IMPROVEMENTS IN HAIR AND OTHER BRUSHES
Year: 1879

page_text: PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by John Varley at the Office of the
Commissioners of Patents on the 29th September 1879.
JOHN VARLEY, of Charterhouse Buildings, in the County of Middlesex,
"IMPROVEMENTS IN HAIR AND OTHER BRUSHES."
My Invention relates partly to that class of hair-brushes the backs and handles
of which are made of some plastic material capable of being moulded into the
required shape, and the brush of metal pins in place of bristles. It also relates to
providing various kinds of brushes with an elastic band around the outer bristles or
wires, chiefly for the purpose of preventing the bristles from being broken and the
wires from being bent.
The first part of said Invention is designed to provide means whereby brushes
of this class may be manufactured more expeditiously and at less cost than by any
of the methods heretofore employed.
The chief novel feature of this part of my said Invention consists in providing
means for making such brushes in a complete form from the commencement to the
termination of the manufacture with fewer operations than have heretofore been
necessary, and this part of the said Invention is carried into practice as follows,
that is to say:-
I provide a metal or other suitable block which is drilled with a number of holes
corresponding with the number and position of the metal pins required to form a
brush. The said block must be of sufficient depth to permit of the holes being
drilled deep enough to receive the said pins as far as it is necessary for them to
enter, and it must be wide enough and long enough to receive the brush-back and
handle in the operations hereinafter described. In the upper face of the block I provide
a groove which is of the same form as, but somewhat smaller than the outline of the
back of the brush, and extending along the upper face of the block there is a cavity
designed to receive the material which is to form the lower half of the brush bandle
when the same is being moulded. That part of the upper face of the block at
which the holes are drilled is cut out or hollowed, so as to leave a concave recess
which ensures the proper moulded form to that part of the brush whence the pins
project. If desired however this part of the block may be flat.
The block having been made as above described the brushes are manufactured as
follows, that is to say:- I take a band or border piece which may be made of wire
and is of the same shape as the outline of the brush-back. This border piece is

page_text: made of such dimensions that it will lie in the aforesaid groove in the block and I
place it in the said groove, then I take a piece of india rubber or other suitable
Hexible substance of a similar nature which has been previously cut to the same.
shape as the brush back, and large enough to completely cover the aforesaid holes
in the block and extend beyond the same so as to leave a margin all around the
outer line of holes. The next operation is to force the wire pins which take the
place of bristles as used in ordinary brushes through the said elastic piece into the
holes provided for them in the block. I effect this operation by means of any
suitably constructed tool, and the pins being provided with heads are thereby held
within the elastic piece. Having proceeded thus far I insert in and around the
outer edge or margin of the said elastic piece or pin-holder a number of short pins
or studs which are designed to assist in securely fastening the said elastic piece
containing the aforesaid wire pins. I find in practice that three eighths of an inch
is a convenient length for the aforesaid short pins. The operation of making a
brush having proceeded thus far I mould over the parts already made as above
described the plastic material which is to form the back and handle by means of
dies suitably constructed for the purpose, inserting between the inner surface of
such plastic material and the inner surface of the elastic piece or pin-holder a layer
of paste board, thin wood, leather, or similar material, the object of which is to
prevent the pin heads from becoming embedded and fixed in the plastic material,
this layer of paste board or other material adheres firmly to the plastic material of
which the back is formed and leaves the wire pins free to yield as required when
the brush is in use. As the plastic material is being moulded to the required form,
the aforesaid short pins around the margin of the elastic piece or pinholder become
embedded in the plastic material, and are held fimly thereby so that the elastic pin-
holder is well secured. These short pins may however be dispensed with as the
said elastic pin-holder will generally be held firmly enough by moulding the
plastic material over its edges, the aforesaid wire border also providing further
security as well as giving a finished appearance to this part of the brush. The
wire border becomes also partly embedded in the plastic or moulded material.
The fastening or securing of the said elastic piece or pin-holder in its place may
be effected in various manners other than that above described, that is to say :-
In some instances I place a number of wire or flat metal pins or studs at in-
tervals in the aforesaid groove in the block with their heads projecting upward,
and holes corresponding with the points of these studs are provided in the elastic
piece or pin-holder, so that when the latter is placed on the block these points
project through the elastic piece and are then turned over outwardly and thus bind
down the edge of the elastic pin-holder all around the same. The heads becomes
embedded in the plastic material when the latter is moulded on to form the back of
the brush and great security is thus afforded. The wire border is then placed in
its position over the turned down points of the studs covering the same and
ensuring a neat finished appearance.
Another method is as follows, namely: :-
I provide a flat piece of metal of the same form as the outline of the brush back,
and this piece is so placed that about half of its width all around becomes embedded
in the downwardly projecting edge of the plastic material; when the latter is
moulded to form the back the other half projects inwardly, thus forming a sort of
frame all around and above the edge of the elastic pin-holder. This inwardly
projecting part is then turned down upon the elastic pin-holder and holds it securely,
forming at the same time a neat border or beading between the edge of the pin-
holder and the edge of the plastic material at this part of the brush.
Another method is as follows, that is to say:- I mould the plastic material forming
the back of the brush in such a manner that the downwardly projecting edges
thereof are inclined inwardly leaving a cavity or recess all around; then I take a
frame or piece made of such form as to fit within this recess all around the same,
and I spring this frame into the recess so that the elastic pin-holder is securely
held thereby in much the same manner as the glass is secured in hand-mirrors.

page_text: The said frame may be made of wire or any other suitable material and provides
a neat finish to this part of the brush.
Another method consists in moulding the downwardly projecting edge of the
plastic material forming the back over the edge of the elastic pin-holder all around
the same, the latter being thus firmly secured without the aid of studs, frame, or
other separate appliance. The plastic material may be so rounded at the edges
that a perfect finished appearance is given.
I wish it be understood that I am aware that the fact of elastic pin-holders have
been previously employed in the manufacture of brushes of this class, but provision
has never been heretofore made for securing them to the brush back in such simple
and expeditious manners as they are secured by means of my said Invention.
It will be seen that the block, the pins, the elastic pin-holder, and the plastic
material being provided, the brush may be made complete at once, and as it were
at one operation, as the workman can commence and finish the brush entirely
without leaving it.
Referring now to the second part of my said Invention.
It is well known that the bristles or other materials forming the outer rows
frequently break off by reason of the sharp edge of the holes in which the said
bristles are inserted, and when wires are used instead of bristles they bend and
remain bent. To obviate this defect I surround the outer edge of the outer row of
bristles or other material with a band of india rubber or other suitable elastic
material, which may be secured to the back of the brush in any suitable manner
or slightly embedded within the same; this band when in use as sufficient elasticity
to allow the said bristles or other material to spread according to the pressure
exerted upon the same, but when such pressure is removed it restores said bristles,
wires, or the like to their normal position and prevents the breaking off of the
same. The said band of elastic or yielding material may be of any desired thickness
and width according to the nature of the brush with which it is used. The said
band being firmly secured to the back of the brush and surrounding the whole of the
bristles or other material used instead of bristles serves also as a receptacle for
water, when the brush is one which is used with water, as, for instance, in the case
of tooth-brushes, carriage cleaning brushes, and the like. In such brushes as
ordinarily made nearly the whole of the water which is required escapes before the
brush can be applied to the part upon which it is to operate and time is lost. This
defect is entirely remedied by means of my Invention.