IMPROVEMENTS IN THE MANU- FACTURE OF WHEELS AND PULLEYS
Year: 1869

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to John Octavius Butler, of Leeds, in the County
of York, Engineer, Joseph Nichols, of the same Place, Engineer
and Valuer, and William Heslop, of Doncaster, in the County of
York, Engineer, for the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN THE MANU-
FACTURE OF WHEELS AND PULLEYS."
Sealed the 22nd February 1870, and dated the 16th December 1869.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said John Octavius Butler,
Joseph Nichols, and William Heslop at the Office of the Com-
missioners of Patents, with their Petition, on the 16th December
1869.
We, JOHN OCTAVIUS BUTLER, of Leeds, in the County of York,
Engineer, JOSEPH NIOHOLS, of the same Place, Engineer and Valuer,
and WILLIAM HESLOP, of Doncaster, in the County of York, Engineer,
do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS
IN THE MANUFACTURE OF WHEELS AND PULLEYS," to be as follows:-
Our improvements are applicable in manufacturing all kinds of wheels
and pulleys having plain circumferences or with teeth or projections,
and with spokes or discs.

page_text: In performing our Invention we employ a mould and a die, in each of
which are projections and recesses, and these moulds and dies when put
together leave spaces between them corresponding to the shape of the
wheel or pulley to be produced. A mass or bloom of iron or steel of
about the weight of the wheel or pulley to be made, after having been
heated to a welding heat, is laid in the mould and the die is brought
into contact with it; the mould and die are then forced together either
by steam, hydraulic or other pressure, or by the repeated blows of a
powerful hammer. The heated metal is thus forced into every portion
of the spaces between the mould and die to form the wheel or pulley.
In making wheels with spokes it is desirable to make recesses in the
mould and die corresponding to about half the depth of the spoke, and
to leave a space for a film or disc between the spokes.
In making railway wheels we prefer to make the circumference of the
mould of the shape of the tyre; the wheels so made can be used till the
depth is worn away, and then an ordinary tyre can be put on the body
of the wheel.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent,
filed by the said John Octavius Butler, Joseph Nichols, and
William Heslop in the Great Seal Patent Office on the 15th June
1870.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, we, JOHN
OCTAVIOUS BUTLER, of Leeds, in the County of York, Engineer, JOSEPH
NICHOLS, of the same Place, Engineer, and WILLIAM HESLOP, of
Doncaster, in the County of York, Engineer, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her
Letters Patent, bearing date the Sixteenth day of December, in the year
of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and sixty-nine, in the thirty-
third year of Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give
and grant unto us, the said John Octavius Butler, Joseph Nichols, and
William Heslop, Her special licence that we, the said John Octavius
Butler, Joseph Nichols, and William Heslop, our executors, adminis-
trators, and assigns, or such others as we, the said John Octavius Butler,
Joseph Nichols, and William Heslop, our executors, administrators,

page_text: 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 THE MANUFACTURE
OF WHEELS AND PULLEYS," upon the condition (amongst others) that we,
the said John Octavius Butler, Joseph Nichols, and William Heslop,
our executors or administrators, by an instrument in writing under our,
or their, or one of our or their hands and seals, should particularly
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 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 we, the said John Octavius Butler, Joseph
Nichols, and William Heslop, do hereby declare the nature of our said
Invention, and in what manner the same is to be performed, to be
particularly described and ascertained in and by the following statement
(that is to say):—
Our improvements are applicable in manufacturing all kinds of wheels
and pulleys having plain circumferences, or with teeth or projections
and with spokes or discs, or with a disc and spokes.
In performing our Invention we employ a mould and a die in each
of which are projections and recesses, and these moulds and dies when
put together leave spaces between them corresponding to the shape of
the wheel or pulley to be produced.
And in order that our Invention may be fully understood and readily
carried into operation, we will proceed to describe the accompanying
Sheet of Drawings, reference being had to the Figures and letters
marked thereon.
Fig. 1 is a section of a mould and die suitable for making railway
wheels; and Fig. 2, is a plan of the mould with the die removed; the
mould consists of a heavy block of cast iron marked a, the upper part
of which is strengthened by a wrought-iron hoop b, which is shrunk on
when hot. In the upper face of the mould is a circular recess to receive
and guide the lower part of the die c which is also made of cast iron,
the upper surface of the mould and the under surface of the die are made
with grooves or recesses and with projections of the shape of the nave,
spokes, and rim of the wheel to be manufactured, and we prefer to leave

page_text: a space between the die and the mould, as shewn in Fig. 1, for a film or
disc of metal to connect the nave, spokes, and rim together. The
hole in the nave of the wheel is partly formed by the centre pro-
jections c¹ on the die c, and the upper part of the lifting washer d, which
is let into the mould a; this lifting washer can be started to loosen the
wheel in the mould by a key driven through the hole e, and the rim of
the wheel is raised out of the mould by four or other convenient number
of levers, which move on the fulcrum studs g and act on the sliding
blocks fitting in holes in the mould, the levers fare inserted in slots i
cast in the body of the mould or the blocks h acting on the rim of the
wheel or pulley, and the washer d acting on the nave may be raised so
as to lift the wheel or pulley out of the mould by a series of hydraulic
rams and cylinders, or screws, or eccentrics may be applied for that
purpose. The dotted lines ; represent a hole for the escape of water
when flushing out the mould to remove the scales or scoria.
The mode of operation is as follows:-The die c having been lifted off
the mould a mass or bloom of iron or steel of about the weight of the
wheel or pulley to be made and heated to a welding heat is laid in the
mould and the die is brought into contact with it, the mould and die
are then forced together either by steam, hydraulic, or other pressure,
or by the repeated blows of a powerful hammer, the heated metal is thus
forced into every portion of the spaces between the mould, and die
to form the wheel or pulley. As soon as the wheel has been formed
the die is lifted off and the wheel is loosened in the mould by the
appliances described, it is then removed by the lifting tongs shewn in
Fig. 3 or other suitable instrument, the tongs are also used for lifting
the bloom from the furnace into the mould. In order to complete the
wheel when used on a railway it is only necessary to bore out the nave
and fix a tyre on the rim, the rim being previously turned or left un-
turned as may be found necessary. In making railway wheels the
circumference of the mould may form the rim of the wheel, as shewn
in the Drawing, or the circumference may be made of the shape of the
tyre; in the latter case the wheels so made can be used till the depth
of the tyre is worn away, and then an ordinary tyre can be put on the
body of the wheel.
We wish to remark here that although we have only shewn our In-
vention as applied to the manufacture of railway wheels it is equally
applicable in manufacturing other wheels and pulleys, either with or

page_text: without spokes, and either with or without teeth or projections on the
circumference by varying the form and dimensions of the mould and
die.
Having thus stated the nature of our Invention, and described a con-
venient manner of carrying the same into operation, we wish it to be
understood that we do not intend to limit ourselves to the details given,
and that what we claim is, the manufacture of wheels and pulleys by
compressing highly heated metal between a mould and a die.
In witness whereof, we, the said John Octavius Butler, Joseph
Nichols, and William Heslop, have hereto set our hands and
seals, this Thirteenth day of June One thousand eight hundred
and seventy.
J. O. BUTLER.
(L.B.)
JOSEPH NICHOLS.
(L.S.)
WILLIAM HESLOP. (L.s.)