Improvements in Grinding and Polishing Machines for Cutlery and the like.
Year: 1897

page_text: [Communicated from abroad by ALLEN JOHNSTON, of Ottumwa, in the State
of Iowa, U.S.A.]
Improvements in Grinding and Polishing Machines for Cutlery and
the like.
I, CHARLES PEACH, of 86, Melbourne Street, Derby, in the County of Derby,
Engineer, do hereby declare the nature of this invention to be as follows:-
In the manufacture of table knives of a high grade the forging or "blank"
which is more or less irregular, requiring more metal to be removed from one part
of the blade than another, is first ground in a machine, such for example as that
described in my Patent No. 1382 of 1888. After this first grinding it is necessary
for best results, to give the blade a finishing cut or second grinding to remove
the deep marking resulting from the coarser cutting done in the preliminary
shaping of the blade and also to remove irregularities that may result from or
remain after the first grinding.
It is also necessary in all cases to glaze, polish or finish the blade, and the
object of the present invention is to provide a machine for effecting this glazing
or finishing process in the most perfect and accurate manner.
As the machine hereinafter described is equally adapted for grinding or polish-
ing, merely involving a change in the abrading surface employed, and possibly
in some other minor details, wherever grinding or polishing are separately
mentioned both operations will be understood to be included. The said machine
produces in its operation several distinct movements of the work relative to the
polishing or grinding surface, viz.:-the movement of the polishing or grinding
surface over the work: a longitudinal reciprocation of the work across the grinding
or polishing surface: a longitudinal rocking motion of the work: and, a trans-
verse rocking motion of the work.
For the grinding or polishing I employ one or more wheels of large diameter
say about six feet, each with a double face and grooved in the centre. Each face
is slightly rounded and is preferably a little narrower than the length of the
blade to be glazed. These wheels are fixed on a main shaft in proper bearings,
on an iron frame, and are covered with suitable material or substance for pro-
ducing the required surface.
In order to prevent grooving of the glazing wheel and corresponding effects
upon the blade due to revolving the wheel against the blade without change of
position, and also in order to present every portion of the convex surface of the
blade to the polishing surface of the wheel the herein before mentioned motions
are given to the work the means for imparting these movements will be herein.
after described.

page_text: Other valuable features in connection with the glazing and polishing machine
are the mounting of the knife-holder in such a manner that it holds the blade
against the glazing wheel with a yielding pressure and the movements above
indicated are imparted thereto, and, that means are provided for arresting the
glazing or polishing after it has continued for a predetermined period of time.
The mechanism for holding the knife blade against the grinding or glazing
surface with a yielding pressure while imparting thereto the movements above
described and for throwing the knife blade away from the glazing wheel and
arresting the movements of the parts, is as follows:-
Suspended from the top of the frame on spindles in suitable bearings are a
number of swinging connecting rods supporting a bar which is moved to and fro
across the front of the glazing wheels by means of a cam which revolves on a shaft
fixed to the end of the main frame and is turned by means of a pinion on the
main shaft, the said cam has a groove in it, in which runs a small roller attached
to a lever, the latter being pivotted to a bracket bolted on to the main frame of
the machine, the end of the lever is attached to the aforesaid reciprocating bar.
The top of the frame also carrie's by means of spindles in suitable bearings one
or more arms, according to the number of glazing surfaces, which are moved to
and fro across the face of the glazing wheel by two adjustable brackets fixed to
the aforesaid reciprocating bar, between the said brackets is a stud attached to a
sleeve formed by the lower part of the arm this sleeve holds a spindle supporting
the workholder, on the top of the said spindle is a lever the end of which is held
in position by two adjustable brackets which are secured to a stationary rod across
the front of the machine, these give to the aforesaid vertical spindle a slight
revolving motion and to the workholder which is secured to the lower end of the
said spindle a slight longitudinal reciprocation in an arc direction.
