Improvements in Apparatus for use in the Manufacture of Metal Tubes, Cylinders, or other Articles by Electro-deposition.
Year: 1891

page_text: Date of Application, 8th May, 1891
Complete Specification Left, 5th Mar., 1892-Accepted, 9th Apr., 1892
TRUVIDIONAL DILITICATION.
Improvements in Apparatus for use in the Manufacture of Metal
Tubes, Cylinders, or other Articles by Electro-deposition.
I, RICHARD DAVID SANDERS, of Hartfield House, Eastbourne, in the County
of Sussex, Engineer, do hereby declare the nature of this invention to be as
follows:-
My invention relates to apparatus for use in the manufacture of metal tubes
and the like by electro-deposition and comprises improvements in the con-
struction of the mandrels or patterns upon which the copper or other metal is
deposited and in the means for traversing the burnisher or burnishers over the
surfaces of the said mandrels or patterns.
Hitherto such mandrels or patterns have been made of iron, steel or copper tubes
having at each end caps or covers for carrying the spindles upon which they rotate
in the depositing tanks. Such mandrels or patterns are very costly, take a
considerable time to produce, and, being very heavy, are handled with difficulty,
and furthermore the articles deposited upon such mandrels have to be removed by
a rolling process, either before or after completion, between compression rollers by
which they are sufficiently expanded to loosen them from the mandrels, whereby it
is rendered difficult, if not impossible, to construct tubes of any given diameter
with accuracy.
According to my invention I produce a mandrel or pattern more readily and
quickly and more cheaply than hitherto, and to this end I fasten a number of
discs of wood or other light material together and insert the bearing spindles at
each end. The whole is then turned true in a lathe to a diameter less than the
required diameter of the tube or other article to be manufactured. The mandrel
so produced is covered with asphalt or other substance which is readily softened
by heat and which sets hard enough to resist the pressure of the burnisher, such
covering being then coated with a film of wax or the like and by means of a
leather or other suitable finishing tool burnished to a true and perfect surface, the
diameter of the mandrel corresponding with the diameter of the tube to be
formed. A strip of metal or wire is wound round one end of the mandrel and the
whole rubbed over with bronze dust or other metallic substance when the mandrel
is ready for the depositing tank into which being light it can be placed without
difficulty.
I sometimes use metallic bolts running through the mandrels to clamp the
parts together and to serve as spindles at the ends and I place the electric
conductors upon them at one end. In such cases I connect the outside or metallic
surface of the mandrel with the said bolt by inserting metal plugs or discs at
intervals.
To manufacture electro-deposited wire I cut or form a thread upon the surface
of the mandrel and deposit the metal upon the top or bottom of the thread, or
upon both, so that the metal when deposited comes off the mandrel in spirals.
To remove the deposited articles I have simply to heat them sufficiently to
dissolve the wax and they can then be easily slipped off.
Mandrels constructed according to my invention can be used for different sizes
of tubes within certain limits so that a far less number of mandrels are required
for manufacturing purposes than hitherto.
My improvements in the means for causing the burnisher or burnishers to travel
over the surface of the mandrel while revolving consist in the provision of a wheel

page_text: of agate or other suitable material having its axis parallel to that of the mandrel.
This wheel is supported by a light frame which also carries two or more burnishers
clipping the mandrel between them, or one only may be used.
The said wheel is pivotted in such a manner that by slightly destroying the
parallelism of its axis with that of the mandrel, it is caused to roll spirally over
the surface of the rotating mandrel from which it derives its motion. Suitable
stops are provided to reverse the diagonal position of the traversing wheel and
so cause it to travel backwards and forwards as required and carry with it the
burnisher or burnishers.
When spirals for the manufacture of wire are deposited the burnishers are
traversed by the spirally formed grooves or thread upon the surface of the
mandrel, in which case the traversing wheel is unnecessary if the mandrel is made
to revolve alternately in opposite directions.
The burnisher or burnishers may however be driven by a traversing wheel in
the manner above described when the metal is deposited upon the top of the
thread.
