IMPROVEMENTS IN THE CON- STRUCTION OF FINGERS FOR MOWING MACHINES."
Year: 1867

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to William James Burgess, of Brentwood, in the County
of Essex, Engineer, for the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN THE CON-
STRUCTION OF FINGERS FOR MOWING MACHINES."
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said William James Burgess
at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on
the 29th May 1867.
I, WILLIAM JAMES BURGESS, of Brentwood, in the County of Essex,
Engineer, do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention for "IMPROVE-
MENTS IN THE CONSTRUCTION OF FINGERS FOR MOWING MACHINES," to be as
follows:-
Heretofore the fingers of the cutting apparatus of mowing machines have in
some case been made of cast or chill cast iron, and in other cases they have
been composed of wrought iron. When cutting crops close to the ground it
has been found that when the fingers are composed of cast metal grass
especially dead grass the dirt rapidly accumulates upon their points, and they
rapidly become clogged, but when using fingers of wrought metal this effect
is not produced; wrought metal fingers have however this disadvantage that
they rapidly become worn away by the knife, whereas this is not the case with
cast metal fingers. In order to obviate the inconveniences attending fingers
constructed in either of these manners I according to my Invention form the
point of each finger of wrought metal, whilst I form the other parts of cast.
metal, and this I do by placing a wrought metal point into the mould in
which each finger is to be cast, and then casting upon it the other portions

page_text: of the finger. By this means a finger is formed of wrought and cast metal
combined, the wrought metal being at the point where it has been found that
cast fingers become clogged and the cast metal at the parts where wrought
fingers become worn away by the knife.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, filed
by the said William James Burgess in the Great Seal Patent Office
on the 29th November 1867.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, WILLIAM
JAMES BURGESS, of Brentwood, in the County of Essex, Engineer, send.
greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the Twenty-ninth day of May, in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and sixty-seven, in the thirtieth year of Her
reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs, and successors, give and grant unto me, the
said William James Burgess, Her special licence that I, the said William
James Burgess, my executors, administrators, and assigns, or such others as I,
the said William James Burgess, 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 "IMPROVE-
MENTS IN THE CONSTRUCTION OF FINGERS FOR MOWING MACHINES," upon the
condition (amongst others) that I, the said William James Burgess, my exe-
cutors 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 per-
formed, 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 William James Burgess, do hereby
declare the nature of the said Invention, and in what manner the same is
to be performed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and by the
following statement thereof, that is to say :—
Heretofore the fingers of the cutting apparatus of mowing machines have
in some cases been made of cast or chill cast iron and in other cases they have
been composed of wrought iron. When cutting crops close to the ground

page_text: it has been found that when the fingers are composed of cast metal the grass,
especially dead grass, rapidly accumulates upon their points, and they rapidly
become clogged, but when using fingers of wrought metal this effect is not
produced; wrought metal fingers have however this disadvantage that they
rapidly become worn away by the knife, whereas this is not the case with cast-
metal fingers. In order to obviate the inconveniences attending fingers
constructed in either of these manners I according to my Invention form the
point of each finger of wrought metal, whilst I form the other parts of cast
metal, and this I do by placing a wrought metal point into the mould in
which each finger is to be cast, and then casting upon it the other portions of
the finger. By this means a finger is formed of wrought and cast metal
combined, the wrought metal being at the point where it has been found that
cast fingers become clogged, and the cast metal at the parts where wrought
fingers become worn away by the knife.
Having thus described the nature of my Invention I will proceed to
describe more fully the manner of performing the same.
In the Drawing hereunto annexed I have shewn a longitudinal section of
a finger of a mowing machine constructed in the manner I prefer for carrying
Invention.
out my
In the Drawing A is the wrought-iron point; this point has a shank A¹
formed upon it, as shewn, which is to be embedded in the cast portion B of the
finger. Before placing the point A into a mould to have the other portions
of the finger cast upon it the shank A' is tinned so that the cast metal may
the better adhere thereto. The cast portion of the finger shewn in the
Drawing is formed, as is now usual, in such manner that it may be bolted to
the under ends of the finger bar, and is also formed with a slot B' for receiving
the knife, the metal surfaces above and below the slot being chilled as is
usual, so that they may not be worn away by the knife; the form of the
finger may however be varied.
In witness whereof, I the said William James Burgess, have hereunto
set my hand and seal, this Twenty-seventh day of November, in the
year of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and sixty-seven.
W. J. BURGESS. (L.S.)