IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINERY FOR MANUFACTURING SHOES FOR HORSES AND OTHER ANIMALS
Year: 1861

page_text: Brixton, in the County of Surrey, for the Invention of
IMPROVEMENTS
IN MACHINERY FOR MANUFACTURING SHOES FOR HORSES AND OTHER ANIMALS."
A communication from Edward Adams Cutler, residing at the City
and County of Providence, in the State of Rhode Island, and United
States of America.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said George Tomlinson Bousfield
at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on
the 20th September 1861.
I, GEORGE TOMLINSON BOUSFIELD, of Loughborough Park, Brixton, in the
County of Surrey, do hereby declare the nature of the Invention for "IMPROVE-
MENTS IN MACHINERY FOR MANUFACTURING SHOES FOR HORSES AND OTHER
ANIMALS," to be as follows:-
There are two general methods of making shoes for animals by means of
machinery. One by rolling or compressing a bar of metal into the proper
form, and the other by hammering the bar and drawing it into the shape of a
shoe by a succession of blows, similar to the ordinary operation to effect the
same purpose by hand labor.

page_text: The Invention which is the subject of this Patent relates to improvements
in machinery for making shoes by the latter method, and is composed of two
principal parts. The first part consists in a new arrangement and coin-
bination of mechanical agencies for fashioning the shoe from a blank or bar
of metal, and the second in a means for arresting the fall of the hammers at
certain periods, and thereby preventing the "half blow," as it is termed, which
is the well-known incident to the operation of bammers worked by a tappet
shaft or "wild cat."
The top of the bed or frame of the machine is planed smooth, and is of
ample size to accommodate the various parts of the machinery. Sufficient
space is also provided beneath the table of the frame to give room for tho
operation of the several parts presently to be described; while in front and
underneath the platform of the frame, but entirely disconnected from it, is
the anvil bed. On the top of the platform of the frame, and mounted in
suitable bearings, is the principal shaft provided with a heavy balance or fly
wheel, and a driving drum or pulley of any desired size. This shaft is provided
with a three-armed tappet wheel or "wild cat," which operates on the hammer
helve and causes it to rise and fall three times during each revolution of the
shaft. At the extremity of the shaft farthest from the balance or fly wheel is
placed a loose pinion, which engages with the teeth of a gear wheel on a cam
shaft which is parallel with the principal shaft, the pinion being made to
revolve with the main or principal shaft at pleasure by means of a clutch or
ratchet gear, one part of which is attached to the principal shaft by a feather,
and can be moved away from its counter part, which forms a part of the
pinion, by means of a controlling lever. The object of this clutch gear is to
disconnect the operating mechanism from the main shaft the instant that each
shoe is completed. To effect this disconnection at the proper moment a cain
is placed on the rim of the gear wheel, the inclined face of which at each
revolution of the gear wheel strikes against an inclined face of the controlling
lever which works the clutch and forces the faces of the clutch apart, and
thus effects the desired purpose. All the operation necessary to produce a
shoe being effected during one revolution of the cam shaft to which the gear
wheel is attached, it is evident that the disconnection of the main shaft from
the other mechanism can be accomplished at the proper time by the means
described without difficulty. Supposing that the clutch is in gear with the
face of the pinion, and the machinery ready to commence its operation, a bar
of metal of the right length when bent to form a complete shoe, is placed on
the platform of the frame directly behind the raised "former" on the anvil.
A pair of benders are now carried forward and bend the bar around the

