Year: 1887

page_text: Date of Application, 31st May, 1887
Complete Left, 28th Feb., 1888
Complete Accepted, 4th May, 1888
I TRONSON DRAPER of Greenfield Street, Petrolia, in the Province of Ontario and
Dominion of Canada Machinist, do hereby declare the nature of this invention to be as
follows:-
The object of my Invention is to provide a new and improved lathe for turning a
ball.
The Invention consists of a face plate covered with leather and backed by an elastic
material, means for stretching the feather cover, and means for holding the ball to be
turned, in contact with the leather covered plate.
The Invention also consists in the construction and arrangement of various parts
and details, and combinations of the same, as will be hereinafter fully described.
The lathe spindle turns in an angular bearing carried by a standard and the face
plate screws on the end of the spindle. The leather cover of the face plate is secured
to its rim, and is backed by a disc of rubber or other elastic material which is pressed
against the leather cover by a disc and screws, by adjusting which I am enabled to
stretch or slacken the leather cover to any desired degree. On the standard is an
adjustable radial arm along which a slide or carriage is adjusted by means of a leading
screw. An upright screw-rod screws into a socket in the carriage or slide, and carries
the holder or bearing in which rotates a horizontal spindle having leather wheels on
its ends, of which one is cone shaped and the other has a concave rim. A pair of
studs are fixed adjustably to and project from the side of the arm above mentioned,
and one of said studs has a row of holes in which pins are placed, the whole forming a
fork in which the cup holder is loosely held. The cup holder is a standard made in-
parts screwed together to enable the height of the cup fixed on its upper end to be
regulated. The cup supports the ball to be turned. A cutting tool passes up through
the cup at one side and is adjusted in a groove in the upper part of the cup holder by
means of a screw collar screwing on the latter, so that the upper pointed end of said
tool will extend a suitable distance above the cup, the tool being secured by a set
screw. The cup holder is supported at its lower end on a hand lever pivoted to a
radius link pivoted to a fixed point, the other end of the hand lever sliding on a rest.
Din 1121

page_text: Instead of a cup with an adjustable cutting tool,
edge all round which may be plain or scalloped.
may use a cup with a cutting
For turning balls with a stem, I employ a pair of such cups carried by the jaws of a
pair of tongs, the screw threaded stem of the ball being, in that case, screwed into the
end of the lathe spindle in lieu of the face plate. On motion being imparted to the
spindle, the ball is gripped between the pair of cups, the tongs being moved from side
to side and upward and downward and at same time pressed together so that the
cutting edges of the cups, round off the ball. The stem of the ball is then carefully
cut off by a hand tool, or the usual lathe tool, so as to complete as nearly as possible,
the spherical surface of the ball. The threaded stem of the ball is then removed, and
the face plate is then screwed upon the spindle. The ball from which the stem has
been removed is then placed in the cup on the cup holder which is placed in position
as above described, and the tool in the cup having been adjusted according to the size
of the ball to be turned and the carriage or slide and spindle holder are adjusted so
that the conical leather wheel is in frictional contact with the leather covering of the
face plate, and the other or concave leather wheel is held in close contact with the ball
in the cup which is also held in contact with the leather covering of the face plate.
Rotary motion of the face plate imparts rotary motion to the ball and to the leather
wheels, so that the ball is turned by the tool and rotated by the face plate and wheel
with which it is in contact; the operator by means of the handle and movable cup
holder can press the ball with more or less power against the face plate wheel and tool
so as to increase or diminish the turning and revolving of the ball. The roughly
turned ball is then finished by means of a cup with multiple cutting edges, which is
substituted for the cup with a single adjustable cutter. The ball held in this cup is
pressed against the face plate, the cup being moved by the operator, so as to change
the position of the ball in the cup, and continually present a new part of its surface
to the cutting edges which remove all inequalities.
It will be seen that by these means, I am enabled to turn balls of any material such
as ivory, metal, composition, or other suitable material. The adjustability of the
carriage or slide and the spindle holder permits of turning balls of almost any size.
Dated this 31st day of May 1887.
T. DRAPER.
By A. M. & Wm. Clark,
53, Chancery Lane, London,
Patent Agents.

