IMPROVEMENTS IN FASTENINGS FOR GAITERS AND OTHER SIMILAR FASTENINGS
Year: 1878

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Frederick Dowler, and Henry Dowler, and Frederick
Dowler, the younger, all of Alston, near Birmingham, in the County of
Warwick, Manufacturers, for the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN FASTENINGS
FOR GAITERS AND OTHER SIMILAR FASTENINGS."
Sealed the 28th June 1878, and dated the 2nd February 1878.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Frederick Dowler, Henry
Dowler, and Frederick Dowler at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents
on the 2nd February 1878.
FREDERICK DOWLER, and HENRY DOWLER, and FREDERICK DOWLER, the younger,
all of Aston, near Birmingham, in the County of Warwick, Manufacturers.
IMPROVEMENTS IN FASTENINGS FOR GAITERS AND OTHER SIMILAR FASTENINGS."
Our Invention consists principally in the improvements herein-after described
in fastenings for gaiters. The said improvements are, however, applicable to other
similar fastenings.
We will describe our Invention as applied to a fastening for gaiters. The said
fastening consists of two parts, the one a stud or head attached to the gaiter near
one edge, the other an eye attached near the other edge of the gaiter and opposite
the stud or head.
We construct the two parts according to our Invention in the following manner :-
We make the stud or head of four pieces of metal connected together. The top of
the stud or head consists of a convex or nearly hemispherical disc, to which a tubular
part or hollow stem is attached by the edge of the disc being turned under the
expanded top of the tubular part. The bottom end of the tubular part is contracted
and is inserted in the top of a hollow conical body and fixed therein by being
expanded by means of a tool introduced at the base of the hollow cone. A second
tubular part or stem is fixed to the base of the conical body by its upper expanded
end being introduced into the base of the cone, and the edge of the conical base
being turned under the said expanded upper end. The stud or head is now complete.
It is attached to the gaiter by its stem being passed through a hole in the gaiter and
expanded by the process commonly known as eyeletting.

page_text: We make the eye part of the fastening in the following manner:-We form from
sheet metal by dies and pressure a hollow or tubular blank consisting of a hollow
stem expanded at top, the edge of the said expanded part turning inwards, so as to
form a hollow ring at the summit of the stem. We insert a disc of vulcanized india-
rubber in this blank, the edge of the disc filling the hollow ring described. The
india-rubber disc has a central perforation. This eye is fixed to the gaiter by eye-
letting, the process of eyeletting not only expanding the open end of the stem, so as
to fix the eye in its place, but also flattening or compressing the ring, so as to cause
it to grasp and hold tightly the india-rubber disc.
When the head of the stud is passed through the hole in the india-rubber disc
and the two parts of the fastening are engaged together, the conical body of the
stud fills the body of the eye part, and the two parts are without looseness or
play.
In some cases especially where the eye is small, the conical body may be replaced
by a cylindrical body. The parts in this case are put together in the way already
described.
Our improvements, besides being applicable to fastenings for gaiters, are also
applicable to other similar fastenings, such, for example, as fastenings for boots and
shoes, gloves, collars, shirt studs, and the like.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent filed by
the said Frederick Dowler, Henry Dowler, and Frederick Dowler in the Great
Seal Patent Office on the 20th July 1878.
FREDERICK DOWLER, and HENRY DOWLER, and FREDERICK DOWLER, the younger,
all of Aston, near Birmingham, in the County of Warwick, Manufacturers.
IMPROVEMENTS IN FASTENINGS FOR GAITERS AND OTHER SIMILAR FASTENINGS."
. Our Invention consists principally in the improvements herein-after described in
fastenings for gaiters. The said improvements are, however, applicable to other
similar fastenings.
We will describe our Invention as applied to a fastening for gaiters. The said
fastening consists of two parts, the one a stud or head attached to the gaiter near
one edge, the other an eye attached near the other edge of the gaiter and opposite
the stud or head.