page_text: former."
These benders are curved arms jointed at their rear ends to a
sliding bar, and they carry rollers on their front ends. The anterior part of
the slider, or that portion between the benders, is made straight for the
purpose of forming on a horse shoe what is termed a "square toe."
Stationary cams or curved guides affixed to the top of the bed govern the
movement of the benders in lateral directions towards the shoe blank, whilst
such benders are being forced forward by the sliding bar, and a spring tends
to force them apart and cause their friction rollers to bear at all times against
the stationary curved guiding cams. The forward and backward movement
of the sliding bar at the proper time is regulated and effected by a cam wheel
working against a friction roller in the rear end of the sliding bar, which
forces the sliding bar in one direction, and by a wiper actuating a bell crank
(the upper end of which works into a socket on the under side of the sliding
bar) it is forced in the other direction. This part of the mechanism is sub-
stantially the same in principle and mode of operation as that which has
before been used. The bar of metal having been bent around the "former,"
as described, the hammer die is now released by the removal of a prop which
has hitherto supported it, and which will be explained in describing the second
part of the Invention, and is permitted to fall with its full force upon the shoc.
The "wild cat" upon the main shaft now acts upon the hammer helve, thereby
causing the hammer die to rise and fall as many times as is necessary to "plate
out" the shoe. The hammer helve is then caught up and sustained by the p prop
before mentioned. At this moment a cam presses down a treadle which works
a chain passing over a chain gear on a shaft, which is in consequence rotated
far enough to enable a toothed wheel secured to it, and which works into a
rack connected with the sliding head, to move the sliding head in which
the hammer die is mounted so far to the right as to bring a creaser die
directly over the shoe in the place previously occupied by the hammer die.
The supporting prop to the helve is now again withdrawn, and the creaser
die falls upon the shoe. The "wild cat" then causes it to give another blow,
when the helve is again caught up and sustained as before. A cam now
operates a treadle to which the other end of the chain above mentioned is
attached, whereby the shaft is rotated far enough to return the sliding head
in which the hammer and creaser dies are mounted to the first position. At
the same time the benders are drawn back by the action of the wiper upon
the sliding bar through the bell crank, as already shown, in readiness to act
upon a second blank of metal. The hammer and creaser dies are each secured
to a separate shaft fitted to slide in guides in a sliding carriage. On the back
of each shaft are two feet between which the end of the helve projects. When

page_text: the carriage is moved so far to the right as to bring the creaser die over the
shoe, the feet are carried with it away from the helve, and the hammer rests
upon a platform. The creaser shaft is now substituted in the place of the
hammer shaft, and is operated as has been described, in the same manner as
the hammer shaft; and when the carriage is moved back to the left so as to
bring the hammer die to its original position, the creaser rests upon the
platform. In operating the hammer or creaser an impetus additional to the
force of gravity may be imparted to either by the use of a spring pole bearing
upon the back of the hammer helve, the strain of which can be regulated at
pleasure by turning a screw which works a sliding block, into which one
end of the spring pole is inserted, the other end having an upward bearing
against some fixed part of the machine. The face of the hammer die is sur-
rounded by a flange or raised rim, with the exception of an opening at the too
of about two inches in length, which is for the purpose of permitting the inetal
to be flattened or drawn out at that place. The interior contour of the
Bange corresponds to the shape of the intended exterior edge, the interior edge
of the shoe being formed against the exterior edge of the former. The inner
side of the raised rim is bevelled, so that the edge of the shoe after the hammer
bas ceased working will be bevelled also. This is done for the purpose of com-
pensating for the effect of the creaser, as will presently be seen, so that the
edge of the shoe, after it has been finished, will be at a right angle with its
face. The creaser has also a raised rim similar to that which has been described
as being on the face of the hammer, the only purpose of which, however,
is to furnish a guard for the sharp creaser dies in case a blow is struck when
no shoe is upon the anvil, and also to furnish a protection for the creaser
when resting on the platform. The sharp creaser dies indent the face of the
shoe, and thereby force the metal out towards the edge, leaving the shoe "full,"
as it is called, and without any appearance of ever having had a bevelled edge.
A great practical result is derived from the use of hammers provided with the
rim or flange in place of a smooth-faced hammer striking upon an anvil upon
which similar flanges are placed. In the latter case much of the scale
which is formed by the oxydation of the iron while it is being hammered is
deposited within the rim on the anvil, and is driven into the face of the shoe
greatly to the injury of its appearance. Whereas by the plan above described,
the scale as it forms is scattered by the force of the blow and by the jets of
water thrown upon the anvil, so that the surface of the shoe is left as smooth
and perfect as if worked by a hand sledge. The "former," around which the
bar of metal is bent, is also peculiarly constructed in order to avoid the
difficulties incident to the use of blanks of metal, which are of slightly un-

