IMPROVEMENTS IN THE MANUFACTURE OF NAILS
Year: 1857

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Alexander. Parkes, of 8, Bath Row, Birmingham,.
for the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN THE MANUFACTURE OF NAILS."
ealed the 8th May 1857, and dated the 16th February 1857
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Alexander Parkes at
the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the
16th February 1857.
I, ALEXANDER PARKES, of 8, Bath Row, Birminghan, do hereby declare the
nature of the Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN THE MANUFACTURE OF NAILS,"
to be as follows:-
My improvements in the manufacture of nails consists in making cup or
hollow-headed nails of wrought iron or other wrought metal, such nails having
hitherto been made by casting them in iron or brass. In making cup nails
with iron, or brass, or other metal, I cut out discs of iron or other metal of the
size and thickness of the head of the nail I require, and the shank is also to be
cut out separately from the head; and to unite the head and shank I cause
the shank to be placed in suitable tools or dies, and the discs to form the head
are pierced in the centre with a hole through or partially through, suitable to
the size of the shoulder on the shank, and are to be placed in suitable
tools and brought on to the shanks; and whether presses or 'stamp machinery
are used, the two are forced together, when the head and shank will be firmly
united into a nail; the top and bottom dies will cause the head to assume the
domed shape required, or I dome the pieces to form the heads in separate tools
before I unite the heads to the shanks. The nails, when made as above, may
be coated with tin, brass, or other metal, by any of the well-known methods

page_text: employed for coating metals, or the nails may be blacked or bronzed. I also
make ornamental heads to the nails, if required. In place of the heads being
circular, the piece for the heads may be cut to other forms, using tools of the
required design.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, filed
by the said Alexander Parkes in the Great Seal Patent Office on the
15th August 1857.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, ALEXANDER
PARKES, of 8, Bath Row, Birmingham, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the Sixteenth day of February,, in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and fifty-seven, in the twentieth year of Her
reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors; give and grant unto me, the
said Alexander Parkes, Her special licence that I, the said Alexander Parkes,
my executors, administrators, and assigns, or such others as I, the said Alexander
Parkes, 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 "IMPROVEMENTS IN THE MANU-
FACTURE OF NAILS," upon the condition (amongst others) that I, the said
Alexander Parkes, 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.
NOW KNOW YE, that I, the said Alexander Parkes, do hereby declare the
nature of the said Invention, and in what manner the same is to be. per-
formed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and by the following
statement thereof, that is to say:-
My improvements in the manufacture of nails consist in making cup or
hollow-headed nails of wrought iron or other wrought metal, such nails having
hitherto been made by casting them in iron or brass. In making, cup nails
with iron, or brass, or other metal, I cut out discs of iron or other metal of the
size and thickness of the head of the nail I require, and the shank is also to be

page_text: cut out separately from the head; and to unite the head. and shank I cause the
shank to be placed in suitable tools or dies, and the discs to form. the head are
pierced. in the centre with a hole through or partially through, suitable to the
size of the shoulder on the shank, and are to be placed in. suitable tools and
brought on to the shanks; and whether presses or stamp machinery are used,
the two are forced together, when the head and shank will be firmly united
into a nail the top and bottom. dies will cause the head to assume the domed
shape required, or I dome the pieces to form the heads in separate tools. before
I unite the heads to the shanks. The nails, when made as above; may be
coated with tin, brass, or other metal, by any of the well-known methods
employed for coating metals, or the nails may be blacked or bronzed. I also
make ornamental heads to the nails, if required. In place of the heads being
circular, the piece for the heads may be cut to other forms, using tools of the
required design.
Having thus stated the nature of my Invention, I will proceed more fully to
describe the manner of performing the same:-
Blanks of sheet metal are to be cut out in the usual manner, and as is well
understood, and suitable shanks or stems are to be cut or formed. The heads
and shanks or stems may be of the same or of different metal. The shanks or
stems are cut or formed wedge-shaped or tapering. The blanks or discs for;
forming the heads are, when they are of comparatively thin metal, to be per-
forated through in their centres, the holes being of slightly smaller diameter
than the upper ends of the stems or shanks, so that when the shanks or stems
are passed into the holes, the upper ends of the stems or shanks will fit some-
what tightly in the holes. When the discs or blanks of metal which are to
form the heads are comparatively thick, then it is not necessary to form the
hole through the metal, but it is sufficient that the holes should be punched or
formed nearly through, and so as to receive the upper ends of the shanks or
stems somewhat tightly within the holes. The dies used for fixing on the
heads of nails and for rendering the upper surfaces of a rounding or convex
form may be varied, but those preferred by me consist simply of a bed, or lower
die and punch, for each size and form of nail. The bed or lower die is per-
forated through from top to bottom, so that the stems or shanks of the nails
may be received easily in the centre of the bed or die. The upper central part
of the bed or lower die is formed convex, to correspond with the degree of con-
cavity or shape of the under surfaces of the heads. The upper die or punch is
formed concave on its under side, corresponding with the desired convexity to
be given to the upper surfaces of the heads of the nails. In fixing and forming
the head of a nail on its stem or shank, the workman having placed the stem

page_text: or shank in a blank or disc, he places the stém into the lower die, so that the
under surface of the blank rests on the convex centre of the bed or lower die.
The upper die or punch is caused to descend, and as it comes first in contact
with the outer edges of the disc or blank, it presses the same down over the
convex centre of the lower or bed die, which causes the central portion of the
under surface of the blank to close tightly on the shank or stem; and by
the time that the under edges of the punch come to the upper surface of the
bed die, the upper surface of the blank will be shaped by the punch into the
desired form, and the head will also be securely fixed on the stem or shank;
when it is desired that the shank or stem should be fixed by soldering, in
addition to the fixing by the compressing of the metal, then the soldering is
to be performed after the stem has been introduced into the blank and before
subjecting them to pressure in the dies. The nail thus formed is then lifted
out of the bed die by means of a wire or rod caused to rise up through the bed
die or punch.
Having thus described the nature of my said Invention, and the manner of
performing the same, I would have it understood that I do not confine myself
to the use of the dies above described, as the same may be varied; but what
I claim is, the manufacture of nails by forming and fixing heads on stems or
shanks, as herein described.
In witness whereof, I, the said Alexander Parkes, have hereunto set my
hand and seal, this Fourteenth day of August, in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and fifty-seven.
Witness,
JNO. ALCOCK.
ALEXANDER PARKES. (L.S.)