We construct the two parts according to our Invention in the following manner :-
We make the stud or head of four pieces of metal connected together. The top of
the stud or head consists of a convex or nearly hemispherical disc to which a
tubular part or hollow stem is attached by the edge of the disc being turned under
the expanded top of the tubular part. The bottom end of the tubular part is con-
tracted, and is inserted in the top of a hollow conical body, and fixed therein by
being expanded by means of a tool introduced at the base of the hollow cone. A
second tubular part or stem is fixed to the base of the conical body by its upper
expanded end being introduced into the base of the cone, and the edge of the conical
base being turned under the said expanded upper end. The stud or head is now

page_text: complete. It is attached to the gaiter by its stem being passed through a hole in.
the gaiter and expanded by the process commonly known as eyeletting.
We make the eye part of the fastening in the following manner :- -We form from
sheet metal by dies and pressure a hollow or tubular blank, consisting of a hollow
stem expanded at top, the edge of the said expanded part turning inwards, so as to
form a hollow ring at the summit of the stem. We insert a disc of vulcanized india-
rubber in this blank, the edge of the disc filling the hollow ring described. The
india-rubber disc has a complete perforation. This eye is fixed to the gaiter by
eyeletting, the process of eyeletting not only expanding the open end of the stem,
so as to fix the eye in its place, but also flattening or compressing the ring, so as to
cause it to grasp and hold tightly the india-rubber disc.
When the head of the stud is passed through the hole in the india-rubber disc,
and the two parts of the fastening are engaged together, the conical body of the
stud fills the body of the eye part, and the two parts are without looseness or
play.
In some cases, especially where the eye is small, the conical body may be replaced
by a cylindrical or other shaped body. The parts in this case are put together in
the way already described.
Our improvements are applicable to other fastenings besides gaiter fastenings as.
herein-after explained.
We will now proceed to describe with reference to the accompanying Drawing.
the manner in which our Invention may be performed.
Figure 1 represents in section, and Figure 2 in elevation, the head or stud part,
of a gaiter, or other like fastening drawn to a large scale, constructed according to
our Invention; and Figure 3 represents in section and plan drawn to a large scale
the eye part of the said fastening, the stud or head part being attached to one edge
of the gaiter (or other like article) and the eye part to the other edge of the gaiter
or article.
Figure 4 represents in elevation a gaiter to which a fastening constructed
according to our Invention is applied, drawn half the real size, and Figure 5 repre-
sents a cross section of the two edges of the gaiter, and one of the fastenings of the
same, drawn of the same scale as Figures 1, 2, and 3, the said Figure 5 exhibiting
the manner in which the two parts of the fastening are connected by eyeletting to
the edges of the gaiter, as well as the manner in which the two parts engage with.
one another.
The same letters of reference indicate the same parts in the several figures of the.
Drawing.
The stud or head part of the fastening represented in Figures I, 2, 4, and 5
consists of four pieces of metal marked respectively a, b, c, d, fastened together in
the manner herein-after described, a, b, being the headed stem of the stud, c, the
base or body of the same, and d, the tubular stem by which the stud is fastened..
to the gaiter or other article. The hollow body or middle part which constitutes
the base of the finished stud is conical as represented.
We make the several parts of which the stud, Figures 1 and 2, is composed, and
connect the said parts together, in the following manner-We take a metal eyelet
of the required size, provided with a slightly conical barrel, and preferably un-
pierced at its point or narrow end. This eyelet is made from sheet metal by any of
the well-known methods by which sheet metal is raised into a cupped form. We
use this eyelet with the metal in as hard a condition as is practicable for the
purpose herein-after explained. We take this hard eyelet and force it by means of
pressure applied to its head or enlarged end into a die for the purpose of con-
tracting the diameter of the lower part of the eyelet and forming a shoulder
between the body of the eyelet and the contracted part. The eyelet being removed
from the die, its narrow end is pierced out. The eyelet after it has been
subjected to the treatment described has the shape represented in section and plan
in Figure 6, and forms the stem part of the finished stud.
We next close upon the.
head or larger end of the eyelet, Figure 6, a convex or hemispherical cap as

page_text: représented in Figure 7, and marked a, the said cap completely covering the upper
end of the eyelet, and giving a finished appearance thereto. The headed stem or
upper part of the stud is thereby completed.
