A MACHINE FOR MAKING SPOKES AND TOOL HANDLES
Year: 1855

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Bernard Hughes, of Rochester, New York, United
States, but now of 67, Gracechurch Street, London, for the Invention of
"A MACHINE FOR MAKING SPOKES AND TOOL HANDLES." -A communication.
Sealed the 10th June 1856, and dated the 11th December 1855.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Bernard Hughes at the
Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the 11th
December 1855.
I, BERNARD HUGHES, of Rochester, New York, United States, but now of
67, Gracechurch Street, London, do hereby declare the nature of the said
Invention for "A MACHINE FOR MAKING SPOKES & TOOL HANDLES," a cominu-
nication from a foreigner residing abroad, to be as follows:-
To consist in the employment and adjustment of two rotating cutter heads
placed upon a shaft fitted or attached to a frame having an up and down
movement, and allowing the cutter heads to move laterally upon their shaft.
By this arrangement, the cutters or bits may be moved vertically & laterally
while acting upon the material to be cut, which, placed upon a movable frame.
operated by a feed motion, is reduced when brought in contact with the cutters.
to the desired shape.
The cutter heads are placed on a hollow shaft having a driven pulley. Rods.
passing through the tube of this shaft, & revolving with it, are attached, one to

page_text: each of the cutter heads. These rods are attached to rectangular levers
pivotted to the side of the stationary frame. The other ends of these levers
are kept in contact by springs, with guide plates or bars attached lengthwise
to the side of the feeding frame, and as these guides operate on these arms,
depressing them more or less, according to their conformation, the cutters, by
the forcing inwards of the rods by the levers, are brought laterally closer
together.
The frame on which the tubular shaft has its bearings is pivotted on one
side to the stationary frame, leaving the other. side subject to the action of
another guide plate or bar, set lengthwise on the top of the feeding frame;
according to the pressure of this guide plate, the arched frame is raised or
lowered on that side, and with it the cutter heads.
SPECIFICATION: in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, filed
byrthe said Bernard Hughes in the Great Seal Patent Office, on the
11th June 1856..
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, BERNARD
HUGHES, of Rochester, New York, United States, but now of 67, Gracechurch
Street, London, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the Eleventh day of December, in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and fifty-five, in the nineteenth year of Her
reign, did, for Herself, Her, heirs and successors, give and grant unto me,
the said Bernard Hughes, Her special licence that I, the said Bernard Hughes,
my executors, administrators, and assigns, or such others as I, the said Bernard
Hughes, my executors, administrators, and assigns, should at any time. agree
with, and no others, from time to time and at. all times. thereafter during
the term therein expressed, should and lawfully might make, use, exercise,
and vend, within the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, the
Channel Islands; and. Isle of Man, an Invention for "A MACHINE. FOR MAKING
SPOKES BAND TOOL HANDLES," a communication from a foreigner. residing
abroad, upon the condition (amongst other's) that I, the said. Bernard Hughes,
my executors or administrators, by an instrument in writing under. my,
or. their; or one of their hands and seals, should. particularly describe and
ascertain the nature of the said. Invention, and in what manner the same was

