IMPROVED MACHINERY FOR GRINDING OR SHAPING RAZOR-BLADES
Year: 1881

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LETTERS PATENT to Henry Harris Lake, of the Firm of Haseltine, Lake,
& Co., Patent Agents, Southampton Buildings, London, for an Invention
IMPROVED MACHINERY FOR GRINDING OR SHAPING RAZOR-BLADES."
A communication from abroad by James Darius Frary, of Bridgeport,
Connecticut, United States of America.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Henry Harris Lake at the
Office of the Commissioners of Patents on the 1st February 1881.
HENRY HARRIS LAKE, of the Firm of Haseltine, Lake, & Co., Patent Agents,
Southampton Buildings, London. "IMPROVED MACHINERY FOR GRINDING OR
SHAPING RAZOR-BLADES." [A communication from abroad by James Darius
Frary, of Bridgeport, Connecticut, United States of America.]
This Invention relates to improvements in machinery for grinding, or what is
more commonly called concaving razors, that is to say, giving concavity to the side
of the razor blade and for grinding the surface to form the edge. The peculiar
concavity in a razor has heretofore been formed by hand, the operator holding
the razor upon the stone, and depending upon his skill alone to give the requisite
shape. The blades are also curved longitudinally, so that in grinding the blade to
the required concavity the operator must also so move it across the surface of the
grindstone as to produce this longitudinal curve. Owing to the difficulty of these
operations none but experienced and skilful persons have been able to successfully
accomplish this work, and this part of the work causes great and unavoidable
expense in the manufacture as hitherto practised.
The object of my said Invention is to construct a machine, which having a razor
blank introduced therein will automatically grind it to the required shape and
deliver it so shaped, and which being once adjusted will make all succeeding blades
of identically the same shape, this result being an impossibility in hand grinding.
In carrying this Invention into practice I construct a machine as follows, that is
to say:
I provide an upright or post upon which the operative mechanism is placed and
supported; this upright carries a stationary bed at its top; on said bed lies a

page_text: carriage carrying a driving shaft supported in suitable bearings, to which power is
applied through a pulley or otherwise. On the shaft is mounted a grinder which
is of the usual shape. The carriage is made adjustable on the bed by means of a
screw, so as to be moved toward or from the front of the machine as required. The
bearings for the shaft are also vertically adjustable in guides on the carriage to
adjust the elevation of the grinder as occasion may require. On the front of the
upright is another carriage arranged to move on transverse guides, and recipro-
cating motion is imparted thereto by a horizontal leading screw supported
in a suitable bearing, power being applied to the screws through pulleys to
impart a revolution in either direction, as may be required. The said pulleys
are driven one in one direction and the other in the opposite direction, and both
are loose on the screw shaft, connection being made with either by means of a
clutch splined on the shaft. This clutch is caused to move longitudinally on the.
shaft by the movement of the screw carriage when approaching either of its extreme
movements. The shifting of the clutch is produced by a rod extending longi-
tudinally from the rear of the carriage to a shipper, and provided with adjustable
or spring stops against one of which the carriage will strike in completing its
movements in one direction or the other, and impart a corresponding longitudinal
movement to the said rod and to the shipper connected with it, which will corre-
spondingly move the clutch from its engagement with one of the pulleys acting
upon the screw as above stated, and thus a continuous horizontal reciprocating
movement will be imparted to the carriage. This shipping arrangement and move-
ment of carriage does not differ materially from similar shipping apparatus in other
machines where a like movement is imparted. The guides to which the leading
screw is attached are adjustable vertically on other guides by means of an adjusting
screw below, so that the screw carriage may be raised or lowered as occasion may
require. A holder is pivotted to the front of the carriage. This holder extends
above the carriage and thence inward to form a seat for a matrix. It also extends
downward, and is pivotted in front of the vertical guide of the screw carriage.
