IMPROVEMENTS IN THE CONSTRUCTION OF MACHINERY OR APPARATUS FOR STRETCHING THE 'TIPS' OF FELF HATS
Year: 1873

page_text: PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by Julius Sheldon at the Office
of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the 6th
December 1878.
I, JULIUS SHELDON, of New York, at present residing at Edgley,
near Stockport, in the County of Chester, do hereby declare the nature
of the said Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN THE CONSTRUCTION OF MACHINERY
OR APPARATUS FOR STRETCHING THE 'TIPS' OF FELF HATS," to be as follows :-
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This Invention relates to apparatus employed for stretching the
tips" or crowns of felt hats bodies from the conical shape in which they
are formed and planked into a dome shape previously to blocking the
same, and consists principally in the combination of a series of convex
stretching or expanding levers working inside the hat body with a
similar series of concave pressing levers working simultaneously outside
the same.
The frame of the machine supports a vertical rod capable of rising and
falling in suitable bearings by means of a treadle, and carrying at its
upper extremity a casting to which are attached a series of stretching
levers (say, six), the lower arms of the said levers being cranked

page_text: outwards, and their upper arms being of a convex form somewhat
similar to the bowl of a spoon, so that when pressed together by an
india-rubber band which surrounds them they form an egg-shaped block
upon which the hat body to be stretched is placed.
Below the casting above-named is a sliding boss mounted upon the t
vertical rod and connected by six links with the lower arms of the
stretching levers, so that as this boss is drawn downwards these links
cause the upper arms of the stretching levers to expand simultaneously.
The sliding boss is connected to the treadle bỹ à chain in such a way
that the rod and levers will all rise together for a certain distance, but 1
upon pressing still further upon the treadle the boss is pulled down and
the levers commence to expand.
In a vertical line above the rod first-named a tube is supported in the
upper part of the frame. To the lower end of this tube is fixed a
casting to which are attached by their upper ends six pressing levers, 1
the lower ends of which are formed concave (to correspond with the
upper ends of the stretching levers) and lined with india-rubber, felt, or
other suitable substance. These levers are also continually pressed
inwards by an india-rubber ring passing round them, and they are fixed
at such a height that when the hat body is placed on the egg-shaped 2
block formed by the upper ends of the stretching levers and the latter
are raised to their highest point before expansion, the lower concave
ends of the pressing levers bear against the outside of the conical hat
body to be stretched or expanded.
It will be evident that a further pressure upon the treadle will cause
the stretching levers to expand radially and press out or stretch the tip
or crown into a dome-shape, and at the same time pressure will be ·
exerted upon the outside of the hat body by the pressing levers which
are forced inwards by the india-rubber ring and have no expanding
motion beyond what is given them by the outward pressure of the 8
expanding levers in the interior of the hat body.
The workman does not expand the stretching levers to their full extent
at once but by alternately pressing on the treadle and allowing it to rise,
the expansion is intermittent and gradual, the workman turning the
hat body slightly round between each stretch so as to equalize the action 3
throughout.

page_text: In order to allow of this turning of the hat body it is necessary that
the pressing levers should expand with the stretching levers, but not
contract with them, so that the hat body is free to turn when the
workman takes off the pressure, and this I accomplish in the following
manner: Through the centre of the tube which carries the pressing
levers passes a vertical rod, to the lower end of which is fixed a casting
having six arms which are notched or stepped so as to form catches, and
each of these catches passes through a slot in one of the pressing
levers.
A spiral or other spring constantly draws the last-named vertical
rod with its six catches upwards. From this it will be evident that as
the pressing levers are forced outwards by the expansion of the
stretching levers the notched catches rise and hold them in the expanded
position whilst the stretching levers contract; the hat is then turned, the
stretching levers expanded still further, and so on till the "tip" or
crown has been expanded to the desired degree. The first-named
vertical rod is then allowed to descend, the stretched hat body is
removed and another substituted; the rod with the notched catches is
brought down by a lever, releasing the pressing levers, and the operation
proceeds as before.