Improvements in Dies for the Shaping of Metal Plates.
Year: 1899

page_text: Date of Application, 3rd Jan., 1899 – Accepted, 25th Feb., 1899
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Dies for the Shaping of Metal Plates.
I, LONGLEY LEWIS SAGENDORPH, of 23rd and Hamilton Streets, Philadelphia,
United States of America, Manufacturer, 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 has relation to dies for pressing into shape metal plates for
ceilings, walls, roofs, panels and the like, and has for its object the provision of
means for facing and projecting the upper or male die when made of soft metal,
so that the durability of the latter may be greatly increased, its sharpness pre-
served and a very great saving in the cost of die metal and its renewals and the
labor incident thereto effected.
According to the present methods of constructing dies for pressing sheet metal,
such as iron and steel for building and decorating purposes, a solid steel female
member is first cast with the upper face bearing the configuration to be impressed
in intaglio. A male member is then produced by casting into the face of the
steel member a molten composition or alloy of babhet metal with other metals
such as copper, tin or antimony. The two dies or members are then arranged
in a press, the upper die raised a sufficient distance to admit between the dies a
sheet to be pressed or stamped and the upper die then forced down so as to produce
the desired configuration in the sheet of metal in the usual manner.
Dies so made and used have many disadvantages. Thus, the soft metal for
the upper die costs from ten to twenty cents per pound and its life in wearing is
from four thousand to ten thousand sheets of metal, after which owing to the
wear, it has to be remelted and recast. With such remelting and recasting there
is a loss in dross of at least 10%. This requires the addition of 10%, new metal,
and this coupled with the cost in labor of recasting adds from $3.00 to $10.00 to
the first cost of the die.
Again, the soft metal of the upper die is so much softer than the steel of the
lower die, that the former, in use rides the latter and by being displaced and
distorted becomes useless after pressing 100 or 200 sheets. Recasting in such
instances is necessary. And even where this riding does not take place early in
the use of the die, the sharpness of the configuration is greatly impaired by the
pressing of a limited number of sheets, so that the run is uneven, the last sheets
failing to perfectly match the first or present a perfect pattern.
My present invention is designed and adapted to overcome these and other
defects and to that end consists in adding to the soft metal die a hard or com-
paratively hard and durable facing which will last as long as the life of the lower
die and entirely obviate the necessity of frequent, if any, renewals of the metal
of the soft die.
In the accompanying drawings:-
Figure 1 is a sectional view of a pair of dies embodying my invention.
Figure 2 is a plan view of the lower die.
Figure 3 is a plan view of the upper die, and.
Figure 4 is a plan view of the facing plate.
In carrving my invention into effect I first produce the steel. female die A in

page_text: pattern in a block of steel, casting however being preferred as cheaper and
equally suitable, except for products of great firmness. I then cast into the steel
die a male die B, formed of an alloy of any suitable character, adopting for such
purpose the cheapest material obtainable and suitable, as there will be no wear or
abrasion to be provided against and the high priced alloys heretofore in use will
be unnecessary. After finishing and fitting the dies to the press, I proceed to
form a facing for the upper die, and for this purpose take a sheet of some metal
harder than the upper die, such as steel or brass, and hammer it closely into the
depressions of the steel die, until a perfect fit is produced, or I may press this
sheet of hard metal into the steel die by the action of the upper die, preference,
however, being given to the hammering operation, since it prevents injury to
the soft metal of the upper die, which might ensue in using it to force a flat hard
metal sheet into the depressions of the lower die. When this facing sheet is
perfected as far as can be by hammering, I force down the upper die until the
facing sheet fully conforms to the face of the upper die, and then raising the
upper die, fasten the facing plate to it, A¹ being said facing plate. The pre-
liminary hammering of the sheet into the lower die may be dispensed with and
the facing sheet A' produced by the first action of the two dies upon a commercial
sheet of steel, which being afterwards fastened to the upper die, forms a face held
between which and the lower die, the other sheets are pressed.
I have carried this process and the use of these dies into practical and extensive
work, and estimate that the wear on the faced upper die is too small to be com-
puted in any question of economy. I have been able with dies embodying my
invention to press as many as 40,000 plates of steel without material depreciation
in the quality or sharpness of the dies, so that the hard metal facing renders the
life of the dies practically indefinite.
Should it happen that the hard metal facing becomes imperfect from any cause,
all that is required is to replace it, but without recasting the soft metal body.
If at any time it is found that the lower die has worn somewhat, while yet
capable of producing good work, all that is necessary is to remove the upper die,
remelt it and cast it upon the lower die, upon which has been placed and accurately
fitted a sheet of hard metal, which is afterwards attached to the upper and
recast die.
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:
First: A die for pressing metal plates, consisting of a female member of hard
metal, a male member of soft metal, and a facing plate attached to the male
member and made of harder metal than said male member, substantially as
described.
Secondly: A die for pressing metal plates consisting of male and female
members, one of hard and the other of soft metal, the soft metal member being
faced with a plate of harder metal, substantially as described.
Thirdly: The method of forming dies for pressing ornamental metal plates,
which consists in first producing a hard metal member hearing the configuration
to be produced on the plates, casting upon the same a soft metal member, separating
the two members inserting a sheet of metal between them and pressing the same
to the configuration of the dies, then attaching said plate to the soft metal member,
substantially as described.
LONGLEY LEWIS SAGENDORPH,
By Henry Skerrett,
24, Temple Row, Birmingham, Agent for Applicant.