IMPROVEMENTS IN KETTLE. BIG, OR OTHER DRUMS
Year: 1862

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Antoine Joseph Sax, trading under the Firm of
Adolphe Sax, of Paris, France, Musical Instrument Maker, for the
Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN KETTLE. BIG, OR OTHER DRUMS."
Sealed the 28th November 1862, and dated the 2nd June 1862.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Antoine Joseph Sax at
the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the
2nd June 1862.
I, ANTOINE JOSEPH SAX, trading under the Firm of Adolphe Sax, of Paris,
France, Musical Instrument Maker, do hereby declare the nature of the said
Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN KETTLE, BIG, OR OTHER DRUMS," to be as
follows:-
The Invention consists in doing away with the kettle of kettle drums, or
with the wooden casing of big or other drums, and fixing the skin on a strong
iron or other suitable ring, whilst another ring held in a concentric manner to
the first one by proper stays, is made by proper tightening screws to press
against the skin in order thus to stretch this latter to the required extent or
pitch; or two skins, each of them arranged in the above said manner, may be
kept at a suitable distance apart by proper props or stays, so as respectively to
correspond with the upper and the lower skin of an ordinary drum. A handle
may be provided to the rings of the skin for allowing to carry this latter, or
the rings may be provided with one or two semicircles of iron or other suit-
able material, for allowing the said rings and skin to be placed on a suitable

page_text: stand for serving instead of a kettle drum, a moveable thigh piece may be
provided to the outer ring of my improved drum for allowing the drummer to
carry the same in the ordinary manner. A sort of conical reflector may be
adapted for carrying part of the sound in any required direction.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, filed
by the said Antoine Joseph Sax, in the Great Seal Patent Office on the
2nd December 1862.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, ANTOINE
JOSEPHI SAX, trading under the Firm of Adolphe Sax, of Paris, France,
Musical Instrument Maker, send greeting,
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the Second day of June, in the year of our Lord'
One thousand eight hundred and sixty-two, in. the twenty-sixth year of
Her reign, did, for Herself, Her, heirs and successors, give and grant unto
me, the said Antoine Joseph Sax, Her special licence that I, the said
Antoine Joseph Sax, my executors, administrators, and assigns, or such
others as I, the said Antoine Joseph Sax, my executors, administrators,
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 KETTLE, BIG, OR OTHER DRUMS," upon the con-
dition (amongst others) that I, the said Antoine Joseph Sax, my executors or
administrators, by an instrument in writing under my, or their, or one of
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 I, the said Antoine Joseph Sax, do hereby
declare the nature of my said Invention, and in what manner the same
is to be performed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and by
the following statement:-
The Invention relates to kettle, big, or other drums, and consists in con-
structing these instruments in such manner as to be much more portable, and
reduced to a much smaller compass than those hitherto in use. In the various

page_text: Figures of the annexed Sheets of Drawings illustrations are given of my im-
proved kettle, big, or other drums, and of separate parts thereof, or to-be made
use of in combination with them, corresponding parts being indicated by the
same letters of reference in the various Figures.
Fig. 1 shows a perspective view of my improved kettle drum or timbal, or
rather of the instrument which is to replace the kettle drum hitherto in use, in
so far as according to my Invention this drum is no longer provided with a
kettle, but simply consists of a proper skin A suitably fixed to an iron or
other suitable hoop B, which skin is stretched more or less. by the effect of
another hoop C, situated in a concentrical manner within the first one under-.
neath the skin, and caused to press more or less against this skin by means of
the screw bolts, or tightening screws a. Two semicircles D and D', crossing each
other at right angles, serve for placing the drum on its stand in the manner as
shewn in Fig. 1; Fig. 2 shows a side view of the outer hoop B,.the inner one C,..
and of the semicircles D and D', these latter in the lifted position, viz., crossing
each other in d, and held together by a pin d passing through them, whereas
Fig. 3 shows a similar view, but with the semicircles D and D' folded downs
or collapsed, so as to lay partly hidden in the inner hoop C, for which pur-
pose at each end the said semicircles are allowed to turn on a stud pin c in
ears 6 fixed to the inner hoop C. As has been already said the skin A' is-
fixed to the outer hoop B in the ordinary manner, or by any other suitable
means, whilst the inner hoop C is caused to press from underneath against:
the skin A so as to allow of stretching the same to the required pitch; for this
purpose both the outer hoop B and the inner one C are provided with ears E
and E, those E of the inner hoop serving as nuts or female screws. for
the screw bolts or tightening screws a to work in, the blank of which bolts.
passing through, and freely turning in the ears E' of the outer hoop B, thus
allowing by turning these bolts to draw both hoops as close together as
required, whereby the inner hoop C in pressing against the skin A,. will stretch
this latter to the required pitch.
In Fig. 1 the instrument is shown mounted on its stand; which latter is
shown likewise in perspective view in the opened position.. In this Figure,
and in the collapsed position respectively, in front and in side views in the
Figs. 4 and 5, whilst Fig. 6 shows a perspective side view of a hoop G, on
which the semicircles. D and D¹ rest when the instrument is to be made use
of. As may be observed from the just mentioned Figs. 1, 4, 5, and 6, the
stand consists of three feet F, each of them provided with an arm F¹, the
free ends of which arms are connected together by a bolt f inserted in them,
and on which they may turn freely so as to allow the stand when no longer

