IMPROVE- MENTS IN LEASHING YARN OR THREAD IN THE HANK, AND IN MACHINERY FOR WINDING OFF THE SAME
Year: 1859

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to George Leach, of Leeds, in the County of York,
Yarn Spinner and Cloth Manufacturer, for the Invention of "IMPROVE-
MENTS IN LEASHING YARN OR THREAD IN THE HANK, AND IN MACHINERY FOR
WINDING OFF THE SAME."
Sealed the 29th July 1859, and dated the 2nd February 1859.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said George Leach at the
Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the
2nd February 1859.
I, GEORGE LEACH, of Leeds, in the County of York, Yarn Spinner and
Cloth Manufacturer, do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention for
"IMPROVEMENTS IN LEASHING YARN OR THREAD IN THE HANK, AND IN MACHINERY
FOR WINDING OFF THE SAME," to be as follows:-
My Invention of improvements in leashing yarn or thread in the hank, and
in machinery for winding off the same, relates, in the first place, to an improved
mode of dividing and separating the bank into given portions, and preserving
such divided or separated portions, so that the thread or yarn may be
correctly placed upon the swift or holding apparatus for the purpose of being
wound off.
My Invention relates, secondly, to a novel construction of machine or

page_text: apparatus to be employed in place of the ordinary swift for holding the yarn or
thread while being wound from the hank.
In carrying out my Invention, the yarn or thread is first reeled in such a
manner as to lay the threads alternately across each other in a diagonal
direction, for the purpose of forming a leash, as in a warp to be woven. This
object may be effected by various well known mechanical contrivances, such as
by causing the yarns or threads to pass through eyes fixed in a reciprocating
bar, which is moved to and fro in front of the reel, while the latter is kept in
rapid rotation.
In order to preserve the leash or crossing, I tie round the crossing of each
hank with a thread, whereby in the subsequent process of unwinding the
end of the yarn, or the last crossing may be formed and the end of the yarn
traced with ease and certainty. The tyeing of the leashings or crossings is
also effected in such a manner as to divide or separate the banks in any
convenient number of portions. The hanks arranged in this manner are then
put on the stationary holding apparatus, which forms the second part of my
Invention, and from which they are wound off on to spools, bobbins, or
otherwise. This holding apparatus consists of pairs of cones, on to which the
hanks of yarn or thread are placed and kept distended while the winding off
operation proceeds. These cones are mounted on or attached to arms in such
a manner as to be adjustable laterally thereon. These arms are also adjustable
on their standard or upright, so that the cones may be placed nearer to or
further from each other according to the size or length of the hank. This
holding apparatus is also applicable for holding hanks of yarn or thread that
have been reeled in the ordinary manner, and it is intended to be used in place
of or as a substitute for the ordinary swift.
My improved system of leashing is intended to supersede that employed in
the old process of reeling, and will be found particularly useful when winding
off yarns from my improved holding apparatus, which holding apparatus will
not only be found useful to manufacturers for winding off yarns, but is also
applicable to the use of private persons for winding off silk and thread, for
which purpose the standard may be constructed and arranged in such a
manner as to admit of the apparatus being temporarily attached to a chair,
table, or other article of furniture.

page_text: SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, filed
by the said George Leach in the Great Seal Patent Office on the
2nd August 1859.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, GEORGE
LEACH, of Leeds, in the County of York, Yarn Spinner and Cloth Manu-
facturer, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the Second day of February, in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and fifty-nine, in the twenty-second year of Her
reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto me,
the said George Leach, Her special license that I, the said George
Leach, my executors, administrators, and assigns, or such others as I, the
said George Leach, my executors, administrators, and assigns, should at
any time agree with, and no others, from time to time and at all times
thereafter during 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
"IMPROVEMENTS IN LEASHING YARN OR THREAD IN THE HANK AND IN MACHINERY
FOR WINDING OFF THE SAME," upon the condition (amongst others) that I, the
said George Leach, by an instrument in writing under my hand and seal 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 George Leach, 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 Drawing hereunto annexed, and to
the letters and figures marked thereon (that is to say) :-
.
My Invention of "Improvements in Leashing Yarn or Thread in the Hank
and in Machinery for Winding off the same," relates, in the first place, to an.
improved mode of dividing and separating the hank into given portions, and
preserving such divided or separated portions, so that the thread or yarn may
be correctly placed upon the swift or holding apparatus for the purpose of
being wound off.
My Invention relates, secondly, to a novel construction of machine or
apparatus to be employed in place of the ordinary swift for holding the yarn or
thread while haine wound from the hank

