IMPROVEMENTS IN SCREW SPANNERS OR SCREW WRENCHES, WHICH IMPROVEMENTS ARE ALSO APPLICABLE TO PIPE TONGS AND TUBE CUTTERS."
Year: 1881

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Henry Waters, the elder, and Arthur Vickerstaff, both
of Birmingham, in the County of Warwick, Machinists, for an Invention of
"IMPROVEMENTS IN SCREW SPANNERS OR SCREW WRENCHES, WHICH
IMPROVEMENTS ARE ALSO APPLICABLE TO PIPE TONGS AND TUBE CUTTERS."
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Henry Waters and
Arthur Vickerstaff at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents on the
23rd November 1881.
HENRY WATERS, the elder, and ARTHUR VICKERSTAFF, both of Birmingham,
in the County of Warwick, Machinists. "IMPROVEMENTS IN SCREW SPANNERS OR
SCREW WRENCHES, WHICH IMPROVEMENTS ARE ALSO APPLICABLE TO PIPE TONGS
AND TUBE CUTTERS."
Our Invention relates principally to screw spanners or screw wrenches, and
consists in constructing and arranging the parts of the same in the manner
hereinafter described, but our improvements may also be applied to pipe tongs and
tube cutters.
We will describe our Invention in connection with a screw spanner or screw
wrench.
We make the body of the said spanner, that is, the part which carries the fixed
jaw hollow or tubular, the inner face of the body having a slot opening into the
hollow interior. The moveable jaw is carried by a cylindrical rod which fits the
hollow body, a rib of a size suitable to work in the slot described connecting the
moveable jaw and the cylindrical rod. The moveable jaw has a long bearing on
the inner face of the body. The cylindrical rod carrying the moveable jaw has a
quick threaded left handed screw cut upon it through the greater part of its
length.
The handle of the spanner consists of the following parts:-To the end of the
body is fixed a tube having internally a fine screw thread cut upon it. The terminal
part of the handle consists of a tube, the inner end of which fits upon and overlaps
the outer end of the fixed tube of the body. The said terminal part of the

page_text: handle is capable of a rotary motion and carries within it a tube attached at its
end to the interior of the extreine end of the handle. This inner tube is screwed
within and without, the screw within engaging with the quick threaded left handed
screw of the moveable jaw and the screw without engaging with the fine threaded
screw in the interior of the fixed tubular portion of the handle.
The action of the parts is as follows:-On turning the terminal part of the
handle in the direction proper to drive home a screw, the said terminal part of the
handle advances upon the fixed part, and the screw carrying the moveable jaw
advances at the same time in the same direction with a motion equal to the sum of
the two motions described. The moveable jaw thus advances towards the fixed
jaw by turning the handle in the direction proper to drive home a screw, and
retires from the fixed jaw when the handle is turned in the contrary direction.
Or the parts of the screw spanner or screw wrench may be arranged in the
following manner :-
The moveable jaw carries a half quick threaded screw, and the underside of the
said moveable jaw and a portion of its half screw is formed into a slide which
works in an undercut groove in the body carrying the fixed jaw, a longitudinal
slot opening into the said groove.
The handle end of the body carrying the fixed jaw has a semi-cylindrical stem
upon the flat face of which the flat face of the half screw and slide of the moveable
jaw works. Surrounding the semi-cylindrical stem of the body is a hollow rotating
handle screwed internally with a scrow proper to engage with the half screw on
the moveable jaw. The said internally screwed handle works between a shoulder
where the stem joins the body and a screw nut screwed upon the extreme end of
the stem of the body.
A portion of the half screw is cut away at its sides to permit it to pass into and
out of the undercut groove in the body carrying the fixed jaw.
By turning the handle in one or other direction the half screw on the moveable
jaw is made to pass into or retire out of the internal screw of the said handle, and
the moveable jaw thereby adjusted the proper distance from the fixed jaw.
The application of our improvements to pipe tongs and tubo cutters differs in no
essential respect from their application to screw spanners or screw wrenches, as
herein before described.

