustable parts or ends and slide the solid parts
of the axle into the middle tubular part towards the centre of the rake, securing the
same thereto with the same set screws, as and for the same purpose before described,
thus contracting the wheels for the above mentioned portable purpose.
As an easy and an efficient method for attaching the adjustable ends of the rake
for working or removing the same for travelling I use a standard, made of wood
or iron, having a wide foot to prevent penetrating the ground and a forked head.
in which the back end of the shaft rests, and at a suitable distance from the head
of the standard I attach a second fork carried back to take the vertical piece before
described. The standard being longer than the distance from the shaft to the
ground, and standing forward at the foot to secure a given angle the horse is
moved a little forward, and the second fork passing back takes the aforesaid vertical
piece, the standard at the same time assuming a perpendicular position and raising
the wheel sufficiently high to clear the ground, and thus holding the rake rigid, for
the purpose of adjusting the ends and sliding the axle and wheel in or out.
But to make my Invention better understood I will proceed to describe the same
by reference to the accompanying Drawing, in which Figure 1 is a back perspective
view of my improved portable horse rake in its working position; Figure 2 is a
back perspective view of the rake rendered portable for travelling; Figure 3 is a
view of the tine frame complete; Figure 4 is a view of one of the adjustable ends
of the rake detached; Figure 5 is a view of the lever and handle; Figure 6 is a
view of a tine section with two tines attached; Figure 7 is a view of the lift which
I employ to attach or remove the adjustable ends of my improved rake; Figure 8
is a view of a clamp which I may, by preference, use to connect the tines. Similar
letters in all the Figures represent similar parts.
A is the tubular or middle portion of the axle; B is the tubular or middle portion
of the fulcrum tine bar; C is the middle portion of the front bar to which the tines
are hung; a, a², are the solid parts of the axle to which the wheels are hung, and
which slide in and out of the middle tubular portion A; b1, b2, are the outside ends
of the fulcrum tine bar, which are made to fit into the ends of the middle portion B.
On each end of the tubular portion B is a boss 63, through which a set screw passes
to hold the adjustable end rigid; c', c, are the outside ends of the front bar C,
to which the tines are hung and are made coincident with the outside ends b', b³, of
the fulcrum tine bar, and fit into the ends of the tubular or middle portion C of the
front bar; D, D, are the uprights attached to the bracket arms D1, D2, which arms
are connected to the fulcrum tine bar B by means of clamps and are extended
forward to carry the front tubular bar C to which the tines are hung. These up-
rights D, D, are so placed as to receive the cranked lever E, E; c³, c', are uprights
which are attached to the bracket arms d, d, coincident with those hereinbefore
described.
These uprights, together with the uprights D, D, receive the rod E¹, which is so
placed as to allow the tines sufficient play to suit the unevenness of the land,
provision also being made whereby the bar may be placed so as to hold them
perfectly rigid when required; E2 is another rod attached to the uprights c³, c, on
which slides the loop Es to hold the foot when working the foot leverage; F, F,
are the principal uprights or vertical pieces which connect the axle, the shafts, and
the rocking frame in the following manner :--Bosses are formed on the said
uprights F, F, which bosses fit on the ends of the middle portion A of the axle
and through which pass set screws to secure the sliding parts a¹, a², of the axle to
which the wheels are hung. At a suitable distance above the said bosses these

page_text: uprights are turned at right angles and extended forward for the purpose of
receiving the shafts f¹, fs, and vertical slotted holes g, g, are formed in the uprights
F, F, through which pass the set screws h, k, to secure the rocking cradles G, G',
of the tine frame, Figure 3. The rocking cradles G, G', are made partly of flat
iron and partly of round iron, the end of the flat part being curved to form the
cradle of the tine bar, and the upper flat part passing up in front of the aforesaid
uprights F, F, to receive the set screw passing through the slotted hole g. The
round part has a screw thread cut thereon, and passes up through the horizontal
part of the uprights F, F, which receive the shafts, as hereinbefore described, and
receives a nut or nuts ; by means of these nuts and the set screws k, l, passing
through the slotted holes g the bearings or cradle parts G, G¹, can be raised or
lowered so as to suit the desired height for the tines, and can be held perfectly
rigid at any point desired. The tine frame is locked in the required position by
means of two pieces of iron forming a brace G2, one end of which is attached to the
bottom part of the lever bandle G³, which is turned back at right angles and
attached to the cranked lever E, E. The front end of this braco is extended
forward and attached to a comb piece fixed to the stay reaching across from shaft
to shaft. This comb piece is parallel with the shafts, and has a series of holes for
the purpose of regulating the tines to any desired pitch for the purpose of sheaf
gathering without effecting the perfect locking of the tine frame, G³ is the hand
lever for raising the tines sufficiently high to deliver what has been gathered, which
operation is performed in the following manner :-The attendant (who, if riding,
would be mounted in the seat G') would place one foot in the loop G³ and the other
in the loop E³, and would pull the lever handle backwards in the direction of the
arrow and thus bring the tinc points above the axle, thus easily delivering what
has been gathered. Should the attendant be walking it would simply be necessary
(in order to effect the delivery) for him to place his hand in the loof Go, and bring
the lever handle back until it comes in contact with the stay H, stretching from
the uprights F, F. On this stay is mounted the seat G, and to the same stay is
hinged a catch h which is so placed as to receive and hold the lever handle when
it is brought back to raise the tines for travelling, as shewn in Figure 2.