page_text: equal thickness. Experience has proved that altho' a machine will make a
perfect shoe from a bar whose thickness is proportional to the height of the
"former" above the anvil, yet in case a blank happens to be a little thicker
than it should be, a "fin" will be formed upon the shoe in consequence of the
excess of metal being spread out upon the top surface of the "former."
The "former" is, therefore, made is such a manner that it shall yield slightly
to the blow of the hammer, and thereby am enabled to make it accommodate
itself to the varying thickness of the blanks. The same principle can be
applied in various ways, but in one which has been successfully used, that
part of the "former" which projects above the anvil is provided with three or
more plugs or pistons which fit into corresponding sockets in the anvil, at tho
bottom of each of which (as a bearing for the end of the piston) is a disc of
rubber or other elastic substance, the tendency of which is to keep the
"former" raised higher than the intended thickness of the blank, but will
readily yield on receiving the blow of the hammer.
The second part of the Invention relates to a means for arresting or
"blocking up" the hammer helve at certain periods during the operation of the
machine for the purpose principally of preventing the occurrence of what is
called the "half blow," and incidentally to cause the faces of the hammer
and the creaser to be raised sufficiently high to admit of the free movement of
the sliding carriage to change their relative positions. The "half blow" of a
tilting hammer is produced by the fact that the helve is caught by one of the
tappets of the "wild cat" before the hammer has reached the face of the
anvil. Two powerful opposing forces are thus brought into opposition,
involving the consequence of a severe shock to the machine. It is evident
that this evil will ensue in the operation of any trip hammer where the speed
of the "wild cat" is disproportioned to the time required for the descent of
the hammer. It is not proposed to obviate the difficulty in such a case, but,
assuming the machine to be properly driven, it is sought to prevent the now
frequent occurrence of it at the moment of starting. At some convenient
point near the forward extremity of the helve a lever is attached to a shaft,
which has its bearings in standards on the platform. On this shaft are keyed
two short arms, which can be adjusted at any angle with the lever or long
arm above mentioned. When the two short arms are so placed as to be in
the proper position the helve will be propped up; if, however, the same arms
be moved, the helve will be free to fall, and it is clear that the position of the
supporting arms is controlled by the position of the lever or long arm which
operates the shaft to which they are keyed. Underneath the lever or long
arm is placed a standard, which limits the range of its downward motion, and

page_text: a suitable spring constantly tends to keep the long arm bearing upon the top
of the standard, and consequently props up the helve. From this it is scen
that the hammer helve is at all times raised above the range of motion of the
tappets of the wild cat, except at the time when the long arm is raised high
enough to change the position of the shorter arms. In order to permit the
hammer helve to fall at the proper times, and to remain subject to the action
of the wild cat for the length of time necessary to allow the hammers to
complete their work, there is placed on the platform of the machine, near the
extremity of the long arm, a flexible standard, which will afford a support for the
long arm if raised high enough to bring it underneath, unless it is sprung aside
by some agency. The flexible standard is controlled by means of a rod, which is
attached to another rod, acted on by a coiled spring, which is conveniently
arranged so as to force the rod first mentioned in one direction, thereby
springing the flexible standard out of its perpendicular position, and main-
taining it so until a cam on the gear wheel bears against the end of the
second-mentioned rod, and counteracts the strain, thus no support is afforded
for the long arm, which, when raised, removes the prop to the hammer helve,
except during the time that the end of the first-mentioned rod is acted upon
by some countervailing force. The long arm is raised at the proper time to
permit the hammer helve to fall by a disc plate, on the face of which are a
number of projecting pins equal to the number of the tappet arms on the
wild cat. Any one of these pins will, by the revolution of the disc plate, raise
the end of the long arm high enough to permit the flexible standard (which
at the same time is free to act), to spring underneath the long arm to sustain
it. The pins are so adjusted relatively to the tappets of the wild cat as that
the one which acts to release the helve shall do so at the instant that one of
the tappets has passed the highest point in its circle of revolution, and thus
ensure a full blow from the hammer before the next tappet comes in contact
with the helve to tilt it. From the preceding description it follows that the
hammer helve is at all times blocked up so that the wild cat will not act to
tilt it, except at those times when the cams on the rim of the gearing wheel
cause the pins on the disc plate to raise the long arm, and these cams are
so adjusted as to act only during the time that the hammer helve is to be
operated, thus effectually preventing the half blow, and also ensuring the
elevation of the hammer faces, while the various other motions of the machine
are being made.
After the shoe is finished it is removed from the machine by the following
arrangement of mechanism :-On the cam shaft before mentioned is placed a
cam arranged to act upon a lever extending from the cam shaft to the front