We make and attach the parts constituting the lower half of the stud and connect
the upper and lower parts together in the following way:- -We take an ordinary
eyelet of the kind represented in section and plan in Figure 8 and marked d, and we
also take a conical shell represented in section and plan in Figure 9 and marked c,
the said shell being made by dies and pressure in the usual way. The said shell.
Figure 9, constitutes the base or body part of the finished stud, and has a central
hole and indentation at c2 upon its summit, and an internal flange at its base.
The central hole at c³ is of a size proper to admit tightly the contracted part b² of
the stem b, Figures 6 and 7.
The eyelet or part d is fastened to the conical shell or body part c by engaging
the lip or head of the part d with the flange c³ of the body part c, and closing the
said parts upon one another, as illustrated in section in Figure 10. The lower part
of the stud, Figure 10, thus made is joined to the upper part, Figure 7, by inserting
the contracted end 62 of the part b in the hole at 2 of the body part c,
and ex-
panding the said end 62 around the indentation at c² of the said body part, as
illustrated in Figures 1 and 2. The two parts of the stud are thereby connected
together, and the stud is complete. We effect the expanding of the narrow end b²
of the part b by means of a punch passed through the lower part d. By the
operation of the said punch, during the expansion of the end 62, the shoulder b³ just
above the contracted end 62 is made to abut or seat itself upon the depression at c²
in the summit of the conical body part c, whereby a close joint is formed, and great
strength ensured at the junction of the two parts, as represented in the sectional
view, Figure 1.
By using a hard eyelet for the making of the part b, as described, that part
which is bent under the flange of the conical body c starts from the shoulder b³
without distorting any other part of the said hard eyelet. The stud, Figures 1 and 2,
thus made is fastened to the gaiter Figures 4 and 5 (or other like article) by
passing the lower stem d through a hole or piercing made in the leather or material
of the gaiter, and expanding the extremity of the said part d by the process
commonly called eyeletting. A metal washer is placed on the inside edge of the
gaiter, upon which the eyeletting or expanding of the part d is effected where
additional strength is required, or where the material of the gaiter is very thin or
loose in texture. The stud, fastened to the material of the gaiter in the manner
described, is shewn in the sectional view, Figure 5, where the eyeletted or expanded
part of the stem d is marked d³, and the washer upon which the stem is expanded
is marked d³.
It will be seen by an examination of Figures 1, 2, and 5 that the shoulder formed
at the junction of the conical body with the lower stem part d constitutes a strong
base or support for the stud, the said base or shoulder part resting upon the material
while the said stud is being fixed to the gaiter or article (see Figure 5). When the
material of the gaiter or article is thin a strip of metal may be applied to the edges
of the gaiter for stiffening the said edges, the studs being passed through holes in
the said metal strips as well as through the gaiter, the stems being clinched or
expanded from the metal strips, thereby binding the whole of the parts together.
We will now describe the manner in which the eye part, Figure 3, is made.
We form from sheet metal, by dies and pressure, a hollow or tubular blank or
eyelet of the kind represented in section and plan in Figure 11, and marked e.
The upper half of the said blank or eyelet, Figure 11, is of greater diameter than
the lower half, the upper expanded part constituting a cup-like cavity marked e³.
After annealing the cupped shell, Figure 11, we give to it, by the action of dies and
pressure, the form represented in section in Figure 12; that is to say, by pressure
we expand the mouth of the shell e, and consequently reduce the depth of the part
above the shoulder of the cavity e², as represented in Figure 12.
We cut from vulcanized sheet india-rubber discs of a size proper to fit the

page_text: cavity e in the shell e, and having placed one of the said discs marked ƒ in the said
cavity, as represented in Figure 12, we fix the said disc f therein by closing the
upper part or mouth, marked e³, of the shell inwards upon it, as represented in
section and plan in Figure 3, a hollow ring being formed at the head of the shell,
between the parallel parts of which the edge of the disc f is grasped. By the use
of the shoulder or set off et near the cavity e² of the shell it restricts the bending
of the metal of the shell to the part above the said shoulder or set off, thereby
preventing the distorting of the india-rubber disc by lateral pressure of the cavity
part upon the disc.
