CERTAIN IMPROVE
Year: 1855

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to John Pursloe Fisher, of Edgbaston, near Birming-
ham, in the County of Warwick, for tho Invention of "CERTAIN IMPROVE-
Sealed the 4th April 1856, and dated the 23rd November 1855.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said John Pursloe Fisher
at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the
23rd November 1855.
I, JOHN PURSLOE FISHER, do hereby declare the nature of tho said In-
vention for CERTAIN IMPROVEMENTS IN THE CONSTRUCTION OF THE HAMMERS OF
PIANOFORTES, to be as follows:-
I construct the head of the hammer which strikes the string or strings in a
separate piece from the rest of the hammer, so as to admit of being removed
and replaced by another, or reversed or shifted, so as to present a fresh face to
strike upon the string or strings. I also connect the head to the rest of the
hammer by a spring or springs or elastic connection, so that it is capable of
yielding a little when it strikes the string or strings.
One method of effecting these objects consists in constructing the head of
the hammer of a circular or elliptical form, and mounting it in a forked piece
of wood or metal, or other suitable material, attached to the stem of tho
hammer. A cord of vulcanized indian-rubber is passed through holes in the

page_text: fork and the head, and the ends of the cord are allowed to expand on the out-
side of the fork, so as to secure them; or they are passed through additional
holes in the fork, or otherwise secured. A small wire is passed through a hole
in the stem of the fork, and screwed into the head; this wire forms a guide,
and prevents the head from turning round in the fork. When the one face of
the head becomes worn by use, the wire may be unscrewed and the head
reversed, and the wire screwed in again; a fresh face is thus presented. The
small hole left by the wire may be plugged with felt or leather if required.
The head may be of cork or leather, covered with leather or felt, or of other
suitable materials. The form and arrangement of the head and the springs or
clastic connections may be varied..
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, filed
by the said John Pursloc Fisher in the Great. Seal Patent Office on
the 20th May 1856.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, JOHN
PURSLOE FISHER, of Edgbaston, near Birmingham, in the County of Warwick,
send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most. Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Iler Letters
Patent, bearing date the Twenty-third day of November, in the year of our
Lord One thousand eight hundred and fifty-five, in the nineteenth year of
Her reign, did, for Herself, Ier heirs and successors, give and grant unto
mė, the said John Pursloe Fisher, Her special licence that I, the said
John Pursloe Fisher, my exccutors, administrators, and assigns, or such
others as I, the said, John Pursloc Fisher, 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 "CERTAIN IMPROVEMENTS IN THE CONSTRUCTION OF THE HAMMERS
OF.. PIANOFORTES," upon the condition (amongst others) that I, the said John
Pursloe Fisher, 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.

page_text: NOW KNOW YE, that I, the said John Pursloe Fisher, 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, reference being had to the accompanying Drawing,
and to the figures and letters marked thereon, that is to say:-
I construct the head of the hammer which strikes the string or strings in a
separate piece from the rest of the hammer, so as to admit of being removed
and replaced by another; or I construct it so as to admit of being reversed
or shifted, so as to present a fresh face to strike upon the string or strings.
Figure 1 of the accompanying Drawing is a side view of a hammer con-
structed according to my Invention; Figuro 2 is a plan of the same. The
hammer head consists of a piece of wood or leather or other suitable material a,
covered with felt or leather b; it is fitted into the wooden frame c, and secured
by a screw d. The frame c is attached or fixed to the rod c. By removing
the screw d, the hammer head can be taken out and re-covered with felt and
again replaced, or a new hammer head may be inserted and secured by the
screw. The hammers are made of various sizes; thus, Figure 3 is a side
view of a hammer constructed in a similar manner and adapted for the upper
notes of the pianoforte. The same letters refer to similar parts in all the
Figures.
Figure 4 is a side view, and Figure 5 is a plan, of a similar hammer, with.
the head mounted in a metallic frame. Figure 6 is a separate side view of
the frame c. The head a, b, is secured by a screw d, and is retained in posi-
tion in the frame by a pin or screw f passing through the butt of the frame
and into the head. Figure 7 is a side view, and Figure 8 is a plan, of a
hammer constructed in a similar manner, and adapted for the upper notes
of the instrument. The rod e and the socket in the frame into which it fits
may be oblong, or oval, or round, or of other suitable section. The frame
may be attached by a screw or rivet, or by cement or otherwise, to the rod e.
The head may also be made double, so that its position may be reversed,
and its opposite face may then be employed. It is still capable of being
readily removed and replaced by another. Thus, Figure 9 is a side view, and
Figure 10 is a plan, of a hammer with a double head. The head consists of
a piece of wood or leather or other suitable material a, surrounded with felt
or leather b, and mounted in a frame c, attached to or fixed on the rod e, as
before. The head a, b, is, however, made of the same form at both ends, and
is secured by the screw d passing through its centre. By removing or slack-
ening the screw, the head can be taken out and replaced in a reversed position,