page_text: of the machine once during every revolution of the cam shaft. To the forward
extremity of the lever is attached a jointed rod, which works in a guide
through the platform, and has its upper extremity terminating in two prongs,
which embrace the rear portion of the "former." The cam adjusted to act
on the lever just in advance of the retreat of the sliding bar and the benders
before mentioned, the prongs of the rod will in consequence be thrown upward,
and tip up the shoe; at this moment the benders start to return to their first
position, and in their progress a scraper, attached to a frame over the benders,
drags the shoe off the platform, and permits it to fall into the delivering
trough.
The operation of the whole machine is as follows:-The blank from which the
shoe is to be made having been properly placed, the benders come forward
and bend the blank around the "former." The supporting prop to the hammer
helve is now removed, and the plating hammer falls with a full fair blow upon
the blank. As the face of the hammer now rests upon the blank, the hammer
helve is within the range of the tappets on the wild cat, and the consequence
is that the hammer is tilted until the cam shaft has revolved far enough to
permit the flexible standard to be drawn away from supporting the long arm,
when the helve is, on being raised again by the wild cat, propped up as
before. The sliding carriage now shifts the creaser hammer to the place just
occupied by the plating hammer, which last is deposited upon a platform, and
disconnected from the helve. At this moment the supporting prop to the
helve is withdrawn as before, and a full blow is struck by the creaser hammer
upon the blank. The wild cat causes the blow to be repeated, when the
flexible standard is again sprung aside, and the helve again blocked up. The
sliding carriage now returns to its first position, disconnecting the creaser
hammer from the helve, and depositing it upon a platform. The prongs of
the rod then operate to cant up the heel of the shoe, which enables the scraper
to carry off the shoe as the sliding bar to which the benders are attached
returns to its first position. The machine is now ready to repeat these
operations.
The peculiarities of this Invention consist,-
First, in the combination and arrangement of a separate hammer and
creaser with a single helve, so that while the one is in a state of rest and
disconnected from the helve, the other is connected therewith, and capable of
being operated by it independently of the other.
Second, in the use of a separate hammer and creaser, capable of acting
independently of each other, in combination with the instruments for giving
the first bend to the shoe blank.

page_text: Third, in constructing the face of the hammer with a raised rim, as
described, for the purpose of giving shape to the shoe, and also for facilitating
the escape of the scale as it is formed.
Fourth, in the combination of the prongs and scraper, or their equivalents,
for the purpose of removing the shoe after it has been finished, applied, and
operated as described.
Fifth, in the mode of operation, substantially as specified, by means of which
the
prop
is removed from the hammer helve to permit the operations of plating
and creasing of the shoe to be performed, and at such times relatively to the
revolution of the wild cat as to prevent a half blow from the hammer, as set
forth.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, filed
by the said George Tomlinson Bousfield in the Great Seal Patent Office
on the 20th March 1862.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, GEORGE
TOMLINSON BOUSFIELD, of Loughborough Park, Brixton, in the County of
Surrey, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the Twentieth day of September, in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and sixty-one, in the twenty-fifth year of Her
reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto me, the
said George Tomlinson Bousfield, Her special licence that I, the said George
Tomlinson Bousfield, my executors, administrators, and assigns, or such others
as I, the said George Tomlinson Bousfield, 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 MACHINERY FOR MANUFACTURING SHOES FOR HORSES AND OTHER
ANIMALS," a communication from Edward Adams Cutler, a person resident at
the City and County of Providence, in the State of Rhode Island, and United
States of America, upon the condition (amongst others) that I, the said
George Tomlinson Bousfield, my executors or administrators, by an instrument
in writing under my, or their, or one of their hands and seals, should par-
ticularly 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