page_text: 1, TRONSON DRAPER, of Greenfield. Street, Petrolia, in the Province of Ontario,
and Dominion of Canada, Machinist 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:
The object of my invention is to provide a new and improved lathe for turning
a ball.
The Invention consists of a face plate covered with leather and backed by an elastic
material, means for stretching the leather cover, and means for holding the ball to be
turned, in contact with the leather covered plate.
The Invention also consists in the construction and arrangement of various parts
and details and combinations of the same, as will be hereinafter fully described, and
then pointed out in the claims.
Reference is to be had to the accompanying drawings forming a part of this
specification, in which similar letters of reference indicate corresponding parts in all
the figures.
Figure 1 is a side elevation of my improvement adapted for turning balls having a
stem.
Figure 2 is a side elevation of the same for turning balls without a stem.
Figure 3 is a front elevation of the same.
Figure 4 is a plan view of the same on the line x-x of Figure 2.
Figure 5 is a sectional elevation of the same on the line y-y of Figure 4.
Figure 6 is a rear face view of the face plate, parts being in section.
Figure 7 is a sectional side elevation of the same on the line - of Figure 6.
Figure 8 is a side elevation, partly in section, of the holder for supporting the balls
without stems.
Figure 9 is a plan view of the ball-holding cup.
Figure 10 is a plan view of a modified form of the ball-holding cup; and
Figure 11 is a sectional elevation of the same.
In a suitable base plate A is fastened the standard B supporting, at its upper end,
the angular bearing C, in which is adapted to turn the lathe spindle D provided at its
lower end with the hollow reduced portion D provided with an outer thread and an inner
thread. On the upper end of the spindle D is secured a driving pulley E for imparting
a rotary motion to said spindle D. The reduced portion D' of the spindle D supports
the face plate F provided with the metallic disk F1 screwing on the outer thread of the
reduced portion D¹.
On the rim of the disk F' is secured a leather cover F2 by means of nails or screws F³
passing through the leather radially in the rim of said disk F¹, as is plainly shown in
Figures 6 and 7. The leather cover F extends in front and is backed by a disk F
of rubber or other elastic material, which is pressed against the-leather cover F2 by a

page_text: disk Fe held in the rear of the disk F and pressed against the latter by screws F'
screwing into the rear of the metallic disk F. By adjusting the screws F7 I am
enabled to stretch or slacken the leather cover F' to any desired degree.
On the standard B is held to slide an arm G fastened to said standard at any
desired height by means of a set screw G¹ or other suitable means. In the top of the
arm G is formed a dove-tailed groove G in which is held to slide a carriage H moved
forward and backward on said arm G by a screw H¹ passing through said carriage
and held in an extension of the arm G, being also provided at its outer end with a
hand wheel H for turning said screw so as to move the carriage H forward and
backward on the arm G. The carriage H is provided with a vertically extending
threaded aperture in which screws the screw rod I provided with a knurled head I¹
and with an extension I' above said knurled head.
On the extension I is held the-spindle holder J resting with its lower end on the
knurled head I. The holder J can be secured to the extension 12 by a pin J'passing
through suitable apertures in said holder J and the extension 12 as shown in Figure 5.
In the holder J is mounted to turn the horizontal spindle K carrying on one outer
end the cone-shaped leather disk L adapted to be held in contact with the leather
cover of the face plate F. To the other end of the spindle K is fastened a wheel N
of leather or other suitable material which is provided with a concave rin.
The arm G is provided with the cross slot G³ in which is held adjustably a pin O
having a series of apertures in which can be placed the pins O¹ so as to form a fork
on said pin O, in which the cup holder. P is loosely held by a second pin 0* fixed
adjustably in the cross slot G³. The cup holder P consists of two parts P¹ and P
united by a nut P3 in such a manner as to regulate the height of said holder P by
screwing on said nut P3 which is held in place by the jam nut P. The upper end of
the part P of the holder P is reduced and screw-threaded, and on this screw-threaded
end is held the cup Q for supporting the ball to be turned. The part P¹ is also
provided near its upper end with a screw thread on which screws the nut R which, in
connection with the cup Q supports the cutting tool S held in a slot P* formed in the
part P¹ and passing through a corresponding slot in the cup Q.
The lower end of the tool S is recessed and passes into an annular groove R¹
formed in the nut R, so that when the latter is turned the tool can be adjusted up or
down so that the upper pointed end of said tool extends a suitable distance above the
cup Q. The tool S can then be fastened in position by a set screw Q₁ screwing in
the rim of the cup Q against said tool S. The lower end of the part P2 of the cup
holder P is provided with an offset P³ fitting into an aperture in the arm T pivotally
held on the pin U₁ secured to the arm U fulcrumed with its inner end on the base
of the machine. The outer end of the arın T rests on an arm V also fulcrumed on
the base A on the opposite side to the fulcrum of the arm U.
the
Instead of using the cup Q at the upper end of the cup holder P, I may employ
cup W shown in Figures 10 and 11, which cup W is provided with a cutting
edge W which may be plain or scalloped, as illustrated in Figures 10 and 11. If this
cup is used I dispense with the tool S.
For turning balls with a stem, I employ a pair of tongs provided at their outer ends
with cups Y similar in shape to the cup shown in Figures 10 and 11 and having a
cutting edge of plain or scalloped shape.
The operation is as follows:-
:-
For turning balls. a, with tho stem, 1 swing the arm G to one side and remove the
face plate F from the spindle D. The screw-threaded stem of the ball a is screwed
into the threaded aperture of the reduced part D¹ of the spindle D, as shown in
Figure 1. The spindle D is then rotated by the driving pulley E and the operator
takes hold of the tongs X and presses the steel cups Y over the ball a as shown in
Figure 1, and then moves the tongs X from side to side upward and downward, at
the same time pressing the prongs together, so that the cutting edges of the cups Y
come in contact with the surface of the ball a and thus round off the same. The stem
of the ball a is then carefully cut off by a hand tool or the usual lathe tool so as to
complete, as nearly as possible, the spherical surface of the ball a. The threaded stem

