Posts, Balusters, and similar Articles from Metal Tubes.
Year: 1888

page_text: Date of Application, 3rd Mar., 1888
Specification Accepted, 25th May, 1888
Posts, Balusters, and similar Articles from Metal Tubes.
We, JOHN BURKHARDT, Machinist, and WILLIAM HENRY JACKSON, Manufacturer,
both of 31 East Seventeenth Street in the City and State of New York, United
States of America, 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 accompanying drawings forming a part of this specification, Figure 1,
represents a perspective view of a pair of former-plates or dies used for operating
upon a piece of tubing, such as is shown in position at d ready to be reduced to the
desired form.
Figure 2, is a similar view of the same with the piece of tubing after having been
reduced to the undulating shape suitable for ornamental balusters posts or rails; and
Figure 3 represents a perspective view of a portion of netting of fine elastic steel
wire, which for the purpose of surface ornamentation will be laid upon the undulating
face of plate or die a for the purpose of impressing its figure or design upon the
baluster or other article formed by being passed between the converging plates a, b.
The object of this invention, as will now appear is to produce the above named class
of articles from metal tubing, with varied surface embellishments in an expeditious
and simple manner.
Balusters and analogous articles may by these means be made of tubing or rolled
metal of suitable temper and pliability to sustain the action of the machinery, and to
receive the embellishing imprint as described.
It is apparent that wire nettings or other thin hard elastic material formed to
represent any particular figure or design in relief, may be employed in the manner
specified for surface embellishment of these products. The plates a, b, instead of being
made with parallel corrugations or ribs, may be made with diverging or spirally
arranged ribs or grooves, whereby such different configurations would be impressed
into the surface of the tube as it is passed between said plates.
The operation of converting tubing to the ornamental shapes mentioned and shown
at d¹ by the mechanism described may be effected by the use of a metal plaining
machine, the bed plate a, being secured upon the table or frame of such machine, and
וני.

page_text: the traversing plate b, being secured to the tool holder or clutch of the machine by
means of the bridge-block c, and as the plates are formed as inclined planes upon
their working faces the space between them is convergent narrowing from the place
of introduction of the section of tubing d to the place of discharge of the formed
baluster a¹.
The movement of the former-plate 6 over the bed-plate a, the tube d being between
them, will gradually reduce the tube to the shape corresponding to the form of
the working faces of the plates without causing injury to or fracturing the article
formed.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of our said inven-
tion, and in what manner the same is to be performed, we declare that what
we claim is :-
First. The combination of the converging corrugated former-plates a, b, for
reducing metal tubing to undulating ornamental balusters, rails or other similar
articles in the manner specified.
Second. The hard metal nettings or its equivalent jointly with the converging
former-plates ab for embellishing the hollow posts, balusters or rails in the manner