IMPROVEMENTS IN ADHESIVE SOLES AND HEELS FOR BOOTS, AND SHOES, AND IN APPARATUS USED FOR PREPARING AND APPLYING THE SAME
Year: 1853

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to John Wallace Duncan, of Grove End Road;
St. John's Wood, in the County of Middlesex, Gentleman, for
the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN ADHESIVE SOLES AND HEELS FOR
BOOTS, AND SHOES, AND IN APPARATUS USED FOR PREPARING AND
APPLYING THE SAME."
Sealed the 16th January 1854, and dated the 16th July 1853.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said John Wallace
Duncan at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his
Petition, on the 16th July 1853.
I, JOHN WALLACE DUNCAN, of Grove End Road, St. John's Wood,
do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS
IN ADHESIVE SOLES AND HEELS FOR BOOTS AND SHOES, AND IN APPARATUS
USED FOR PREPARING AND APPLYING THE SAME," to be as follows:-
My Invention of improvements in adhesive soles and heels consists
in preparing such with an adhesive surface of waterproof cement which
at natural temperatures is free from stickiness, and rendered suitable as
vendible articles. These soles only require to be heated to a necessary
degree, and applied to the bottoms of the shoes or boots or other

page_text: protectors for the feet without the use of solution or other cement,
when it will adhere & become fast. when cold.
My improvements also refer to making such adhesive soles of
leather, combinations of leather & woven wire, and fibrous or textile
fabrics.
I also perforate the soles of a close material in order to allow air or
the superfluous adhesive matter to escape through the material of the
sole or heel. also prepare adhesive soles with perforations, in which
I insert studs or pins flush with both surfaces to make them wear
onger.
My improvements also refer to an apparatus for keeping cold gutta
percha soles while being heated to cause it to adhere, which I effect by
means of a chamber of cold water against the side of which the gutta
percha is held. In apparatus for applying adhesive soles I use a small
chamber of burning charcoal presenting an open fire to heat the cement,
or through a metallic surface.
These improvements also refer to a tool used for preparing or
applying these soles, which consists of a brush of pointed steel pins to
roughen the surfaces before applying the sole; & also to a tool, con-
sisting of a small sharp pointed screw with handle, with which attach
the sole in a temporary manner until the cement sets.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent,
filed by the said John Wallace Duncan in the Great Seal Patent
Office, on the 16th January 1854.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I,
JOHN WALLACE DUNCAN, of Grove End Road, St. John's Wood, in the
County of Middlesex, Gentleman, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her
Letters Patent, bearing date the Sixteenth day of July, in the year
of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and fifty-three, in the seven-
teenth year of Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors,
give and grant unto me, the said John Wallace Duncan, Her special
licence that T, the said John Wallace Duncan, my executors, adminis-
trators, and assigns, or such others as the said John. Wallace

page_text: Duncan, my executors, administrators, and assigns, should at any time
agree with, and no others, from time to time and at all times there-
after during the term therein expressed, should and lawfully might
make, use, exercisc, and vend, within the United Kingdom of Great
Britain and Ireland, the Channel Islands, and Isle of Man, an Inven-
tion for "IMPROVEMENTS IN ADHESIVE SOLES AND HEELS FOR BOOTS AND
SHOES, AND IN APPARATUS USED FOR PREPARING AND APPLYING THE SAME,"
upon the condition (amongst others) that I, the said John Wallace
Duncan, by an instrument in writing under my hand and seal, 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 Wallace Duncan, 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 (that is to say):
My Invention of improvements in adhesive soles and heels consists
in the adaptation of suitable waterproof cement applied preliminary for
an adhesive surface upon soles and heels which at natural temperatures
are free from stickiness, and rendered suitable as articles of commerce.
In this condition the material (when of proper size) only) requires to
be heated to the necessary degree for becoming sticky, and applying to
the bottom of boots and shoes, &c., without the use of any solution or
other cement, when they will adhere and become fast after cooling
down to a natural temperature.
The cement which I employ for the purpose is by preference that
secured to me by Her Majesty's Royal Letters Patent bearing date the
Fourteenth day of April, in the year of our Lord One thousand eight
hundred and fifty-three, and described in the Specification filed on or
about the Fourteenth day of October, in the year of our Lord One
thousand cight hundred and fifty-three, and pointed out for the
purpose.
I do not contine myself to the use of this cement, as other cements
may be used without deviating from the character of my Invention.
The cement may be coated upon the material or substance of the soles

