LAYING OR MAKING ROPES, WHEREBY THE STRANDS AFTER BEING HARDENED ARE KEPT IN MORE REGULAR DISTENSION, AND THE ROPES ARE MORE UNIFORMLY TWISTED, THAN WHEN LAID BY THE SLEDGE
Year: 1811

page_text: TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, GREETING.
WHEREAS His present Majesty King George the Third hath, by His Royal
Letters Patent under the Great Seal of Great Britain, dated the Thirtieth
day of October last past, at Westminster, given and granted unto John Curr,
of Bellevue House, of the Parish of Sheffield, in the County of York,
Gentleman, His Royal license, power, and authority for the sole making,
using, exercising, and vending, for the term of fourteen years, a certain
Invention of the said John Curr, of "LAYING OR MAKING ROPES, WHEREBY THE
STRANDS AFTER BEING HARDENED ARE KEPT IN MORE REGULAR DISTENSION, AND
THE ROPES ARE MORE UNIFORMLY TWISTED, THAN WHEN LAID BY THE SLEDGE;" in
which Letters Patent is contained a proviso, that if the said John Curr
shall not particularly describe and ascertain the nature of the said Invention,
and in what manner the same is to be performed, by an instrument in writing
under his hand and seal, and cause the same to be enrolled in His Majesty's
High Court of Chancery within two calendar months next and immediately
after the date of the said Letters Patent, all liberties and advantages what-
soever thereby granted should utterly cease, determine, and become void,
anything therein contained to the contrary notwithstanding, as, by reference to
the said Letters Patent, may more at large appear.
NOW WITNESS THESE PRESENTS, that the said John Curr, by the
present instrument in writing under his hand and seal, doth describe and
ascertain the nature of the said Invention, and manner in which the same is to
be performed, used, and exercised, as follows, that is to say:-

page_text: Presuming there is in use a wheel or engine for twisting the strands at the
top end of the ropery, and another moveable one towards the bottom end of
the ropery, and that the large tooth wheel in each of the wheels above
mentioned that drive round the smaller nut wheels, contains ninety-four teeth
each, and that there are three small nuts working into the tooth wheel of
the wheel or engine at the top end of the ropery occasionally, that contain
fourteen teeth each, and three more that contain twenty-eight teeth each, and
three more that contain fifty-six teeth each, which are also occasionally put
into geer for twisting up the strands, or for laying a three-stranded rope to
accommodate different sizes and dimensions of ropes, and that there are three
small nutt wheels working into the teeth wheel, above described, of the wheel
or engine at the bottom end of the ropery occasionally, that contain seven teeth
each, and three more that contain fourteen teeth each, and three more that
contain twenty-eight teeth each, which are also put into geer for twisting up
the strands, or for laying a rope to accommodate different sizes and dimensions
of ropes. Now, in order to lay or make a shroud-laid three-stranded rope, so
that the strands after being hardened shall be kept in more regular distention,
and to get the ropes more uniformly twisted than when laid by the sledge, my
Invention hercin set forth requires that a roller or drum wheel, with a nutt
wheel on its axis containing twenty-eight teeth, shall be applied, with a proper
rope, cord, or chain, or other fit material of convenient length wound upon it,
the loose end of which rope, cord, or chain may be fixed to a convenient post
or fixture before the wheel or engine is put in motion to lay the rope, which
roller or drum may be connected with the wheel or engine above mentioned on
the bottom end of the ropery, as follows:-On the axis of the above-mentioned
wheel of ninety-four teeth a small nutt wheel containing fourteen teeth must bo
'fixed, and another wheel of ninety-four teeth must be fixed in a convénient
situation to work into the fourteen-toothed wheel above mentioned, and on the
axis of the ninety-four toothed wheel last mentioned must be fixed another
tooth wheel containing fourteen teeth, which nutt wheel must work into the
twenty-eight-toothed nutt wheel above mentioned, that is fixed upon the axis
of the drum wheel, on which the small rope, cord, or chain, laps, and during
.the time the wheel or engine is forced round to twist the strands and form the
rope the said roller or drum will turn round and suffer the wheel or engine to
move forward with a proper and regular speed, and keep the strands in more
proper distention than can be done by the sledge. The roller or drum above
mentioned will of course require for different sized ropes to be of different
dimensions; and supposing the wheel or engine at the bottom end of ropery to
have the fourteen-toothed nutts in geer to make a rope of two and a quarter

page_text: inches circumference, the roller should be made about two feet two and three
quarter inches circumference; for a rope of two and a half inches circumference;
the roller should be made about two feet, five and a half inches circumference;
for a rope of three inches circumference, the roller should be about three feet
and half an inch circumference; and for a rope of three and a half inches
circumference, the roller should be about three feet four and three quarters
inches circumference, to make the rope of a moderate hardness; and to make
them softer or harder it requires the roller or drum to be a little larger or
smaller to produce the desired effect.
To make a rope of four and a half inches circumference, the nutt wheel of
the wheel or engine at the bottom end of ropery of twenty-eight teeth should
be applied to use, in which case the roller or drum, as before described, of two
feet two inches and three quarters circumference may be applied; and for a
rope of five inches circumference, the drum wheel two feet five and a, half
inches circumference, above explained, may be applied; and so in proportion
for any larger sized rope upon the same principle. With a little, alteration
in the size of the above-named roller or drum, ropes composed of four or more
strands may be kept in proper distention. Instead of a roller or, drum above
described, a reel may be applied, that may be varied in size according to the
size of the rope required to be made, and the said roller, or drum, or reel may
be worked by a strap or straps, which will produce the same effect as the
method above described, by which latter mentioned method the roller; or drum,
or reel may remain of the same size for all dimensions of ropes, and the speed
thereof may be varied, according to the size of the rope required to be made,
by varying the size of the roller or pulley over which the strap or straps work,
to regulate the motion of the roller, drum, or recl..
Another mode of performing the operation of keeping the strands distended
in the time of laying the rope is to hang a weight to a rope, chain, or cord,
or other fit material, that must be fastened or otherways conveniently connected
to the wheel or engine at the bottom end of ropery, which weight must be
sufficient to keep the strands properly distended, and will require to work over
a sheive or other fit wheel down into a pit or shaft, or over a pulley or wheel
sufficiently elevated to suspend the weight in a convenient situation or situations,
and the turning round the wheel or engine to put the turn into the rope will
raise the weight above mentioned; and for ropes of different sizes different
weights will of course be required, which may be varied, according to the
judgment of the rope-maker.
Another method where the situation might suit would be to draw a weight
laid upon a carriage constructed with wheels or rollers up an inclined plane

page_text: upon a railroad of a proper construction, which carriage must be connected in
any commodious way with the wheel or engine above mentioned, and proper
weights applied to the carriage to suit the size and hardness of rope proposed
to be made.
upon a railroad of a proper construction, which carriage must be connected in
any commodious way with the wheel or engine above mentioned, and proper
weights applied to the carriage to suit the size and hardness of rope proposed
to be made.
Witness the hand and seal of the said John Curr, this Twenty-first day
of December One thousand eight hundred and eleven
AND BE IT REMEMBERED, that on the Twenty-first day of December,
in the fifty-second year of the reign of His Majesty King George the Third,
the said John Curr came before our said Lord the King in His Chancery, and
acknowledged the instrument aforesaid, and all and every thing therein con-
tained and specified, in form above written. And also the instrument aforesaid
was stamped according to the tenor of the Statute made in the forty-eighth
year of His said Majesty's reign.
Inrolled the Thirtieth day of December, One thousand eight hundred and
eleven.