An Improvement in Nails, Rivets, and the like.
Year: 1893

page_text: Date of Application, 2nd Dec., 1893
Complete Specification Left, 27th Aug., 1894-Accepted, 29th Sept., 1894
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
An Improvement in Nails, Rivets, and the like.
We, JULES ALPHONSE THIERRY and ALFRED LEON THIERRY, both of
No. 292 Regent Street, in the County of London, Boot Makers, do hereby declare
the nature of this invention to be as follows:-
Nails, rivets and the like employed for furniture and purposes of ornament
being made of metal have often to be varnished japanned or otherwise coated
or covered with leather or fabric so that their faces may present some desired
colour or appearance; but such coating or covering is liable to become rubbed,
broken or worn off, so that the metal itself or part of it is presented often with a
patchy and objectionable appearance. The object of our invention is to provide a
permanent facing for a nail, rivet or the like, this facing being of any desired
colour and giving a ueat finish to the head of the article. For this purpose, instead
of varnishing or otherwise treating the surface of the metal, we imbed the head of
the nail, rivet or like article in a casing of celluloid or similar material such
as xylouite, to which any desired colour may be given.
This material is moulded so as to present a neat rounded facing on the head or it
may be moulded with a pattern or design on its face.
Dated this 2nd day of December 1893.
ABEL & IMRAY,
Agents for the Applicants.
We JULES ALPHONSE THIERRY and ALFRED LEON THIERRY, both of
No. 292 Regent Street, in the County of London, Boot Makers, 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:-
Nails, rivets, screws and the like employed for furniture and other purposes either
for use or ornament being made of metal have often to be varnished japanned
or otherwise coated or covered with leather or fabric so that their faces may
present some desired colour or appearance; but such coating or covering is liable
to become rubbed, broken or worn off, so that the metal itself or part of it is
presented often with a patchy and objectionable appearance. The object of our
invention is to provide a permanent facing for a nail, rivet or the like, this facing
being of any desired colour and giving a neat finish to the head of the article.
For this purpose instead of varnishing or otherwise treating the surface of the
metal, we imbed the head of the nail, rivet or like article in a casing of celluloid or
similar material such as xylonite to which any desired colour may be given.
This material is moulded so as to present a neat rounded or flat facing on the
head or it may be moulded with a pattern or design on its face.
The material may be applied in various ways. According to one method
we stamp out either cold or warm discs of the celluloid or other material somewhat
larger than the head or surface to be covered and when necessary give them
a concave shape similar to the head of the nail to which they are to be affixed.
The nails having been placed in holes in a plate A in such a manner as to leave
a small space between the underside of the head and the plate as indicated by way

page_text: of example at Fig. 1 of the accompanying drawings; these discs a are then placed
on the heads of the nails, and in consequence of their slightly larger size, some of
the material projects beyond the edge of the head as shewn at Fig. 2. A thick
piece of india rubber B confined within a casing the size of the plate containing the
nails is then placed over the plate and a slight pressure applied thereto so as
to keep everything in its place. The whole is then heated as quickly as possible to
about 212° Fahr. and the pressure considerably increased so that the india rubber
causes the projecting part of the material to bend under the head of the nail
to which it is applied as shewn at Fig. 3.
The whole is then allowed to cool, the pressure is relieved and the india rubber
plate removed, when the nails with their heads encased in the material can be
removed and are ready for use. In some cases instead of covering the heads of the
nails with separate discs of the material we cover the whole of the plate with a thin
sheet C of the material and then apply heat and pressure as above with the result
that the material is forced down on to the plate and more or less under the head of
the nails according to the amount of pressure given as at Fig. 4.
On allowing the whole to cool, relieving the pressure and removing the india
rubber plate, the sheet of the material with the nails imbedded therein is removed
and the latter are separated from one another by cutting the sheet round and
slightly under the heads of the nails as at Fig. 5.
Instead of using india rubber to convey the pressure to the sheet of material, the
latter may be clamped round the plate containing the nails by means of a strong
hollow metal box, into the upper part of which above the sheet of material while
subjected to heat, water may be pumped so as to give the desired pressure
to force the material down on to the plate and under the heads of the nails as before
-described.
According to another method we perforate a sheet C of celluloid with small holes
corresponding with those in the plate above referred to into which we place the
nails so that the under part of their heads rest on the sheet of celluloid as at Fig. 6.
We then heat the plate to the desired degree and coat the whole surface with
celluloid dissolved preferably in one part of acetone to four parts of alcohol,
repeating the process of coating until the desired thickness is attained.
We thus obtain a sheet of celluloid in which the nails are imbedded but which
can be more readily separated from one another owing to the solvent used for the
upper layer having softened the under layer allowing it to be more readily cut.
On drying, the under layer with the coating adhering thereto regains the hardness
of celluloid in the ordinary state..
Although we have described our invention as applied to nails, it is to be
understood that it is equally applicable to similar articles such as screws, rivets,
tubular rivets and bifurcated rivets as shewn in Figs. 7, 8, 9 and 10 respectively.
When it is desired to give a pattern or design to the head the celluloid must be
-moulded on to the article by means of heat and suitable dies.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of this inven-
tion and in what manner the same is to be performed we declare that what we
claim is :-
Encasing the heads of nails, rivets, screws and such like articles with celluloid
or similar material to which any suitable colour may be given, substantially as
.herein described.
Dated this 27th day of August 1801
ABEL & IMRAY,
Agents for the Applicants.