IMPROVEMENTS IN THE MANUFACTURE OF HORSE-SHOES AND IN MACHINERY. OR APPARATUS THEREFOR
Year: 1882

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to William Robert Lake, of the firm of Haseltine, Lake,
& Co, Patent Agents, Southampton Buildings, London, for an invention of
"IMPROVEMENTS IN THE MANUFACTURE OF HORSE-SHOES AND IN MACHINERY.
OR APPARATUS THEREFOR" Communicated to him from abroad by Frederick
A. Roe, of the City and State of New York, United States of America.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said William Robert Lake at the
Office of the Commissioners of Patents on the 5th July 1882.
33
WILLIAM ROBERT LAKE, of the firm of. Haseltine, Lake & Co, Patent Agents,
Southampton Buildings, London "IMPROVEMENTS IN THE MANUFACTURE OF
HORSE-SHOES AND IN MACHINERY OR APPARATUS THEREFOR [A communication
to him from abroad by Frederick A. Roe, of the City and State of New York,
United States of America.]
This Invention relates to the manufacture of spring horse-shoes and to machinery
or apparatus therefor and comprises the novel dies and combination of devices
hereinafter described, whereby I am enabled to place the improved spring horse-
shoe in the market at a price not much exceeding that of the ordinary shoe.
In carrying the said invention into practice I cut from an ordinary bar of metal
a blank of the desired length to form a shoe; this. blank, after being properly
heated, is subjected to the action of dies. These dies have their curved surfaces
grooved, one groove being provided with a recess for forming the calk on the heel
of the shoe blank, or the shoe may be made without a calk on the heel. Other
grooves receive the blanks edgewise. Only one-half of the length of the blank is
pressed into shape at a time. The blank is then turned with the other end to the
dies and the other half presented to the corresponding grooves on the opposite side
of the die, so as to form each end of the blank to suit the right and left-hand sides
of the shoe. The blank after being thus drawn and the calk formed, is subjected
to other dies for cutting the ends of the blank to form the rear of the spring. In
order to make the rear of the spring on an incline, or bevelled so as to rest against
the heel of the shoe proper, when forced against the shoe, it is necessary to first cut
'

page_text: the shoe on the proper incline to prevent the metal from tearing or breaking when
the spring is cut. This I accomplish by means of the last named dies provided
with V-shaped blades and with straight edged blades secured to the upper die.
The upper die also carries a plunger which fits into a recessed block in the lower
die. On each side of the said block is a recess in the die for the reception of the
calk of the blank, or the heel of the shoe if made, without a calk, when the blank is
laid flat on the die to receive the V-shaped blade which penetrates the blank just
in front of the heel or calk. After this V-shaped cut is made through the blank,
the blank is turned edge upwards against guide pins, and in a groove to receive a
cut from one of the said straight-edged blades, As the said blade stands at
right angles to the front of the die block, and the said guide pins and groove stand
at the desired angle, the edge of the blank will be cut on an angle corresponding to
the angle of the cut made by the V-shaped blade, and the heel of the spring is thus
separated from the shoe proper and with the proper lap as desired. The angle of
the cut must be reversed on the two ends of the blank and this is accomplished by
cutting one against each line of the guide pins, as this reverses the position of the
blank and necessarily the angle of the cut.
After the metal has been thus severed at the point of the spring the blank is
placed in the aforesaid recessed block in one of the dies and the aforesaid plunger
is brought down upon it to restore the parts of the severed metal to their original
relative position, so as not to interfere with the subsequent manipulation of the
blank.
The blank after being thus cut at the ends, is subjected, one end at a time, to
other dies for forming the crease in the blank, and for reducing the blank to the
exact form. These dies are subjected to the operation of a drop hammer which
forces ribs secured to the upper die into the metal to form the crease. The said
ribs are attached to the upper die in order that they may be exposed as little as
possible to the effects of heat, which would have a tendency to burn and soon
destroy them. As the hammer strikes and rises quickly from the heated metal, but
little injury can result from the contact of the said ribs with the hot metal. The
blank being thus forced in between the said dies, any surplus metal is necessarily
crushed out in the form of a "fin" or rough edge. To remove this “fin” the blank
is subjected to dies which trim the fin from the blank.
