Improvements in Tack or Nail Driving Machinery.
Year: 1898

page_text: Improvements in Tack or Nail Driving Machinery.
JOSIAH MENTOR GIMSON, JOSIAH GIMSON, ARTHUR JAMES GIMSON, and
SYDNEY ANSELL GIMSON, Mechanical Engineers, of Messrs. Gimson & Company,
Engine Works, Leicester, do hereby declare the nature of this invention to be as
follows:
This invention relates more particularly to the class of "hand tackers" or tack
driving apparatus in which the tacks are fed from a reservoir along suitable guide
or race ways into position to be driven by a rod or plunger.
The main objects are as follows:-
To provide more efficient means for controlling the delivery of the tacks. To
raise the driving rod by the upward movement of the driver or hammer, instead of
being raised by a spring as heretofore.
To cause the tacks to fall directly down the driving tube on to the work to be
operated upon, with their points always in position, in advance of the driving rod.
To generally simplify & strengthen the construction of such tacker so that they
may be better able to withstand the shock & vibration they are subjected to by the
continuous driving of tacks or nails.
To reduce the number of moving parts & so form them that they may be made
with greater facility & consequently cheapen their construction.
The guides or race ways which are fixed at an inclination from the vertical
position of the tool, allow the tacks to slide downward in a way which is usual,
but whereas the tacks are generally fed directly into the chamber where they
are acted upon and various instruments of a more or less complicated character,
used for the purpose of dividing, positioning, and controlling their delivery, one
by one. In this invention the said race ways are set out of the centre line of the
driving rod, that is to say, the tacks slide down the inclined race ways, not directly
into and under the centre of the drivers path, but some little distance away pre-
ferably the width of the largest head of a tack to be used, and at the bottom of
the inclined portion of the race ways at a point situated a short distance from the
end of the race way. A rapid dip is given to the two surfaces which guide and carry
the tacks head. this short dip is followed by a flattened portion about the length
of two tacks heads and these two portions of the race way serve the purpose
of separating the tacks, as should any of them climb over each other, which they
are apt to do in their course down the race ways, on the arrival of a tack at this
sudden inclination, it is caused to give a lurch forward and downward and is there-
fore separated from those crowding after it, and is delivered on to the parallel
portion of the race ways in a proper position to be caught by a "carrying lever."
At the end of this parallel portion one of the guides or race ways, and that portion
only which carries the head of the tack, is elongated sufficiently to enable one
tack to be forced forward, the end of this projecting piece is turned almost at a
right angle to the race ways path, and this arrests the further movement of the
tack, thus leaving an opening between the forward projection beyond the race

page_text: way and the shorter portion of the race way on the opposite side, consequently a
free exit is provided for the tack, almost at a right angle to the path of the
race ways, and leaving nearly the whole of the shank of the tack exposed just clear
of the end of the race way, at this point a portion of the body of the instrument
carrying the cylindrical hole down which the driver rod descends, is cut away
level with the back of the hole and in a parallel line with the end of the tack
guide or race ways, leaving a perfectly flat surface with only the projection out of
it of the previously described right angle piece or race way end, against this
flattened surface a carrying lever or slide is fitted, which has a reciprocating move-
ment imparted to it, equal to the distance that the end of the race way may be
from the drivers path, through this carrying lever a hole is bored, equal in length
to that portion of the body of the tacker which has been cut away, and the same
size as the driver rod, on that side of the hole which is nearest to the flattened
face referred to, and vertically parallel with it a slit is cut into the lever to enable
the tack to enter, whilst at the upper side of this slide or lever end, a recess
is cut at right angle to the hole and cutting half way across it extending on one
side a distance equal to the movement of the carrying lever or enough to allow
the projection on the end of the race way to be just clear of the carrying lever
during its movement. By this arrangement it will be clear that as the lever or
slide reciprocates and the slit in the vertical hole is brought opposite to the end
of the race ways, one tack will slide forward into the vertical slit, its head resting
on the one side on the side of the cylindrical hole, and on the other side on to
the forward projection on the end of the tack carrying race way, and arrested
in its further movement by the turn given to the tack guide or race way as
described. By these means only one tack is allowed to enter the cylindrical
hole, which is then moved across by the descent of the driver rod, carrying the
tack clear of the projection and forward until directly in the path of the driver
rod when it is free to fall down the chamber and be driven.