page_text: 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 Tomlinson Bousfield, do hereby
declare the nature of the said Invention, and in what manner the same is to
be performed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and by the
following statement thereof, reference being had to the Drawings hereunto
annexed, that is to say:-
Figure 1 is a plan of the machine; Figure 2 is a side view, the side of the
bed plate being removed; Figure 3 is a front view; Figure 4 is a vertical
section, showing the means by which the hammer helve is supported in order
to avoid the "half blow;" Figure 5 is a vertical section showing the chain
gear which works the sliding head; Figure 6 is a rear view; Figure 7 shows
the cams and their arrangement for working the chain gear to move the
sliding head; Figure 8 is a plan of the same; Figure 9 shows the rack of
the sliding head and the pinion in the end of the chain shaft which works it;
Figures 10, 11, and 12 show respectively in plan, side view, and in section
the arrangement for avoiding the "half blow;" Figures 13 and 14 show the
devices for removing the shoe after it is finished; Figures 15 to 27 aro
detailed parts to be referred to hereafter.
There are two general methods of making shoes for animals by means of
machinery; one by rolling or compressing a bar of metal into the proper
form, and the other by hammering the bar, and drawing it into the shape of a
shoe by a succession of blows similar to the ordinary operation to effect the
same purpose by hand labor.
The Invention which is the subject of this Patent relates to improvements
in machinery for making shoes by the latter method, and is composed of two
principal parts. The first part consists in a new arrangement and combi-
nation of mechanical agencies for fashioning the shoe from a blank or bar of
metal, and the second in a means for arresting the fall of the hammers at
certain periods, and thereby preventing the "half blow," as it is termed, which
is the well known incident to the operation of all hammers worked by a tappet
shaft or "wild cat."
In the several Sheets of Drawings the same parts are indicated by the
same letters, and are also colored the same shade throughout the Figures.
A, Figures 2, 3, and 4 is the bed or frame of the machine, the top of
which is planed smooth, and is of ample size to accommodate the various
parts of the machinery. Sufficient space should also be provided beneath the
table of the frame to give room for the operation of the several parts presently
to be described; while in front and underneath the platform of the frame A,

page_text: but entirely disconnected from it, is the anvil bed B, Figures 2 and 3. On
the top of the platform of the frame A, mounted in suitable bearings, is the
principal shaft C, Figures 1, 2, and 5, provided with a heavy balance wheel D
and a driving pulley of any desired size. This shaft is provided with a three-
armed tappet wheel or "wild cat" E, Figures 2 and 5, which operates on
the hammer helve M, Figures 2, 5, and 6, and causes it to rise and fall
three times during each revolution of the shaft. At the extremity of the
shaft farthest from the balance wheel is placed a loose pinion N, Figures 1
and 2, which engages with the teeth of the gear wheel P on the cam shaft 2,
the pinion being made to revolve with the main shaft at pleasure by means
of the clutch or ratchet gear 0, 0, one part of which is attached to the shaft
by a feather, and can be moved away from its counterpart which forms a part
of the pinion by means of a controlling lever H. The object of this clutch
gear is to disconnect the operating mechanism from the main shaft the instant
that each shoe is completed. To effect this disconnection at the proper
moment, a cam a is placed on the rim of the gear wheel P, Figure 1, the
inclined face of which at each revolution of the gear wheel strikes against
the inclined face 6 of the lever which works the clutch, and forcing the faces
of the clutch apart effects the desired purpose. All the operation necessary
to produce a shoe being effected during one revolution of the cam shaft Z, to
which the gear wheel P is attached, it is evident that the disconnection of the
main shaft from the other mechanism can be accomplished at the proper time
by the means described without difficulty. I will suppose now that the clutch
is in gear with the face of the pinion, and the machinery ready to commence
its operation, a bar of metal C of the right length, when bent to form a
complete shoe, is placed on the platform of the frame directly behind the
raised "foriner" Q on the anvil, Figure 1; a pair of benders R, R, are now
carried forward, and bend the bar C around the "former," the second position
of the bender being shown at R', R. These benders are curved arms jointed
at their rear ends to a sliding bar S and carrying rollers 2, 2, on their front
ends. The anterior part of the slider, or that portion between the benders
R, R, is made straight for the purpose of forming on a horse shoe what is
termed a "
square toe." Stationary cams 3, 3, affixed to the top of the
bed A, govern the movement of the benders in lateral directions towards the
shoe blank while such benders are being forced forward by the sliding bar
S, S, and a spring 4, 4', tends to force them apart, and cause the friction
rollers 5, 5, to bear at all times against the stationary guiding cams 3, 3.
The forward and backward movement of the slider S, S, at the proper time
is regulatod and effected by the cam wheel Y, Figure 2, working against a

