IMPROVE- MENTS IN THE MANUFACTURE OF METAL PIPES, AND IN THE APPARATUS EMPLOYED THEREIN
Year: 1858

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to John Henry Johnson, of 47, Lincoln's Inn Fields,
in the County of Middlesex, and of 116, Buchanan Street, in the City
of Glasgow, North Britain, Gentleman, for the Invention of "IMPROVE-
MENTS IN THE MANUFACTURE OF METAL PIPES, AND IN THE APPARATUS
EMPLOYED THEREIN."-A communication from Charles Felix Sebille, of
Nantes, in the Empire of France, Engineer.
Sealed the 4th June 1858, and dated the 28th January 1858.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said John Henry Johnson at
the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the
28th January 1858.
I, JOHN HENRY JOHNSON, of 47, Lincoln's Inn Fields, in the County of
Middlesex, and of 166, Buchanan Street, in the City of Glasgow, North
Britain, Gentleman, do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention for
"IMPROVEMENTS IN THE MANUFACTURE OF METAL PIPES, AND IN THE APPARATUS
EMPLOYED THEREIN," a communication from Charles Felix Sebille, of Nantes,
in the Empire of France, Engineer, to be as follows:-
This Invention relates to improvements in the manufacture of lead and
other soft metal piping, and consists in applying, by the aid of suitable
apparatus, a coating or lining of tin to the interior of such piping during the
process of its manufacture.
The pipe itself is produced by the aid of a press, which forces the metal
continuously through a die in the ordinary well-known manuer, but in order to
[Price 8d.1

page_text: effect the internal coating ortinning of the pipe so produced, it is proposed to
employ an internal fixed mandril of a peculiar construction.
This mandril, if the pipe is of a very small diameter, may be made solid, but
when larger pipes are to be tiuned it is mado hollow so as to form a cup, the
bottom of which is perforated laterally so as to communicate with the
exterior of the mandril and the internal surface of the pipe. The mandril is
fixed to a cross-piece inside the cylinder of the press, and immediately beneath
the die or draw plate against which it bears.
The middle portion of the mandril is made of smaller diameter than the top
and bottom of the same, so that an annular space will be left between the
sides of the mandril at that part and the interior of the pipe, the upper portion
of the mandril being in the form of a projecting shoulder or collar, which fills
the interior of the pipe. So soon as a short length of the pipe has been pressed
through the dieordraw plate, a quantity of melted tin previously prepared for
tinning is poured therein, the amount being regulated according to the size and
length of piping to be tinned. As the pipe now exudes from the die or draw-
plate the melted tin contained therein and in the hollow of the mandril
passes
out through the perforations at the bottom of the mandril, and fills the annular
space between the pipe and the middle portion of the mandril, thereby
depositing a coating on the inside of the pipe as fast as it comes from the
die or draw plate. This coating is well smoothed off by passing over the
enlarged collar at the head of the mandril, which also acts as a soldering iron
by compelling the tin to adhere to the cistern of the pipe. When still larger
tinned pipes are to be produced the mandril may be continued through into the
cylinder, and secured to the ram or head of the press so as to move with it
thereby reducing the friction of the metal against its sides.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, filed
by the said John Henry Johnson in the Great Seal Patent Office on the
27th July 1858.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, John
HENRY JOHNSON, of 47, Lincoln's Inn Fields, in the County of Middlesex,
and of 166, Buchanan Street, in the City of Glasgow, North Britain,
Gentleman, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the Twenty-eighth day of January, in the year of our
Lord One thousand eight hundred and fifty-eight, in the twenty-first year

page_text: of Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto.
me, the said John Henry Johnson, Her special license that I, the said John
Henry Johnson, my executors, administrators, and assigns, or such others as
I, the said John Henry Johnson, my executors, administrators, or 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 METAL PIPES, AND IN THE APPARATUS
EMPLOYED THEREIN," a communication from Charles Felix Sebille, of Nantes,
in the Empire of France, Engineer, upon the condition (amongst others) that
I. the said John Henry Johnson, by an instrument in writing under my
hand and seal, should particularly describe and ascertain the nature of the said
Tuvention, 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 John Henry Johnson, do hereby declare
the nature of the said Invention, and in what manner the same is to bo per-
formed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and by the following
statement, reference being had to the accompanying Drawings, and to the
letters and figures marked thereon, that is to say:-
The said Invention relates to improvements in the manufacture of lead and
other soft metal piping, and consists in applying, by the aid of suitable appa-
ratus, a coating or lining of tin to the interior of such piping during the
process of its manufacture. The pipe itself is produced by the aid of a press,
which forces the metal continuously through a die in the ordinary well-known
manner; but in order to effect the internal coating or tinning of the pipe so
produced, it is proposed to employ an internal fixed mandril of a peculiar
construction.
This mandril, if the pipe is of a very small diameter, may be made solid, but
when larger pipes are to be tinned, it is made hollow, so as to form a cup, the
bottom of which is perforated laterally, so as to communicate with the exterior
of the mandril and the internal surface of the pipe. The mandril is fixed to
a cross piece inside the cylinder of the press and immediately beneath the die
or draw plate, against which it bears. The middle portion of the mandal is
made of smaller diameter than the top and bottom of the same, so that an
annular space will be left between the sides of the mandril at that part and
the interior of the pipe, the upper portion of the mandril being in the form of
à projecting shoulder or collar, which fills the interior of the pipe. So soon as