A hole or slit g being made in the disc of india-rubber f, as
represented in Figure 3, the eye part of the fastening is finished, and is ready to be
fixed to the gaiter. It is fixed to the gaiter by the eyeletting of the stem part e of
the eye in the material of the gaiter, as represented in Figure 5, the extreme end
of the said stem part being expanded upon a metallic washer. The process of
eyeletting not only expands the open end of the stem e, so as to fix the eye part in
its place, but also further compresses the cavity part e² in contact with the india-
rubber disc f, thereby causing the sides of the cavity part to grasp the disc more
tightly.
The ring or tubular part e of the completed eye is made of a diameter a little
greater than the head a of the stud. The stud part and eye part of the fastening
having been fixed in the manner described and represented to the opposite edges of
the gaiter (or other article), the said gaiter is fastened by passing the head a of the
stud through the hole g in the india-rubber disc f of the eye part, as represented in
Figures 4 and 5. The said parts of the fastening are thereby engaged together and
the gaiter securely fastened. When the two parts of the fastening are thus engaged
together the conical body or base c of the stud fills or nearly fills the body of the
eye, and the conical stem part b is gripped tightly by the india-rubber disc f, and
thus the two parts of the fastening are without looseness or play.
The fastenings described and illustrated, besides being applicable to fastenings for
gaiters, are also applicable to other similar fastenings, such, for example, as fastenings
for boots and shoes, gloves, collars, shirts, and the like.
In applying our Invention to fastenings for boots and shoes and gloves we make
the said fastenings smaller than when used for gaiters; and we prefer to modify
the stud part of the fastening for boots and shoes and gloves by fastening the base
or body part c inside the head of the stem part d, as illustrated in elevation and
section in Figure 13, instead of upon the outside of the stem part d, as described
with respect to a gaiter fastening. The parts of the stud, Figure 13, are marked
with the same letters as corresponding parts of the gaiter stud; and the said stud,
Figure 13, is connected to the boot or shoe or glove in the same way as the stud of
the gaiter fastening.
The part which forms the base or body of the stud may be cylindrical or flat, or
of other figure instead of conical, as represented, with the same effect, the parts
being joined together to form the stud in the manner herein-before described and
illustrated. A stud having a flat base is represented in Figure 14, the flat base
being marked c.
The construction of stud described may also be used as a fastening for collars,
shirts, wristbands, and other like articles of dress. In constructing studs for these
purposes we take studs similar to those used for fastening boots and shoes, as repre-
sented in Figure 13; and we attach to the shank part d of the stud a large disc of
metal by eyeletting or expanding the said shank part d upon the edge of the disc.;
and over the said disc we fasten a second disc or cap, so as to complete the base of
the collar or other like stud. A stud of this kind is represented in section and
elevation in Figure 14, the base being made from the two discs marked respectively
h and h².
Having now described the nature of our Invention, and the manner in which the
same is to be performed, we wish it to be understood that we do not limit ourselves
to the precise details herein described and illustrated, as the same may be varied

page_text: without departing from the nature of our Invention; but we claim as our Invention
of improvements in fastenings for gaiters and other similar fastenings,―
First. The improvements in studs to be used alone or in combination with eyes,
herein-before described and illustrated in Figures 1, 14, 2, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 13, and 14
of the accompanying Drawing; that is to say, constructing the said studs of raised
blanks or shells formed and connected together, substantially as described and
illustrated.
Secondly. The improvements in eyes to be used with studs of the kind referred
to in the foregoing claim, or with other studs, herein-before described and illustrated
in Figures 3, 4, 5, 11, and 12 of the accompanying Drawing; that is to say, forming
the said eyes from eyelets or shells having cupped shaped heads, in which cup
shaped heads perforated or slit discs of india-rubber or other elastic substance are
inserted and fixed, substantially as described and illustrated.
In witness whereof, we, the said Frederick Dowler and Henry Dowler, and
Frederick Dowler, the younger, have hereunto set our hands and seals, this
Fourth day of July, in the year of our Lord, One thousand eight hundred
and seventy-eight.
Witness,
GEORGE SHAW.
FREDERICK DOWLER.
HENRY DOWLER.
(L.S.)
(L.S.)
FREDERICK DOWLER, JUN. (L.S.)