Improvements in Railroad Nut-locks.
Year: 1892

page_text: COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Railroad Nut-locks.
1, GASTON OLLIVER, of Coleman's Falls, in the County of Bedford
and State of Virginia, United States of America, Carpenter, 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 to a device for automatically locking the nuts of railroad
rail joints without injury to the threads of either the bolts or nuts.
The invention consists in the combination with the abutting ends of railroad rails
and connecting fish-bars, of a spring device for engaging and securely holding the
bolt nuts in tightened positions and also permitting the removal of said nuts, as
occasion may require.
The invention is clearly shown in the accompanying drawings, wherein
Figure 1 is a perspective view of the abutting ends of two rails with connecting
fish-bars, bolts, nuts, and locking device complete.
Fig. 2 is a perspective view from the inner side of the fish-bar intended for the
nut side of the joint.
Fig. 3 is a perspective view of the spring locking device detached, and
Fig. 4 is a perspective view from the inner side of one of the bolt nuts.
Referring to the drawings, the letters A B designate the railroad rails, C D the
fish-bars, e one of the bolts, and fone of the bolt nuts. The fish-bar D, which is
intended for use at the nut side of the rail joint, is grooved at the adjacent sides of
each outer pair of bolt holes, as shown at h h¹, and the inner ends of said
grooves are connected by longitudinal channels i¹ to receive the spring bars L L'.
The spring bars L L' are each provided with outwardly projecting notched ends 1,
adapted to operate in the grooved sides of the bolt nuts and to engage the radiating
angular teeth m, formed on the inner surface of the bolt nuts, and thus prevent
the backward turning of the said nuts, except when the notched ends of the spring
bar are depressed, as hereinafter described. If desired, the spring-bars, L L can
be secured to the fish-bar D by means of pins or rivets, as shown at n n¹.
The fish-bar D is provided near the ends of the channels i with perforations o o¹
lol for the passage of pins, as hereinafter described, through the instrumentality
of which the notched ends or catches of the spring-bars L L are operated, so as to
release their hold on the angular teeth of the bolt-nuts, and thereby permit the
latter to be loosened or removed at will.
The pins above referred to for insertion in the perforations o oo oll either form
a part of the spring bars L L', as shown at ppl, being of sufficient length to project
outside of the face of the fish-bar D or be made part of a punch or other tool for
nsertion from the outer side of said fish-bar, so as to depress the ends of the spring
bars, as desired.
The spring bars are preferably made thicker at their centres and are somewhat
elliptical in form to insure the operating of their ends against the bolt nuts and
engaging the radial grooves thereof, as desired.

page_text: As a modification of the device hereinbefore described, but one spring-bar may
be employed, the grooves and channel for the reception of the same being made
between the two central or inner bolt holes of the fish-bar D. In such case, how-
ever, the grooves at the side of the bolt holes should be made somewhat deeper to
allow for the constant change in space between the ends of the rails occasioned by
the expansion and contraction of said rails.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said inven-
tion, and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what I
claim is :-
1. In a railroad nut-lock, a fish-bar having the adjacent sides of two of its bolt
holes grooved and the inner ends of said grooves connected by a horizontal channel
provided with outward apertures, as described, in combination with a spring-bar
having outwardly projecting ends to fit the channel and grooves of the fish-bar and
the connecting bolts with radially grooved nuts, substantially as and for the purpose
specified.
2. In a railroad nut-lock, a spring-bar having outwardly projecting ends and
pins, as described, with the rails and fish-bars, one of the latter channeled, grooved,
and perforated, as specified, to receive the aforesaid spring-bar, and the securing
bolts having nuts provided with grooved inner faces, substantially as and for the
purpose set forth.
3. In a railroad nut-lock, a fish-bar having the adjacent sides of each outer pair
of bolt holes grooved, channels connecting the inner ends of said grooves, and
perforations through the channeled part of the fish-bar, as set forth, in combination
with two spring-bars, having outwardly projecting ends to fit the aforesaid channels
and grooves and securing bolts with nuts grooved, substantially as and for the
purpose specified.
Dated this 30th day of December 1892.
F. W. BARKER,
Applicant's Agent.