page_text: a short length of the pipe has been pressed through the die or draw plate, a
quantity of melted tin previously prepared for tinning, is poured therein, the
amount being regulated according to the size and length of piping to be.
tinned. As the pipe now exudes from the die or draw plate, the melted tin
contained therein and in the hollow of the mandril passes out through the
perforations at the bottom of the mandril, and fills the annular space between
the pipe and the middle portion of the mandril, thereby depositing a
coating on the inside of the pipe as fast as it comes from the die or draw
plate. This coating is well smoothed off by passing over the enlarged collar
at the head of the mandril, which also acts as a soldering iron by compelling
the tin to adhere to the interior of the pipe. When still larger tinned pipes
are to be produced, the mandril may be continued through into the cylinder,
and secured to the ram or head of the press, so as to move with it, thereby.
reducing the friction of the metal against its sides.
And in order that the said Invention may be properly understood, I shall
now proceed to describe the same, and for that purpose I shall refer to the
several Figures on the Sheet of Drawings hereunto annexed, the same letters
of reference indicating corresponding parts throughcut all the Figures.
Figure 1 of the accompanying Sheet of Drawings represents a vertical
section, taken along the line 1-2 in Figure 2 of my improved pipe tinning
apparatus, applied to the body of a press for forming endless pipes, and shews
the process as having just commenced. Fig. 2 is a plan of a portion of the
apparatus; Fig. 3 is a side elevation of that portion of the apparatus which
contains the tin, and operates at the same time as a tinning or soldering
iron; Figure 4 is an horizontal section of the same, taken along the line 3-4
in Figure 3; Figure 5 shews a modified form of this same portion of the
apparatus, adapted for tinning tubes of a small diameter; and Fig. 6 is a
horizontal section of the same, taken along the line 5-6.
The principalapparatus which constitutes the ordinary machine for making
endless or continuous pipes is a cylinder A, within which a piston B presses
upon the molten metal C contained within the cylinder, aud causes it to exude
through the aperture of a die or draw plate D, in the centre of which aperture
is fitted a solid mandril, which leaves between its outer surface and the edges
of the aperture in the draw plate an annular space, corresponding in width to
the thickness of the metal of the pipe to be produced.
According to this Invention, for the tinning of these pipes the mandril is of
the form of a hollow cylinder E, if intended to be used in the tinning of pipes
of large diameter, and fixed to a cross head F (Figure 2), which is contained
inside the cylinder A, and bears against the under surface of the die or draw

page_text: plate D. This crosshead is composed of four arms, which are made extremely
thin at the part coinciding with the course of the metal through the die or
draw plate, in order to offer as little resistance thereto as possible. The tube
or pipe a during the process of its manufacture having exuded a short distance
through the die D, as shewing in the Drawings, the mandril E will become
completely enclosed or surrounded thereby, and a quantity of molten metal
duly prepared with the requisite resinous agents for the process of tinning is
poured into the pipe. This molten metal fills the hollow mandril, and may
probably rise some distance above the top thereof inside the pipe o (as shewn
in Figure 1) according to the quantity of tin required. The mandril, as before
stated, is perforated at d, through which perforations the tin flows and enters
the annular space e formed by the hollow made on the outer surface of the
mandril. As fast as the tube 'exudes through the die it will be continuously
coated inside with the tin which fills the space e, and as the tube rises, the pro-
jecting collar E¹ on the upper end of the mandril performs the office of a
soldering iron, and causes the tin to enter the pores of the lead pipe. Above
the mandril again the interior surface of the pipe encounters the bath of
molten tin contained above the collar of the mandril.
In tinning pipes of a small diameter a solid, mandril may be employed
similar to that shewn at Figures 5 and 6, the molten tin occupying the
annular space formed by reducing the diameter of the mandril at its middle
portion, and also rises some little distance inside the pipe, as shewn in
Figure 1. The mandril E is furnished with a ring F (feet 3), which is
screwed into the upper portion thereof, and serves as a convenient means of
fitting and adjusting the mandril in its place in the end of the cylinder A.
This ring is removed, however, by unscrewing it when the mandril has been
properly adjusted, as in Figure 1.
'
In operating upon pipes of a large diameter, the mandril ifstationary would
offer too great a resistance to the passage of the metal through the die; and in
order to obviate this inconvenience, I propose to use the arrangement shewn
in Figure 7. In this arrangement the mandril E is secured at its lower
extremity to the ram or piston B, whilst its upper end is suitably shaped to
receive the tin, and allow it to deposit itself against the interior sides of the
pipe. This portion of the mandril is therefore slightly expanded, as at E¹, so
as to serve as a soldering iron and sleeker or smoother, by bearing against the
interior of the pipe, as before described. The operation of tinning the pipe is
effected in a precisely similar manner to that described with reference to
Figure 1, with this difference, that the mandril rises with the ram or piston in
place of being stationary.