page_text: of the ball a is then removed from the reduced part D³, and the face plate F is then
screwed upon the outer thread of the part D' as shown in Figures 2 and 3.
The arm G is swung to the front and fastened at a suitable height, and then the
cup holder P is placed in position between the pins O and O2, so as to prevent the
cup holder from moving sidewise and then the pins 0¹ are inserted into the respective
apertures in the pin O on each side of the cup holder P, to prevent the latter from
moving sidewise. A ball without the stem is then placed into the cup and the
tool S is then adjusted by the nut R according to the size of the ball 6 to be turned.
The carriage H is then adjusted forward or backward on the arm G and the spindle
holder J is adjusted up or down by turning the knurled head I¹ so as to screw the
rod I up or down in said carriage H. The holder J when in the proper position is
fastened to the extension 12 by the pin J¹ so as to prevent the holder J and its
spindle K from turning on the extension I*. The holder J is placed in such a
position that its leather wheel L is in frictional contact with the leather covering F"
of the face plate F, and the concave rim of the wheel N is held in close contact with
the ball b, which is also held in contact with the leather cover F³.
Now, it will be seen, that when the face plate F is rotated it imparts a rotary.
motion to the ball b, and at the same time to the wheels Land N, so that the ball
is turned by the tool S and rotated by the leather cover F2 and the leather wheel N.
The operator, by taking hold of the lower part of the cup holder P, supported on the
arm T, the lower lug P being inserted in the corresponding aperture in said arm T,
can move the cup-holder upward, thus pressing the ball with more or less power
against the leather cover F, the wheel N and the tool S, so as to increase or diminish
the turning and revolving of the ball.
When the balls a and b have thus been roughened by either the tongs X or the
tool S on the holder P, then the latter is removed from the machine and the cup Q
and the tool S are removed from the holder P. The cup W, shown in Figures 10
and 11, is then screwed or otherwise fastened on the upper end of the holder P
and the ball is then again placed on top of said cup W, after which the holder is
again placed in position between the pins O and O2, the lower lug P of the holder P
is now inserted in the corresponding aperture in the arm T so that the holder is
supported on the said arm T. The operator now takes hold of the arm T with
one hand, and with his other hand he takes hold of the holder P and presses the
latter upward and sidewise, so that the ball held in the cup W is pressed against
the face plate F and the wheel N, the ball being thus rotated by the leather cover F³,
and the leather wheel N is smoothed by the cutting edge of the cup W.
It will be seen that a ball rotates in one direction and over part of its surface only,
and in order to bring the entire surface in contact with the face plate F, the wheel N
and the cutting edges of the cup W, the operator moves the cup holder P downward
and changes the position of the ball in the cup W so that a new part of the surface
of the ball is presented to the cutting edges.
It will be seen that by these means, I am enabled to turn balls of any material, such
as ivory, metal, composition or other suitable material. The adjustability of the
carriage H and the spindle holder J permits of turning balls of almost any size.
cutting edges of the cup W remove all inequalities on the balls.
The
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of the said
invention, and in what manner the same is to be performed I declare that what
I claim is
1. In a ball turning lathe, the combination with a leather covered face plate, of
means for stretching the leather cover on the face plate, substantially as shown and
described.
2. In a ball turning lathe, a face plate consisting of a disk adapted to be screwed
to the lathe spindle, a leather covering secured to the rim of said disk, a disk of
rubber or other elastic material placed at the back of said leather cover, and means,
substantially as described, for pressing said rubber backing against the leather cover,
as set forth.