After the blank has been creased and reduced to the exact form and trimmed, it
is next subjected to a bending machine. This machine has secured in the centre of
the platform or table a die of the shape it is proposed to give to the shoe, and above
this is a plate operated by a screw and hand-wheel, or by any other well known
means, by which the plate is pressed down over the said die, or raised up, as may be
desired. On the lower face of the said plate is inserted a spring pin, which, when
the plate is brought down, rests directly on the shoe-blank and assists in holding it
in position during the bending process. On each side of the said die are secured
adjustable guides between which move the "formers" or forming devices, provided
with friction-rollers pressing against the said guides, and other friction rollers to
press against the shoe blank while it is being bent around the said die. The
formers are pivoted to arms which are in turn pivoted to a. block. This block
can be operated by any of the well known cam devices, so as to cause the formers
to move backward and forward on the table. When the blank has been properly
heated, it is laid transversely in front of, and against, the said die, and the aforesaid
plate is brought down to hold the blank from slipping while the formers move up
and around the die and bend the blank to the desired form. After the form has
been given to the shoe, the holes are punched, and then it is subjected to dies for
cutting the springs. The lower of these dies has an opening or recess just large
enough to receive the spring portion of the shoe, including the calk, while the upper
die is made to fit this recess. The face of the lower die is so bevelled that it first
strikes on the heel of the shoe and then cuts forward with a shearing cut, as far as
desired, to sever the spring from the side of the shoe proper.
It now becomes necessary to set the spring, to remove the irregularities caused

page_text: by the punching of the holes and to put on the toe clip. I accomplish this by
means of dies, the lower one being recessed to receive the shoe with the exception
of a slight protuberance in the recess at the point of the toe. The upper die has a
corresponding concavity and the result is that, when the shoe is pressed into the
lower die by the upper one, a small portion of the metal at the toe of the shoe is
forced up into the said cavity by the said protuberance and forms the clip, at the
same movement by which the springs are set, and all irregularities removed from
the shoe, which is then ready for tempering and packing for the market.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent filed
by the said William Robert Lake in the Great Seal Patent Office on the
4th January 1883.
•
E
"
WILLIAM ROBERT LAKE, of the firm of Haseltine, Lake, & Co., Patent Agents;
Southampton Buildings, London "IMPROVEMENTS IN THE MANUFACTURE OF
HORSE-SHOES AND IN MACHINERY OR. APPARATUS THEREFOR A communication
to me from abroad by Frederick A. Roe, of the City and State of New York,
United States of America
This Invention relates to the manufacture of spring horse-shoes and to machinery
or apparatus therefor, and comprises the novel dies and combination of devices
hereinafter described, whereby I am enabled to place the improved spring horse-shoe
in the market at a price not much exceeding that of the ordinary shoe.
In the accompanying drawings
Figure 1 shows a blank for a shoe, cut from a metal bar.
Figure 1 shows a V-shaped cutter.
Figure 2 shows the dies for drawing the blanks and forming the heels. .
Figures 2 and 2al are face views of the dies.
Figure 3 is a view of the drawn blank.
Figure 4 shows the dies for creasing the blank and making it uniform.
Figure 5 is a view of the blank after it has been creased.
Figure 6 shows the dies for trimming the fin from the blank, left after creasing
and being made uniform.
Figure 7 is a view of the blank trimmed.
Figures 8 and 8 show the dies and knives for cutting the rear of the shoe to form
the heel portion of the spring.
Figure 9 is a view of the blank showing these cuts.
Figure 10 is a side view of the machine for bending the blank, with my
improvements attached.
Figure 11 is a plan of the bed and bending machinery.
Figure 12 is a view of the shoe bent.
Figures 13 and 13 show the dies for completing the cutting of the spring.
