IMPROVEMENTS IN PRINTERS' FURNITURE' FOR USE IN LOCKING-UP' AND JUSTIFICATION OF PRINTERS' FORMS AND PAGES, AND IN APPARATUS FOR MANUFACTURING OR MOULDING SUCH FURNITURE
Year: 1878

page_text: PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by James Francis Richard Wood at the
Office of the Commissioners of Patents on the 26th August 1878.
JAMES FRANCIS RICHARD WOOD, of 13, Newcastle Street, Farringdon Street, in
the City of London, Typefounder. "IMPROVEMENTS IN PRINTERS' FURNITURE'
FOR USE IN LOCKING-UP' AND JUSTIFICATION OF PRINTERS' FORMS AND PAGES,
AND IN APPARATUS FOR MANUFACTURING OR MOULDING SUCH FURNITURE."
This Invention relates, firstly, to certain improvements in or upon the so-called
metal and wood "furniture," "justifiers," and quotations, which are used or employed
by printers in filling up and "locking up" forms, frames, or chases, or pages of set
matter or wood, stereotype, electrotype, and other blocks used for letter-press
printing purposes, the object being to produce such furniture in such form that it
can be readily applied to all classes and sizes of work, and consists in the manufac-
ture and use of metal blocks with a flanged head or foot, the said flange extending
out from beyond or over one, two, or more sides of the blocks, and which I call
"metal furniture struts."
These "struts " are placed between leads, clumps, reglets, wooden furniture, metal
furniture, and such like appliances, to hold same apart, fill up the spaces, and act
therefore as struts; hence the name.
These struts are cast either hollow or solid, according to the size required, which
size is varied so as to render them applicable for filling greater or lesser spaces.
The said struts are in some cases made wedge-shaped to supersede or make them
applicable for use instead of the ordinary incline pieces, or wood or metallic side
and foot sticks.
As an instance of the application of these "struts" to fill a space they may be
applied as follows:-Two leads are taken, and struts of the required size are placed
between the said leads to hold same apart. The flange of the strut will now lie
upon the upper edges of the leads, and will be below the type or impression surface,
and in addition to the great facility of working and inexpensiveness or economy of
the arrangement the flanges will aid or act to prevent any liability of the type and
furniture to fall out of the frame or chase,

page_text: "Struts" with the flange extending over but two or three sides will be very
useful in closing any open spaces between any leads, clumps, or furniture, and
applied at the end thereof so as to form a flat surface, against which any movable
types may be set.
The second part of the Invention relates to the moulds for casting and for enabling
the flanged struts or pieces having a flange thereon to be readily cast.
The mould differs from the ordinary mould in its construction, first, by doing
nway with "wing pieces," and the "registers" of the mould are to be made so as
to form a groove to keep the upper and lower halves of the mould in their places
without the aid of the "wing pieces," whereby a wide matrix may be used in casting
a flanged type or strut in a small mould.
For the purpose of effecting a free delivery of the moulded pieces the "break
drag" is made all the way along the portion of the mould which forms the "break,"
that is, as a continuous groove, instead of a dent or an indentation in the side of the
break.
The break of the ordinary machine type casting moulds have taper breaks, and
indented mouth, whereas the improved moulds have a straight break, and no indented
mouth, the object of this being to ensure the moulded pieces coming away freely
from the mould and matrix.
So far the improvements in the moulds for casting the stems or blocks has been
described, and it is well known that a matrix is employed for casting or forming the
face of the "type," "quadrat," or "space." Now the flange of the struts correspond
with these said faces, and a specially formed matrix is employed for the purpose of
forming said flange.
The matrix is checked out or cut out accross the face thereof.from side to side,
instead of being formed as an ordinary plain, struck, electrotyped, or rivetted matrix,
and the metal of the mould will form the side edges of the flange of the struts or
pieces, and great freedom of "delivery" of the moulded pieces from the moulds is
hereby ensured.
These flanged struts may be advantageously employed for forming blocks for
mounting electrotype, sterreotype, and other similar printing plates.