AN IMPROVED METHOD OF MANUFACTURING CUTLERY AND OTHER ARTICLES OF HARDWARE WITH OR BY MEANS OF ROLLERS
Year: 1827

page_text: TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, WILLIAM
SMITH, of Sheffield, in the County of York, Merchant, send greeting.
WHEREAS His present most Excellent Majesty King George the Fourth,
by His Letters Patent under the Great Seal of Great Britain, bearing date at
Westminster, the Twentieth day of February, One thousand eight hundred and
twenty-six, in the eighth year of His reign, did, for Himself, His heirs and
successors, give and grant unto me, the said William Smith, His especial
licence that I, the said William Smith, my exors, admors, and assigns, or
such others as I, the said William Smith, my exors, admors, or assigns,
should at any time agree with, and no others, fróm time to time and at all
times during the term of years therein expressed, should and lawfully might
make, use, exercise, and vend, within England, Wales, and the Town of Ber=
wick-upon-Tweed, my Invention of "AN IMPROVED METHOD OF MANUFACTURING
CUTLERY AND OTHER ARTICLES OF HARDWARE WITH OR BY MEANS OF ROLLERS;"
in which said Letters Patent is contained a proviso obliging me, the said
William Smith, by an instrument in writing under my hand and seal, par-
ticularly to describe and ascertain the nature of my said Invention, and in what
manner the same is to be performed, and to cause the same to be inrolled in
His Majesty's High Court of Chancery within six calendar months next and
immediately after the date of the said in part recited Letters Patent, as
in and by the same, reference being thereunto had, will more fully and at large
appear.

page_text: NOW KNOW YE, that in compliance with the said proviso, I, the said
William Smith, do describe my Invention in manner following (that is to
say):-
:―
In describing my improved method as relates to cutlery, it will be necessary
to allude to the mode now employed in forming blades for knives by means of
rollers, so that my improved method may the more clearly be understood.
The mode at present adopted is the passing of steel through rollers for the
purpose of flatting, which steel so flatted is then cut into the lengths for blades
of knives. These blades are then heated, and a piece of iron for forming the
bolster and tang (also heated) is united to the blades by means of hammering.
Now, the object of my improved method is to form the blade and bolster and
tang at one and the same operation, which I do in the following manner :-
I prepare two rollers A, A, as shewn at Fig. 1 in the annexed Drawing, with
grooves around one or both of them, as at a, a, and longitudinal cross grooves,
as at b, b, and it is these cross grooves which form the bolster to the blade,
for it will be evident that if a piece of steel be passed through the aforesaid
rollers A, A, there will be ridges formed on both sides of its surface, as shewn
in Fig. 2 at c, c, and these ridges form the bolsters of the blades. Fig. 2
represents a piece of steel which has been passed through the rollers, which,
when divided by a fly or other means, as shewn by dotted lines, will form nine
blades with their bolsters and tangs, technically called "scale tang." In
making what are technically called "round tang" it is necessary to form a
further set of corresponding grooves on the two rollers A, A, Fig. 1, as at d, d,
in addition to the gross grooves b, b. Fig. 3 is intended to shew a piece of
steel which has passed through the rollers, on the surface of which it will be
seen there are further ridges e, e, which are formed by the additional grooves
d, d, and these are what are called "round tang." These blades are to be
separated, as indicated by the dotted lines, by a fly or other means; and it will
only be necessary further to state that the steel should be heated to a proper
red heat for rolling, and that the blades prepared as above described are to
undergo the usual and well-known operations of smithing, hardening, grinding,
and polishing. The other articles of bardware which I manufacture by rollers
are rasps for shoemakers and farriers, which I perform as follows:-I cut
grooves around the circumference of the rollers A, A, Fig. 1, as at h, h, which
will be better understood by the cross section Fig. 4. It will there be seen
that the parts i, i, are not cut so deep as the parts j, j, of the grooves, by which
means the rasps are shaped as represented in Fig. 5, and the letters used in
this Figure correspond with those on the rollers. These rasps after being
smithed are to undergo the usual process of cutting and hardening.

page_text: In the Drawing I have represented the whole of the above-described grooves
on one set of rollers, but it is evident that separate rollers may be used for each;
and although I have here described rollers, and have in the Drawing represented
pinions attached thereto, I would have it understood that I lay no claim to
them, excepting when used as above described; but what I do claim as my
Invention is, the forming of blades with bolsters and tangs by means of rollers,
and the working of rasps with rollers, as above described.
In witness whereof, I, the said William Smith, have hereunto set my
hand and seal, this Twentieth day of August, in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and twenty covon