Improvements in Attaching Metallic Handles to the Tangs of Knives, Forks, and other like Articles.
Year: 1890

page_text: Date of Application, 18th Jan., 1890
Complete Specification Left, 24th Sept., 1890-Accepted, 25th Oct., 1890
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Attaching Metallic Handles to the Tangs of
Knives, Forks, and other like Articles.
We, ELKINGTON & CO. LIMITED, of Newhall Street, Birmingham, in the County
of Warwick, Silversmiths and Electro Platers, and JOHN ALFRED BROOKS of Court
Lane Erdington, in the County of Warwick, Manager of Works, do hereby declare
the nature of this invention to be as follows:-
The said invention has for its object to effect a simple and safe attachment of
metallic handles to the tangs of knives, forks and other like articles, such for
example as salad spoons and forks without the use of pins or rivets and without
brazing.
We will describe the said invention in connection with a table knife.
We take the blade of the knife with its bolster and tang as ordinarily made and we
also take a hollow metallic handle as ordinarily made. We coat the tang of the
knife with tin by the ordinary tinning process, and we place upon the tang at its
shoulder, that is, near the bolster a piece of tubing preferably of brass the said tubular
piece having been tinned, and fitting tightly on the shoulder of the tang. The
metallic handle having been tinned internally near its open end and having had
sufficient granulated soft solder introduced into it to occupy about one third of its
interior is placed in position upon the tang the mouth of the handle fitting upon the
tinned tubular piece described and bearing against the bolster.
By means of dies of the shape required by the pattern of the handle and pressure
the tubular piece on the tang is compressed into the required shape upon the tang,
and fixed in position. The handle is then put on the tubular piece with its open end
hearing against the bolster. By the flame of a blowpipe or by other heating process
the part of the handle near the bolster is heated to an extent sufficient to melt the
soft solder in the handle. The said melted soft solder fills up the interstices between
the tang and tubular piece and the tubular piece and the interior of the handle and
alloying itself with the tin on the said parts effects a perfect junction of the parts.
The tang of the knife may be of the ordinary length or it may be shortened to
about one third its ordinary length. When it is used of the ordinary length the
handle may be filled with granulated soft solder and the tang soldered to the handle
throughout the greater part of its length. In ordinary cases it is proposed to employ
a short tang soldered to the handle only near the bolster.
Metallic handles attached to articles according to the said invention are very
securely attached and when necessary can be removed by the application of a heat
which will not injuriously affect either the knife or its handle.
The method of attaching metallic handles to forks and other articles according to
the said invention differs in no essential respect from the method of attaching metallic
handles to knives as hereinbefore described.
Dated this Eighteenth day of January 18901
W. T. WHITEMAN,
Agent for the Applicants.

