IMPROVEMENTS IN THE CONSTRUCTION OF LEVER HORSE HOES AND LEVER CORN DRILLS
Year: 1872

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to John Francis Clemow, of Padstow, in the County
of Cornwall, Farmer, for the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN THE
CONSTRUCTION OF LEVER HORSE HOES AND LEVER CORN DRILLS."
Sealed the 8th April 1873, and dated the 14th December 1872.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said John Francis Olemow
at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on
the 14th December 1872.
I, JOHN FRANCIS CLEMOW, of Padstow, in the County of Cornwall,
Farmer, do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention for "IM-
PROVEMENTS IN THE CONSTRUCTION OF LEVER HORSE HOES AND LEVER CORN
DRILLS," to be as follows:-
The object of this Invention is to increase the efficiency and to
simplify the manufacture of lever drills and hoes. It is usual in these
implements to employ weights for pressing down the coulters of the
drills and the cutting tools of the hoes to their work, but springs have
also been applied to the extremity of the levers carrying these instru-
ments. In place of these contrivances I propose to use clastic levers

page_text: which will allow of the coulters or the hoes as the case may be to rise
over any obstructions which they may meet. The levers I mount upon
bars which will rock in their bearings when the coulters or hoes are
raised out of action. In the drill I prefer to arrange the levers in two
groups and to employ two transverse rock bars to carry them. Each
lever is connected by a butt joint to a clip which is made fast to the
rock bar, and thus the lifting of the lever will ensure the rocking of the
bars. The levers are lifted by means of chains connected to fingers
which project from a transverse rock shaft at the rear of the implement,
and which shaft is operated by a hand lever that may be locked in any
desired position. Connected to pendent arms on this rock shaft are
tension chains which lead from arms on the rock bars carrying the elastic
levers. As therefore these levers are lifted the chains which connect the
rock bars with the rock shaft will be slackened, and thereby these bars
will be allowed to rock in their bearings and prevent the levers from
offering an elastic resistance to the pull of the lifting chains. The
tension chains which connect the rock bars with the rock shaft will
serve also to increase the elastic downward pressure of the levers to any
required degree, and thus hold the coulters or hoes down to their work.
This result is obtained by shifting the hand lever forward. The levers
may be composed of a rigid piece for receiving the coulter, and an
elastic coupling piece for connecting with the rock bar, or they may be
formed in one piece if desired.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent,
filed by the said John Francis Clemow in the Great Seal Patent 2
Office on the 14th June 1873.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, JOHN
FRANCIS CLEMOW, of Padstow, in the County of Cornwall, Farmer, send
greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her 8
Letters Patent, bearing date the Fourteenth day of December, in the
year of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and seventy-two, in the
thirty-sixth year of Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors,
give and grant unto me, the said John Francis Clemow, Her special
licence that I, the said John Francis Clemow, my executors, adminis- 3

page_text: trators, and assigns, or such others as I the said John Francis Olemow,
my executors, administrators, and 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 "IM-
PROVEMENTS IN THE CONSTRUCTION OF LEVER HORSE HOES AND LEVER CORN
DRILLS," upon the condition (amongst others) that I, the said John
Francis Clemow, my executors or administrators, by an instrument in
writing under my, or their, or one of their hands and seals, 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 Francis Clemow, do hereby
declare the nature of my 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 Drawing here-
unto annexed, and to the letters and figures marked thereon (that is to
say):
:-
The object of this Invention is to increase the efficiency and to
simplify the manufacture of lever drills and hoes. It is usual in these
implements to employ weights for pressing down the coulters of the
drills and the cutting tools of the hoes to their work, but springs have
also been applied to the rear extremity of the levers carrying these
instruments. In place of these contrivances I propose to use elastic
levers which will allow the coulters or the hoes as the case may be to
rise over any obstructions which they may meet. The levers I mount
upon bars which will rock in their bearings when the coulters or hoes
are raised out of action. In the drill I prefer to arrange the levers in
two groups and to employ two transverse rock bars to carry them. The
levers are lifted by means of chains connected with a transverse rock
shaft at the rear of the implement, and which shaft is operated by a
hand lever that may be locked in any desired position.
In the accompanying Drawing Fig. 1 shews in side elevation so much
of a lever drill constructed according to this Invention as will serve to
explain my improvements; and Fig. 2 is a partial back elevation of the
same.