page_text: or heels by apparatus 'described in the Specification of the above-
mentioned Letters Patent, although any other suitable method..may be
adopted, and the cementing matter applied either as an entire or
partial couting alone or combined with thread, wire, woven fabrics,
fibrous materials, or other matters. found advantageous.upon the proper
surface, or in spots, holes, grooves, or chequers.
The material for the substance of my improved soles and heels may
be leather of any suitable description, gutta percha, caoutchouc, catti-
mundo, gum muddar, or other compounds (in any condition of treat-
ment), either alone or combined with fibrous materials, textile or woven
fabrics, cork, wood, horn, metals, glass, or earthenware.
Another of my improvements in soles consists in making goloe'soles
of a length and width sufficient to encase the lower part of the boot or
shoe to which they are intended to be attached. A vamp or welt
piece is formed all round the entire sole, rising from the edge; it is
made contracted all round the top so as to incline towards the middle,
and high enough to embrace the lower. part of the upper leather of. the
boot or shoe. These goloe soles may be formed of any suitable material,
such as sole leather, cork, wood, metal, caoutchouc, in any state of
vulcanization, or combined with woven or fibrous material; the rising
edge is made of a more flexible substance than the bottom, in order to
grip and be easy to the foot. I prefer these soles to be manufactured
of a combination of woven material. with gutta percha or its compounds
after being treated according to the process secured to nie by. Her
Majesty's Royal Letters Patent bearing date September the Fourth,
One thousand eight hundred and fifty-one, and described in the Specifi-
cation thereof enrolled in Her Majesty's High Court of Chancery on or
about the Fourth day of March, One thousand eight hundred and fifty-
one, which consists in "subjecting gutta percha in a state of mastication
"to the action of hot air, regulating the temperature gradually from
"200° to about 350° Fahrenheit, and continuing it for several hours
according to the quality of the gutta percha, in order to dispel the
"natural moisture from it." This, if properly effected, renders
"articles made of that material less liable to change from atmospheric
"influences," or what is generally understood by vulcanized.
"
For facility and superiority of manufacture. these soles may be..con-

page_text: :
structed. in moulds for the purpose adapted to any machinery for
automically elaborating, moulding, and consolidating progressively
gutta percha and its compounds," also described in the Specification of
Patent last time herein-before referred to. In moulding soles, &c. I
use hot water of a high temperature circulating in the jacket round
the mould column of the said apparatus, while the hot moulds
containing the gutta percha compound are slowly progressing towards
the top. The requisite parts of the moulds may be engraved or chased
to ornament the articles as desired; and soles or heels may be made
of an elastic or hard compound according to the proportions of the
vulcanizing matters combined, and degree of heat or length of time they
are subjected to while in the moulds.
Gutta percha sheet, manufactured as pointed out in my Specification
filed on the Fourteenth day of April, One thousand eight hundred and
fifty-three, may be used for making my improved soles, according to
which the material consist of rolled band of gutta percha and its
compounds. Gum inuddar or its combination are also applicable, and
may be perforated, embossed, and cut out at one operation from that
form of material.
I make soles of leather, hardened sulphurized caoutchouc, or gutta
percha, or other material perforated and combined with elastic vul-
canized gutta percha or caoutchone, disposed so as to protrude through
perforations and appear in relief, so that the weight of the wearer may
be sustained upon the elastic portion of the compound soles next the
ground. I prepare thick cork soles and heels, hooped or not round
the edge with leather or gutta percha coated with an adhesive surface,
to attach to boots, shoes, or goloshes for wear during wet weather.
Any of these descriptions of soles and heels I prefer to ornament by
printing or stericelling various designs with adhesive cement upon the
wearing face, and applying thereon either coloured flecks, powdered
colours, metal powders, or leaf.
I do not restrict myself to the use of sole leather manufactured
by any particular method, but for facility in proceedure I prepare
and condition the leather by machinery, as herein-after described,
previous to passing it under my coating apparatus to receive the
charge of cement; when the cement cools it may be perforated and