page_text: 3. In a ball turning lathe, the combination with a metallic disk adapted to be
screwed to the spindle of the lathe, of a leather cover secured to the rim of said
metallic disk, a disk of rubber or other elastic material used as a backing at the rear
of said leather cover, a disk placed between the metallic disk and said elastic disk, and
set screws screwing in the metallic disk against the disk placed between the metallic
disk and elastic disk so as to stretch or slacken the leather cover, substantially as
shown and described.
4. In a ball turning lathe, the combination with a spindle having a reduced hollow
end provided with an internal and an external screw thread and receiving in the
internal screw thread the stem of a ball to be turned, of a pair of tongs provided
with cups at their outer ends, said cups having cutting edges, substantially as shown
and described.
5. In a ball turning lathe, a pair of tongs provided on the outer ends of their
prongs with steel cups having cutting edges, substantially as shown and described.
6. In a ball turning lathe, the combination with a leather covered face plate, of a
cup holder supporting at its upper end a cup having a cutting edge, substantially as
shown and described.
7. In a ball turning lathe, the combination with a leather covered face plate, of
a leather wheel held in contact with the said face plate and rotated by the latter, a
leather wheel having a concave rim and held on the same spindle as said wheel in
contact with the face plate, a cup holder, and a cup supporter at the upper end of said
cup holder and having a cutting edge, substantially as shown and described.
8. In a ball turning lathe, the combination with a leather covered face plate, of a.
leather wheel held in contact with said face plate and rotated by the latter, a leather
wheel having a concave surface and held on the same spindle as said wheel in contact
with the face plate, a cup holder, a cup 'held at the upper end of said holder, and a
cutting tool held in said cup and projecting with its cutting edge slightly above
said cup, substantially as shown and described.
9. In a ball turning lathe, the combination with a cup holder, of a cup held at the
upper end of said holder, a nut screwing on said holder, and a cutting tool held in tho
recess in said holder and passing through a slot in said cup and also being moved up
and down by said nut screwing on said holder, substantially as shown and described.
10. In a ball turning lathe, the combination with a cup holder, of a cup held at the
upper end of said holder, a nut screwing on said holder, and a cutting tool held in a
recess in said holder and passing through a slot in said cup and also being moved up
and down by said nut screwing on said holder, and means for fastening said tool in
place on said cup, as set forth.
11. In a ball turning lathe, a cup holder made in two parts united by a nut so as
to lengthen and shorten said holder, substantially as shown and described.
12. In a ball turning lathe, the combination with a leather covered face plate, of a
wheel held in frictional contact with said face plate, a spindle carrying said wheel, a
holder in which said spindle rotates, and means, substantially as described, for raising
and lowering said spindle, as set forth.
13. In a ball turning lathe, the combination with a leather covered face plate, of a
wheel held in frictional contact with said face plate, a spindle carrying said wheel,
a spindle holder in which said spindle rotates, a scrow rod secured to said spindle, a
horizontally adjustable carriage in which screws said screw rod, substantially as shown
and described.
14. In a ball turning lathe, a standard, a lathe spindle supported in a bearing on
said standard, and a leather covered face plate held on said lathe spindle, in combina-
tion with a wheel held in frictional contact with the face of said face plate, a spindle
carrying said wheel, a holder in which said spindle turns, a screw rod extending from
said holder, a carriage in which said screw rod screws, and an arm held adjustably
on said standard and supporting said carriage, substantially as shown and described.
15. In a ball turning lathe, a standard, a spindle supported in a bearing on said
standard, and a leather covered face plate held on said lathe spindle, in combination
with a wheel held in frictional contact with the face of said face plate, a spindle

page_text: carrying said wheel, a holder in which said spindle turns, a screw rod extending from
said holder, a carriage in which said screw rod screws, an arm held adjustably on
said standard and supporting said carriage, and means, substantially as described, for
moving said carriage forward and backward, on said arm, as set forth.
16. In a ball turning lathe, a standard, a lathe spindle supported in a bearing on
said standard, and a leather covered face plate held on said lathe spindle, in combina-
tion with a wheel held in frictional contact with the face of said face plate, a spindle
carrying said wheel, a holder in which said spindle turns, a screw rod extending from
said holder, a carriage in which said screw rod screws, an arm held adjustably on
said standard and supporting said carriage, a screw rod screwing in said carriage and
held in suitable bearings on said arm, and a wheel fastened on said screw rod for
turning the same, substantially as shown and described.
17. In a ball turning lathe, a base, a standard supported on said base, a bearing
formed on said standard, a lathe spindle held in said bearing, in an angular position,
and a leather covered face plate held on said spindle, in combination with a wheel held
in frictional contact with the face of said face plate, a spindle supporting said wheel,
a leather wheel held on said spindle and having a concave rim, a vertically adjustablo
holder supporting said spindle, a carriage supporting said holder and having a sidewise
inotion, an arm supporting said carriage and held adjustably on said standard, a cup
holder held in forks secured io said arms, cups held on the upper end of said holder,
and means, substantially as described, for raising said wheel and moving it sidewise,
as set forth.
T
1
. зай 1
2 T
1000
Dated this 28th day of February 1888.
T. DRAPER.
By A. M. & Wm. Clark,
53, Chancery Lane, London,
Patent Agents.