The holder being attached to the horizontally reciprocating screw carriage, a corre-
sponding reciprocating movement will be imparted to it, but as there is no
reciprocating movement at the point where its lower end is attached, it follows
that the holder will have a rocking movement (of which the pivot in front of the
vertical guide is substantially the centre) combined with its horizontally recipro-
cating movement. The curve of this rocking movement is the longitudinal curve
required for the grinding of the razor. The seat for the matrix is made adjustable
toward and from the grinder by being arranged on a slide by means of set screws,
and the slide is pressed forward by means of a spring.
The matrix is made to receive and hold the razor blank with one of its flat
surfaces toward the grinder. The razor blank being so arranged and secured in
place, power is applied to the machine causing the grinder to revolve and the holder
to reciprocate as described, which carries the blank longitudinally across the grinder
until the surface of the blank is ground to the required shape, and when that shape
is attained the forward movement of the slide which carries the matrix and blank is
arrested by one of its set screws hereinbefore mentioned, or by some other suitable
stop whereby further action of the grinder upon the blank is prevented. Then the
attendant removes the ground blank, introduces a second, and so continues until
the first side of a lot of blanks is ground. Then another matrix fitted to receive the
ground side of the blank is applied, and the blanks are introduced presenting the
other or unground side to the grinder, and the operation proceeds as before; or,
having two machines, one may be adjusted for grinding one side, and the other for
the reverse side.
The time required for grinding one side is much greater than that required for the
introduction of the blanks, hence one operator is able to attend to several machines,
and these machines being properly adjusted such attendant need have no skill or
experience in grinding, and only sufficient mechanical skill to introduce and
take out the blanks, and with that little amount of skill is enabled to perform

page_text: the work of several of the most successful and skilled grinders by the old hand
process.
For introducing and removing the blanks the upper part of the holder is hinged
to the other part, so that it may be turned forward away from the grinder to expose
the matrix. To hold the matrix up to its work a spring or arm is arranged upon the
lower part to bear upon the upper part to hold it up to its place, but turned to one
side so as to permit it to be turned forward.
The holder pivot is removable, and if taken from its place and introduced
through a hole in the holder and into the carriage it prevents the rocking move-
ment, so that the holder simply reciprocates horizontally as a part of the carriage.
This arrangement is necessary because certain classes of razors are ground straight
instead of curved, as hereinbefore described, and for such grinding the movement of
the matrix must be in a straight line across the face of the grinder.
I have thus far described the apparatus as for grinding the concavity on the
surface of the blade, but it will be readily understood that it may with equal facility
be applied to grinding the surface forming the edge, and in practice the edge is thus
ground first and then the concavity.
These two grinding operations leave a ridge upon the surface between them,
which is removed by subsequent grinding whilst gradually changing the vertical
position of the blank by means of the screw for vertical adjustment, and this adjust-
ment may be made by hand or automatically, as, for instance, each time the clutch
is shifted it may impart to the said screw a partial rotation by connections, for
instance, by pawl and ratchet or the like.

page_text: SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent filed
by the said Henry Harris Lake in the Great Seal Patent Office on the
1st August 1881.
HENRY HARRIS LAKE, of the Firm of Haseltine, Lake, & Co., Patent Agents,
Southampton Buildings, London. " IMPROVED MACHINERY FOR GRINDING OR
SHAPING RAZOR-BLADES." A communication from abroad by James Darius
Frary, of Bridgeport, Connecticut, United States of America.
This Invention relates to improvements in machinery for grinding, or what is
more commonly termed concaving razors, that is to say, giving concavity to the
side of the razor blade, and for grinding the surface to form the edge. This
peculiar shape or concavity in a razor has heretofore been formed by hand, the
operator holding the razor upon the stone, and depending upon his skill alone to
give the requisite shape. The blades are also curved longitudinally, so that in
grinding the blade to the required concavity the operator must also so move it across
the surface of the grinder as to produce this longitudinal curve. Owing to the
difficulty of these operations none but experienced and skilful persons have been
able to successfully accomplish this work, and this part of the work causes great and
unavoidable expense in the cost of manufacture as hitherto practised.
The object of the said Invention is to construct a machine which having a razor
blank introduced therein will automatically grind it to the required shape and
deliver it so shaped, and which being once adjusted will make all succeeding
blades of indentically the same shape, this result being an impossibility in hand
grinding.
