Ix- PROVEMENTS IN THE MANUFACTURE OF SPOONS. FORKS, AND LADLES
Year: 1867

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Thomas Bennett, of Birmingham, in the County of
Warwick, Iron Merchant and Manufacturer, for the Invention of "Ix-
PROVEMENTS IN THE MANUFACTURE OF SPOONS. FORKS, AND LADLES."
Sealed the 24th April 1868, and dated the 28th October 1867,
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Thomas Bennett at the
Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the
28th October 1867.
I, THOMAS BENNETT, of Birmingham, in the County of Warwick, Iron
Merchant and Manufacturer, do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention
for "IMPROVEMENTS IN THE MANUFACTURE OF SPOONS, FORKS, AND LADLES," to be as
follows:-
My Invention consists, firstly, in making or treating 'hoop iron in the manner
herein-after described for the purpose of fitting it to be used in the manufacture
of spoons, forks, and ladles.
This part of my Invention has for its object the production upon one or both
sides of hoop iron at the required distances apart of a series of solid beads, or
ribs, or thickened parts, which said beads, ribs, or thickened parts when the
hoop iron is manufactured into spoons, forks, and ladles give great strength to
the handles of the said articles.
In making or treating hoop iron according to my Invention I roll the said
hoop iron from the pile in the ordinary way and by the ordinary machinery,
but instead of finishing the said hoop iron by passing it through the ordinary

page_text: plain bard rolls, I pass it through hard rolls, in the periphery of one of which
rolls a series of recesses or depressions is made oblique to the sides of the said
rolls. The hoop iron finished by being passed through rolls of the kind
described has upon one side of it a series of solid beads or ribs, each series of
beads or ribs being situated at the required distances apart and consisting of
two parallel beads or ribs, the said beads or ribs being oblique to the sides of
the hoop iron; the beads or ribs are taper, that is they are thicker at one end
than at the other end.
In using hoop iron prepared in the manner described for the manufacture
of spoons, blanks are cut out of the said hoop iron in the ordinary way, each
blank being so cut from the hoop iron that a bead or rib is situated on that
part of the blank which is to form the handle of the finished spoon. The
blanks are fashioned into spoons in the ordinary way by press tools, the handles
of the said spoons being provided with a solid bead or rib running up their
middles, by which the said handles are much strengthened at their narrowest
part. Ladles are made in the manner described with respect to spoons..
In making forks from hoop iron made or prepared according to my Invention,
I prefer to make a series of single solid beads or ribs at the required distances
apart on the hoop iron, and to make the said beads or ribs parallel with the
sides of the hoop iron. In this case the recesses or depressions in the hard
or finishing roll are situated parallel with the sides of the roll.
In making or treating hoop iron according to my Invention from which
forged spoons are to be made, the hoop iron is rolled with ribs or thickened
parts on both sides, the said ribs or thickened parts being made on the hoop
iron at the required distances apart. The hoop iron rolled in this way some-
what resembles a series of double wedges joined together at their narrow ends.
In rolling the hoop iron of this form it has a preparatory shaping by the
reducing rolls before it reaches the hard rolls by which it is finished, the said
hard rolls having properly shaped depressions in both of them to complete the
formation of the ribs or thickened parts on both sides of the hoop iron; the
hoop iron is cut into pieces, that part at which the rib or thickened part is
situated being formed into the handle of the spoon.
My Invention consists further in treating iron for the manufacture of forged
spoons in the following manner :-Iustead of producing the ribs or thickened
parts on hoop iron as described, the said ribs or thickened parts may be, formed
on ordinary iron by rolling or by stamping, and the perfecting of the ribs or
thickened parts may be effected if found necessary by hand. Or I roll hoop
or other iron of a wedge or taper figure and cut the bowls transversely
from the said iron, the handle end of the bowls being cut from the thickest

page_text: end of the taper iron; and I also roll short lengths of hoop or other iron
from which I cut the handles of the spoons, that end of the handle which
is to be joined to the bowl being cut from the thickest end of the taper hoop.
or other iron.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, filed
by the said Thomas Bennett in the Great Seal Patent Office on the
27th April 1868.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, THOMAS
BENNETT, of Birmingham, in the County of Warwick, Iron Merchant and
Manufacturer, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters®
Patent, bearing date the Twenty-eighth day of October, in the year of our Lord-
One thousand eight hundred and sixty-seven, in the thirty-first year of Her reign,
did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto me, the said
Thomas Bennett, Her special licence, that I, the said Thomas Bennett, my
executors, administrators; and assigns, or such others as I, the said Thomas
Bennett, 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 THE MANUFACTURE
OF SPOONS, FORKS, AND LADLES," upon the condition (amongst others) that I, the.
said Thomas Bennett, my executors or administrators, by an instrument in
writing under my, or their, or one of their hands and seals, 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 Thomas Bennett, do hereby declare the
nature of the said Invention, and in what manner the same is to be per-
formed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and by the following
statement thereof, that is to say :-
My Invention consists in making or treating hoop iron in the manner
herein-after described for the purpose of fitting it to be used in the manufacture.
of spoons, forks, and ladles.
"
My Invention has for its object the production upon one or both sides of