The tines are fastened either to a series of sections, one of which with two tines
attached is shewn at Figure 6, or by preference I employ the clamp shewn in
Figure 8.
In Figure 6 I is the section; ¹ is the stay stretching across and connecting the
two sides, and at the extreme ends of the section are holes m, m, through which
passes the front tubular bar C to which the sections are hung; is another cross
piece attached to the section by means of set screws or rivets, or welded in the
same, and extending a little beyond each side, having holes through which the
tines pass. The tines then extend forward by the outsides of the section to ³, i³,
and are secured to the same by set screws or bolts.
In Figure S, which shews the clamp which I have found it advantageous to
employ for connecting the tines, I³ is the clamp placed at any suitable distance
from the front tine bar C; I is a bolt passing through the two outer ends, which
pass up by the sides of the tines; an indent is inade in each tine for the bolt to
pass over to prevent the clamp from moving either way; I, I³, shew the places in
which the tines are held when the clamp is fixed.
I will now describe my improved lift, shewn in Figure 7, for raising the
implement, one side at a time, clear from the ground for the purpose of putting
on or taking off the adjustable ends, as herein before described, and which is effected
in the following manner-
The hand lever G³ is brought back and fastened by the catch h. The forked
end J of the lift is then placed so as to receive the back end of the shaft, and close
in front of the upright F the foot J standing forward at a given angle; the horse
is then moved a little forward when the lift will assume a perpendicular position, the
upright F passing between the fork J2 as far as the cross stay J³, in which position
it is held perfectly firm while the desired change is effected.

page_text: Having now described the nature of my said Invention, and the best means
with which I am acquainted for carrying the same into effect, I wish it to be
understood that I do not confine myself to the precise details herein laid down
and shewn in the accompanying Drawing, as the same may be varied without
departing from the peculiar character of my Invention; but what I do claim is,---
Firstly. The general arrangement and construction: of the improved portable
horse rake, substantially as herein before described and represented in the accom-
panying Drawing.
Secondly. The method of and arrangement for sliding the solid parts of the axle
in and out of the middle tubular portion of the axle, as and for the purpose herein-
before described and represented in the accompanying Drawing.
Thirdly. The method of and arrangement for attaching and detaching the
adjustable ends to and from the middle or corresponding part of the tine frame,
and the method of connecting the fulcrum tine bar and front tubular bar by means
of bracket arms, as hereinbefore described and represented in the accompanying
Drawing.
Fourthly. The construction and employment of the uprights F, F, attached by
bosses on the same to the middle portion of the axle, and provided with slotted holes
for regulating the height of the cradle, as hereinbefore described and represented
in the accompanying Drawing.
Fifthly. The construction and employment of the lift for raising the rake one
side at a time, as hereinbefore described and shewn in Figure 7 of the accompanying
Drawing.
Sixthly. The construction and employment of the clamp for connecting the tines,
as hereinbefore described and represented in Figure 8 of the accompanying
Drawing.
In witness whereof, I, the said William Henry Sleep, have hereto set my
hand and seal, this Twelfth day of November, in the year of our Lord One
thousand eight hundred and seventy nine.