IMPROVEMENTS IN THe Manufacture of TubulaR OR HOLLOW WOODEN ARTICLES OR UTENSILS, AND IN THE MACHINERY OR APPARATUS EMPLOYED THEREIN
Year: 1874

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to John Henry Johnson, of 47, Lincoln's Inn
Fields, in the County of Middlesex, Gentleman, for the Invention
of "IMPROVEMENTS IN THe Manufacture of TubulaR OR HOLLOW WOODEN
ARTICLES OR UTENSILS, AND IN THE MACHINERY OR APPARATUS EMPLOYED
THEREIN.”—A communication from abroad by the Firm of Goulas
and Company, of Senlis, Oise, in the Republic of France.
Sealed the 13th April 1875, and dated the 11th November 1874.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said John Henry Johnson
at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on
the 11th November 1874.
I, JOHN HENRY JOHNSON, of 47, Lincoln's Inn Fields, in the
County of Middlesex, Gentleman, do hereby declare the nature of the
said Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN THE MANUFACTURE OF TUBULAR OR
HOLLOW WOODEN ARTICLES OR UTENSILS, AND IN THE MACHINERY OR APPARATUS
EMPLOYED THEREIN," a communication to me from abroad by the Firm

page_text: as a Company, or sens, vise, in the Republic of France, to
be as follows:-
This Invention relates to an improved mode of producing wooden
buckets, tubs, flower pots, jugs, cheese moulds, bee hives, and other
tubular or hollow wooden articles or utensils, and consists essentially in
cutting the tubular portion of such articles or utensils out of a block of
wood by means of a band saw in such a manner as to obtain from the
same block as large a number as possible of tubes, the one within the
other, of a gradually decreasing diameter, and capable of being utilized
in the construction of various sized articles or utensils, whereby a con-
siderable saving may be effected in the labor and material employed in
their manufacture.
In carrying out this Invention the block of wood to be cut up (after
having been previously prepared if necessary in a lathe, or otherwise)
is placed upon a plate or table which is hinged at one extremity to
another table or bed plate below it and supported at its opposite
extremity by a curved or segmental vertical slide, which is capable of
being moved up and down in suitable guides formed in the lower table
or bed plate for the purpose of adjusting the degree of inclination
of the
upper plate or table according to the angle of the sides of the
article or utensil to be produced, and of being secured in any adjusted
position. On the under side of the upper plate or table there are
provided lugs or projections, which form bearings or supports for a
stationary traversing sorew, along which screw is capable of moving a
nut or hollow screw carrying a projecting pin or stud, which pin or
stud (passing through a longitudinal slot formed in the upper plate or
table) fits into a central aperture bored in the block of wood and forms
an axis and support for such block during the operation of sawing,
whilst admitting of the block being fed along a sufficient distance for
a fresh cut by the act of rotating the traversing screw. A vertical
notch or slot is made in the block of wood of sufficient width to admit
of the entrance of the saw blade, and the operation of cutting out thé
tubes is effected by turning the block on its axis or support during the
motion of the saw.

page_text: By means of the arrangement herein-before described a series of con-
centric tubes may be obtained of any required thickness, and either
cylindrical or conical, of any desired angle, each tube. consisting of a
single piece only with the split or division formed for the entrance of
the saw blade. The contiguous edges of the split tube are afterwards
brought together flush, or made respectively of a convex or projecting
and concave or recessed shape, so as to fit each other, and secured by
hoops; the bottoms and tops, or both of the article or utensil being
attached to the tubes in the usual or any suitable manner. The tubes
may however be composed of two or more pieces if required, especially.
when it is found desirable to remove any knotty or defective portions;
and the central portion of the block may also be utilized for the manu-
facture of the bottoms of the articles or utensils.
In the case of flower pots or vases the bottom is by preference made
movable, and simply supported by wooden pegs or angle iron attached.
to the lower part of the body of such pot or vase, such movable
bottoms being cut in one piece out of the block in the direction of the
grain for the purpose of obtaining increased strength.
A more perfect degree of finish may be imparted to the articles or
utensils by placing them on conical mandrels in a lathe and polishing
their surface, and also forming suitable mouldings and ornamentations
thereon.
In the manufacture of flower pots and the like the hoops may be com-
posed of burnished copper, and the articles or utensils may be further
ornamented by the addition of feet or other appendages formed of
metal or carved wood.
In the case of buckets or similar articles or utensils, a spout may be
formed on the same by cutting out the body to a circular shape and
bending or curving it at its upper part by the aid of heat to the required
form; jugs may also be formed of wood, in the manner herein-before
described, and fitted with metal spouts if desired, the hoops facilitating
the addition of the usual handles and other appendages to the various
articles or utensils constructed in accordance with this Invention.