To obtain the transverse oscillation a ratchet wheel is employed for each work-
holder with a cam face, revolving on a stud fixed to the upper part of the frame
of the machine, the said ratchet wheel engages with a pawl pivotted on to one of
the above mentioned swinging connecting rods; working on the cam face of the
said ratchet wheel is one end of a cramped lever, pivotted through a slot on a
movable set pin on the other end of the said lever is a male centre which engages
the female centre of the spindle, which supports the swinging arm and is secured
thereto, at the other end of the spindle is a spiral spring which tends to force it
outwards.
At the back of the ratchet wheel is a link shaped lever which is connected to
a spindle through the frame of the machine, on the upper side of the said link
shaped lever is a stud which carries a connecting rod, on the lower end of this is
a tube the bottom of which is attached to the foot of the workholder the latter
being pivotted to a bracket secured to the vertical spindle carrying the aforesaid
workholder, on the upper end of the tube which is threaded, there is a milled nut,
the said tube also carries a spiral spring, the bottom end of which rests against
a pin working in a slot, the said pin passes through a hole in the aforesaid con-
⚫necting rod, the above spring gives the yielding pressure of the knife blade against
the glazing surface of the wheel. The movement of the cam faced wheel through
the cramped lever thus forces the upper part of the swinging arm towards the
face of the glazing wheel and the spiral spring at the back end of the spindle
moves it outwards and thus gives the transverse oscillation referred to.
The means employed for starting and for automatically arresting the glazing
or polishing after it has continued for a predetermined period of time are as
follows: a lever arm is attached to the spindle which carries the above named
link shaped lever the end of the said arm carrying a connecting rod which is
connected to a treadle pivotted to the frame of the machine consequently when
the treadle is depressed the link shaped lever is raised, thereby bringing into
operation the workholder carrying the blade and a latch pivotted at the lower
end of the link shaped lever which engages with the back of the cam faced wheel

page_text: in which is a pin on the rim dislodging the latch from its seat on the latter when
it has made one revolution thereby permitting the treadle to drop and arresting
the progress of the grinding or glazing.
I may provide any suitable means for mechanically coating or dressing the
faces or surfaces of the large wheels with the polishing or glazing material.
Dated this 30th day of January 1897.
W. SWINDELL,
Imperial Chambers, Albert Street, Derby, Agent for the Applicant.
Improvements in Grinding and Polishing Machines for Cutlery and
the like.
I, CHARLES PEACH, of 86, Melbourne Street, Derby, in the County of Derby,
Engineer, do hereby declare the nature of this invention and in what manner
the same is to be performed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and
by the following statement: -
In the manufacture of table knives of a high grade the forging or "blank"
which is more or less irregular, requiring more metal to be removed from one part
of the blade than another, is first ground in a machine, such for example as that
described in my Patent No. 1382 of 1888. After this first grinding it is necessary
for best results, to give the blade a finishing cut or second grinding to remove the
deep marking resulting from the coarser cutting done in the preliminary shaping
of the blade and also to remove irregularities that may result from or remain after
the first grinding.
It is also necessary in all cases to glaze, polish and finish the blade and the
object of the present invention is to provide a machine for effecting this glazing
or finishing process in the most perfect and accurate manner.
As the machine hereinafter described is equally adapted for grinding or polish-
ing, merely involving a change in the abrading surface employed, and possibly in
some other minor details, wherever grinding or polishing are separately mentioned
both operations will be understood to be included. The said machine produces in
its operation several distinct movements of the work relative to the polishing or
grinding surface, viz.: -the movement of the grinding or polishing surface over
the work: a longitudinal reciprocation of the work across the grinding or polishing
surface: a longitudinal rocking motion of the work: and, a transverse rocking
motion of the work.
In describing my invention reference will be had to the accompanying drawings
Figure 1 being an end elevation of the improved machine and Figure 2 a front
elevation of same.