page_text: friction roller in the rear end of the slider S to force the slider in one direction,
and by the wiper U actuating the bell crank V, the upper end of which works
into a socket on the under side of the slider to force it in the other direction.
This part of the mechanism is substantially the same in principle and mode
of operation as that which has before been used.
The bar of metal having been bent around the "former" Q, as described,
the hammer die W is now released by the removal of a prop which has
hitherto supported it, and which will be explained, in describing the second
part of the Invention, and is permitted to fall with its full force upon the
shoe. The wild cat" upon the shaft C now acts upon the hammer helve,
thereby causing the hammer die to rise and fall as many times as is necessary
(in the instance shown six times) to "plate out" the shoe. The hammer
helve is then caught up and sustained by the prop before mentioned; at this
moment the cam 8, Figure 2, presses down the treadle 9, pivotted at d, and
works the chain 10, which passes over the chain gear 11 on the shaft 12;
the shaft 12 is in consequence rotated far enough to enable the toothed
wheel 13 secured to it, and which works into the rack 14, to move the sliding
head in which the hammer die is mounted so far to the right as to bring the
creaser die W', Figure 3, directly over the shoe in the place previously
occupied by the hammer die. The supporting prop to the helve M is now
again withdrawu, and the creaser die falls upon the shoe; the "wild cat"
then causes it to give another blow, when the helve M is again caught up,
and sustained as before. The cam T, Figure 2, now operates the treadle 15,
pivotted at e, to which the other end of the chain 10 is attached, whereby the
shaft 12 is rotated far enough to return the sliding head in which the hammer
and creaser dies are mounted to the first position; at the same time the
benders are drawn back by the action of the wiper U upon the slider S, S,
through the bell crank V, as already shown, in readiness to act upon a second
blank of metal. The hammer and creaser dies W, W', Figure 3, are cach
secured to a separate shaft fitted to slide in guides in the carriage X. On the
back of each shaft are two feet, f, f, Figure 2, between which the end of tho
helve M projects. When the carriage X is moved so far to the right as to
bring the creaser die W₁ over the shoe, the feet f, f, are carried with it away
from the helve M, and the hammer rests upon the platform 16. The creaser
shaft W' is now substituted in the place of the hammer shaft, and is operated,
as has been described, in the same manner as the hammer shaft, and when
the carriage is moved back to the left, so as to bring the hammer die to its
original position, the creaser rests upon the platform 16'. In operating the
hammer or creaser, an impetus additional to the force of gravity may be

page_text: imparted to either by the use of a spring pole Y, Figure 2, bearing upon the
back of the hammer helve M, the strain of which can be regulated at pleasure
by turning the screw y', which works a sliding block, into which one end of
the spring pole is inserted, the other end having an upward bearing against
some fixed part of the machine. The face of the hammer die, Figures 3
and 19, is surrounded by a flange or raised rim g, g, with the exception of an
opening at the too of about two inches in length, which is for the purpose of
permitting the metal to be flattened or drawn out at that place. The interior
contour of the flange corresponds to the shape of the intended exterior edge,
the interior edge of the shoe being formed against the exterior edge of the
former Q, Figure 1. The inner side of the raised rim g, g, is bevilled, so that
the edge of the shoe, after the hammer has ceased working, will be bevelled
also; this is done for the purpose of compensating for the effect of the creaser,
as will presently be seen, so that the edge of the shoe, after it has been
finished, will be at a right angle with its face. The creaser W, Figures 3
and 26, has also a raised rim g, g', similar to that which has been described
as being on the face of the hammer, the only purpose of which, however, is to
furnish a guard for the sharp creaser dies h, h, in case a blow is struck when
no shoe is upon the anvil, and also to furnish a protection for the creaser
when resting on the platform 16'. The sharp creaser dies h, h, indent the
face of the shoe, and thereby force the metal out toward the edge, leaving
the shoe full," as it is called, and without any appearance of ever having
had a bevilled edge. A great practical result is derived from the use of
hammers provided with the rim or flange described over a smooth-faced
Lammer striking upon an anvil upon which similar flanges are placed. In
the latter case, much of the scale which is formed by the oxidation of the iron
while it is being hammered, is deposited within the rim on the anvil, and is
driven into the face of the shoe greatly to tho injury of its appearance,
whereas, by the plan above described, the scale as it forms is scattered by the
force of the blow and by the jets of water thrown upon the anvil, so that the
surface of the shoe is left as smooth and perfect as if worked by a hand
sledge. The former Q. around which the bar of iron is bent, is also
peculiarly constructed in order to avoid the difficulties incident to the use of
blanks of metal which are of slightly unequal thickness. Experience has
proved, that although one of the machines will make a perfect shoe from a
bar whose thickness is proportional to the height of the "former" above the
anvil, yet that in case a blank happens to be a little thicker than it should be, a
"fin" will be formed upon the shoe in consequence of the excess of metal
being spread out upon the top surface of the "former." I therefore make