page_text: SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent filed
by the said Henry Waters and Arthur Vickerstaff in the Great Seal Patent
Office on the 16th May 1882.
HENRY WATERS, the elder, and ARTHUR VICKERSTAFF, both of Birmingham, in
the County of Warwick, Machinists. "IMPROVEMENTS IN SCREW SPANNERS OR
SCREW WRENCHES, WHICH IMPROVEMENTS ARE ALSO APPLICABLE TO PIPE TONGS
AND TUBE CUTTERS."
Our Invention relates principally to screw spanners or screw wrenches, and
consists in constructing and arranging the parts of the same in the manner herein-
after described, but our improvements may also be applied to pipe tongs and tube
cutters.
We will describe our Invention in connection with a screw spanner or screw
wrench.
We make the body of the said spanner, this is, the part which carries the fixed
jaw, hollow or tubular, the inner face of the body having a slot opening into the
bollow interior. The moveable jaw is carried by a cylindrical rod which fits the
hollow body, a rib of a size suitable to work in the slot described connecting the
moveable jaw and the cylindrical red. The moveable jaw has a long bearing on
the inner face of the body. The cylindrical rod carrying the moveable jaw has a
quick threaded left handed screw cut upon it through the greater part of its
length.
The handle of the spanner consists of the following parts:-To the end of the
body is fixed a tube having internally a fine screw thread cut upon it. The
terminal part of the handle consists of a tube, the inner end of which fits upon and
overlaps the outer end of the fixed tube of the body. The said terminal part of
the handle is capable of a rotary motion and carries within it a tube attached at
its end to the interior of the extreme end of the handle. This inner tube is
screwed within and without, the screw within engaging with the quick threaded
lefthanded screw of the moveable jaw and the screw without engaging with the
fine threaded screw in the interior of the fixed tubular portion of the handle.
The action of the parts is as follows:-On turning the terminal part of the handle
in the direction proper to drive home a screw, the said terminal part of the handle
advances upon the fixed part and the screw carrying the moveable jaw advances
at the same time in the same direction with a motion equal to the sum of the two
motions described. The moveable jaw thus advances towards the fixed jaw by
turning the handle in the direction proper to drive home a screw, and retires from
the fixed jaw when the handle is turned in the contrary direction.
Or the parts of the screw spanner or screw wrench may be arranged in the
following manner :-
The moveable jaw carries a half quick threaded screw, and the underside of the
said moveable jaw and a portion of its half screw is formed into a slide which
works in an undercut groove in the body carrying the fixed jaw, a longitudinal
slot opening into the said groove. The handle end of the body carrying the fixed
jaw has a semi-cylindrical stem, upon the flat face of which the flat face of the
half screw and slide of the moveable jaw works. Surrounding the semi-cylindrical
stem of the body is a hollow rotating handle screwed internally with a screw
proper to engage with the half screw on the moveable jaw. The said internally
screwed handle works between a shoulder where the stem joins the body and a
screw nut screwed upon the extreme end of the stem of the body.
A portion of the half screw is cut away at its sides to permit it to pass into and
out of the undercut groove in the body carrying the fixed jaw.
By turning the handle in one or other direction the half screw on the moveable

page_text: jaw is made to pass into or retire out of the internal screw of the said handle, and
the moveable jaw thereby adjusted the proper distance from the fixed jaw.
We will now proceed to describe with reference to the accompanying Drawing
the manner in which our Invention is to be performed.
Figure 1 represents in longitudinal section, and Figure 2 in cross section taken
on the line a, a, Figure 1, a screw spanner or screw wrench constructed according
to the first described arrangement of our Invention. bis the fixed jaw and c the
moveable jaw of the spanner or wrench. The part or body d carrying the fixed
jaw bis hollow or tubular and has a longitudinal slot e in it for the rib on the
moveable jaw c to work in. The body d forins a long bearing for the moveable
jaw. To the extreme end of the tubular body or part d is a right handed screw f
upon which is screwed and fixed the tubular part g of the handle. The only
function of the screw fis to fix the handle g to the body d. In the terminal part
of the fixed tube g of the handle a screwed tube or screw box / works, the said
tube being capable of a rotatory motion and also of an advancing motion. The
tube or screw box is turned by the milled or ribbed end ². The fixed tube g is
screwed internally at its outer end with a fine threaded left handed screw i with
which a corresponding screw thread on the extreme end of the tube or screw box
engages. The said tube or screw box is also screwed in its interior with a quick
threaded left handed screw L. In the hollow screw of the screw box h the quick
threaded left handed screw m on the rod carrying the moveable jaw c works.
On turning the terminal part or screw box h of the handle in one or other
direction the said part or screw box advances in or retires out of the fixed
tubular part of the said handle, by means of its fine threaded external screw
working in the fine internal screw in the fixed tubular part g, and at the same time
the screw m on the moveable jaw c advances in or retires out of the quick threaded
screw of the screw box . In this way the moveable jaw c is made to advance
towards or retire from the fixed jaw b with a motion equal to the sum of the two
motions effected by the terminal part or screw box of the handle. Figure 3
represents in longitudinal section, and Figure 4 in back elevation a modification of
the screw spanner or screw wrench last described. Figure 5 is a cross section of
the same taken on the line a, a, Figure 3. Figure G represents the fixed jaw
separately, and Figure 7 represents the moveable jaw separately.
b is the fixed jaw; c is the moveable jaw; d, the hollow or tubular body;
e, the slot in which the moveable jaw works; g is the fixed tubular part of the
handle; and is the screw box or moveable part of the handle having an internal
quick threaded screw Z which takes upon the screw m on the rod of the moveable
jaw c.
In this modification the screw box has only a rotary motion, the advancing
motion described in the first arrangement being omitted. The said screw box h
takes a bearing at one end against the terminal screwed part of the body d, and
at the other end against the internal shoulder g in the fixed tubular part g of the
handle. The steni h² of the screw box h projects through the fixed tubo g, and the
said stein has fixed to it the ribbed or inilled head h³, by which the screw box h
is turned. By turning the head 3 in one or other direction the screw box his
rotated and the screw m of the moveable jaw c is made to advance in or retire out
of the hollow screw of the said screw box, so as to adjust the position of the
moveable jaw with respect to the fixed jaw, as will be understood by an examination
of Figure 3.
Figure 8 represents in longitudinal section, and Figure 9 in back elevation partly
in longitudinal section, another screw spanner or screw wrench constructed
according to our Invention; Figure 10 represents parts of the said spanuer
detached.
The moveable jaw c carries a half quick threaded screw c³, and a portion of the
half screw is formed into a slide 3 which works in the undercut groove d in the
body d of the fixed jaw b. A longitudinal slot d is made in the body d, in which
slot the moveable jaw works. This slot is best seen in the separate view of the