It will be seen that the burnishing is effected by the rotatory motion of the
mandrel instead of as hitherto by independent traversing screws driven by a belt
and toothed gearing whereby I am enabled to traverse the burnishers in one tank
independently of the burnishers of another tank.
Dated the 8th day of May 1891.
G. F. REDFERN & Co.,
4, South Street, Finsbury, London, Agents for the Applicant.
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Apparatus for use in the Manufacture of Metal
Tubes, Cylinders, or other Articles by Electro-deposition.
I, RICHARD DAVID SANDERS, of Hartfield House, Eastbourne, in the County
of Sussex, Engineer, 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 :-
My invention relates to apparatus for the manufacture of metal tubes, wire and
the like by electro-deposition, and it comprises improvements in the construction of
the mandrels or patterns upon which the copper or other metal is deposited, and in
the means for traversing a burnisher or burnishers or other tool or tools over the
surface of the metal deposited upon the said mandrels or patterns.
Hitherto such mandrels or patterns have generally been made of iron, steel or
copper tubes, having at each end caps or covers for carrying the spindles upon
which they rotate in the depositing tanks. Such mandrels or patterns are very
costly, take a considerable time to produce, and, being very heavy, are handled
with difficulty and, furthermore, the articles deposited upon such mandrels have
generally to be subjected to a rolling process, either before or after completion,
between compressing rollers by which they are sufficiently expanded to loosen
them from the mandrels, whereby it is rendered difficult, if not impossible, to
construct tubes of any given diameter with accuracy.
According to my invention I produce a mandrel or pattern more readily and
quickly and more cheaply than hitherto, and to this end I fasten a number of
discs or suitable pieces of wood or other light material together and insert the
bearing spindles at each end. The whole is then turned in a lathe to a diameter
less than the required diameter of the tube or other article to be manufactured.
The mandrel so produced is covered with asphalt, bitumen or other like substance
which sets hard when cold, such covering being then coated with a film of wax
tallow or the like and by means of a leather or other suitable finishing tool
burnished to a true and perfect surface, the diameter of the mandrel corresponding

page_text: with the inside diameter of the tube to be formed. A hoop of metal or wire is
placed round one end of the mandrel and the whole is covered with metallic foil
or rubbed over with bronze dust or other metallic substance when the mandrel is
ready for the depositing tank into which, being light in weight, it can be placed
without difficulty.
To manufacture electro-deposited wire I cut or form a spiral or screw-like
thread upon the surface of a mould or mandrel and deposit the metal thereon, or
in the spiral or screw-like spaces thus formed my object being to simplify the
process of manufacture by obtaining a long length of wire intact, by one
deposition in place of augmenting it by subsequent depositions as hitherto
generally practised.
My improvements in the means for causing the burnisher or burnishers to travel
over the surface of the mandrel while revolving consist in the provision of a
wheel of agate or other suitable material. This wheel supported by a light
frame which also carries two or more burnishers clipping the mandrel between
them, or one only may be used.
The said wheel pivotted in such a manner that by slightly destroying the
parallelism of its axis with that of the mandrel, it is caused to roll spirally over
the surface of the rotating mandrel from which it derives its motion. Suitable
stops are provided to reverse the diagonal position of the traversing wheel and so
cause it to travel backwards and forwards as required and carry with it the
burnisher or burnishers.
To enable my invention to he fully understood I will describe the same by
reference to the accompanying drawings, in which :--
Figure is a sectional view of a mandrel constructed according to my
invention; and,
Figure 2 is a view of the left hand end of the same :
Figure 3 illustrates the method of forming the ends of the bands surrounding
the ends of the roller and the method of connecting the same:
Figure 4 is a side view shewing my improved means for traversing the
burnishers:
Figure 5 is a plan of the same: and,
Figure 6 an end view:
Figures 7 and 8 are sectional views shewing my mandrels formed with threads
for the purpose of manufacturing wire by electro-deposition.