page_text: the former Q in such a manner that it shall yield slightly to the blow of the
hammer, and thereby am enabled to make it accommodate itself to the varying
thickness of the blanks. The same principle can be applied in various ways,
but the one which has been successfully used is shown in Figures 22, 23,
and 24. That part of the former Q, which projects above the anvil, is
provided with three or more plugs or pistons i, i, i, which fit into correspond-
ing sockets in the anvil, as shown in Figure 24, at the bottom of each of
which (as a bearing for the end of the piston) is a disc of rubber or other
elastic substance, the tendency of which is to keep the "former" raised higher
than the intended thickness of the blank, but which will readily yield on
receiving the blow of the hammer.
The second part of the Invention relates to a means for arresting or
"blocking up" the hammer helve at certain periods during the operation of
the machine for the purpose principally of preventing the occurrence of what is
called the "half blow,' and incidentally to cause the faces of the hammer and
the creaser to be raised sufficiently high to admit of the free movement of the
sliding carriage X to change their relative positions.
The "half blow" of a tilting hammer is produced by the fact that the helvo
is caught by one of the tappets of the "wild cat" before the hammer has
reached the face of the anvil. Two powerful opposing forces are thus brought
into opposition, involving the consequence of a severe shock to the machine.
It is evident that this evil will ensue in the operation of any trip hammer
where the speed of the "wild cat" is disproportioned to the time required for
the descent of the hammer. It is not proposed to obviate the difficulty in
such a case, but assuming the machine to be properly driven, it is sought to
prevent the now frequent occurrence of it at the moment of starting. At some
convenient point near the forward extremity of the helve M, a lever 17,
Figure 2, is attached to a shaft m, which has its bearings in standards on
the platform, scc Figures 10, 11, 12. On this shaft are keyed two short
arms 17', 171, Figure 12, which can be adjusted at any angle with the long
arm 17. When the two short arms are so placed as to be in the position
shown in Figures 11 and 12, it is evident that the helve M will be propped
up. If, however, the position of the same arms be as shown in dotted lines,
Figures 2 and 11, the helve will be free to fall, and it is clear that the position
of the supporting arms is controlled by the position of the long arm 17, which
operates the shaft to which they are keyed. Underneath the arm 17 is placed
a standard 18, which limits the range of its downward motion, and a suitable
spring 19 constantly tends to keep the arm 17 bearing upon the top of the
standard, and consequently props up the helve. From this it is seen that

page_text: the hammer helve is at all times raised above the range of motion of the
tappets of the wild cat except at the time when the long arm 17 is raised high
enough to change the position of the supporting arms 17', 17'. In order to
permit the hammer helve to fall at the proper times, and to remain subject to
the action of the wild cat for the length of time necessary to allow the hammers
to complete their work, I place on the platform of the machine near the
extremity of the arm 17, a flexible standard 20, Figure 11, which will afford a
support for the arm 17, if raised high enough to bring it underneath, unless it
is sprung aside by some agency. The standard 20 is controlled by means of a
rod 24, which is attached to another rod 22, arranged as shown in Figures 11
and 12. A coiled spring in the rod 22 is conveniently arranged so as to force
the arm 24 in one direction, thereby springing the standard 20 out of its per-
pendicularity, and maintaining it so until a cam 23 on the gear wheel P,
bears against the end of the rod 22, and counteracts the strain; thus, no
support is afforded for the arm 17, which, when raised removes the prop to
the hammer helve, except during the time that the end of the rod 22 is acted
upon by some countervailing force. The lever 17 is raised at the proper time to
permit the hammer helve to fall by the following arrangement:-On the shaft C
a grooved sliding collar 21 is placed, whose position on the shaft is controlled
by the rod 24, (an arm from the rod being inserted in the groove.) To this
collar is secured a disc plate 21º, on the face of which are a number of pro-
jecting pins equal to the number of the tappet arms on the wild cat. Any
one of these pins will by the revolution of the disc plate, which by means of a
feather is made to turn with the shaft C, raise the end of the arm 17 high
enough to permit the flexible standard (which at the same time is free to act,
to spring underneath the arin to sustain it whenever the action of the cam 23
causes the collar 21 to be forced toward the hammer helve. The pins are so
adjusted relatively to the tappets of the wild cat as that the one which acts
to release the belve shall do so at the instant that one of the tappets has passed
the highest point in its circle of revolution, and thus ensure a full blow from
the hammer before the next tappet comes in contact with the helve to tilt it.
From the preceding description it follows that the hammer helve is at all times
blocked up so that the wild cat will not act to tilt it except at those times
when the cams on the rim of the wheel P cause the pins on the disc plate to
raise the arm 17, and these cams are so adjusted as to act only during the
time that the hammers are to be operated, thus effectually preventing the
happening of the half blow, and also ensuring the elevation of the hammer
faces while the various other motions of the machine are being made. After
the shoe is finished it is removed from the machine by the following arrange-

