New or Improved Machinery for the Manufacture of Dog Spikes or similar Nails or Holdfasts for Rail Fastenings.
Year: 1890

page_text: Date of Application, 11th Nov., 1890
Complete Specification Left, 11th Aug., 1891-Accepted, 10th Oct., 1891
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
New or Improved Machinery for the Manufacture of Dog Spikes or
similar Nails or Holdfasts for Rail Fastenings.
I, JOHN COOKE, General Manager of the Atlas, Hoop and Wire Rod Works,
Limited, Middlesbrough-on-Tees, in the County of York, do hereby declare the
nature of this invention to be as follows:-
My invention relates to machinery to be employed in the manufacture of dog
spikes or the like nails or holdfast such as are used for rail fastenings, which said
spikes are provided with a gib or head and are tapered off to the point edge.
Hitherto dog spikes of this description have been made out of rod iron by forming
the point and then the head by hand; likewise pressed nails have been made by
cutting from bands of a wedge section and the heads afterwards formed. Dog
spikes have also been manufactured by rolling bars of iron out into bands or long
lengths to the required section, that is, with the tapered section in the transverse
position to the travel of the bar through the rolls, which rolled bars are afterwards
put into a nail cutting or shearing machine and sheared transversely into dog
spikes or nails of the required width. When dog spikes are manufactured in this
way the head is liable to break off when the spike comes in contact with the flange
of the rail.
The object of my invention is to dispense with this system of cutting bands of a
wedge section into separate strips, and to construct rolls which will roll the requisite
sections longitudinally for dog spikes or the like used for rail fastenings, the said
rolls being so constructed that a bar of iron or steel on being passed through the
rolls is rolled to the requisite and finished size and shape, each dog spike or nail
being nicked off clean to length by which the time and labour required in such
operation is greatly reduced and at the same time the quality of the dog spikes or
the like is improved.
In carrying my invention into effect I construct the rolls of the usual collar and
groove type which may be rotated by the application of any suitable and available
power. The bottom roll preferably takes the flat or level side of the dog spike or
nail to be produced and is a true circle and forms a "gate" to correspond with the
top roll, but the top and bottom rolls may be reversed and will produce the same
section. A succession of grooves and tapered surfaces form the periphery of the
top roll to correspond to the section and form of the dog spike or nail, each of the
said grooves and tapered surfaces of the top roll extends the full length of a dog
spike or the like so that bars of iron on being passed through the rolls are reduced
to dog spikes or the like of the section and size required according to the formation
of the periphery of the top roll and are nicked off clean to length and to their
finished sizes thus dispensing with the process of cutting as hitherto employed. In
order to enable the nails or spikes to obtain a firmer grip of the wood I prefer
to roll them with grooved or ribbed surfaces which I effect by providing
grooves or corrugations on the corresponding parts of the periphery of the specially
shaped roll and if preferred on the periphery of the other roll as well. A suitable
cramp and guide is furnished on the finishing side of the rolls to guide the dog
spikes or the like as they are rolled out, and if necessary to release them from their
contact with the grooved roll. It is obvious that the number of dog spikes or nails
may be varried according to the diameter of the top and bottom rolls.
Dated this 10th day of November 1890.