page_text: A is the drill frame mounted upon the running wheels B; O is the
seed box; and D, D, are the coulters; E, E, is one of a pair of bracket
castings bolted to the frame A and intended to carry the transverse rock
bars F, F, to which the elastic coulter levers G are respectively con-
nected. These levers may be formed in one piece if desired, but I prefer
to construct them as shewn at Fig. 1, viz., with a rigid piece for
securing the coulter, and an elastic coupling or spring piece G³ for con-
necting with the rock bar F. The mode of connecting these levers to
their rock bar is clearly shewn in the enlarged views, Figures 3 and 4,
Fig. 3 being a side view, and Fig. 4, a back view of the coupling. The
elastic coupling piece G is bent round the rock bar F, and it is embraced
on its opposite sides by a pair of lugs H, H. These lugs are secured
' together by a a tie bolt H' which forms a stop pin for the lever, and they
are cast with shoulders H* which overlap the turned over end of the
coupling picce G¹ and serve to retain it in position. The lugs are made
fast to the rock bar F by binding screws H³. The coulter levers G are
alternately connected to the front and rear rock bars F, and to permit of
this and yet retain the levers all in line, the elastic coupling pieces which
are attached to the front rock bar are curved as shewn at Fig. 1. Keyed
to one end of the rock bars are arms F¹ by means of which the bars are
turned in their bearings to bring the tie bolts H' into contact with the
coupling pieces G¹, and thereby to put pressure upon the coulter
levers G. These arms F¹ are connected together by a chain F* which
extends rearwards and is connected to the pendent end of a rock lever I
keyed to a transverse shaft I'. Pivotted to this rock lever is a spring
bolt I² which passing through the lever enters one of a series of holes
made in a segment plate K bolted to the framing. By this means the
lever I may be locked in any desired position. Keyed to the shaft I' is
a series of sectors L, one for each coulter lever and pendent; from these
sectors are chains L' connected, respectively to the tails of the coulter
levers G. By this connection of the levers G with the shaft I' it will be
seen that the lifting and lowering of the coulters simultaneously and
their adjustment to any required position may be effected by means of
the lever I. As the coulter levers are lifted, the chain F' which
connects the rock bars F with the rock shaft I will be slackened, and
thereby those bars will be allowed to rock in their bearings, and prevent
the levers G from offering an elastic resistance to the pull of the lifting
chains L. The chain F2 when brought to tension serves by increasing
the elastic downward pressure of the levers G (to any required degree)
.

page_text: to hold the coulters down to their work. This result is obtained by
shifting the hand lever I forward in the direction of the arrow,
and
locking it in its advanced position.
A modified form of constructing the elastic levers is shewn in plan
view at Fig. 5, and in side view at Fig. 6. In this example the lever G
is forked at its bearing end, and the forked extremities are bent round
like the elastic piece G₁ of Fig. 3 to embrace the rock bar F. Between
the fork a spring G³ is made fast to the rock bar, and it is extended
rearward so as to bear upon the lever. The action of this lever (although
strictly speaking a rigid lever) will be precisely similar to the elastic or
compound lever of Fig. 1.
The above described arrangements it may be remarked will while
allowing of any desired pressure being put upon the levers leave them
free to rise when any obstruction is presented to the coulters. It will be
understood that the elastic levers G, and the means described for putting
pressure upon them are equally applicable to lever hoes as to lever
drills, and as no modification of the parts described will be needed to
adapt the Invention to hoes, no further illustration of the Invention
will be requisite.
Having now set forth the nature of my Invention of "Improvements
in the Construction of Lever Horse Hoes and Lever Corn Drills," and
explained the manner of carrying the same into effect, I wish it to be
understood that under the above in part recited Letters Patent I claim,
the application to such implements of elastic levers, the pressure of
which is adjusted and maintained in the manner and for the purpose
above described.
In witness whereof, I, the said John Francis Clemow, have here-
unto set my hand and seal, the Thirteenth day of June, in the
year of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and seventy-
three.