page_text: ment of mechanism :-On the cam shaft Z is placed a cam 25, Figures 1, 13,
14, arranged to act upon the lever L, extending from the shaft to the front of
the machine once during every revolution of the shaft. To the forward
extremity of the lever L is attached a jointed rod 26, which works in a guide
through the platform, and has its upper extremity terminating in two prongs
which embrace the rear portion of the "former" Q, Figure 14. The cam 25 is
adjusted to act on the lever L just in advance of the retreat of the slider S and
the benders R, R, the rod 26 will in consequence be thrown upward and tip
up the shoe; at this moment the benders start to return to their first position,
and in their progress a scraper 27, attached to a frame 28 projecting over the
benders from the slider S drags the shoe off the platform, and permits it to
fall into the delivery trough.
The operation of the whole machinery is as follows:-The blank of which
the shoe is to be made having been properly placed, the benders come forward
and bend the blank around the "former." The supporting prop to the hammer
helve is now removed and the plating hammer falls with a full fair blow upon
the blank. As the face of the hammer now rests upon the blank the hammer
helve is within the range of the tappets on the wild cat, and the consequence
is that the hammer is tilted until the cam shaft Z has revolved far enough to
permit the flexible standard to be drawn away from supporting the arm 17
when the helve is, on being raised again by the wild cat, propped up as before.
The sliding carriage X now shifts the creaser hammer to the place just
occupied by the plating hammer, which last is deposited upon a platform and
disconnected from the helve. At this moment the supporting prop to the
helve is withdrawn as before, and a full blow is struck by the creaser hammer
upon the blank. The wild cat causes the blow to be repeated, when the
flexible standard is again sprung aside and the helve again blocked up. The
sliding carriage now returns to its first position, disconnecting the creaser
hammer from the helve and depositing it upon a platform. The rod 26 then
operates to cant up the heel of the shoe, which enables the scraper which
depends from the frame over the benders to carry off the shoe as the sliding bar
to which the benders are attached returns to its first position. The machine
is now ready to repeat these described operations.
What I claim as the Invention and desire to secure by Letters Patent is,
First, the combination and arrangement of a separate hammer and creaser
with a single helve, so that while the one is at a state of rest and disconnected
from the helve the other shall be connected therewith and capable of being
operated by it independently of the other, substantially as described.
Second, I claim the use of a separate hammer and creaser capable of acting

page_text: independently of each other in combination with the instruments for giving the
first bend to the shoe blank, substantially as described.
Third, I claim constructing the face of the hammer with a raised rim as
described, for the purpose of giving shape to the shoe, and also for facilitating
the escape of the scale as it is formed.
Fourth, I claim the combination of the prongs 26 and scraper 27, or their
equivalents for the purpose of removing the shoe after it has been finished,
applied, and operated, substantially as described.
Fifth, I claim the mode of operation substantially as specified, by means of
which the prop is removed from the hammer helve to permit the operations of
plating and creasing of the shoe to be performed, and at such times relatively
the revolution of the wild cat as to prevent a half blow from the hammer as
to set forth.
In witness whereof, I, the said George Tomlinson Bousfield, have
hereunto set my hand and seal, this Twelfth day of March, in the
year of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and sixty-two.
GEO. T. BOUSFIELD. (L.S.)