page_text: embossed as desired, if not so treated previous to coating, and then cut
out in suitable shapes for soles and heels by machinery actuated by
steam power or otherwise.
In order to condition and prepare leather I pass it through one or
more pairs of rollers or cylinders geered and mounted in suitable
framing; the upper one of the pair is constructed with the surface
studded with convex projections, the other having a plain surface.
The action of these rollers is to expand the leather to its utmost limit,
and render it dense and firm when passed between them in a damp
state (the effect is similar to that produced by the shoemaker hammer-
ing the leather upon the lapstone); it is then dried and subsequently
treated according to the other part of my Invention. In order to
surface leather and prepare it to receive the cement I use a machine
consisting of a cylinder constructed of a series of discs similar to
circular saws, but between each toothed one a plain disc of about the
same diameter is placed, and all fixed upon an axle, and all screwed
close together. Parallel to this roller a plain roller is opposed, but
which is made to revolve at a slower speed. A pair of feed rollers
driven at the slower speed are placed in the same frame which feed
the sole leather, with the flesh side exposed to the action of the
disc roller, which rasps all the loose fibrous matter from the leather,
and leaves a surface suitable for coating with the cement.
Leather and like material may be embossed for soles by passing such
between rollers engraved or chased with the design. Ornamental dies
to be used either hot or cold for embossing, chequering, corrugating,
indenting, or printing the soles as desired, are arranged to suit and
adjust upon the ram bed in a machine, the ram of which is actuated
by a revolving eccentric which embosses with rapidity. Reciprocating
cutters and perforators for cutting out the soles or heels, and for per-
forating them according to my Invention, are actuated by a revolving
eccentric which accomplish the operation in the ordinary manner.
In preparing the soles or heels for inserting the studs I employ a
series of taper half round cutters fitted vertically to revolve so as to cut
out the required number of holes in their proper position through one
or more thicknesses of leather at one operation, into which holes I
insert studs. The studs, which are intended to render the soles more

page_text: enduring, may be made by forming a thread or screw on a wire which
is afterwards cut off in suitable lengths for the purpose, or such studs
may be cast of suitable metal. In moulding these screw studs I find
it of advantage to proceed as follows: I cut the patterns from which
the studs are to be cast in two halves longitudinally, and cement the
halves on opposite sides of a plate of glass in position coinciding with
each other.
I then impress the half screw on one side of glass into the sand,
on which the surface of glass presses, producing the division of the
mould. The opposite half of pattern on the other side of glass is
similarly impressed in the sand to form the opposite half of the
mould.
The patterns and plate of glass being removed, and the half moulds
are brought together for the purpose of casting in the ordinary manner.
The moulding of such studs would of course be effected by placing a
number of such patterns on one sheet of glass, and casting them in
series. By using glass as the medium on which to affix the patterns
the several half patterns may readily be brought opposite each other,
and at the same time its transparency enables the moulder to sec
whether his moulds are perfect; clean castings will thus be obtained
with facility.
These studs may also be made of stone, earthenware, or glass,
coloured or otherwise, for the purposes of ornamentation. Ivory, bone,
horne, nuts, wood, shells, hide, leather, hardened caoutchouc, or gutta
percha are also suitable for studs when moulded, shaped, or arranged
for ornamental or wearing purposes.
In order to mould, emboss, or perforate soles and holes rapidly of
gutta perchia, gum muddar, or similar material in a plastic state, I. eni-
ploy two endless belts of articulated metal plates, which are each carried
by a pair of drums or rollers so placed and driven side by side that the
faces of belts come together in juxta-position, antagonistic to each
other, and travelling in the same direction.
The belts are each furnished with suitable moulds, which meet and
register properly with each other.
The belts and moulds where so meeting and travelling together pass
through a tube or passage, bell mouthed where they enter, but which is

