CERTAIN IMPROVEMENTS ON SKAITS
Year: 1830

page_text: TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, JAMES
COBBING, of Bury Saint Edmunds, 'Cordwainer, send greeting.
WHEREAS His late most Excellent Majesty King George the Fourth
did, by His Letters Patent under the Great Seal of Great Britain, bearing
date at Westminster, the Twenty-sixth day of January, in the tenth year of
His reign, give, and grant unto me, the said James Cobbing, His special
licence that I, the said James Cobbing, my exors, adñiors, and assigns, and
such others as I, the said James Cobbing, my exors, admors, or assigns,
should at any time agree with, and no others, from time to time and at all
times during the term of "years" therein mentioned, should and lawfully might
'make, use, exercise, and vend, within England, Wales, and the Town of
Berwick-upon-Tweed, my Invention of "CERTAIN IMPROVEMENTS ON SKAITS;"
in which said Letters Patent is contained à proviso that I, the said James
Cobbing, shall cause a particular description of the nature of my said Invention,
and in what manner the same, is to be performed, to be inrolled in His
Majesty's "High Court of: Chancery within six calendar months next and
immediately after, the date of the said. in part recited Letters Patent, as in
and by the same, reference being thereunto had, will more fully and at large
annear

page_text: NOW KNOW YE, that in compliance with the said proviso, I, the said
James Cobbing, do hereby declare that the nature of my said Invention,
and the manner of carrying the same into effect, is, described and ascertained
in manner following, that is to say:
My improvements consist in certain modes herein-after described (and
which are represented in the Drawing hereunto annexed), of attaching and
affixing the blades or irons of skaits to the soles of the boots or shoes worn by
the skater, videlicet, either by means of metal.sockets firmly.engrafted into the
soles of the boots or shoes and into the heels thereof, the blades or irons of
the skates being formed with hooked tennons adopted to enter into such
sockets, and to interlock and fasten therein, with suitable screws to retain the
hooks from withdrawing from such sockets whilst the skaites are in use; but
by releasing the screws, the hooked tennons of the blades or irons can be
readily withdrawn from their sockets, and the blades entirely detached from
the soles and heels of the boots and shoes (this part of my improvements is
represented in Figures 1 to 5.of. the Drawing), or otherwise by means of the
metal clamps firmly affixed across the blades or irons of the skates in suitable
positions to extend across beneath the soles of the boots or shoes, and across
beneath the heels thereof; the said clamps rising upwards at each edge of the
breadth of the said soles or of the heels, and the upper ends of the clamps also
turning over-inwards. towards each other in--the manner of hooks, in order to
catch upon the top.edges of the soles and heels at the parts, where tho. upper
leathers joined thereto, to the end. that the said clamps may fasten, the blades
of the skates firmly to the said soles and heels, by including: both the breadth
and the thickness of the soles and heels-within. their. hooked ends;. those
hooked ends being capable of adjustment to adapt them to the breadth of the
soles-and. heels at the parts where the clamps extend across beneath.the same,
and also the clamps at the heels being fastened to- the blades by spring bolts,
which can be released when it is required to detach the said clamps..from
the-blades, in order to take off the skates from-the-boots or shoes (this part:
of my improvements is represented in Figures.6 to:11 of the Drawing); or
'otherwise, instead of making the clamps at the heels sto. detach-from. the
blades, by withdrawing spring bolts.ias aforesaid, the said clamps may be
-fastened to the heels by screws-screwed.into metal sockets, ingrafted-into.the
thickness of the heel, pieces,: and. by withdrawing those screws the clamps
can be detached from the heels, and the skates removed from the boots or
shoes, (this part of my improvements .is. represented in Figures. 12. and 13:of
the Drawing.).
Figure 1 is a side view of a skate, affixed beneath the sole of a boot or shoe,
-2."