Another feature in this invention is the mode of construction of the apparatus
to enable the tacks to be carried into position and be driven into the material,
this consists of a cylindrically bored handle with an enlarged portion or knob
at its upper extremity to give the necessary momentum, this is connected rigidly
to a driver bar on rod which is fitted into a chamber bored excentrically down the
body of the tool, which is of the same diameter as the cylindrical hole bored
in the beforementioned handle so that this handle can slide over the body
of the tool, one half, or thereabouts, being cut away, leaving only a stud
standing out from its centre, on to this stud, which is its fulcrum, is fitted a
flattened lever, which has at its lower end a piece set outwards equal to that
portion of the lower part of the instrument, which has been cut away, as previously
described, and fitted against the flattened surface, with the tack carrying hole
bored as explained, the upper arm of this lever has a cam groove cut into it of
similar length to the vertical movement of the handle and driving rod, into this
cam groove is fitted a roller which is carried by a pin rigidly attached to the
driving rod, and projecting through a slot in the body of the tool, of equal
to the movement of the driving rod, a cap or cover hollowed out, to enable the
said lever to reciprocate on its fulcrum is fitted over this lever, completing the circle
of the cylindrical portion of the body of the tool, which cap is held in position
by the handle previously referred to.
This arrangement will be better understood by a description of the operations
necessary to drive a tack. The tool is grasped in the hand in a vertical or nearly
vertical position when the interior or body of it will fall by its own weight,
and the small roller connected to the driver rod will cause the tack carrying
lever to reciprocate into position to receive a tack. The nozzle of the instrument
must be placed on to the material where it is wished to drive a tack, and the
handle is given a sharp thrust downward, the first part of its movement, causing
the lever to carry a tack across and into position under the driver rod, as explained,
then the latter portion of the movement to drive the tack into the material, by

page_text: reason of the construction of the tool as described, the downward thrust causes
the minimum of fatigue to the operator.
Total 11 1
1000
J. M. GIMSON.
JOSIAH GIMSON.
A. J. GIMSON.
SYDNEY A. GIMSON.
YY 6,
JOSIAH MENTOR GIMSON, JOSIAH GIMSON, ARTHUR JAMES GIMSON, and
SYDNEY ANSELL GIMSON, trading as Gimson and Company. (Leicester), Limited,
Engine Works, Vulcan Street, Leicester, in the County of Leicester, Mechanical
Engineers, do hereby declare the nature of this invention and in what manner the
same is to be performed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and by
the following statement:-
This invention relates more particularly to that class of "hand tackers
"
or tack
or nail driving apparatus or instrument in which the tacks are fed from a
reservoir along suitable guide or race ways into the vertical position to be driven
home by a rod and plunger.
It will be seen by the annexed drawings that Figure 1, Sheet 1 is a side view
partly in section of the apparatus.
Figure 2 is a section through the forward end of the tack carrying slides and
nail carrying device.
Figure 3 is a top view of Figure 2 at the angle shewn by arrow.
Figure 4 is a section on line W-W of Figure 1.
Figure 5, Sheet 2 is the cover for Fig. 6 with guideways.
r'igure 6 is a vertical elevation of the tacker with the cover or cap removed.
Figures 7, 8 and 9 are sections at line x-x, y-y and z-z of Figure 6.
Figure 10 shows the under apparatus at rest.
Figure 11 is the same in its working position, and
Figure 12 is a view of the driving rod.
The figures of reference employed refer to like parts in all the figures.
The principal objects sought to be obtained by this invention are as follows:
To provide more efficient means for controlling the delivery of the tacks. To
raise the driving rod by the upward movement of the driver aided by a spring.
