A Dictionary of Arts, Manufactures and Mines / containing a clear exposition of their principles and practice

by Andrew Ure

[Fig. 263.] is a front view of this machine; a a and b b are the two rollers, the upper one turning upon an extended axle, bearing in the standards, the lower one upon pivots. These rollers are formed by a series of circular blocks, between a series of circular steel cutters, which are slidden on to iron shafts, and held together upon their axle by nuts screwed up at their ends. The accurate adjustment of the cutters is of the first importance to their correct performance; it is therefore found necessary to introduce spiral springs within the blocks, in order to press the cutters up to their proper bearings. A section of one of the blocks is shewn at [fig. 265], and an end view of the same at [fig. 266], with the spiral springs inserted.

At the outer extremity of the axle of the roller a, a rigger c, is attached, whence a band passes to a pulley d, on the crank shaft e, to which a flywheel f, is affixed, for the purpose of rendering the action uniform. Rotatory motion being given to the crank shaft, the upper roller is turned, the lower roller moving at the same time by the friction against the edges of the cutters.

[Fig. 264] is an end view of the rollers, showing the manner in which the pasteboards are guided and conducted between the cutters. In the front of the machine a movable frame g, is to be placed, for the purpose of receiving the pasteboards, preparatory to cutting them into cards, and a stop is screwed to this frame for the edge of the pasteboard to bear against, which stop is adjustable to suit different sizes. From the back part of this frame an arm h, extends, the extremity of which acts against the periphery of a ratchet wheel i, fixed at the end of the roller b, and hence, as the roller goes round, the frame is made to rise and fall upon its pivots, for the purpose of guiding the pasteboard up to the cutters; at the same time a rod k, hanging in arms from the sides of the standards (shewn by dots in [fig. 263]), falling upon the pasteboard, confines it, while the cutters take hold, and racks, corresponding with the indentations of the rollers, are placed as at l l, by means of which the cards, when cut, are pushed out of the grooves.

As various widths of cards will require to be cut by this machine, the patentee proposes to have several pairs of rollers ready adjusted to act together, when mounted in the standards, in preference to shifting the circular cutters, and introducing blocks of greater or less width.

The second part of the invention is a machine for pasting the papers, and pressing the sheets together to make pasteboard. This machine consists of several reels (we suppose rollers are intended) on which the paper is to be wound, along with a paste trough, and rotatory brushes. The several parts of this machine, and their operations in making pasteboard, are described in the specification, but the patentee having omitted the letters of reference in the drawing which he has enrolled, it becomes difficult to explain it.

As far as we are enabled to understand the machine, it appears, that damped paper is to be wound upon two rollers, and conducted from thence over two other rollers; that two fluted rollers revolving in the paste trough are to supply paste to two circular brushes, and that by those brushes the papers are to be pasted upon one side, and then pressed together, to make the pasteboard; after this, the pasteboard is to be drawn on to a table, and to remain there until sufficiently dry to be wound upon other rollers. By comparing this description with the [figure], perhaps the intended operations of the machine may be discovered, it is the best explanation we are enabled to give.

CARDS, (Cardes, Fr.; Karden, Ger.) are instruments which serve to disentangle the fibres of wool, cotton, or other analogous bodies, to arrange them in an orderly lap or fleece, and thereby prepare them for being spun into uniform threads. The fineness and the levelness of the yarn, as well as the beauty of the cloth into which it enters, depend as much upon the regularity and perfection of the carding, as upon any subsequent operations of the factory. The quality of the carding depends more upon that of the cards than upon any attention or skill in the operative; since it is now nearly an automatic process, conducted by young women called card-tenters.

Cards are formed of a sheet or fillet of leather pierced with a multitude of small holes, in which are implanted small staples of wire with bent projecting ends called teeth. Thus every piece of wire is double toothed. The leather is afterwards applied to a flat or cylindrical surface of wood or metal, and the co-operation of two or more such surfaces constitutes a card. The teeth of cards are made thicker or slenderer, according as the filaments to be carded are coarser or finer, stiffer or more pliant, more valuable or cheaper. It is obviously of great importance that the teeth should be all alike, equably distributed, and equally inclined over the surface of the leather, a degree of precision which is scarcely possible with handwork. To judge of the difficulty of this manipulation we need only inspect the annexed [figures]. The wire must first be bent at right angles in c and d, [fig. 268], then each branch must receive a second bend in a and b at a determinate obtuse angle, invariable for each system of cards. It is indispensable that the two angles c a e and d b f be mathematically equal, not only as to the twin teeth of one staple, but through the whole series; for it is easy to see that if one of the teeth be more or less sloped than its fellow, it will lay hold of more or less wool than it, and render the carding irregular. But though the perfect regularity of the teeth be important, it is not the sole condition towards making a good card. It must be always kept in view that these teeth are to be implanted by pairs in a piece of leather, and kept in it by the cross part c d. The leather must therefore be pierced with twin holes at the distance c d; and pierced in such a manner, that the slope of the holes, in reference to the plane of the leather, be invariably the same; for otherwise the length of the teeth would vary with this angle of inclination, and the card would be irregular.