page_text: or turned round, so as to present the opposite end to the wires of the instru-
ment. is a small needle-pointed screw or wire, which is screwed into and
passes through the back of the frame c and into the piece a, to prevent the
head from turning in the frame when in use. To reverse the head, the wire f
is unscrewed, and the head a, b, is turned round, and the wire f is screwed in.
again. The small aperture in the felt which is left by the wire may be filled
ip if required, by introducing a small piece of felt into it. Figure 11 is a:
side view, and Figure 12 is a plan, of a similar hammer with reversible head.:
In this case the head is fixed with two screws d and g, which are taken out,
and again inserted when the head is reversed.
Figure 13 is a side view of. a reversible head, fixed by oric screw d, and:
confined by one or more ligatures or clips q, which may be of wire or of thin:
sheet metal, or other suitable material. Any other suitable means of prevent-,
ing the head from turning in the frame when in use, or being. 'accidentally:
displaced, may be employed.
:
Figure 14 is a side view, and Figure 15 is a plan, of a hammer with a:
metallic frame and reversible head. The frame c has two small side pieces or.
wings h, h, which confine the head a, b, and prevent it from turning round;
two other side pieces i, i, may be also added at the top. Figure 16 is a:
separate side view of the metallic frame. Figures 17, 17 A, and 17 B are.
side views of similar frames adapted for smaller hammers.
:
In some cases I connect the head to the rest of the hammer by an elastic:
connection, so that it is capable of yielding a little when it strikes the string.
or strings. Thus, Figure 18 is a side view, and Figure 19 is a plán, of a:
hammer head, constructed in a similar manner to that shewn in Figures 9
and 10, excepting that a cord of vulcanized caoutchouc is substituted for.
the screw d. This cord, being tapered to a point by cutting or otherwise, a
piece of silk thread or fine: wire is firmly secured thereto, and is passed:
through the holes in the frame and head. The opposite end of the cord is!
tien fixed in a vice or to some other firm object, and the cord is stretched so.
as to allow the frame and head to slide or travel easily along the cord to near:
the fixed end; the cord is then cut. The caoutchouc immediately contracts:
somewhat in length and expands in diameter, and its ends are thus prevented.
from passing back through the holes. The head thus becomes slightly elastic.
It is kept in a proper position by the pointed screw. or wire f, or by other s
suitable means.
The same arrangement of elastic connection may be applied to the hammers
with metallic frames, shewn in Figures 14, 15, and 16, by substituting the

page_text: elastic cord for the screw d, as shewn in side view in Figure 20, and in plan in
Figure 21. The small wings h keep the head in position, in lieu of the screw,
or wire, or ligature, before mentioned.
The wooden frames may be made by shaping and grooving into the required
form, size, and depth a piece of lime, or sycamore, or other suitable wood, of a
parallel or tapering form, as shewn in the perspective view, Figure 22, and
then sawing it across into a number of separate frames. The frames may be
made from one piece, gradually tapered from one end to the other, or they:
may be made in sets of different sizes, proper for each octave or other number
of notes. The central pieces a of the heads, when made of wood, may be
made in a similar manner. When these central pieces are made of leather,
they are punched or cut out of leather of sufficient hardness and thickness.
The metallic frames may be punched, stamped, or pressed out of thin sheet
brass or iron, or other suitable metal, and bent into form. Thus, Figure 23 is
a plan of a piece of sheet brass stamped or cut of the proper form for bending.
up into the frame c, in Figures 4, 5, and 6. The branches n, n, aro bent for-
ward, and the branches o, p, are bent backward, and soldered together to form
the socket for receiving the rod e in Figure 4. Figure 24 is a plan of a piece
of sheet brass of the proper form for producing the frame c in Figures 14, 15,
and 16. The branches n, n, are bent forward, and the branches o, p, are bent
backward and formed into a square, oblong, round, or oval shape, and soldered.
together, as before. The small wings h, h, are bent up, and the wings i, i, are
bent down on each side, as shewn in Figures 14, 15, and 16. The mode of
constructing the frames and the sizes and patterns thereof may, however, be
varied.
In the forms of hammers herein-before mentioned the frame or support-
has been shown of a forked form, into which the head is fitted; but this
arrangement may be modified, by making the head of a forked form, into
which the support is fitted. Thus, Figure 25 is a side view, and Figure 26 is
a plan, of a hammer so constructed. a is the head, which is made of a forked
form, covered with leather or felt b, and fitted on to the support c, which is,
fixed on the rod e. The picce a is secured by a screw d, and prevented from
shifting or turning by a small pin or projection f, which is driven or screwed
into or formed upon the support c, and enters a hole in the piece a. Figure 27
is a side view, and Figure 28 is a plan, of a support constructed in a similar
manner, but with the projecting part of the support in a vertical instead of a
horizontal plane. The head may be made similar to that shewn in Figures 25
and 26, or it may have the saw kerf or slit in a vertical position, as shewn in

page_text: the plan, Figure 29, and side view, Figure 30; or the projecting part of tho
support may be placed in an oblique position if the hammer head is required
to be placed obliquely.
Although I have mentioned certain materials as being employed for the
different parts of the hammers, I do not confine myself to the use of such
materials, as others may be employed. The forms and construction of the
hammers and their arrangement for use may also be varied, for the better
application of my Invention to the various forms of pianoforte hammers, and
for adapting the same to the several circumstances under which it may be
necessary to arrange the hammers for use in pianofortes of various kinds and
make.
Having now described the nature of my said Invention, and in what manner
the same is to be performed, I wish it to be understood that what I claim is,
Firstly, the constructing the hammers of pianofortes in such manner that
the hammer head is mounted in or on a frame or support from which it can
be readily removed when required, as herein-before described.
Secondly, the constructing the hammers of pianofortes in such manner that
the hammer head is mounted in a frame or support in which it can be readily
reversed when required, as herein-before described.
Thirdly, the constructing the hammers of pianofortes in such manner that
the head is mounted in a frame or support to which it is attached or in which
it is retained by an elastic connection, as herein-before described.
Fourthly, the constructing the hammers of pianofortes in such manner that
the hammer head is mounted in a frame or support in which it is capable of
being readily reversed when required, and to which it is attached or in which
it is retained by a spring or elastic connection, as herein-before described.
In witness whereof, I, the said John Pursloe Fisher, have hereunto set
my hand and seal, this Seventeenth day of May, in the year of our
Lord One thousand eight hundred and fifty-six.
Witness,
CHARLES COWPER,
20, Southampton Buildings,
Chancery Lane.
J. P. FISHER. (LS.)