page_text: COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
New or Improved Machinery for the Manufacture of Dog Spikes or
similar Nails or Holdfasts for Rail Fastenings.
I, JOHN COOKE, General Manager of the Atlas, Steel, Hoop, and Wire Rod
Works, Limited, Middlesbrough-on-Tees, in the County of York, 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 :-
My invention relates to machinery to be employed in the manufacture of dog-
spikes or the like nails or holdfasts such as are used for rail fastenings which said
spikes are provided with a gib or head and are tapered off to the point edge.
Hitherto dog spikes of this description have been made out of rod iron by forming
the point and then the head by hand; likewise pressed nails have been made by
cutting from bands of a wedge section and the heads afterwards formed.
Dog spikes have also been manufactured by rolling bars of iron out into bands
or long lengths to the required section, that is with the tapered section in the
transverse direction to the travel of the bar or billet through the rolls, which,
rolled bars are afterwards put into a nail cutting or shearing machine and sheared
transversely into dog spikes or nails of the required form and width. When dog
spikes are manufactured in this way the spike is sheared off from the rolled bar
crosswise to the fibre which is thought to make the head liable to break off when
the spike comes in contact with the flange of the rail.
The object of my invention is to construct rolls which will roll the requisite
sections longitudinally for dog spikes or the like as used for rail fastenings.
In carrying my invention into effect I construct the rolls of the usual collar and
groove type which may be rotated by the application of any suitable and available
power. The bottom roll preferably takes the flat or straight side of the dog spike
or nail to be produced and a true circle and forms a 'gate" with a top roll
specially constructed for the purpose of my invention, but the top and bottom rolls
may be reversed and will produce the same section.
દ
From the folowing description taken in connection with the accompanying
drawing it will be observed that the essential feature of my invention consists in
the particular formation of the roll, preferably the top roll, by which ordinary bar
iron or a billet of iron or steel on passing through is manufactured into dog spikes
or the like articles, each spike leaving the rolls shaped and cut to its form and
length.
For the sake of simplicity of description I will refer to dog spikes only but it is
to be understood that I include in that expression the like nails or holdfasts such as
are used for rail fastenings.
In the drawing
Figure 1 is a front elevation of two rolls fixed in position in suitable housings.
Figure 2 is a sectional view taken on line x of Figure 1.
Figures 3 and 4 are enlarged views of a section of the periphery of the specially
constructed roll corresponding to the length and configuration of the dog spike
illustrated in Figure 5.
In the figures a is the specially constructed top roll, b is the bottom roll for
rolling the flat or straight side of the dog spike and is therefore a true circle.
These two rolls are shown in the working position with a billet c passing through
them to be rolled into dog spikes d d of the required shape and dimensions; e is a
suitable cramp and guide plate for discharging the said dog spikes into some con-
venient receptacle.
A succession of grooves f and tapered surfaces 9 and sharp edges h form the
periphery of the top roll a to correspond to the section or form of the dog spikes.
Each combination of a groove f and tapered surface g taken between two consecutive
sharp edges extends the full length of a dog spike so that the billet c on being

page_text: passed through the rolls is reduced to dog spikes d of the section and size required
according to the formation of the periphery of the top roll a, the dog spikes being
nicked off clean to length by the edges h.
It will be understood that the particular form and dimensions of the dog spikes
may be varied within practical limits by varying the form or configuration of the
corresponding sections of the periphery of the roll a as indicated by the letters f, g
and h, but as these dog spikes require a considerable taper towards the point edge
it is requisite that special provision be made to enable the rolls to draw them in.
This is effected by providing grooves k intersecting each other anglewise on the
surface of the roll a, by which corresponding ribs or stringers are formed on the
tapered side of the dog spike d. By grooving the bottom roll & the straight side of
the dog spike may be similarly provided with ribs or stringers; whilst the said
grooves in the rolls cause the billet to be rolled to be more easily drawn in, the
corresponding ribs or stringers on the dog spike enable it to obtain a firmer grip of
the wood into which it is driven.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said inven-
tion and in what manner the same is to be performed 1 declare that what I
claim is :-
Firstly In the manufacture of dog spikes or the like nails or holdfasts, the
construction and use of rolls for rolling the said dog spikes longitudinally by means
of a specially constructed roll which is preferably the top roll, operating in com-
bination with a circular roll, that is to say, the periphery of the specially constructed
roll
consists of a number of sections each of which sections is furnished with a
groove, tapered surface y, and edge h, for shaping and nicking off the dog spikes
clean to length, substantially as described and illustrated in the accompanying
drawing.
Secondly. The use of the specially constructed roll a, with the tapered surfaces g,
grooved or recessed with or without corresponding grooves or recesses in the circular
roll b, as and for the purpose as hereinbefore described with reference to the accom-
panying drawing.
Dated this 10th dow of Avoust 1891