Similar fetters of reference indicate corresponding parts in the several figures.
a, a indicate the discs of wood or other suitable material of which the mandrel is
built up, the said dises being firmly secured together, and c, c are the spindles by
means of which the mandrel is supported in bearings d, d in the tank. e indicates
the asphalt or other suitable covering which is applied after the mandrel has been
turned; the said covering being of such a thickness that the mandrel will be of the
required diameter when covered with a thin film of wax or tallow or the like as
hereinbefore stated.
fis the hoop of metal which is placed around one end of the mandrel, which hoop
serves as a contact surface for the metallic brush or connection through which the
electric current is applied to the surface of the mandrel; the said hoop is
advantageously formed from a metallic strip, the ends of which are slotted at g, g
on opposite sides so that one end can be engaged with the other as shewn in
Figure 3.
h is a pulley which is attached to one of the spindles e and through the medium
of which motion is communicated to the mandrel when placed in the depositing tank
in the manner shewn in Figure 4.
To remove the deposited articles from the mandrel it is simply necessary to
apply sufficient heat to dissolve the wax or tallow when the article can be readily
slipped off.
By increasing or diminishing the thickness of the asphalt or other coating e I am
enabled to employ one mandrel for the production of several sizes of tubes,

page_text: whereby a far less number of mandrels is required for manufacturing purposes than
hitherto.
By employing mandrels constructed in the manner hereinbefore described I am
also enabled to dispense with the powerful rolling off machinery which is now
frequently used when the tubes are deposited upon metal mandrels, to enlarge the
diameters of the said tubes for the purpose of removal. The size of the tubes is also
accurately ascertained and maintained during the process of deposition, whereas by
the rolling off process the diameters of the tubes become enlarged to an extent
which cannot be accurately ascertained until after the tube has actually been
removed, it being impossible to ascertain to what extent the inside diameter has
been increased under the pressure of the loosening rolls.
A further advantage to be obtained by the use of mandrels constructed according
to my invention is, that the metal of the deposited tube undergoes no change, after
deposition, whereas by the rolling or stretching-off process the metal must undergo
some detrimental change by reason of the tube being enlarged to loosen it from its
mandrel.
In the manufacture of wire by electro-deposition I cut or form upon the surface
of a mandrel or mould, a spiral or screw-like thread, and deposit the metal either
upon the thread or in the spaces between the threads or upon both as before
mentioned.
If the mandrel is composed of a non-conducting material, so much of the thread
or spaces must be metallized as it is desired to deposit the metal upon, or the
surface of the mandrel may be metallized spirally.
If the mandrel is of metal, the spaces between the threads not to be deposited
upon must be protected by some non-conducting material, or the surface of the
mandrel may be protected spirally by any suitable non-conducting substance, or
the mandrel may be constructed of alternate conducting and non-conducting
materials.
In carrying out this part of my invention I have found some difficulty in removing
the wire from the mandrel clean and free from rough edges, and without interfering
with the non-metallic surfaces.
By experience I find this difficulty can be removed by constructing the mandrels
in the following manner, that is to say :-
I take a mandrel constructed of wood or other suitable material in the manner
hereinbefore described; I cover this mandrel with metal, by preference lead, and
after having cut upon the surface thereof a V or other form of thread I fill up the
entire depth of the spaces between the thread with any suitable non-conducting
composition to the line z, z, Figure 7, or coat the whole of the thread with some
suitable non-conducting varnish. When this composition or varnish coating has set
hard I cut or turn off a portion of the thread to, say the line ³, ¹, or f cut the
metal thread below the surface of the composition. It will thus be seen that by
this operation a metallic surface is exposed, and that no corners or edges are left
unprotected upon which the metal can irregularly or roughly be deposited. The
metal thus deposited will leave the mandrel sharp and clear and the mandrel can
be used repeatedly without destroying the non-conducting composition or
re-preparation.
Figure 8 shews a mandrel constructed with a coating of non-conducting
composition in place of lead or other metal. After being turned to a good surface
the coating is metallized by any of the well known methods over the whole surface.
A sharp tool is then applied to cut out a thread which, as shewn, is of semi-circular
shape.
I sometimes construct a spiral mandrel by coiling up a band of metal like a watch
spring and filling in the spaces with non-conducting composition. When the
surfaces are cleaned off as above described the wire can be deposited clear and well
defined and can be removed without interfering or destroying the non-conducting
composition.