page_text: fixed jaw b and other parts in Figure 10. The handle end of the body d has a
semi-cylindrical stem d, upon the flat face of which the flat face of the slide c³ of
the moveable jaw c works; p is the hollow rotating handle surrounding the
stem d of the body d. This handle is screwed internally with a screw suitable to
engage with the half screw on the slide c³ of the moveable jaw c. By reference
to Figure 8 it will be seen that the internally screwed handle p works between
the shoulder p on the body a, and a screw nut q screwed upon the extreme end
of the stem d of the body d. It will also be seen by reference to Figures 9
and 10, that a portion of the half screw c² on the slide of the moveable jaw c is
cut away at its sides to permit it to pass into and out of the undercut groove d² in
the body & carrying the fixed jaw.
By turning the handle p in one or other direction the half screw on the
moveable jaw is made to pass into or retire out of the handle p, and the moveable
jaw thereby adjusted the proper distance from the fixed jaw.
The application of our improvements to pipe tongs and tube cutters differs in no
essential respect from their application to screw spanners or screw wrenches ns
herein before described and illustrated in the accompanying Drawing, that is to
Bay, in pipe tongs, jaws of the ordinary or required figure replace the jaws b, c, of
the wrench, and in tube cutters a fixed jaw of the required shape is used and the
rotating cutter is carried by the moveable jaw.
Having now described the nature of our Invention, and the manner in which
the same is to be performed, we wish it to be understood that we do not limit
ourselves to the precise details herein described and illustrated, as the same may
be varied without departing from the nature of our Invention.
But we claim as our Invention of "Improvements in Screw Spanners or Screw
Wrenches, which Improvements are also Applicable to Pipe Tongues and Tube
Cutters,"
First. The construction and arrangement of the parts of the screw spanners or
screw wrenches herein before described and illustrated in Figures 1 and 2 of the
accompanying Drawing, that is to say, the construction of the internally and
externally screwed terminal part of the handle marked h, h, k, l, and the fixed
internally screwed tubular part g, i, of the handle, and their combination with the
other parts of the screw spanner or screw wrench, for the purpose and substantially
as described and illustrated.
Secondly. The arrangement or combination of the parts of the screw spanner or
screw wrench herein before described and illustrated in Figures 3, 4, 5, 6, and 7 of
the accompanying Drawing, in which the external screw of the terminal part of
the handle is omitted and the other parts modified, as described and illustrated.
Thirdly. The construction and arrangement or combination of the parts of
the screw spanner or screw wrench, herein before described and illustrated in
Figures 8, 9, and 10 of the accompanying Drawing.
Lastly. The adaptation or application of the parts claimed in the preceding
claims to pipe tongs and tube cutters.
In witness whereof, I, the said Henry Waters have hereunto set my hund
and seal, this Twelfth day of May, in the year of our Lord One thousand
Y
Witness,
RICHARD SKERRETT,
37, Temple Street,
Birmingham.
HENRY WATERS, SENR. (LS.)