page_text: Figures 2, 3, and 4, are a plan and sections explanatory of particular parts.
Fa'a, Figures 2, 3, and 4, is a thin plate of iron, which is to be inserted
between the two thicknesses of leather that form the sole of the boot or shoe
in the 'making thereof. The plate a, a, "is fastened to the-leather by iron rivets
and by wooden pegs, which pass through holes in the plate and-in the leather,
see Figure 2. b,'b, are two pieces of metal, 'which 'are firmly fastened to the
plate a, a, by rivets; one of them is situated at the middle of the heel, and
the other beneath the bend of the foot. They project so mucli downwards
beneath the plate a, a, as to pass through suitable openings in the bottom
leathers of the sole and the heel piece, in order that the under sides of tlie
metal pieces b, b, may form an even surface with the under sides of the sole
and heel piece. The boot or shoe may be used for walking, like any common
boot or shoe. The pieces of metal b, b, have sockets d, d, hollowed out within
them to receive tennons c; c, which project upwards from the blade A of the
skate; see Figures 3 and 4, (which represent the plate, a, a, and söckets b, b,
d, d, in section.) The upper parts of the tennoris c, c, of the blade A,are-like
hooks, and those parts are of the same length and size, as the. openings at the
under sides of the sockets; and when the hooked tennons c,c, are inserted into
these sockets, and pushed-forwards therein, the points of the hooks enter into,
cavities within the 'sockets; in manner shewn in Figure 3, so as to fasten firmly
therein. f is a screw pin, which is tapped into a projecting part ġ of the pieco
of metal b, in which the socket at the heel is formed. The head of the
screw f'comes out at the back of the heel (as is shewn in Figure..1), 'and' the
point of the screw enters into the socket. behind the hindermost 'hook c, in
order to confine that hook within the socket when the screw is screwed in;
but when the screw is screwed out so far that its point is withdrawn from the
socket, the 'hook is left at liberty to go in or. out of the socket. To fix the
skate for skating, the boot being on the foot, and the screw f screwed out so
far as to withdraw its point from the socket, the blade A of the skate must be
applied beneath the sole of the boot or shoe, and .its two hooked tennons c, c,
inserted into their respective sockets d, d, until the flat shoulders of the hooked
tennons at the parts marked 1, 1, -fit close to the under sides of the pieces of
metal b, b, in which the sockets are formed. . The blade A must then be pushed
forwards from the heel towards the toe, to cause the end of the hooks to enter
into those interior cavities of the sockets which are marked e, e;-and-the
hooks catching within those cavities will retain the blade, so that it
cannot be removed without first drawing it endways towards the heel
as much as will unhook the ends of the 'hooks out of their :internal
cavities e, e: To retain the blade when so. hooked, and prevent it from

page_text: .
being moved backwards or unhooked when in use for skating, the screw
pin must be screwed in until the end of the pin f bears hard against
the back of the hindermost hook c, so as to confine the hooks fast in
the sockets, and they fasten the blade of the skate firmly and immoveably
.beneath the sole of the boot. The size and shape of the pieces of metal b, .b,
and the sockets' within them, is shewn by the Figures 2, 3, and 4. The
'piece g, into which the screw pin ƒ is received, is inlaid within the thick-
ness of the heel piece of the boot. .The head of the screw f projects out a
little at the back of the heel, and has a square hole in the end of it to receive
the square end of a key h, by which the screw is turned round. The plate a, a,
and the pieces of metal b, b, in which the sockets are formed, also the projec
tion g, which receives the screw f, are entirely. contained within the thickness
of the sole and heel piece of the boot or shoe, so that every. part of them is
concealed, except the end of the projection g which appears at the back of the
heel, making an even surface therewith, and also the under surfaces of the two
pieces b, b, which appear in the under side of the sole and heel, and form an
'even surface therewith. i is a small stud formed in the middle part of the
of blade or skate iron A: The top of i, is a flat circular button which forms
an additional bearing for the sole of the boot or shoe whenever it bends
down so much at the middle part as to require support; when the sole is not
bent down the button does not touch it. The shoulders 11 of the hooked
tennons c, c, are enlarged to an oval shape, and are of sufficient breadth to
make an efficient bearing for the under surfaces of the pieces b, b, in which
the sockets are formed. To preserve the sockets in the pieces b, b, from
becoming clogged up with dirt or snow, when the skate irons are removed,
and the boots or shoes are used for walking, false soles, Figure 5, may be
applied beneath the real soles. The false soles are of leather 1, 1, the same
size and shape as the real soles of the boots or shoes, and lined with thin
plates of iron, from which project hooks c, c, exactly siniilar to those of thie
blade A of the skates. The false soles 1, 1, can be fixed beneath the real
soles of the boots or shoes, by inserting their hooks c, c, into the sockets d, d,
e, e, and confining them by screwing the screw f tight against the back
hook c.
The false soles will protect the bottoms of the real soles of the boots
or shoes from dirt in walking, and prevent any dirt getting into the sockets.
The false soles must be removed when the skates are to be fixed in the
:sockets. The slate represented by by Figure 6 and 7, 8, 9, 10, and 11, is
adapted to fasten to the sole of a common boot or shoe. A, A, Figures 6 and
7, is the blade or iron of the skate. The front part of it is fitted into a notch
in a piece of metal a, a, c, c, and secured in that notch by two screws passing