It will be easily understood that wire of a great variety of forms may in this way

page_text: be electrically deposited, such forms or shapes depending upon the shape of the
spiral-surfaces upon which the metal is deposited.
In making heavy wire it is evident that it could not be wound off so readily as
thin wire unless a very large mandrel be used, I therefore preferably form the
grooves or threads upon the mandrel at a more acute angle than shewn.
is the wheel by means of which the burnisher or burnishers or other tool or tools
is or are caused to traverse the mandrel: this wheel, as shewn in the drawings, is
held in position by a light carriage or frame sliding upon and guided by a rod k
extending across the depositing tank j². ³, k¹are the burnishing or other tools
which are also carried by the frame and which, as shewn in the drawings, are
arranged to bear upon opposite sides of the mandrel, a bolt carrying a thumb-
nut m serving to regulate the pressure of the tools upon the surface to be operated
upon.
n is the vertical pivot upon which the wheel turns in order to place its axis at
an angle to that of the mandrel in one direction or the other as required.
In order to automatically reverse the position of the roller so that when the
burnishing or other tools have reached one end of the mandrel they shall commence
to move back to the other end, I provide a lever o secured to the head of the pivot n
and carrying a bar p provided with two pins 7, so arranged that the movement
of a lever r, pivotted at & upon the carriage by impinging against one stop por the
other, causes the movement of the lever o and also of the wheel i. In order that
this reversal shall take place suddenly I fix upon the carriage a block having two
inclined planes t, t' and so arranged that, when the end of the lever is pushed up
one incline of the block, it will, by its own weight, slide down the other incline and
strike against whichever of the pins or is in its path.
u is a bar which is also carried by the carriage and which slides in suitable guides
thereon, and v, v' are pins upon the said sliding-bar.
ware stops carried upon the rod and adapted to be adjusted thereon
according to the length of the mandrel in the tank.
The operation of the traversing mechanism hereinbefore described is as
follows:-
Assume the mandrel to be turning in the direction indicated by the arrow 1,
Figure 5, and the wheel j to be also in the position shewn in Figure 5 so that the
carriage moves in the direction of the arrow 2: when, now, the carriage has reached
nearly the limit of its movement in this direction one end of the sliding-bar u strikes
against the stop w so that the said bar remains stationary whilst the carriage still
continues to move; the result of this continued movement of the carriage is that the
free end of the lever r being in contact with the pin is thereby caused to move up
the inclinet: when, however, the carriage has moved so far that the end of this
lever has reached the apex between the two inclines t, t', the lever slides down the
said incline t¹ into the position shewn in dotted lines, Figure 5, and in so doing
strikes the stop 91 and changes the angle of the wheel so that the carriage
commences to move in the reverse direction. When the said carriage has reached
the opposite end of the mandrel the bar u is arrested by the stop we', whereby the
pin is caused to push the end of the lever up the incline t' so that it will fall
down the incline t and again reverse the movement and so on.
When wire is deposited the mechanism hereinbefore described may be dispensed
with, the burnishers or other tools being traversed by the spirally formed thread
upon the surface of the mandrel, provided the said mandrel is made to revolve
alternately in opposite directions: when, however, the metal is deposited upon the
top of the spiral thread the burnishers may be driven by a travelling wheel in the
manner above described.
From the foregoing description it will be seen that the burnishing or rubbing is
effected by the motion of the mandrel instead of, as hitherto, by independent
traversing-screws driven by belts or screw-gearing, whereby, when several tanks
are in use I am enabled to traverse the burnishers in one tank independently of the
burnishers in another tank.

page_text: Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said
invention and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what I
claim is :-
1. The manufacture and use of mandrels substantially as hereinbefore described
and illustrated in the accompanying drawings.
2. The manufacture of wire by depositing the metal upon spirally constructed or
prepared surfaces, substantially as described.
3. The utilization of the motion of the mandrel for traversing the tools used in
finishing the surface of deposited metal, substantially as described.
Dated the 5th day of March 1892.
G. F. REDFERN & Co.,
4, South Street, Finsbury, London, Agents for the Applicant.