page_text: gradually contracted so as to bring the moulds in close and forcible
contact; plastic material being fed between the belts and moulds, it is
conveyed away in sufficient quantity, and carried through the con-
tracting and compressing chamber, when it is moulded and consolidated
into the form of the moulds. The moulds, on emerging from the
compressing chamber, separate and deliver the moulded article suitably
ornamented and embossed, if required. The latter portion of the com-
pression chamber should be parallel, and surrounded with cold water
so as to harden the moulded articles before delivery, and while still
under pressure. The compressing chamber or passage may permit any
superfluous material expressed from the mould to escape, it being simply
necessary that the belts and moulds should be brought and kept in close
proximity for the above purpose.
For rasping or cleaning the shoe soles preparatory to applying the
adhesive soles, I form a brush or scraper made by inserting sharp
pointed steel pins into a metal head or wooden handle similar to a
brush.
For holding gutta perchi or other soles while being heated for ap
plying to the shoes, &c., I find it convenient to use a chamber or flat
vessel with a raised flange or crge, forming a recess in the side of the
chamber in which the sole rests. This chamber is filled with cold water
to keep that part of the sole cool which is not exposed to the fire or
heat.
For heating the adhesive surface of soles I use a small chamber of
burning charcoal presenting an open fire, or a series of burning jets
of gas, or a campbine or naptha lamp, may be used for the purpose.
The same means may also be used to dry the bottonis of boots or
shoes preparatory to applying the adhesive soles. Small sharp screws,
such as gun ramrod screws, fixed in a handle are useful to hold the sole
on to the bottom of the boot or shoe, and prevent it shifting after being
heated, and applied until the cement.cools and sets.
Leather soles prepared according to this my Invention of improve-
ments will possess all the advantages of gutter percha soles, with greater
durability in wear, facility of application, and without any disagreeable
smell of naptlia, or langer from firc, and at a much smaller cost.
Having thus:described the nature of my -Invention, and the manner

page_text: of carrying the same into effect, I desire it to be understood that I do
not herein claim attaching gutta percha or leather soles or heels to
boots or shoes with any solution, neither do I claim the use of cement
for that purpose; but what I claim as secured to me is,―
Firstly, I claim manufacturing soles and heels with a preparatory
adhesive surface, as before described.
Secondly, I claim goloe soles fashioned so that the lower part of the
boot or shoe may be fitted and encased, as described.
Thirdly, I claim perforating soles and heels formed of leather, gutta
percha, or other materials that are of a close substance, in order to
allow the air or superfluous cementing matter to escape through the
perforations when attaching them to boots or shoes.
Fourthly, I claim the insertion of studs through one or more thick-
nesses of material forming the sole or hecl prior to application, as
before described.
Fifthly, I claim the manufacture of soles with flexible vulcanized
gutta percha or caoutchouc protruding in relief.
Sixthly, I claim an apparatus for holding and keeping cool gutta
percha or adhesive soles while being heated.
Seventhly, I claim the instrument described for clearing the bottoms
of the boots or shoes preparatory to the application of adhesive soles.
In witness whereof, I, the said John Wallace Duncan, have
hereunto set my hand and seal, this Sixteenth day of January,
in the year of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and
fifty-four.
JOHN WALLACE DUNCAN. (L.S.)
Witness,
W. CLARK,
Patent Agent,
58. Chancery Lane.