Supporting Fishing Nets and for Floating other Articles.
Year: 1886

page_text: Supporting Fishing Nets and for Floating other Articles.
We WILLIAM DUNCAN and ALEXANDER BLACK, both of Cellardyke, Fifeshire,
Net and Oilskin Manufacturers do hereby declare the nature of our invention to
be as follows:—
"
Our invention has reference to an improved construction and mode and means.
of making or manufacturing the hollow air floats or buoys, (technically termed
"bladders and "pallets"), used for floating and supporting fishing nets, fishing
lines or ropes, and for other similar purposes for which bag floats are used. Our
improvements will enable such bag floats to be made cheaper and more durable
than they have been as heretofore constructed.
The nature and novelty of our invention consist in making the air bag or bladder
part of such floats of canvas, or of strong cotton, linen, or other woven cloth or
texture, "oil skin," (such as that made in a lighter form for sailors' hats and coats
for use and protection in rainy or stormy weather). These strong "oil-skin" bags
are mounted to their lower wood ends by which they are secured to the nets or
lines, otherwise substantially in the same manner that the sheep-skin buoys have
heretofore been secured...
We carry out our improvements by first cutting the strong cotton or linen cloth,
or light canvas, into such approximate sizes and shapes as will make up the
spherical shape of the bag, by preference, in three or four segments, (but it may be
other number of segments), leaving width all round the edges of the segments for
a broad or overlap joint and seam made of one, two, or more rows of machine
stitching, which would be done after basting or otherwise securing the segments
together in proper position, leaving the required width of joint or seam for the two
or more rows of stitching. When so stitched the rough bag would be turned
outside in through its wide open end; and after being carefully dried, it is well
coated and saturated on the inside, (now turned out for that purpose), with, the
best preparation of boiled linseed oil, (used in the manufacture of "oil-skin"), and
placed in the ordinary drying stove until the oil is sufficiently dried to allow of
the bag being turned back again to its original state, when the outside is well
dressed or saturated with one or two coats of the linseed oil and dried in the stove
in a similar manner to the inside. When the bag or "bladder" part has been so
coated and dried, it has inserted in its wide neck part the usual groove-edged wood
disc or end, which would be secured by a strong cord wound round the neck outside,

page_text: thus securing this and preventing the grooved end from shifting out or in. The
wood end would also have the usual bar with eye below for attaching to the loop
or cord which secures it to the net, line, or other object to be buoyed up. After
the wood end has been secured i the float so formed, air may be forced in through
a small hole in the wood, which could be closed by a plug or screw before removing
the air forcing tube. We may also coat and cement the seams of the cloth of the
bags before securing them, with a solution of dissolved india-rubber or gutta-percha;
and we may mix a small proportion of this with the oil mixture for giving the
final coating on either or both sides or over the seams.
And when the bags or buoys are thus finished we may insert some Archangel
tar to coat their interior surface. These improved oil-skin bags or buoys may also
be made complete in the ordinary globular or bladder shape, and have (instead of
their disc retaining ends herein before described), a simple plug of wood or other
material secured airtight in their neck by a cord wound round this outside, and
be otherwise inflated with air, and have the loops secured thereto for attaching
them to the net lines, all substantially as cow bladders and sheep skin buoys are
at present secured to their retaining plugs. And these smaller bag forms may be
made quite air-tight with only one row of stitching, instead of the two or more
rows required for the larger pallet or buoy form.
Instead of forming the bags or "bladders" of a single thickness of strong
canvas or cloth as described they may be formed of one or more plies of thinner
cloth, which would be soaked with the linseed oil as explained, or the individual
layers may be separately saturated and put together in the wet state and afterwards
dried in the stove.
Supporting Fishing Nets and for Floating other Articles.
We WILLIAM DUNCAN, and ALEXANDER BLACK, both of Cellardyke, Fifeshire,
Net and Oilskin Manufacturers, do hereby declare the nature of our invention
and in what manner the same is to be performed, to be particularly described
and ascertained in and by the following statement in writing, reference being
had to the accompanying Drawings, and to the letters and figures marked thereon;
that is to say
Our said invention has reference to an improved construction, and mode and
means of making or manufacturing the hollow air floats or buoys, (technically