For the grinding or polishing I employ one or more wheels of large diameter A,
each with a double face and grooved in the centre A¹. Each face is slightly
rounded and is preferably a little narrower than the length of the blade to be
glazed. These wheels are fixed on a main shaft B in proper bearings C, on an iron
frame 1), and are covered with suitable material or substance for producing the
required surface.
In order to prevent grooving of the glazing wheel and corresponding effects upon
the blade due to revolving the wheel against the blade without change of position,
and also in order to present every portion of the convex surface of the blade to
the polishing surface of the wheel the hereinbefore mentioned motions are given
to the work the means for imparting these movements will be hereinafter described.

page_text: Other valuable features in connection with the glazing and polishing machine
are the mounting of the knife-holder in such a manner that it holds the blade
against the glazing wheel with a yielding pressure and the movements above
indicated are imparted thereto, and, that means are provided for arresting the
glazing or polishing after it has continued for a predetermined period of time.
The mechanism for holding the knife blade against the grinding or glazing
surface with a yielding pressure while imparting thereto the movements above
described and for throwing the knife blade away from the glazing wheel and
arresting the movements of the parts, is as follows:
Suspended from the top D¹ of the frame on spindles in suitable bearings are a
number of swinging connecting rods E supporting a bar F which is moved to and
fro across the front of the glazing wheels by means of a cam G which revolves
with a shaft H fixed to the end of the main frame and is turned by means of a
pinion I on the main shaft gearing with a toothed wheel. K on the cam shaft, the
said cam has a groove G¹ in it, in which runs a small roller attached to a lever L,
the latter being pivotted to a bracket M bolted on to the main frame of the machine,
the end of the lever is attached to the aforesaid reciprocating bar F.
The top of the frame also carries by means of spindles in suitable bearings one
or more arms N, according to the number of glazing surfaces, these arms are moved
to and fro across the face of the glazing wheel by two adjustable brackets O fixed
to the aforesaid reciprocating bar F, between the said brackets is a stud P attached to
a sleeve Q formed by the lower part of the arm, this sleeve holds a spindle R
supporting the workholder S, on the top of the said spindle is a lever T the end
of which is held in position by two adjustable brackets U which are secured to a
stationary rod V across the front of the machine, these give to the aforesaid vertical
spindle R a slight revolving motion and to the workholder which is secured to the
lower end of the said spindle at R¹ a slight longitudinal reciprocation in an arc
direction.
To obtain the transverse oscillation a ratchet wheel W is employed for each
workholder with a cam face on the front side W₁ revolving on a stud fixed to the
upper part of the frame of the machine, the said ratchet wheel engages with a
pawl X pivotted on to one of the above mentioned swinging connection rods at X¹
the said pawl is provided with a spring 22 the end of which engages a pin 23 on
the rod 8; working on the cam face of the said ratchet wheel is one end Y¹ of a
cramped lever Y, pivotted through a slot on a movable set pin Z, on the other end
of the said lever is a male centre 1 which engages the female centre 2 of the
spindle 3, the latter supporting the swinging arm N and being secured thereto, at
the other end of the spindle is a spiral spring 4 which tends to force it outwards.
At the back of the ratchet wheel is a link shaped lever 5 which is connected to a
spindle 6, through the frame of the machine, on the upper side of the said link
shaped lever is a stud 7 carrying a connecting rod 8, on the lower end of this is
a tube 9 the bottom of which is attached to the foot of the workholder at 24 the
latter being pivotted at 18 to a bracket 10 secured to the vertical spindle R, on
the upper end of the tube, which is threaded, is a milled adjusting nut 11, the said
tube also carrying a spiral spring 12, the bottom end of which rests against a
pin 13 working in a slot in the said tube, the pin passes through a hole in the
aforesaid connecting rod, the above spring gives the yielding pressure of the knife
blade against the glazing surface of the wheel. The movement of the cam faced
wheel through the cramped lever thus forces the swinging arm N towards the face
of the glazing wheel and the spiral spring at the back end of the spindle moves it
outwards and thus gives the transverse oscillation referred to by moving the
bracket 10 to and from the face of the wheel A the bottom of the tube 9 being con-
nected at 24 to the foot of the workholder which as already stated is pivotted at 18
to the bracket 10, the spring 12 at the same time tending to keep the blade pressed
against the polishing surface, the movement of the aforesaid arm N causing the
workholder to rock on the centre 18.