page_text: Figures 8 and 9 of the Drawings represent respectively a vertical and
horizontal section of a modified form of an apparatus, whereby I am enabled
10 tin not only the insides of soft metal pipes, but also the outsides thereof;
Cis the pipe, which is forced through the die or draw plate D fitted into the
cylinder of the press A; F is the mandril attached to the piston or ram, as
described in reference to Figure 7, and formed with the reservoir E at its upper
end to receive the molten tin. In this modification, however, I have added
the outside brass cylinder B, fitted on to the die D.outside the pipe, so as to
enclose or surround the same at the part where it passes through the die.
This cylinder B forms a receptacle for the tin which is required for coating
the outside of the pipe, the internal and external coatings being effected
simultaneously, and as fast as the pipe is produced. The coating of tin thus
applied to the two surfaces of the pipe renders it more rigid without re-
moving nevertheless that amount of flexibility requisite for the laying down
of the same.
I also propose to employ in combination or not with my improved apparatus
or with the ordinary pipe forcing machines a second apparatus, which will
complete the operation of the first in cases where the pipes are required to be
strongly tinned. Figure 10 represents this second apparatus in longitudinal
section, and in combination with the last described arrangement for tinning
pipes both inside and outside simultaneously; and Figure 11 is a plan of a
portion of the apparatus. The pipe C is forced through the die D, and is
coated internally and externally as described above, or this tinning apparatus
may be dispensed with by using the ordinary pipe drawing press.. On leaving
this press, however, the pipe whether tinned or not is passed over the grooved
pulley P, and descends into a bath of molten tin at E, the reservoir being con-
structed of cast or wrought iron, or copper. This bath is supported over a
small furnace G, the object of which is to keep the tin at a proper temperature;
H represents the fire bars, and J the furnace door. In order that the pipe
may be well immersed in the tin bath, I cause it to pass beneath a second
grooved pulley K, which maintains it at a proper depth beneath the surface.
After having received this external coating of tin, the pipe passes over the
roller G¹, which serves to support it, and the extremity of the pipe is fastened
to the drum L of the windlass M, upon which drum it is wound as fast as it
is produced. By using this external tinning apparatus in conjunction with
the internal and external tinning apparatus, as shewn in the Drawings, and
herein-before described, the pipes may receive the successive coatings of tin
with the greatest facility without loss of time, or more hand labour than at
present required, and for some purposes their value will be greatly enhanced.

page_text: Having now described and particularly ascertained the nature of the said
Invention, and the manner in which the same is or may be used or carried into
effect, I would observe, in conclusion, that I do not confine or restrict myself
to the precise details or arrangements which I have had occasion to describe
or refer to, as variations may be made therefrom without deviating from
the principles or main features of the said Invention; but what I consider to
be novel and original, and therefore claim as the Invention secured to me
by the herein-before in part recited Letters Patent, is,-
First, the general constructions, arrangements, and combinations of apparatus
for making tinned lead or other soft metal pipes, as herein-before described.
Second, the system or mode of coating with tin the interior of lead or other
soft metal pipes during the process of making such pipes, as herein-before
described.
Third, the system or mode of simultaneously coating the internal and
external surfaces of lead or other soft metal pipes during the process of making
such pipes as herein-before described.
Fourth, the combination of a bath of tin for tinning the external surface of
lead or other soft metal pipes with the ordinary pipe drawing apparatus, or
with an apparatus fitted with my arrangements for tinning such pipes as they
exude through the die or draw plate, as herein-before described and illustrated
at Figures 10 and 11 of my Drawings.
Fifth, the application and use to and in the Drawing of soft metal pipes of
large diameter of a rising mandril, secured to the head of the ram or piston of
the press, as herein-before described.
In witness whereof, I, the said John Henry Johnson, have hereunto set
my hand and seal, this Twenty-seventh day of July, One thousand
eight hundred and fifty-eight.
J. HENRY JOHNSON. (L.S.)