IMPROVEMENTS IN APPARATUS FOR CUTTING METAL WASHERS AND OTHER ARTICLES, AND IN THE CONSTRUCTION OF BUFFERS
Year: 1848

page_text: TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, ALEXANDER
BALFOUR, of Dundee, in the Kingdom of Scotland, Leather Merchant and
Manufacturer, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her present most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her
Royal Letters Patent under the Great Seal of the United Kingdom of Great
Britain and Ireland, bearing date at Westminster, the Sixteenth day of
November, One thousand eight hundred and forty-eight, in the twelfth year
of Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto
me, the said Alexander Balfour, my exors, adiñors, and assigns, Her especial
licence, full power, sole privilege and authority, that I, the said Alexander
Balfour, my exors, admors, and assigns, or such others as I, the said
Alexander Balfour, my exors, adñiors, or assigns, should at any time agree
with, and no others, from time to time and at all times during the term of
years therein expressed, should and lawfully might make, use, exercise, and
vend, within England, Wales, and the Town of Berwick-upon-Tweed, my
Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN APPARATUS FOR CUTTING METAL WASHERS AND
OTHER ARTICLES, AND IN THE CONSTRUCTION OF BUFFERS;" in which said Letters
Patent is contained a proviso, that I, the said Alexander Balfour, should
cause a particular description of the nature of my said Invention, and in what
manner the same is to be performed, by an instrument in writing under my
hand and seal, to be inrolled in Her Majesty's High Court of Chancery within

page_text: Another improvement consists in applying stops on the bolt, so as to prevent
the punch or upper die or dies of such machines from descending below the
point actually required for making the cut. h, h, are the stops, the form of
which may be varied; they are screwed to the bolt as shewn, there being
slotted openings through which the screws pass, so that the plates h may be
set and fixed higher or lower..
Another improvement consists of applying tin bushes for the passage of
the bolt. For this purpose I place several thicknesses of paper between the
two plates i, i, and then screw the plates tightly up; the bolt j of the press
being in its position; the paper is to come up to and touch the sliding bolt j;
the space k between the bolt and the plates i is then to be filled with melted
tin, the lower part of the space being closed by a suitable template or other-
wise. By this means the bushes formed in the space will be of tin, and will
fit the bolt j accurately, and the bushes will be divided into two parts by
means of the paper, and owing to there being paper between the plates i, i,
when the bolt becomes too free in the bushes k, by taking out one thickness of
paper the plates may be screwed up more closely.
Another improvement consists of so arranging cutting dies for fly and other
presses for cutting metal washers, that the central hole of a washer is first cut
by one pair of dies, and then such hole becomes the means of ensuring the
hole being central in the washer formed. For this purpose two pair of punches
or dies are used simultaneously, one pair of a size for forming the central hole
through the washer, and the other dies of a size to cut out the size of washef
desired. is the punch for cutting out the central hole, and it works with a
suitable bed die; m is the punch or die for cutting out the washer; and it
will be seen that at the lower part of this punch or die there is a cone n, the
base of which is of the same diameter as the punch l; it will therefore be
evident that if the plate or strip of metal from which the washer is to be cut
be not correctly under the punch m, the descent of the cone n through the
central opening (previously cut by the punch ) will cause the plate to be
moved to a correct position, and will thus ensure the punch m cutting tlie
washer truly concentric with the central hole of the washer. By this arrange-
ment not only will the work be more correctly done, but more expeditiously.
In cutting out washers of large diameter, I form the punch somewhat
shorter than the punch m, so that the operation of cutting performed by the
two dies will be in succession and not simultaneous, whereby the operation
of cutting such washers will be more easily effected.
Another improvement consists of causing the lifting instrument of fly presses
to be connected with the bolt of the press in such manner that the rising of

page_text: the bolt will cause the lifting instrument to raise the previously cut piece of
metal out of the die. Figure 8 shews a front elevation in section of so much
of a press as will enable me to describe this part of my Invention; Figure 9
shews a section, taken at right angles to Figure 8; Figure 10 shews a plan,
and Figure 11 an under side view of the bed of the press; Figure 12 shews
an under side view of the bolt of the press and die o; and Figure 13 shews a
plan of the lower or bed die.._p-is-a-cross-head-or-bar, fixed to the bolt of the
press; p is another cross-head, carrying the lifting instrument q, which rises
up through the bed die and removes the cut-out metal therefrom. The two
cross-heads are connected together by the rods r, r, and they are guided in their
movements up and down by passing through holes in the bed of the press, as
shewn, and the lifting instrument is guided in its movement by the guide s,
as shewn.
Another improvement in the apparatus for cutting out metal washers and
other articles is shown at Figures 14 and 15, and it consists of an improve-
ment in lever presses used for such purposes; Figure 14 being a side section,
and Figure 15 a cross or transverse section of that end of the lever which is
actuated by a crank. t is the end of the lever, which at the other end will
carry the punch or cutting tool, which it is not necessary to shew; v is the
connecting rod, which receives motion from a crank in the usual manner, and
this connecting rod is attached to the end of the lever t in the following
manner is a cross-head to the necks u', u', the branched or forked end of
the connecting rod is attached by brasses and keys, as shewn. In the end of
the lever is formed an opening, through which the cross-head u passes, and it
can be moved up and down within such opening. w is a screw, having a
squared head to receive a key at w³, the lower end of the screw has a head; and
the stem of the screw is prevented falling out of its position by pins x, which
pass through the lever, as shewn, there being a groove formed around the stem
of the screw into which the pins a enter. The movement of the crank will be
constant, hence it will be evident that by means of the screw w, the length of
the connecting rod between the centro of the crank pin and the centre of the
cross-head may be adjusted with great nicety, and consequently the motion of
the cutting tool carried by the other end of the lever will be regulated with
facility.
Another of my improvements consists of a means of supporting and cutting
off lengths of a rod for the making of rivits and other articles. Figure 16
shews a side elevation in section; Figure 17 shews a front elevation of
machinery for carrying out this part of my Invention. a, a, are two feeding
rollers, one of which is to receive motion at intervals and be moved a distanco