This Invention consists in the construction and combination of mechanism herein-
Figure 2, a side elevation, and
Figure 3, a plan or top view of the same.
Figure 4 is a rear view of shipping mechanism, hereinafter described.
Figures 5, 6, 7, and 8 illustrate the action of the said machine upon a razor
blank.
A is the upright or post upon which the operative mechanism is placed and
supported, and B is a stationary bed at its top, on which lies a carriage C, carrying
the driving shaft D,.supported in suitable bearings D¹. To the said shaft D power
is applied through a pulley D2, or otherwise. On the shaft D is mounted the
grinder b, which is of the usual shape. The carriage is made adjustable on the
bed B by means of a screw E, so as to be moved toward or from the front of the
machine as required. The bearings D' are also vertically adjustable in guides & on
the carriage C, to adjust the elevation of the grinder as occasion may require. On
the front of the upright is a carriage F, arranged to move on transverse guides f;
to the said carriage a reciprocating motion is imparted by a horizontal leading
screw F¹ supported in a bearing F2, power being applied to the screw through
pulleys F or F to impart a revolution in either direction as may be required;
the said pulleys are driven one in one direction and the other in the opposite
direction and both are loose on the screw shaft, connection being made with either
by means of a clutch F5 splined or keyed on the said shaft; this clutch is caused
to move longitudinally on the shaft by the movement of the carriage F when
approaching either of its extreme movements. The shifting of the clutch is
produced by a rod h extending longitudinally from the rear of the carriage to the
shipper ', and provided with adjustable or spring stops 72, against one of which
the carriage will strike in completing its movements in one direction or the
other, and impart a corresponding longitudinal movement to the said rod h and to

page_text: the shipper connected with it, which will correspondingly move the clutch from its
engagement with one of the pulleys F3, F4, to the other, as the case may be, and
thus a continuous horizontal reciprocating movement will be imparted to the
carriage. This shipping arrangement and movement of carriage does not differ
materially from similar shipping apparatus in other machines where a like
movement is imparted. The guides to which the leading screw is attached are
adjustable vertically on guides by means of an adjusting screw, so that the
carriage F may be raised or lowered as occasion may require. H is the holder
pivotted to the front of the carriage at n. This holder extends above the carriage,
and thence inward as at H to form a seat for the matrix m. The said holder
also extends downward and is pivoted in front of the guide at n¹. The holder H
being attached to the horizontally reciprocating carriage F, a corresponding
reciprocating movement will be imparted to it, but as there is no reciprocating
movement at the point n' where its lower end is attached, it follows that the
holder will have a rocking movement (of which the pivot n¹ is substantially the
centre) combined with its horizontally reciprocating movement. The curve of this
rocking movement is the longitudinal curve required for the grinding of the
razor.
The scat for the matrix is made adjustable toward and from the grinder Boy
being arranged on a slide m' by means of set screws m², and the slide is pressed
forward by means of a spring m³. The matrix m is made to receive and hold the
razor blank with one of its flat surfaces toward the grinder. The razor blank
being so arranged and secured in place power is applied to the machine, causing
the grinder to revolve and the holder to reciprocate, as above described, which
carries the blank longitudinally across the grinder until the surface of the blank is
ground to the required shape, and when that shape is attained the forward move-
ment of the slide m' which carries the matrix and blank is arrested by one of the
set screws m² or by some other suitable stop, whereby if the machine continues its
movement no further action of the grinder upon the blank will take place.
attendant then removes the ground blank, introduces a second one, and so continues
the operation until the first side of a number of blanks is ground; then another
matrix fitted to receive the ground side of the blank is applied to the machine and
the blanks are re-introduced, presenting their other or unground side to the
grinder, and the operation proceeds as before; or if two machines are employed
one may be adjusted for grinding one side of the blank and the other for the
reverse side.
The
The time required for grinding one side of a blank is much greater than that
required for the introduction of the said blank, heuce it is found in practical work
that one operator is able to attend to several machines, and these machines being
properly adjusted such operator need have no skill or experience in grinding, and
only sufficient mechanical skill to introduce and take out the blanks, and with that
small amount of skill is enabled to perform the work of several of the most
successful and skilled grinders by the old hand process.
