Improvements in Foot-balls and the like.
Year: 1895

page_text: Date of Application, 24th May, 1895
Complete Specification Left, 3rd Dec., 1895-Accepted, 4th Jan., 1896
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Foot-balls and the like.
I, THOMAS CHARLES BAILEY of Church Street, North Walsham, in--the
County of Norfolk, Harness Maker, do hereby declare the nature of this invention
to be as follows:-
My invention relates to improvements in foot-balls and the like and has for its
object a method of manufacture whereby.foot-balls can be made in two pieces, and
of greater strength.
For this purpose I take two similar pieces of leather or material and sew, or
otherwise fasten, 'them together such pieces of leather or material being so shaped
that they fit together in the required manner.
By this means all corners in sewing are avoided thus making the ball considerably
stronger.
Improvements in Foot-balls and the like.
I, TшомлS CHARLES BAILEY, of Church Street, North Walsham, in the
County of Norfolk, Harness Maker, 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 :-
The object of my invention is to construct the casings of foot-balls and the like
so that they shall be more durable than those at present in use. In carrying out
my invention I provide pieces of leather or cther suitable material of about the
shape shown at c Fig. 1 of the accompanying drawing. The pieces will be scen to
be of more or less star-like shape, having a number of points or fingers radiating
from the centre of the piece of material.
For Association balls, I prefer to have 8, 10, or 12 points or fingers to each
piece of material, and for Rugby balls 6 or 8 points or fingers. Having provided
the pieces of leather I take two of them and sew or otherwise attach the edges of
the points or fingers of the one piece, to the edges of the spaces between the points
or fingers of the other piece, as shown in the case of one point and one space in
Fig. 1, the point 6 of a being in the space between two points of the piece c.
The seams may be plain or welted. After all the points of the one piece of
material have been sewn in between the spaces between the points on the one piece,
the ball casing (after inflation of the inner ball or bladder) will appear as indicated
in Fig. 2.
An opening for inflating the inner ball or bladder is provided as usual
and laced up in any suitable manner after the inflation is completed. Both pieces
of material may be of the same color, but they look more attractive if made of
contrasting colors, and 1 prefer to so make them.
It will be seen that the casing consists really only of two pieces of material, and
that in the case of foot-balls there is nothing like the same chance of coming to

page_text: pieces that exists with balls as usually made. Balls made by my improved method
cannot lose their shape, and the strain is equally distributed over every part.
Although I have in this Specification dealt with the invention as applicable to
foot-balls made of leather, nevertheless the method is applicable to other than foot-
balls, and to other materials than leather. I do not confine myself to the precise
number of points or fingers to each piece of material forming half of the ball
casing, nor to their conformation or relative proportions, nor to the particular mode
of attaching one piece to the other, as they may be considerably varied without
departing from the spirit of my invention. For instance by suitably shaping the
finger or points on the pieces of material, a ball casing can be made up on
the " cross.
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
In casings for foot and other balls or the like, making them of two more or less
star-shaped pieces of leather or other suitable material, the edges of the points or
fingers of the one piece being sewn or otherwise attached to the edges of the
spaces between the points or fingers of the other piece, substantially as described
in the above Specification, and exemplified in the drawings.
Dated this 3rd day of November 1895.
HUGHES & YOUNG,
23 Coleman Street, London, E.C., Agents for the Applicant.