page_text: suitable for feeding in the desired length of rod, as is well understood;, 6 is the
rod of metal to be cut; c is the conical mouth-piece to the fixed cutter d. The
moveable cutter e is fixed in the sliding plate e¹ by means of the screw f.
The sliding plate e¹ has dovetail or chamfered edges, and is guided by the two
dovetail guides g,g.
The sliding plate e¹ is pressed downwards by a lever
press, not shewn, acting on the pin h, the lower end of which enters the hollow
in the plate el, within which the moving cutter e is received, and the shoulders
of the pin press on the upper parts of the plate e¹, as shewn. The plate e' is
raised by a spring connected with the screw with an eye, shewn at i. It will
be seen that the end of the rod b is supported by a shelf j, and the back of the
shelf forms the guage for the length to be cut off; this instrument is affixed to
the moving cutter, and therefore goes with it, the object being to give support
to the end of the rod, by which the cut will be made more true, and it is the
thus supporting of the end of the rod and the support moving with the cutter
which constitutes the novelty of this part of my Invention.
I will now proceed to describe the second part of my Invention.
DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS MARKED B.
No. 1 and No. 2 shew different views of one of my improvements in buffers,
and is applicable to engine and tender buffers. The buffer head a is affixed to
a stem b, the stem baving an enlarged end or disc to receive the head a, as is
shewn; the stem 6 is received by the hollow bearing in the plate or casting c,
and the stem is capable of sliding in such bearing; thus, it will be seen that
the head a of the buffer is supported independent of the flexible case d and the
stuffing. Heretofore, on the contrary, the buffer head a depended for its sup-
port on the flexible case d, together with the stuffing, hence in a very short
time the buffer heads drooped or got out of position. The outer flexible case d,
I make of leather, with hoops of metal e, and I stuff it with Russian bristles, or
it may be with other material, but such part of the construction and the stuffing
are not new; or, in place of using leather, I prefer to employ gutta percha as
the outer casing, as that material is waterproof, and consequently improves the
construction of such buffers. The plate or casting c has numerous openings
formed in it. By this arrangement, when the buffer is taken from the buffer
plank f, it may have the old stuffing removed and fresh stuffing introduced.
By these arrangements this description of buffer will be greatly improved.
Another of my improvements in the construction of buffers consists of
employing blocks or sheets of cork compressed. No. III., No. IV., No. V.,
and No. VI. shew four constructions of buffers, which, though they differ in
details, depend alike on the use of blocks or sheets of compressed cork for their

page_text: elasticity; 9, g, in each representing the sheets or blocks of compressed cork.
In each case the Drawing shews the buffer partly in section, so that the
internal and external construction may be more readily traced. No. III. and
No. IV. each consists of a cylindrical chamber filled with sheets or blocks of
+cork 9, the buffer head a being fixed to a stem 6 (with a plate 6' fixed to it),
which is capable of sliding inwards. The sheets or blocks of corks being
placed-in-position,-the-plate-or-casting-c-is-to-be-forced by means of a strong
press into its place, the cork before compression more than filling the cylin-
drical chamber of the buffer apparatus, and when forced up to its position, by
turning the plate c partly round, it will be held securely in position, the plate c
and the end of the cylinder being suitably formed, as is well understood, for
obtaining this result. No. V. differs from Nos. III. and IV. by the buffer
head a being fixed to a cylinder as well as to a stem, the cylinder of the buffer
head sliding into the end of the other cylinder, as is shewn. No. VI. differs
from No. V. only inasmuch as the chamber containing the cork is octagonal
in place of cylindrical. In using cork, I prefer to have the best quality, and
the outer surfaces are removed in preparing the proper blocks or sheets.
Another improvement in buffers is shewn at No. VII. The object of this
improvement is to prevent the sudden recoil of a buffer when it has been
struck up with violence. On the stem of the buffer is formed inclined notches
or grooves, which, in being forced inwards, expand a spring or spring sur-
faces, on which are corresponding notches, which closing on the stem of the
buffer head, expansion of the buffer head will be by degrees and not with
suddeness.
Having thus described the nature of my said Invention, and the manner in
which the same is to be performed, I would have it understood that I do not
confiue myself to the details herein shewn and described, so long as the
peculiar character of any of my improvements be retained; but what I
claim is,
First, the improvements in apparatus for cutting metal washers and other
articles, herein described.
And, second, I claim the improvements in the construction of buffers herein
.described.
In witness whereof, I, the said Alexander Balfour, have hereunto set my
hand and seal, this Fifteenth day of May, in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and forty-nine.
ALEX (L.S.) BALFOUR.

page_text: AND BE IT REMEMBERED, that on the Fifteenth day of May, in the
year of our Lord 1849, the aforesaid Alexander Balfour came before our said
Lady the Queen in Her Chancery, and acknowledged the Specification afore-
said, and all and every thing therein contained and specified, in form above
written. And also the Specification aforesaid was stamped according to the
tenor of the Statute made for that purpose.