page_text: termed "bladders" and "pallets") used for floating and supporting fishing nets,
fishing lines or ropes, and for other similar purposes for which bag floats are used.
Our improvements will enable such bag floats to be made cheaper and more durable
than they have been as heretofore constructed.
And in order that our said Invention, and the manner of performing or carrying
the same into effect or practice may be properly understood, we have hereunto
appended a sheet of explanatory Drawings, in which the same reference letters
indicate corresponding parts in the three figures where shown. Figure 1 is a per-
spective view of an ordinary shaped bladder, but constructed in accordance with the
improvements of our invention, as made for the smaller sizes of floats. Figure 2
is a similar view of a larger size of bag float; while Figure 3 is a perspective
view of the largest sizes of bag floats; all formed in accordance with the improve-
ments of our invention for supporting, when inflated with air, fishing nets, or for
floating other articles.
Referring to these Drawings, the nature and novelty of our invention consist
in making the air bag or bladder part A of such floats of canvas, or of strong
cotton, linen, or other woven cloth or texture, oil skin (such as that made in a
lighter form for sailor's hats and coats for use and protection in rainy or. stormy
weather). These strong "oil-skin" bags A are mounted to their lower wood ends B
by which they are secured to the nets or lines by the loop cord C, otherwise
substantially in the same manner that the sheep-skin buoys have heretofore been
secured.
We carry out our improvements by first cutting the strong cotton or linen cloth,
or light canvas, into such approximate sizes and shapes as will make up the
spherical or other shape of the bag A by preference, in three or four segments
(but it may be other number of segments), leaving width all round the edges of
the segments for a broad or overlap joint and seam made of one, two, or more
rows of machine stitching, which is done after basting or otherwise securing the
segments together in proper position, leaving the required width of joint.or seam a
for the two or more rows of stitching on what will form the inside of the
finished bag, thus enclosing all the double edges and seams. When so stitched
with the seams a outside, the rough bag A, after being carefully dried, is well
coated and saturated on the inside, (now left or turned out for this purpose), with
the preparation of boiled linseed oil, (used in the manufacture of "oil-skin"), and
placed in the ordinary drying stove until the oil is sufficiently dried to allow
the bag A to be turned with the seams all inside, when the outside is then well
dressed or saturated with one or two coats of the linseed oil and dried in the stove
in a similar manner to. the inside. When the bag or "bladder" part A has been
so coated and dried, it has inserted in its wide neck part the usual groove-edged
wood disc or end B which is secured by a strong cord b wound round the neck
outside, thus securing this and preventing the grooved end B from shifting out or
in. The wood end B has also the usual wooden bar B' with eye c below for the
largest sizes of floats, as shown in Figure 3, or has a metallic staple c¹ as shown in
Figure 2, for being attached to the loop or cord C which secures it to the net,
line, or other object to be buoyed up. After the wood end B has been secured
in the float so formed, air is blown or forced in through the small hole 6¹ in the
wood, which is closed by a plug or screw before or while removing the air forcing
tube. We may also coat and cement the seams a of the cloth of the bags A, with
a solution of dissolved india-rubber or gutta-percha which would secure the seams
either with or without sewing; and we may mix a small proportion of the
cement with the oil or coating mixtures for giving the final coating on either or
both sides or over the seams. And when the bags or buoys A are thus finished,
we may insert some Archangel tar to coat their interior surface, and we may also
do this on the outside.
These improved oil-skin bags or buoys A may when preferred be made com-
plete in the ordinary globular or bladder shape, as shown in Figure 1, and
have (instead of their disc retaining ends B hereinbefore described in reference to

page_text: Figures 2 and 3), a simple plug of wood B or other material, secured air-tight in
their neck by a cord b wound round this outside, and be otherwise inflated with
air, and have the loops C secured thereto for attaching them to the net lines, all
substantially as cow bladders and sheep skin buoys are at present secured to their
retaining plugs. And these smaller bag forms may be made quite air-tight, with
only one row of stitching, instead of the two or more rows required for the larger
pallets or buoy form; and where the seams a of the various sections of the bladder
or float A meet in the crown of the bladder a¹, a circular patch or piece of cloth is
sewn on to protect this part more strongly and securely.
Instead of forming the bags or bladders of a single thickness of strong canvas
or cloth A as described, they may be formed of one or more plies of thinner cloth,
which would be soaked with the linseed oil as explained; or the individual layers
may be separately saturated and put together in the wet state and afterwards
dried in the stove. In the case of such bags or floats being woven or knitted into
shape without seams, or with only one seam, as stockings or hose are woven, they
could be coated on the inside and outside, and otherwise treated and secured all as
described in reference to bags made in sections, with sewn and cemented seams in
accordance with our invention.
Although only three forms of the improved floats or "bladders" have here been
described and shown in the Drawings, it is to be understood that they may be made
in a like manner of other shapes or forms, in accordance with the improvements of
our invention as described.
Having thus described and ascertained the nature of our said invention, and
in what manner the same is to be performed, we declare that what we claim is :-
First. The manufacture of floats or "bladders" for supporting fishing nets and
for floating other articles from canvas or other strong woven cloth prepared all
substantially as herein described, in reference to and shown in the accompanying
Drawings.
Second. In floats or "bladders" for supporting fishing nets and for floating other
articles, the forming of the air or bladder part of canvas, cotton, linen, or other
woven cloth or textile fabric.
Third. The manufacture of floats or bladders from woven or textile cloth cut
into sections and jointed by rows of stitching, all substantially as herein described,
in reference to and shown in the accompanying Drawings.