Figure 14 is a view of the shoe with the spring completely cut.
Figure 15 shows the same after the holes have been punched.
Figure 15° shows the heel of the shoe after the spring is cut,

page_text: Figures 16 and 16ª show the dies for finishing the shoe, setting the spring and
putting on the toe-clip.
Figure 17 shows a spring horse-shoe as completed by the improved machinery.
According to the said Invention I cut, from a suitable bar of metal, blanks A,
Figure 1 of the desired length to form a shoe; each of these blanks, after being
properly heated, is subjected to the action of dies B, B¹; these dies have curved
surfaces which are grooved, as shown in Figures 2, 2 and 21, the groove a being
provided with a recess a' for forming the calk a³ on the heel of the shoe-blank; or
the shoe may be made without a calk on the heel. The other grooves receive the
blanks edgewise and give them the form shown in Figure 3; only one half of the
length of the blank is pressed into shape at a time. After one half is formed,
the blank is turned with the other end to the dies and is presented to the
corresponding grooves on the opposite sides of the dies, so that the two ends
of the blank are formed to suit the right and left hand sides of the shoe
respectively. The blank, after being thus drawn and the calk formed, is subjected
to the dies D, D', Figure 8, for cutting the ends to form the rear of the spring. In
order to make the rear of the spring on an incline or bevel, so as to rest against the
heel of the shoe proper when forced against it, it is necessary to first cut the shoe
on the proper, incline as shown at e (Figure 15*) to prevent the metal from tearing
or breaking when the spring is cut. This is accomplished by means of the dies D, DI,
provided with the V-shaped blades d, d, and the straight-edged blades ď³, ď³ (as
shown in Figure 8) secured to the upper die.
The upper die D also carries a plunger d which fits into a recessed block din
the lower die D¹.
On each side of the block d³ is a recess e, Figure 8ª, for the reception of the
çalk of the blank (or the heel of the shoe if made without a calk) when the said
blank is laid flat on the die to receive the V-shaped blado which penetrates the
blank just in front of the heel or calk, as shown at e in Figure 15. After this
V-shaped cut is made through the blank, the blank is turned edge upwards against
the guide-pins E and in the groove to receive a cut from one of the straight-
edged blades d¹. As the said blade stands at right angles to the front of the
die-block D' and the guide-pins and groove e stand at the desired angle, the edge
of the blank will be cut as shown in Figure 9, the angle corresponding to the angle
of the cut made by the V-shaped blade; the heel of the spring is thus separated
from the shoe proper, and with the desired lap. The angle of the cut must be 3
reversed on the two ends of the blank, and this is accomplished by cutting one
against each line of the guide-pins, as this reverses the position of the blank and
necessarily the angle of the cut.
After the metal has been thus severed at the point of the spring, the blank is
placed in the recessed block in the die D¹, and the plunger dis brought down 4
upon it to restore the parts of the severed metal to their original relative position,
so as not to interfere with the subsequent manipulation of the blank. The shape of
the cut made by the V-shaped blade is shown at e in Figure 15ª.
The blank, after being thus cut at the ends, is subjected, one end at a time, to
other dies F, F¹, for forming the crease in the blank and for bringing it to the 4
exact form. These dies are subjected to the operation of a drop hammer which
forces the ribs d*, secured to the upper die F¹, into the metal to form the crease.
The ribs d' are attached to the upper die in order-that they may be exposed as
little as possible to the effects of heat, which would have a tendency to burn and
Boon destroy them. As the hammer strikes and rises quickly from the heated 5
metal, but little injury can result from the contact of the said ribs with the hot
metal. The blank being thus forced in between dies F, F, any surplus metal is
necessarily crushed out in the form of a "fin" as shown in Figure 5. To remove
this "fin," the blank is subjected to dies G, G', which trim the fin from the blank
and leave it as shown in Figure 7.