For conveniently introducing and removing the blanks the upper part of the
holder H is hinged to the other part at 8, so that it may be turned forward away
from the grinder to expose the matrix into the position shewn in dotted lines in
Figure 2, and to hold it up to its work a spring or arm t is arranged upon the
lower part to bear upon the upper part to hold it up to its place; the said spring
or armt may be turned to one side, as shewn in dotted lines in Figure 1, to permit
of the holder being turned forward.
The pivot n is removable, and if taken from its place and introduced through
a hole s¹ in the holder, and into the carriage F it prevents the rocking movement,
so that the holder simply reciprocates horizontally as a part of the carriage. This
arrangement is necessary because certain classes of razors are ground straight
instead of curved, as herein before described, and for such grinding the movement
of the matrix must be in a straight line across the face of the grinder.
I have thus far described the apparatus as employed for grinding the concavity

page_text: on the surface of the blade, but it will be readily understood that it may with equal
facility be applied to grinding the surface at a¹ (see Figures 5, 6, 7, and 8), to form
the edge, and in practice the edge is thus ground, first as seen in Figure 5, and
then the concavity a is formed as seen in Figures 7 and 8; Figure 6 shews a section
of the blank after the first grinding at a¹.
These two grinding operations leave a ridge a² upon the surface of the blank,
which ridge is removed by subsequent grinding, and during such grinding gradually
changing the vertical position of the blank by means of the adjusting screw l
below the carriage F. This adjustment may be made by hand or automatically,
as, for instance, each time the clutch F is shifted it may impart to the said screw !!
a partial rotation by connections between the two, as, for example, by a pawl and
ratchet wheel or by any suitable means.
Having thus fully described the said Invention as communicated to me by my
foreign correspondent, and the manner of performing the same, I wish it understood
that I claim,
First. In a machine for grinding razors the combination of a revolving grinder,
a matrix to receive the blank, and a holder arranged to impart to the said blank
a longitudinally reciprocating movement combined with a longitudinally rocking
movement, substantially as above set forth.
Second. The combination of a revolving grinder, a carriage having a reciprocating
movement imparted to it in a plane parallel to the axis of the said grinder, a
holder pivoted to the said reciprocating carriage, and carrying a matrix at one end
to present the blanks to the grinder, the other end of the said holder being pivoted
in a fixed vertical line independent of the said carriage, whereby a combined
reciprocating and rocking movement is imparted to the holder in a plane practically
parallel with the plane' of the said carriage, substantially as above set forth and
for the purposes specified.
Third. The combination of a revolving grinder with a carriage having a recip-
rocating movement imparted to it in a plane parallel with the axis of the said
grinder, a holder carrying the matrix to receive the blank and pivoted to the said
carriage, so as to move in the same plane with the latter, and a removable pivot
by which a combined reciprocating and rocking movement is imparted to the holder,
which when the said pivot is removed may be made fast to the carriage so as to
receive only a reciprocating movement, substantially as above set forth and for the
purpose specified.
Fourth. The combination of a revolving grinder, a carriage having a recipro-
cating movement imparted to it in a plane parallel to the axis of the said grinder,
a holder carrying the matrix pivotted to the said carriage so as to reciprocate in
the same plane with the latter, and mechanism, substantially as described, to move
or adjust the said carriage and holder at right angles to the axis of the grinder,
substantially as above set forth and for the purposes specified.
Fifth. The combination of a revolving grinder, a carriage having a reciprocating
movement imparted thereto in a plane parallel to the axis of the said grinder, a
holder carrying a matrix to receive the blank, and hinged to the said carriage,
and arranged to receive the reciprocating movement of the carriage, and in the
same plane, the hinge permitting the holder to be turned away from the grinder,
substantially as above set forth and for the purpose specified.
In witness whereof, I, the said Henry Harris Lake, have hereunto set my
hand and seal, this First day of August, in the year of our Lord One
thousand eight hundred and eighty one.
HENRY H. LAKE. (L.S.)