page_text: 'hoop iron, of solid beads or ribs or thickened parts, which said beads, ribs,
or thickened parts when the hoop iron is manufactured into spoons, forks,.
and ladles give great strength to the handles of the said spoons, forks, and
ladles.
In making or treating hoop iron according to my Invention I roll the said
hoop iron from the pile in the ordinary way and by the ordinary machinery,
but instead of finishing the said hoop iron by passing it through the ordinary
plain hard rolls I pass it through hard rolls, in the cylindrical surface of one
of which rolls a series of recesses or depressions is made oblique to the sides
of the said roll. The hoop iron finished by being passed through rolls of the
kind described has upon one side of it several series of solid beads or ribs
:situated at the required distances apart, each series consisting of two parallel
beads or ribs, the said beads or ribs being oblique to the sides. of the hoop
iron. The beads. or ribs taper at each end into the metal of the hoop. In
using boop iron prepared in the manner described. for the manufacture of
spoons, blanks are cut out of the said hoop iron in the ordinary way, each
blank being so cut from the hoop iron that a bead: or rib is situated on that.
part of the blank which is to form the. handle of the finished spoon. The
blanks are fashioned into spoons in the ordinary way by press tools, the handles
of the said spoons being provided with a solid bead or rib running up their
middles, by which the said handles are much strengthened at their narrowest
part. Forks and ladles are made in the manner described with respect to
spoons.
Instead of a series of double beads or ribs on the hoop iron a series of
single beads or ribs may be made, the said single beads or ribs being. situated
parallel to the sides of the hoop iron. In this case the recesses or depressions
in the hard or finishing roll are situated parallel to the sides of the said roll,
or the hoop iron may be rolled with beads or ribs, or thickened parts on both
sides. When beads or ribs or thickened parts. are made on both sides of the
hoop iron both of the hard rolls are provided with the required depressions to
form the said beads, or ribs, or thickened parts.
.
Having explained the nature of my Invention I will proceed to describe
with reference to the accompanying Drawings the manner in. which the same
is to be performed.
Figure 1 represents in plan a piece of hoop iron made or treated according
to my Invention for the manufacture of spoons, forks, or ladles. In the
said Figure 1 the solid beads. or ribs rolled on one side of the hoop iron
are marked a, a, the said beads or ribs being situated parallel to: one another
as represented, but oblique to: the sides of the hoop iron.

page_text: Figure 2 represents an edge view of the hoop iron and exhibits the shape:
of one of the beads or ribs and its bevilled or tapered ends. Several series of.
these parallel beads or ribs a, a, are made at the. required. distances' apart on.
the hoop iron, the said beads or ribs being made by passing the hoop iron
through hard or finishing rolls constructed as herein-before described..
Blanks for the manufacture of spoons (or forks or ladles) are cut from the
hoop irou in the marner indicated by the dotted lines in Figure 1, each bead:
or rib being situated on that part of the blank which is to form the handle of
the finished spoon.
Figure 3 represents an elevation of a spoon made from a blank provided
with a solid bead or rib according to my Invention. The said solid. bead. or
rib is marked a and occupies the middle of the upper side of the handle of
the spoon.
The said handle is thereby strengthened at its narrowest: part..
I do not limit myself to the size or shape of the solid bead or rib as its: size:
and shape may be varied.
Figures 4 and 5 represent transverse sections of blanks. cut from hoop iron.
prepared according to my Invention, the solid bead or rib a in Figure 4.
having a nearly semicircular figure, and that in Figure 5 having an angular
figure.
Figure 6 represents a piece of hoop iron rolled with several single solid.
beads or ribs b at the required distances apart, instead of double beads or ribs
as in Figures 1 and 2, the said single beads or ribs being situated. parallel to
the sides of the hoop iron. The blank is cut from the hoop iron in the
manner indicated in dotted lines. Instead of making the solid bead or rib on.
one side only of the hoop iron a solid bead or rib may be made on both sides.
In this case the beads or ribs are either made at the required distances apart.
on both sides of the hoop iron, or a continuous bead or rib is made on one side
of the hoop iron and several beads or ribs at the required distances apart are.
made on the other side of the hoop iron. The continuous bead or rib described
when the hoop iron is made into spoons is situated on the under side of the
bandle and bowl of the spoon and the other bead or rib is situated on the
upper side of the handle only of the spoon.
Figure 7 represents in plan and cross section, and Figure 8 in edge view
a piece of hoop iron treated in the manner last described, the beads or ribs.
made at the required distances apart on the upper side of the hoop-iron being
marked c and the continuous bead or rib on the under side of the hoop iron.
being marked d. The manner in which the blanks are cut from the hoop
iron is indicated in dotted lines in Figure 7. The hard rolls for rolling this
form of hoop iron have the required depressions in both of them to form the