page_text: In carrying out my Invention, the yarn or thread is first reeled in such a
manner as to lay the threads alternately across each other in a diagonal
direction, for the purpose of forming a leash as in a warp to be woven. This
object may be effected by various well known mechanical contrivances, such as
by causing the yarns or threads to pass through eyes fixed in a reciprocating
bar, which is moved to and fro in front of the reel, while the latter is kept in
rapid rotation.
In order to preserve the leash or crossing, I tie round the crossing of each
hank a thread, whereby in the subsequent process of unwinding the end of the
yarn or last crossing may be formed and the end of the yarn traced with
ease and certainty. The tyeing of the leashings or crossings is also effected in
such a manner as to divide or separate the hanks in any convenient number
of portions. The hanks, arranged in this manner, are then put on the
stationary holding apparatus, which forms the second part of my Invention,
and from which they are wound off on to spools, bobbins, or otherwise.
c and d are two
In the accompanying Drawing, Fig. 1 is a front view, and Fig. 2 a plan
view, of my improved apparatus for facilitating the winding off of yarn or
thread from the bank. The apparatus consists of a vertical standard a, a, of
any convenient height, made by preference of a square bar of iron, which is
secured in any convenient manner into a stand or foot 6, so as to admit of the
apparatus being moved from place to place when required.
cross-bars or arms, provided with an eye or socket at the back, as seen at e in
the plan view Fig. 2; through this eye e is passed the square vertical
standard a, and the cross-arm c and d may be fastened thereon at any con-
venient point or altitude by means of set screws f, Fig. 2, and shewn by dots
in Fig. 1. Each of the arms c and d carries two cones g, g, made of tin or
other suitable material. These cones are secured to the arms c and d by
means of screw bolts and fly nuts h, h; and in order to admit of the cones
being moved nearer to or further from cach other, as may be found necessary,
long slots i, shewn by dots in Fig. 1, are made in the arms c and d for the
purpose of receiving the screw bolts, which by means of the fly nuts h may be
fixed at any point of the slots. The hanks of yarn or thread intended to be
wound off may either have been reeled across in the form of the Figure 8, as
is shewn in the Drawing, and is sometimes done, or it may have been reeled in
the ordinary and well known manner, as indicated by dots in Fig. 1. My
improved apparatus will be found peculiarly applicable and useful for
winding off yarns that have been reeled crosswise, but it will be seen that it
may also be used with great advantage for winding off ordinary hanks. From
the foregoing description it will be understood that the cones"g, g, are

page_text: adjustable along their arms c and d, and the latter are adjustable vertically on
the standard a, so that whatever may be the size or length of the hank
intended to be operated upon, the position of the cones may be arranged
to fit it.
Supposing it be intended to wind off a bank that has been reeled crosswise,
as represented by red lines in Fig. 1, the cross arms c and'd, or one of them,
is loosened by untightening one of the set screws f, so as to admit of the two
arms being brought nearer together; two of the cones g, g, one on each arm,
are then loosened by unscrewing the fly nuts h, so that the cones may be
slidden along the cross arms. The several parts being in this position, a hank
of yarn or thread is put on or extended over the four cones, which after the
hank has been adjusted thereon are brought back to their original position,
where they are secured by the set screws f and fly nuts h. The hauk being
thereby extended or stretched to a suitable extent, it only remains to find the
proper end, and commence winding off in the ordinary manner. It will be
seen that each of the cones g, g, has a flange j, j, secured to its front part; the
object of this flange, which is made with a smooth rounded edge to prevent
friction, is to raise or lift the thread out of the body of the hank as it is being
wound off, as indicated by red dotted lines in Fig. 2. By this means the
thread is easily detached or removed without disturbing the remaining portion
of the hank, and thereby the winding off is much facilitated, and the hank is
less liable to get entangled than if the flanges were not employed.
In the Drawing I have represented my improved apparatus as being
mounted on a vertical standard that is fixed in a stand or bottom, so that the
apparatus may be moved about from place to place, as may be desired, but it will
readily be understood that if desired the cones may be secured to a wall, or so
arranged as to permit of them being adapted to any article of furniture, or
where several of them are required, as in mills for spinning or winding yarn
or thread, a number of these cones may be adapted to a cominon frame.
My improved system of leashing is intended to supersede that employed in
the old process of reeling, and will be found particularly useful when winding
off yarns from my improved holding apparatus, which holding apparatus will
not only be found useful to manufacturers for winding off yarns, but is also
applicable to the use of private persons for winding off silk and thread, for
which purpose the standard may be constructed and arranged in such a
manner as to admit of the apparatus being temporarily attached to a chair,
table, or other article of furniture.
Having now described my Invention of "Improvements in Leashing Yarn
or Thread in the Hank, and in Machinery for Winding off the same," and

page_text: explained the manner of carrying the same into effect, what I claim under
the herein-before iu part recited Letters Patent is, the mode herein-before
described of leashing yarn by crossing and dividing it into separate portions.
I also claim the stationary adjustable apparatus herein shewn and described
for holding the hanks of yarn or thread while they are being wound off,
whereby the winding off of the yarn from the hank is much facilitated.
In witness whereof, I, the said George Leach, have hereunto set my
hand and seal, the Second day of August, in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and fifty-nine.