page_text: to be performed, and cause the same to be filed in the Great Seal Patent
Office within six calendar months next and immediately after the date of the
said Letters Patent.
NOW KNOW YE, that I, the said Bernard Hughes, do hereby declare the
nature of my said Invention, and in what manner the same is to be" per-
formed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and by' the following
statement:
This Invention consists in the employment or use of two rotating cutter'
heads placed upon a shaft which is fitted or attached to a frame having an'
up and down movement, the cutter heads being allowed to move laterally'
upon their shaft, so that the bits or cutters by means of suitable guides may be
moved vertically and also laterally, and consequently be made to act upon the
timber so as to cut spokes, tool handles, &c. of any desiréd form.
In the accompanying Drawings, Figure 1 is a transverse vertical section of
the machine in the line x, x, of Figure 2; Figure 2 is a longitudinal vertical
section of the machine; Figure 3 is a plan or top view, and Figure 4 is a
transverse section, of one of the beds on which the timber rests while 'being'
acted upon by the bits or cutters. Similar letters of reference indicate' corre-'
sponding parts in the several Figures.
A represents a rectangular framing, which has two uprights B, B, attached
to its upper end, and to one of the uprights a metallic frame C is connected
by a pivot or bolt a, the frame C being allowed to' turn or work on 'said pivot'
or bolt. The frame C is formed of two vertical bars b, b, and a cross bar c, as
clearly' shewn in Figure 1. D is a 'hollow arbor or shaft, which 'is fitted' in'
proper bearings d, d, attached to the frame C. The shaft D has a driving
pulley E upon it, and two cutter heads F, F, are placed upon the shaft, which'
are allowed to turn or rotate with said shaft, and also slide upon it by means
of screws which pass through the heads 'and into a groove in the shaft. G, H
are rods or shafts which are fitted within the arbor or shaft D, one in each
end, and these rods or shafts are connected with the heads F, F; one rod
shaft to each head. The connection of one of the rods or shafts G to one of
the heads F is clearly shewn in Figure 1.
The outer ends of the rods or shafts G, H; are connected to the upper ends
of bent or right-angled levers I, I, having their fulcra at e, at each side of the
frame C. The upper part of each of these levers may be varied in position, or
set at a greater or less degree of inclination, by means of a screw f, which gears
into a segment rack g, on a portion of each lever, the screw and rack con-
necting the two parts of the levers, as seen in Figure 1. J is a carriage,

page_text: which works upon suitable guides h, h, on the upper part of the framing A.
This carriage is moved back and forth by means of a rack and pinion; connected
by suitable gearing with the driving shaft of the machine.
On each side of the carriage J there is attached a guide plate K, underneath
which the inner ends of the horizontal portions of the levers I, I, bear, the ends
of said levers being kept against the guide plates by springs i, see Fig. 1. The
form of the guide plates is distinctly shewn in Fig. 2. To the upper surface of
the carriage J, at one side, there is attached a guide plate L, upon the upper
surface of which a screw j rests or bears, said screw passing through one end
of the frame C, as shewn in Fig. 1.
To each cutter head F there are attached cutters or bits k, two or more on
each head. These cutters or bits are of chisel and gouge form, combined, as
shewn in Fig. 1, i. e., one portion of their cutting edges is straight, or parallel
with the upper surface of the carriage J, and the other portion is curved.
M, M, are feed or pressure rollers, which work in sliding or adjustable
bearings, fitted in guide frames N, attached to the framing A. The rollers
are directly over the carriage J, one roller being in front and the other back
of the cutter heads, as shewn in Figures 2 and 3.
The operation of the machine is as follows:-The timber is sawn into
rectangular strips of the proper length and thickness, and those are placed one
at a time upon the carriage J, the sticks resting upon a bed O attached to the
carriage J. Motion is then given the carriage J and the shaft D, and as
the carriage J moves along, the sticks pass underneath the cutter heads F,
and the cutters or bits k cut or dress the upper half of the sticks, and the
cutter heads are gradually brought nearer each other as the sticks pass under-
neath them, in consequence of the guide plates K, which actuate the levers I,
and rods or shafts G, H, so that the sticks will be cut in taper form; and the
cutters or bits are also gradually depressed, or allowed to descend, in con-
sequence of the guide plate L, so that the sticks may be cut of the desired
varying thickness.
It will be seen that the buts or thick ends of the sticks are first operated
upon, and any degree of taper or thickness, either gradual or varying, may be
given the spokes or handles by modifying the shape of the guide plates K, K,
L, which may be readily done.
The cutters or bits K on each head F cut one side of the upper half of
the stick, and the stick is then inserted and passed underneath the cutters a
second time; or two machines may be used, so that the work may be performed
more rapidly, as both machines may be attended by one person.
If one

page_text: machine only is used, the pivot or bolt a must be reversed, or changed to the
opposite side of the frame C, when the stick is passed through the second time,
and a different bed must be employed to hold the finished side of the stick, seo
Fig. 4. The screw j must also be shifted to the opposite side, and a guide
plate L also placed on the carriage J underneath the screw j.
Having thus described my said Invention, what I claim under the above in
part recited Letters Patent is, the two cutter heads F, F, arranged as herein
described, or in an equivalent way, so that they may be moved laterally upon
their shaft D, and also vertically with said shaft for the purposes specified.
In witness whereof, I, the said Bernard Hughes, have hereunto set
my hand and seal, this Ninth day of June, in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and fifty-six.
BERNARD HUGHES. (L.S.)