page_text: SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent,
filed by the said John Henry Johnson in the Great Seal Patent
Office on the 10th May 1875.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, JOHN
HENRY JOHNSON, of 47, Lincoln's Inn Fields, in the County of
Middlesex, Gentleman, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her
Letters Patent, bearing date the Eleventh day of November, in the year
of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and seventy-four, in the 38th
year of Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and
grant unto me, the said John Henry Johnson, Her special license that I,
the said John Henry Johnson, my executors, administrators, and assigns,
or such others as I; the said John Henry Johnson, my executors, admi-
nistrators, or 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 "IMPROVEMENTS IN THE MANU-
FACTURE OF TUBULAR OR HOLLOW WOODEN ARTICLES OR UTENSILS, AND IN THE
MACHINERY OR APPARATUS EMPLOYED THEREIN," a communication to me from
abroad by the Firm of Goulas and Company, of Senlis, Oise, in the
Republic of France, upon the condition (amongst others) that I, the
said John Henry Johnson, my executors or administrators, by an
instrument in writing under my hand and seal, should particularly
describe and ascertain the nature of the said Invention, and in what
manner the same was 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 John Henry Johnson, do hereby
declare the nature of the said Invention, and in what manner the same
is to be performed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and
by the following statement, reference being had to the accompanying
Drawings, and to the letters and figures marked thereon, that is to
say :-

page_text: tubular or hollow wooden articles or utensils, and consists essentially in
cutting the tubular portion of such articles or utensils out of a block of
wood by means of a band saw in such a manner as to obtain from the
same block as large a number as possible of tubes, the one within the
other, of a gradually decreasing diameter, and capable of being utilized
in the construction of various sized articles or utensils, whereby a
considerable saving may be effected in the labor and material employed:
in their manufacture.
And in order that the said Invention may be fully understood I shall
now proceed more particularly to describe the same, and for that purpose
shall refer to the several Figures on the annexed Sheet of Drawings,
the same letters of reference indicating corresponding parts in all the
Figures.
Figures 1 and 2 of the accompanying Drawings illustrate the improved
mode of producing the before-mentioned articles, the tubular portions
being cut in one piece by means of a band saw out of a block of wood,
disposed in such a manner as to furnish the greatest possible number of
pieces of decreasing sizes. Of the pieces so obtained the larger are
available for flower tubs or boxes, the medium sizes are utilized in the
manufacture of water buckets, tubs, and the like, whilst the smallest
are employed for flower pots for apartments, children's toys, such for
example as buckets, small tubs, bowls, and other small articles. A
longitudinal cut or opening in the tubular part of the articles thus
manufactured being necessary in order to admit the saw as shown at k,
Figure 2, the two edges of the joint are brought together as shewn at k¹
in Figures 3 and 4 by means of metal or wooden hoops similar to those
employed in the construction of wooden tubs or buckets composed of a
series of stays in juxtaposition.
The wooden tubes cut out by sawing may likewise be constructed of
two or more pieces, which arrangement will admit of the knotty or
defective parts of the block to be cut up being removed.
The tubes cut out in accordance with the said Invention are closed at
the lower end by means of a bottom fitted to them in the usual
manner.
By the improved method of cutting up wood a saving in hand labour

page_text: employed. The tubular portions of the various articles manufactured
are cut out one within the other from the same block, the central part
of which may be utilized either for the manufacture of small vessels or
by cutting it into flat tablets for the bottoms of the tubular portions cut
out. It is obvious that this method may be advantageously employed
with all kinds of wood, and particularly with wood of a hard nature,
such for example as oak, ash, elm, and the like, which are most
commonly employed in the manufacture of wooden tubs and buckets.
Figure 5 represents a side elevation of the apparatus employed in
carrying out the said Invention. The block of wood is perforated with
a central hole f, which may extend either to a certain distance only or
from one side to the other, but which in all cases by being fitted upon a
projection formed on the inclined table of the saw enables the block
readily turned by hand in such a manner that the cuts made by the
band saw are always of a perfectly circular or concentric shape. To
the horizontal saw table a there is fitted by means of hinges ba
wooden or metal table c, which is supported in an inclined position by
a curved metal arm d, which is capable of being secured by means of
the screw e in any required position, so as to impart to the saw cut that
degree of inclination which is desired for the sides of the vessel to be
manufactured. A nut or female screw.g working upon the male screw g¹
carries the projecting pin or study, which is capable of sliding in a slot 1
formed in the table c, and fits into the hole fin the block of wood / to
be cut up. The hole fis of exactly the same diameter as the projecting
pin or stud f', so that the block is thus sufficiently steadied to ensure
the cuts made by means of the saw i by turning the block round by
hand, being always circular and concentric with one another. The
screw is fitted with a handle j, by the act of turning which the
distance between the successive saw cuts may be readily adjusted with
the greatest precision, and consequently the thickness of the tubes cut
out of the block h regulated as desired.
In order to admit of the entrance of the saw blade into the block a
slit or opening k, Figure 2, is first made as before mentioned in the
direction of the radii of the articles to be produced, and of the same
width as the band saw employed for cutting out the wood, so that it is
simply required to pass the saw into the opening k in order to proceed
with the operation of sawing out the tubes, which when cut may be
joined as shewn at k', Figure 3; or one side of the joint may be made