page_text: beads or ribs on both sides of the said hoop iron. In order to reduce the
quantity of scrap or waste in the hoop iron from which the blanks are cut I
make the hoop iron at those parts from which the handle end of the blank is
to be cut of less width than at those parts from which the bowl end of the
blank is to be cut as illustrated in Figure 7 where the narrow parts are
marked d². I form the narrow parts d³ in the hoop iron by passing the hoop
iron previous to the final rolling by which the beads or ribs are formed on it
edgewise through a pair of rolls, the said rolls being provided with the
necessary projections to form or fashion the said narrow parts of the hoop iron.
Where greater strength is required in the handle than can be gained by beads
or ribs I roll the hoop iron with thickened parts at the required distances
apart on both sides, the said thickened parts being of the width of or rather
wider than the handle of the spoon to be formed. A piece of hoop iron rolled
in this way is represented in edge view in Figure 9 and in plan in Figure 10.
In the said Figures 9 and 10 the thickened parts on both sides of the hoop iron
are marked e, the said thickened parts being wider than the handle of the article
to be made. Instead of making the bead or rib solid with the hoop iron
the said bead or rib may be made separately and fixed in the blank from
which the spoon is to be made as represented in plan in Figure 11 and section
in Figure 12, that is to say, I cut out a spoon blauk in the ordinary way and
pierce a slot at f in the narrow portion of the handle part of the said blank.
I take a piece of iron or steel wire g of the length of the slot ƒ but of a
thickness somewhat greater than the thickness of the blank. I place the said
wire g in the slot f and fix it therein either by flattening its ends over the
metal of the blank or by making the ends of the wire engage with the ends of
the slot, or in any other convenient way; a rib or bead projecting from both
sides of the narrow part of the handle of the blank is thereby formed which
when the blank is fashioned into a spoon in the ordinary way gives great
strength to the narrow part of the handle of the said spoon. The separate rib
or bead g may project from one side only of the handle part of the blank. The
interstices between the wire and slot are filled up by the subsequent tinning
which the spoon undergoes. Hoop iron and blanks are treated or prepared
for the manufacture of forks and ladles in the manner described with respect
to spoons.
Having now described the nature of my Invention, and the manner in which
the same is to be performed, I wish it to be understood that I do not limit
myself to the precise details herein described and illustrated as the same may
be varied without departing from the nature of my Invention; but I claim as
my Invention,-

page_text: Firstly. The improvements in the manufacture of spoons, forks, and ladles
herein-before described and illustrated in Figures 1 to 10 both inclusive, of
the accompanying Drawings, that is to say, producing by rolling upon one or
both sides of hoop iron at the required distances apart several solid beads or
ribs or thickened parts, or producing by rolling a continuous solid bead or rib
on one side and several solid beads or ribs at the required distances apart on
the other side of the hoop iron, substantially as herein-before described and
illustrated, which said solid beads or ribs or thickened parts when the hoop
iron is manufactured into spoons, forks, and ladles give great strength to the
handles of the said spoons, forks, and ladles.
Secondly. The improvements in the manufacture of spoons, forks, and
ladles herein-before described and illustrated in Figures 11 and 12 of the
accompanying Drawings, that is to say, making the bead or rib by which the
handle of the spoon, fork, or ladle is strengthened separately from the
blank and fixing it in the blank, substantially as described and illustrated.
In witness whereof, I, the said Thomas Bennett, have hereunto set my
hand and seal, this Twenty-fourth day of April, in the year of our
Lord One thousand eight hundred and sixty-eight.
Witness,
RICHARD SKERRETT,
Clerk to George Shaw,
Birmingham.
THOMAS BENNETT. (L.B.)