To cause the tacks or nails to fall directly down the driving tube on to the work
to be operated upon always with their points downward in advance of the driving
rod. Also to arrange the general construction of the instrument that it shall be
strong, yet simple so to better withstand the shock and vibration always subjected
to in continuous driving home tacks or nails. The nail holder or tack box 1 is
constructed and arranged in the following manner. Two hollowed or dished out
disc's are fitted upon a fulcrum pin and in or to a circular frame 1ª of the
bracket 18 and tack slide bracket 18, and which form when put together a
central opening or channel 2" of the width of the largest head of a tack or nail,
which upon the reciprocation of the disc's will cause the tacks to fall into said
channel, when their points will fall downwards between the steps 2b in the upper
end of the raceway 2 and one by one follow each other down the tack slide or
raceway and into the T shaped groove "Figure 4 Sheet 1." To ensure that the
acks fall in the right position a sudden dip see point of the arrow Figure 2" is
given to the slides which allow the tacks to separate, the end of one of the slides
s elongated to form a nose 4, "Figure 3" to catch the heads of the nails or tacks
which hangs thereon and leaves the under portions free to be caught by the
66

page_text: ⋅
swinging movement of the lever 8, and carried forward by the piece 3 set out from
the lever 8, which carries a hole 5 containing the tack or nail. The body or
inner portion 6 guides the pin 10 carried by the driver 11, said pin being fitted
into the cam 9 formed on the upper part of the lever 8, and by the upward and
downward movement of the driver 11, the lever S fulcrumed to the body 6 by the
pin 7 is caused to swing from side to side. The first position is shown in Figure 10
and is in the position for receiving the tack, or nail" seen in Figure 3, Sheet 1,"
and the other end of the movement of the lever where the hole 5 is in line with the
driver rod and the hole 14 in the nozzle or mouthpiece 3 so that at its highest point
the lever 8 takes a tack or nail and by the downward movement of the handle
the driver rod swings the lever 8 across to the right and carries the tack or nail
over the nozzle when the nail is free to fall, see Figure 11, Sheet 2." The swing-
ing lever 8 is covered and guided by the tube 16 having the oblong slot 17 for
the guidance of the pin 10. The guide rod 15 is connected to. the bracket.18. and
its lower end is rigidly connected to the piece 16 "Figure 5, Sheet 2." The body 6
'serves also for guiding the handle 19, said handle is rigidly connected to the upper
end of the driver rod 11 by a pin 19" "Figure 1," and the spring. 20 serves for
lifting said handle while the nose 21 holds the spring in position. The nail
holder or tack box 1 carried in the bracket 18 is connected to said handle 19 .by
a pair of spring links 22 so that the upward and downward movement of the
handle will cause the nail holder or tack box to be moved partly round and
back again causing the tacks or nails to be fed to the tack slides..
66
The aforesaid will be better understood by herein reciting the operations which
are found necessary to drive a tack or nail. The instrument which is in the form
of a hand tool capable of being grasped in the hand in the vertical or nearly
vertical position when the body will fall by its own weight and the driver rod will
cause the piece 3 to reciprocate into position for receiving the tack or nail. The
nozzle or mouthpiece of the instrument is placed simply on the material where it
is wished to drive the..tack or nail and the handle is given a sharp thrust downward
during the first part of its movement, causing the peice 3 to carry a tack across and
into position under the driver rod 11 then the latter portion of the movement
serves to drive the tack fully home into the material.
The tacks or nails are fed to the reservoir or nail box through a hole covered
by a door Figure 1, Sheet 1.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of this invention
and in what manner the same is to be performed, we declare that what we
claim is:-
1. A tack or nail driving apparatus in which the tacks or nails follow one
another down slides or guideways 2, set out of line of the driving rod 11, one side
of said slides being elongated to form the nose 4, and by means of the lever 8,
provided with the hole 5, and carrying head 3, the tacks or nails are carried
forward and guided over the hole 14, when the driver rod 11 is driven down by the
downward movement of the handle 19 and the nails are driven as quickly as
required.
2. In a tack or nail driving apparatus in which the tacks or nails follow one
another down slides or guide ways 2, the combination of the guide rod 15,
bracket 18 circularly movable nail carrier 1, with handle 19 and driving links 22.
arranged and operating substantially as described with reference to the accom-
panying drawings.
Dated this 22nd day of Wohmo 1000
W. BESTWICK MAXFIELD,
Registered Patent Agent,
Regent House, and No. 34, Belvoir Street, Leicester.
Applicants' Agent