page_text: concave and the otlier convex, as shewn at k', Figure 4, so that they fit
exactly into one another, and there remains no external trace of the
union of the two edges of the tube.
-
The central part of the block of wood from which the tubes are cut
may be utilized as before mentioned, either for the manufacture of
flower pots or small bowls, or it may be cut up, as shown by the lines 7,
Figure 1, in order to make the slips necessary for the bottoms of the
articles or utensils. The bottoms are attached in the usual manner; in
the case of water buckets and tubs, such for example as those shewn in
Figures 6, 7, 8, and 9, a circular groove is formed by means of any
suitable tool round the lower part of the bucket or tub, after which the
bottom which has been previously prepared and put together is fitted
therein.
For flower pots and vases, such for example as those shown in
Figures 10, 11, and 12, the bottom is made moveable, which arrange-
ment is indispensable for facilitating the transplanting of the flowers. In
this case the bottom is simply supported on wooden pins placed at the
lower part of the tube or upon metal brackets nailed, screwed, or
otherwise attached to that part of the pot or vase. These moveable
bottoms are cut in one piece out of the block. in the direction of the
grain for the purpose of obtaining increased strength.
It should morcover be observed that the iron hoops m which are
applied in the ordinary manner to the before-mentioned utensils, besides
increasing their strength, present this additional advantage, that they.
serve for the attachment thereto of the handles n, which are provided.
for the purpose of facilitating the carrying of the utensils, as shewn in
Figures 6, 8, 9, 12, 14, and 16.
:
With the view of imparting a more perfect degree of finish to the
objects manufactured, they may be pòlished on a lathe by placing them
upon conical chucks or mandrels of proportionate dimensions, and they
may also have mouldings or other ornamentations simultaneously turned.
thereon, more especially in the case of vessels of small dimensions, such
for example as flower pots to be used in rooms and the like. When
the articles are required for the latter purpose they are hooped with:
burnished copper, so that there may thus be obtained at a slight cost
very elegant articles of oak or other suitable wood, which may be further
ornamented in some cases, as shewn in Figures 11 and 12, by the.
addition of feet and facings of metal or carved wood.
:
Y

page_text: In all cases in order to obtain a uniform height and impart a greater
polish to the upper and lower ends of the tubes cut in the manner.
before mentioned the central perforation of the block may be utilized
for fitting the block on a spindle and dressing the two ends in the
lathe.
The method herein-before described of cutting up wood is applicable
to all kinds of wooden vessels, such for example as tubs, as shewn in
Figures 6 and 7; buckets, as shewn in Figures 8 and 9; flower pots, as
shown in Figures 10, 11, and 12; and cheese moulds and bee hives, in
which a wooden cylinder cut out by the saw serves to form the body of
the hive, the tubular portion of such articles of cylindrical or conical
shape being thus cut out of the block in one piece and without any loss
of material. Buckets of a conical shape in cross section, and provided
with a spout may also be cheaply produced according to the said
Invention.
An example of a bucket of this description is shewn in Figures 13
and 14, the manufacture of which by the customary process is attended
with considerable difficulty, and is also very expensive, but by means of
the said Invention the tubular part of the bucket may be cut out
circular from the block, and afterwards bent by heat to the required
shape; in this manner buckets of this description may be produced at a
cost not greatly exceeding that of buckets of the usual shape.
Wooden jugs with spouts for wine merchants are also made by the
same process, as also other utensils of analogous shape. Among the
applications of the said Invention may be enumerated wooden jugs with
a metal spout or lip, as shewn in Figure 16; butter churns, as shewn in
Figure 15, and the like; and in particular the manufacture of wooden
bowls or trenchers for naval use. The core or centre of the blocks cut up
in the manner before-mentioned may be utilized for the manufacture of
toys for children, such for example as pails, small tubs, bowls, and the
like. The utensils thus manufactured, whatever may be their shape and
their diameter, should be cut out of blocks obtained from trees felled in
good condition, and under these circumstances they possess the important
advantage of never splitting or flying under alternate dryness and
dampness, the cracks which appear in wood resulting solely from the
presence of the core, which by retaining its moisture longer than the
surrounding part compels the latter to split or crack as it shrinks in
during

page_text: In utensils of all kinds made according to the said Invention, the core
of the wood is removed and the tubes are free to contract or expand
under the influence of dryness or moisture without danger of splitting or
cracking after a certain period of service.
Having now described and particularly ascertained the nature of the
said Invention, and the manner in which the same is of may be used or
carried into effect, I would observe in conclusion that what I consider to
be novel and original, and therefore claim as the Invention secured to me
by the herein-before in part recited Letters Patent is, the production of
tubular or hollow wooden articles or utensils by cutting the tubes forming
the body of the same, the one within the other, out of a block of wood by
means of a band saw, substantially as and for the purpose herein-before
described and as illustrated by the accompanying Drawings.
In witness whereof, I, the said John Henry Johnson, have to this
my Specification set my hand and seal, the Tenth day of May,
One thousand eight hundred and seventy-five.