page_text: COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Attaching Metallic Handles to the Tangs of
Knives, Forks, and other like Articles.
We ELKINGTON & CO. LIMITED of Newhall Street Birmingham in the County of
Warwick Silversmiths and Electro Platers and JOHN ALFRED BROOKS of Court Lane,
Erdington in the County of Warwick, Manager of Works do hereby declare the
nature of the said invention and the manner in which the same is to be performed
to be particularly described and ascertained in and by the following statement:-
The said invention has for its object to effect a simple and safe attachment of
metallic handles to the tangs of knives forks and other like articles, such for example
as salad spoons and forks, without the use of pins or rivets and without brazing.
We will describe the said invention in connection with a table knife.
We take the blade of the knife and its bolster and tang as ordinarily made and we
also take a hollow metallic handle as ordinarily made.
We coat the tang of the knife with soft solder commonly called tinning and we
place upon the tang at its shoulder, that is, near the bolster a piece of tubing
preferably of brass and the said tubular piece having been tinned or soft solder coated
is made to fit tightly on the tang or shoulder of the tang. By means of dies of
the shape required by the pattern of the handle and pressure the tubular piece on the
tang is compressed into the required shape upon the tang and fixed in position and
the exterior of the covered tang is coated by dipping it into melted soft solder and
by means of a blow pipe covered with soft solder of the required thickness. The
metallic handle having been tinned or soft solder coated internally near its open end
is placed in position upon the tang, the mouth of the handle fitting upon the tinned
or soft solder coated tubular piece described and bearing upon the bolster. By the
flame of a blow pipe or by other heating process the part of the handle near the
bolster is heated to an extent sufficient to melt the soft solder in the handle and on
the tang. The said melted soft solder fills up the interstices between the tang and
tubular piece and the interior of the handle and alloying itself with the solder on the
said parts effects a perfect junction of the parts. The tang of the knife may be of
the ordinary length, or it may be shortened to about one third its ordinary length.
When it is used of the ordinary length the handle may be filled with granulated soft
solder and the tang soidered to the handle throughout the greater part of its length.
In ordinary cases it is proposed to employ a short tang soldered to the handle only
near the holster as before described.
We will now describe with reference to the accompanying drawing the manner in
which the said invention is to be carried into effect as applied to a table knife having
a short tang.
Figure 1 represents in elevation the blade and bolster and short tang of the knife,
also a cross section of the tang together with the metallic tubular piece before the
said tubular piece is attached to the short tang. The short tang is marked a, the
bolster is marked and the tubular piece is marked c. It will be seen by an
examination of the section of the tang a that its sides are somewhat flattened.
Figure 2 represents in elevation and cross section the blade of the knife after the
tubular piece c has been drawn or forced upon the flattened sides of the tang a leaving
spaces or interstices between the lang and tubular piece. Before drawing or forcing
the tube c upon the tang a the tang and the tube may be tinned or soft solder coated
but this coating may be dispensed with. After the tube c has been drawn upon the
tang a the said tube is operated upon by a pair of dies worked in a stamp or press.
By the operation of the said dies and stamp or press the tube c is compressed upon
the tang a and an elliptical figure is given to it as represented in elevation and cross
section in Figure 3, thereby leaving spaces or interstices between the shorter ends. of
the elliptical tube c and the sides of the tang a opposite the said spaces and at the
same time firmly fixing the tube on the tang. The tang a thus covered with the
tube c is next dipped into melted soft solder so as to cover it externally with soft

page_text: solder and also fill the interstices between the tube and tang with soft solder and by
means of a blow pipe and a stick of soft solder the exterior of the tube c is further
covered with soft solder of the desired thickness as represented in Figure 4 where
the solder coating on the exterior of the tube c is marked d and the solder filling the
spaces between the tang and tube is marked e. We next take the hollow metallic
handle represented partly in section and partly in elevation in Figure 5 and we
cover with soft solder the interior of the mouth or open end of the said handle as
represented in the said Figure 5 where the solder coated interior of the mouth of the
handle is marked g. The solder covered tang Figure 4 is now introduced into the
solder covered mouth of the handle Figure 5 the handle fitting closely or nearly so
upon the tubular piece on the tang and bearing against the bolster 6 of the knife
blade. By means of a blow pipe or other heating process the part of the handle f
near the bolster 6 is heated sufficiently to melt the soft solder on the tang and inside
the handle and cause the said soft solder to fill up the interstices between the tang
and handle and bolster and thereby effect a perfect junction of the parts. Figure 6
represents a finished table knife the metallic handle f of which has been soft soldered
near its mouth to the tube covered short tang c Figure 4 and to the bolster 6 in the
manner just described.
When a long tang is used on the blade the said long tang may be wholly covered
or partially covered with a metallic tube and the tube or part of the tube covered
with soft solder and the handle partly filled with granulated soft solder. The tube
coated tang having been introduced into the handle the latter is heated by a blow pipe
and the tube covered tang soft soldered to the handle throughout the greater part of
its length.
Metallic handles attached according to the said invention are very securely attached
and when necessary can be removed by the application of a heat which will not
injuriously affect either the knife blade or the handle.
The method of attaching metallic handles to forks and other articles according to
the said invention differs in no essential respect from the method of attaching metallic
handles to knives as hereinbefore described and illustrated in the accompanying
drawing.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of the said inven-
tion and the manner in which the same is to be performed we declare that we
claim as the said invention of "Improvements in attaching metallic handles to the
tangs of knives forks and other like articles."
Attaching metallic handles to the tangs of knives and other like articles by the
method or process or combination of processes herein before described and illustrated
in the accompanying drawing; that is to say, covering the tang (or a portion of the
tang) with a piece of metallic tubing fixed to and shaped upon the tang, coating or
covering the tube covered tang with soft solder and also the interior of the mouth of
the metallic handle, or introducing granulated soft solder into the handle, and by
means of the flame of a blow pipe or other heating process effecting a perfect junction
of the parts substantially as described and illustrated.
Dated the 22nd day of September 1890
ELKINGTON & Co., LIMITED,
By Robert Smith, Secretary.
JOHN ALFRED BROOKS.