page_text: across through the holes 1, 1. The flat top part a, a, applies across beneath
the sole of the boot or shoe, and two iron clamps b, b, are screwed at the
under side of the flat top of the piece a, a, one on each side of the skate
iron A. Those clamps stand up at the outsides edges of the sole of the boot
or shoe, and their upper ends turn over to catch or hook over the top edges of
the sole at the part where the upper leathers join to it; therefore the flat
pieces a, i, and the clamps b, b, form a sort of stirrup; which firmly grasps the
front part of the sole of the boot or shoe both in breadth and in thickness.
Another similar piece of metal a, with two hooked clamps b, b, is provided.
to fit and grasp the heel piece of the boot or shoe, and the heel end of the skate
iron fits into a notch in, the piece of metal a, a, c, c, and is retained in that notch
when the skate is in use' by two cross pins; one of which drops into a notch e cut
out in the skate iron. That pin is shewn at d in Figure 10, which is a plan of
the under side of the back or heel stop a, a, b, b. The other pin f, see Figures
9 and 10, is rivited to a spring 9, which is screwed to the outside of the piece
of metal c, c, see Figures 6, 9, and 10: The spring 9 presses the pin f into a
hole h in the skate iron in the manner of a spring bolt,' and retains the iron,
so that it cannot be drawn out of the notch in the piecé c, c, unless the bolt f
is previously withdrawn by pressing back the end of the string which projects
for that purpose. The screws by which the clamps b, b, are fastened to the
pieces a, a, are inserted thro' slits or oblong holes, in order that the clamps
may be fixed nearer to each other or further apart, according to the breadth
of the soles and heels of the boots or shoes, which being done, and. the heel
clamps detached from the skate irons, then to fix the skate it is applied to tho
sole of the boot or shoe, and, the foot pushed forward as far as it will go
between the clamps b, b, that is, until the sole is jammed fast between them;
with its edges beneath their hooks. The heel clamp a, a, b, b, is next applied
beneath the heal piece of the boot or shoe, and pushed forwards until its
clamps and their hooks grasp the hecl firmly, and then. 'the notch in the pieco
c. c, is placed over the skate iron, and pressed down thercon, the pin d entering
into the notch e, and the round end of the spring bolt will be forced back by
the bevilled edge 1 of a notch that is cut in the end of the skate iron, until
that iron is fairly lodged in the notch, and then the bolt f will be forced by its
spring g into its hole h, so as to hold the skate iron firmly in the notch. In
this state both the pairs of clamps grasp the sole and heel of the boot..very
firmly, and the blade of the skate unites the two pairs of clamps together,
whereby the skate will remain fastened to the sole of the boot or shoe: To
take off the skate, the spring bolt f is withdrawn by pressing the end of the
spring 9 outwards sideways, then the heel end of the skate iron may be pressed

page_text: t
down out of the notch c,.c; and detached from the heel. clamp, after which
both the clamps a, a,v,-v, can be drawn:off from the sole and heel of the boot
sorrshoe. Eigures .10.and 11 are plans of the under sides of the clamps a, a
v,v, and Figure 9fis an end view of the heel clamp ;-these Figures shew the
slots; and screw's by: which the clamps are fastened to the pieces a, as so that the
distance apart of the clamps v,tv, may be varied to suit the breadth of the sole
and heel of the boot or shoe.. Figures 12 and 13 represent another way of
fixing the clamps tofthe heel picce; the front pair of clamps a, a, v, v, are the
same as herein before described in Figures 6,7, and 8. The other pair of
clamps for the heel are fixed fast to the skate-iron by screws passing "across
thro the sides cc, of the notch that receives the iron. The clamps :v, v,:for
the heel stand-up at each side thereof, and are fastened-by two screws which
pass.ithrough the clamps one on each side of the heel, and screw into ::brass
sockets s;which are inlaid and firmly fastened into the leather of the hcel
piece (see Figure 13); the heads of the screws r may be made square to turn-by
a key or with holes across the heads to insert the end of a pin,-and-turn them
by. If the boots or shoes are well fitted to the feet, the skates constructed as
herein before described will be firm to the feet without any straps and:buckles;
nevertheless, if the wearer.desires it, straps may be used to bind the boots or
shoes to the feet; and to make sure that the skate cannot be detached by any
accident, such.straps.and.buckles. may be applied in the usual manner of
common skates..
L. Having now-described the manner of carrying my improvements into effect,
I do hereby declare that what I claim as my Invention is the sockets d, e, d, e,
and the hooked tennons c, c, Figure 4, for fastening the skate iron to the sole
of the boot or shoe; also the clamps.a, a, v, v, c, c, Figures 8 and 10, which
grasp the two sides, and hook over the top edges of the sole and heel; likewise
the clamp, Figure 12, which fastens to the heel piece by the screws 1,.r, as
herein-before, described.
;
In witness whereof, I, the said James Cobbing, have hereunto set my
hand and seal, this Twenty-third day of July, One thousand eight
hundred and thirty.

page_text: AND BE IT REMEMBERED, that on the Twenty-third day of July, in the
year of our Lord 1830, the aforesaid James Cobbing came before our said Lord
the King in His Chancery, and acknowledged the Specification aforesaid,
and all and every thing therein contained and specified, in form above written.
And also the Specification aforesaid was stamped according to the tenor of
the Statute made for that purpose.
Inrolled the Twenty-sixth day of July, in the year of our Lord One
thousand eight hundred and thirty.