After the blank has been creased and reduced to the exact form and trimmed, it
is subjected to a bending machine (Figures 10.and 11). This machine, has secured

page_text: in the centre of the platform or table, a die H of the shape it is proposed to give to.
the shoe, and above this is a plate H₁ operated by a screw and hand-wheel, or, by
any other well-known means, by which the plate is pressed down over the die H
or raised up as may, be desired. On the lower face of the plate H¹ is inserted the
spring pin h, as shown in Figure 10, which, when the plate is brought down, rests -
directly on the shoe-blank, and assists in holding it in position during the bending
process. On each side of the die-table is secured an adjustable guide J, between
which guides move the "formers" or forming devices J¹ provided with friction-
rollers pressing against the said guides, and other friction rollers ; to press
against the shoe-blank and bend it around the die H. The formers J are pivotted
to the arms K, which are in turn pivotted to the block K¹. This block can be
operated by any of the well known cam-devices so as to cause the formers J¹ to
move backwards and forwards on the table. When the blank has been properly
heated it is laid transversely in front of, and against, the said die H, as shown in
Figure 11, and the plate H³ is brought down to hold the blank from slipping while
the formers J' move up and around the die and bend the blank to the desired
form. After the form has been given to the shoe, the holes are punched, and then
it is subjected to the dies L, L, (Figure 13) for cutting the springs. The lower
die L has an opening or recess 2 just large enough to receive the spring portion of
the shoe, including the calk, while the upper die L' is made to fit this recess. The
face of the lower die L is so bevelled that it first strikes on the heel of the shoe
and then, with a shearing cut, severs, as far as desired, the spring from the side of
the shoe proper, as illustrated in Figure 14.
It now becomes necessary to set the spring to remove the irregularities caused
by the punching of the holes, see Figure 15, and to put on or form the toe-clip m.
This is accomplished by means of dies N, N¹, the lower one N being recessed to
receive the shoe, with the exception of a slight protuberance n in the recess at the
point of the toe, as shown in Figure 16. The upper die N' has a corresponding
cavity n², and the result is that when the shoe is pressed into the die N by the
die N¹, a small portion of the metal at the toe of the shoe is forced up into the
cavity n¹ by the said protuberance n, and forms the clip m; at the same movement
of the die, the springs are set, and all irregularities are removed from the shoe, which
is then ready for tempering
Having thus fully described the said Invention as communicated to me by my
foreign Correspondent, and the manner of performing the same, I wish it understood
that I claim :-
First-The dies B, B³, having their surfaces curved and grooved as shown and
described, and provided with the recess a' for forming the calk of the shoe,
substantially as set forth.
Second-The die D carrying the plunger d³ and provided with blades d, d¹,
in combination with the die D¹ provided with the recessed block d³, the recesses e¹,
the guide-pius E, and the groove e³, all substantially as, and for the purpose,
described.
Third:-The stationary die F recessed to receive the shoe-blank, in combination
with the vertical drop die F¹ provided with the ribs d*, substantially as, and for the
purpose, set forth.
Fourth-A table or platform provided with the die H and adjustable guides J,
in combination with the formers or forming devices J' provided with the friction-
rollers j,j, and the plate H³ having the spring-pin h, all substantially as, and for the
purpose described.
Fifth-The die H, in combination with the plate H³ provided with the
spring-pin h, all constructed to operate substantially as, and for the purpose,
set forth.
Sixth-The die L recessed to receive only the spring portion of the shoe, in
combination with the die L' fitting the said recess and provided with a bevelled
face, substantially as, and for the purpose, described.
Seventh-The die N recessed as described, and provided with the protuberance n

page_text: at the point, for forming the toe of the shoe, in combination with the die N¹
provided with the cavity n¹ on the front of the plunger, substantially as, and for
the purpose, set forth.
Eighth A spring horse-shoe manufactured, substantially as, herein described
and shown in the accompanying drawings,
In witness whereof I the said William Robert Lake have hereunto set my
hand and seal this Fourth day of January in the year of our Lord One
thousand eight hundred and eighty three.
WE RORT LAKE (LS)