The means employed for starting and for automatically arresting the glazing or

page_text: ag
polishing after it has continued for a predetermined period of time are
follows:- a lever arm 14 is attached to the spindle 6 which carries the above
named link shaped lever, the end of the said arm carrying a connecting rod 15
which is connected to a treadle 16 pivotted to the frame of the machine, conse-
quently when the treadle is depressed the link shaped lever is raised bringing with
it the rod 8 lifting the spring 22 and causing the pawl to engage a tooth on the
wheel W which is turned the distance of one or more teeth at each reciprocation
of the bar F thereby bringing into operation the workholder carrying the blade,
the said link shaped lever which engages with the back of the cam faced wheel
has pivotted to it and carries with it a latch 17, the cam faced wheel carrying a
pin on its rim to dislodge the latch from its seat thereon when it has made one
revolution, thereby permitting the treadle to drop and arresting the progress of
the grinding or glazing.
For transverse cutting the stud 19 may be placed in any one of the holes 20
according to whether it is desired to obtain more or less convexity and the said
stud is placed further in or out of the holes according to the amount it is desired
to take off the back edge or the cutting edge of the blade.
I may provide any suitable means as at 21 for mechanically coating or dressing
the faces or surfaces of the large wheels with the polishing or grinding material.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said
invention, and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what
I claim is:
1. In a machine for grinding or polishing knife blades and the like, the com-
bination with a wheel having a grinding or polishing surface of the width approxi-
mating the length of the knife blade, of a holder in which the said blade is secured,
and means for actuating the holder to present the knife blade to the polishing
surface with a yielding pressure substantially as described.
2. In a machine for grinding or polishing knife blades and the like, the com-
bination with a wheel having a polishing surface of a width approximating the
length of the knife blade, of a spring-actuated holder in which the knife is secured
and whereby it is presented to the polishing surface with a yielding pressure, and
means for rocking the holder to impart a transverse oscillation to the blade and
thereby present every portion of its convex surface to the polishing wheel, sub-
stantially as described and illustrated.
3. In a machine for grinding or polishing knife blades and the like, the combina-
tion with the wheel having a polishing surface approximating the length of the
knife blade, of a spring actuated holder in which the knife is secured and whereby
it is presented to the polishing surface with a yielding pressure, and means for
rocking the holder to impart a transverse oscillation to the blade and for recipro-
cating the holder to longitudinally move the blade across the polishing surface
substantially as described and illustrated.
4. In a machine for grinding or polishing knife blades and the like the com-
bination with a wheel having a grinding or polishing surface of a width approxi-
mating the length of the knife blade of a spring actuated holder in which the
blade is secured and whereby it is presented to the grinding or polishing surface
with a yielding pressure and means for simultaneously rocking the holder to
impart a transverse oscillation to the blade for reciprocating the holder to longi-
tudinally move the blade across the grinding or polishing surface and for oscil-
lating the workholder in the line of reciprocation and the means for starting and
automatically arresting the glazing or polishing substantially as described and
illustrated.
5. In a machine for grinding or polishing knife blades and the like the com-
bination with a movable polishing surface of a swinging arm, a workholder
pivotally mounted on a bracket on the lower end of the said swinging arm in
front of the polishing surface so as to rotate in a horizontal plane and means for
imparting a rotary movement to the said workholder during the reciprocation of

page_text: the swinging arm whereby a longitudinally rocking movement of the work in the
line of reciprocation is produced substantially as described and illustrated.
Dated this 30th day of October 1897.
W. SWINDELL,
Imperial Chambers, Albert Street, Derby, Agent for the Applicant.