page_text: in immediate use being collapsed to a very small compass as shown in Figs.
4 & 5, or to be again unfolded when wanted to serve as a stand, in which
latter case the hoop G is laid in the upper ends of the feet F, with the pins g
fixed in this hoop G, inserted in the corresponding holes g¹ of the feet, and
rests on those g² inserted in these feet.
In Fig. 7 is shown in perspective view, a drummer beating a pair of timbals
constructed according to my Invention, but in which the two semicirclés D
and D' are replaced by a cross bar II, to which cross bar may be screwed or
otherwise suitably-connected an arm I, which by means of the knucklejoint i
may be fixed in any suitable position on a. post J, which may be set more
or less high in the stand J¹. It will be understood that a great many modi-
fications may be made in the arrangement of the stand, or in the mode
of fixing thereon a timbal constructed according to my Invention.
Another part of my Invention relates to an improved construction of big
drums, viz., in which the wooden casing or barrel hitherto in use in such
instruments is done away with, the instrument consisting merely of a skin fixed
to an iron or other suitable strong hoop B, and stretched by means of another
hoop C pressing from underneath against the said skin. The Figs. 8, 9, and
10, respectively represent a top and a side view of the instrument, and a side
view of the inner or stretching hoop C, the latter provided underneath the
skin with a curved cross bar K, with handle K for carrying the instrument,
or hold the same when to be beaten ; L is a wire, or other suitable network,
for protecting the skin from becoming injured from underneath; for stretching
the skin, the inner hoop C may be pressed from underneath against the skin
by the same means as have been explained above in respect to my improved
kettle drums.
Another part of my Invention relates to ordinary drums for military or other
bands, and consists in constructing such instruments on the same principle as
my improved kettle and big drums, viz., without the barrel or wooden casing
hitherto used in these instruments, suitable provisions being made for keeping
the upper and the lower skin at the required 'distance apart, and for stretching
the said skins to the required pitch. Instead of with an upper and "an under
skin, my improved drums may also be provided with one skin only, in the
manner as shown in side view in Fig. 11, whereas the Fig. 12 and 12*,
13 and 13, 14 and 14ª, respectively show side and plan views of drums con-
structed according to my Invention, and provided with an upper and an under
skin. Various means for bracing or stretching the said skins being shown in
these Figures. In Fig. 11 is also shown in front view the thigh piece with
which my improved drums may be provided, and which is to rest against the

page_text: thigh of the drummer when beating the drum; Figs. 14 and 13 show side views
of this thigh piece respectively in the extended, and in the folded or collapsed
position. This thigh piece consists of suitable concave plate M, one end of
which is hinged to the lower part of the outer hoop B, and the other end to
the elbow-jointed stretcher M', the opposite end of which latter is again hinged
to the hoop B, a runner M² allowing of either keeping the stretcher M' ex-
tended, and the plate M in the vertical position as shown in Fig. 14, or the
stretcher and the plate collapsed as represented in Fig. 13. Whether provided
with one or with two skins, each of these latter is fixed to an outer hoop B,
and stretched by the inner hoop C, being caused to press against the skin.
When making use of two skins, three or more elbow stays or knees N, either
fixed to the inner hoop C, the pressing edge of which must be properly rounded
in order to prevent the hoop from injuring the skin, or to a separate hoop,
serve for keeping the skins all round at the required distance apart. The
mode of stretching shown in Fig. 12 & 12ª, consists in providing the outer
hoops with three, four, or more ears E, those of the lower hoop serving as
female screws or nuts for the screw bolts a, which latter turn freely in the ears
of the upper hoop, so as to allow of both outer hoops being drawn nearer to
each other, or be set further apart according to the direction in which the.
bolts a are turned.
In Fig. 13 & 13 is showed another arrangement for drawing the upper
and the under outer hoops B nearer to each other, and thus causing the upper
and the under inner hooks C to press against the skins; this bracing or
stretching takes place by means of a strong string or brace m inserted between
the hoops B and their outer rims n, with which the same are provided; the
ends of this string or brace may be drawn more or less tightly together by
means of a screw fixed at one end of the string m, and a nut in which this
screw works fixed at the other end, or by any other suitable means, such for
instance, as that commonly made use of for bracing drums; the .outer hoops
may thus be drawn nearer to each other, and thereby the skins more or less
pressed over the inner hoops.
In the Figs. 14 and 14, the outer hoops B are provided with small eyelets
or books p, through which passes the string m, whilst another string m¹ slung
ound the first one, and provided with proper means for tightening the same
more or less round the bracing string m, thus allows of drawing the outer
hoops B more or less near to each other.
Having thus described and particularly ascertained the nature of my
Invention, and the manner in which the same is or may be carried into
effect, I wish it to be understood that I do not confine or restrict myself to the

page_text: precise details or arrangements above described, as many variations may be
made therefrom without deviating from the principles or main features of the
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, doing away with the kettle of timbals or kettle drums, and with
the casing or barrel of big or other drums, and arranging them in such manner
as to give to the said instruments a much greater portability, and reducing
them to a much smaller compass than the kettle, big, or other drums hitherto
in use, in the manner as herein-before described.
In witness whereof, I, the said Antoine Joseph Sax, have hereunto set
my hand and seal, this Twenty-ninth day of November, One thousand
eight hundred and sixty-two.
Witness,
A. G. BRADE.
ANTOINE JOSEPH SAX. (L.B.)
lit Adolphe Sax.