The Iron Age 1890-07-03: Vol 46

/¢ 24°) / 4A \ ‘ee. i THE IRON AGE. VOL. ALYVE JULY—DECEMBER, 1890. NEW YORK: DAVID WILLIAMS, 96-102 READE STREET. [ rs f i" ’ e ™~ fers ‘ | : pork ar a . rs ; : * . ‘i ) i ae t 4 , if . * Ps x | a u \ F { ; | ; - . as sf A H se , 4 7 * hs , ’ a ‘ i cs 7 . " i wine - f bi ae : ; ‘ if A " 4 ’ a se i Pi pee “ + of J > bd ae cs c artes " PI x! é / > A i r a i f _ or) i ry i , a : k 7 j Bae : / Fy abe sok 9 corr i a , j LT 2 A , Pp 5 7 . t A . | <: “Tip IRON AGE TuHurRspDAY, JULY 3, 1890. Accumulator. The annexed cuts represent quite fully an accumulator built by the Lloyd Booth Company, of Youngstown, Ohio, and now in successful operation in the tube depart- ment of Messrs. J. & C. Hodgson, of Montreal, Quebec, Canada. The accumu- lator represented differs in design from others in use, one of the principal features being that the cylinder, which is-inverted, moves while the ram remains stationary ; and, owing to the machine being con- structed on this prin- ciple, all of it is above ground and the diff- erent parts are easily accessible for packing and drainage. The weight occupies the space between the cyl- inder and the wrought iron shell which sur- rounds it, so that the weight ‘‘hangs” on the column of water, and the tendency to tip is not so great as in accumulators of the old style. The water enters and discharges at the side of the base plate, passing up through the center of the ram into the cyl- inder, provisions be- ing made to drain at the lower end of the cylinder. The princi- pal points in the con- struction are plainly shown in the accom- panying drawings. The Philadelphia Manual Trainin School had its annua exhibit last week, showing rapid pro- gress by young arti- sans, and refiecting credit on Prof. Sayre and his corps of teach- ers. The exhibit com- prised a model show- ing eight different methods of driving shafts by transmitting power by belts; a compact and ingeni- ous horizontal engine, completely _ finished and worked by elec- tricity. Out of five hours’ work a day the” pupils have one hour and forty minutes de- voted to manual labor and three hours and twenty minutes to . to other studies. Se i] i In his three courses of | President’s signature to complete mined. Already extensive concentrating aud reduction works are completed on the ground, and are equipped with machinery for handling 1000 tops of ore bearing rock per day. ———— The North River Bridge. Congress has passed the bill authorizing the construction of a bridge across the Hudson River between New York and Jersey City, and all it needs now is the nT ooaeeen TT] nT HI i i il Hit ANI it ' iy" | | Mt A mA | i Hit AN iM | NAY / | | Hi } Mi | i | Bi | ut iia i ‘4 | ih cs a \ i Hy ACCUMULATOR. the manual training Professor Sayre teaches | power of the incorporators to proceed with the boys to make all articles of use and |the work. The plans are those of that ornament, from the abstract drawing to | the concrete model, and to exercise-their minds and imagination at the same tithe. e A The old Ogden iron mines, near Og- densburg, N. J., on the line of the Sus- quehanna and Western Railroad, are to be reopened early next month by the New eminent civil engineer and bridge archi- | tect, Gustave Lindenthal, of Pittsburgh. |They provide for a structure over 7000 feet in length, 100 feet wide, and 140 feet in the clear above high water mark. There will be one central span 2850 feet long between the New York and New Jersey shores, and two other spans, each Jersey and Pennsylvania Concentrating | over 2500 feet, extending from the piers Company, of which Thomas A. Edison is|on shore to the immense anchorages on president. It is the intention of the com-| either side. The structure will be built pany to apply Edison’s newly invented | upon plans like those of the Brooklyn magnetic ore separating process to the con- centration and reduction of the ores Bridge, only twice as large in nearly every respect. The towers are to be built at D the pier head line on either shore, and are to be 506 feet high, almost double the hight of those of the Brooklyn Bridge, which are 280 feet. The cables, of which there will be four, two on either side, will be 4 feet in diameter, and will contain 15,000 steel wires each. The Brooklyn Bridge cables are 15 inches in diameter. Unlike the Brooklyn Bridge cables, the cables of the North River Bridge will not extend inland to anchorages at a distance from the piers, but will be brought to an- chorages at the base of the piers. These anchorages will be immense affairs of solid masonry 210 feet high, 180 feet wide and 400 feet long, with tunnels through the top for trains to pass through. The roadbed will be 85 feet wide, with pro- vision for eight rail- road tracks. The bill provides that work on the structure must begin within three years, and that the bridge must be completed in ten years. Engineer Lindenthal says it will be necessary for the bridge company to ac- quire $30,000,000 worth of real estate, principally in New York City, for termi- nal facilities before . work on the bridge proper can begin, and that the bridge itself will cost $16,000,000. Before the Senate Commerce Committee Mr. Lindenthal said, in answer to questions that the central span would rise and fall 8 feet in changes of temperature to the ex- tremes. The anchor- ages would be half as large as the Capitol at Washington, and each would contain 50 per cent. more masonry than the largest of the pyramids of Egypt. Before it all other bridge structures in the world would seem insignificant. The plan has been before the engineering and financial world for years, and has been pronounced feasible and practicable by the American Society of Civil Engineers. The parties who are back of the scheme are not speculators, but are men whose works and achievements in the constructive and financial fields are matters of wide and creditable renown. The incorporators are Jordan L. Mott, John King, M. C. Lanahan, James Andrews, Thomas F. Ryan, Garret A. Hobart, F. W. Roebling, Charles J. Canda, Edward F. C. Young, Henry Flad, Gustav Lindenthal, A. G. Dickinson, J. H. Miller, W. K. Brookfield, Samuel Rea, W. F. Shunk and Philip E. Chapin. Judge Greene’s rival scheme is temporarily thrown into the background, but the latter has received a charter both from New Jersey and New York. The Flow of Metals and its Re- lation to Testing. BY PAUL KREUZPOINTNER, ALTOONA, PA. In The Iron Age, June 5, 948, at- tention was called to the a oo as an important , and its effect on the om of sioesbaeahteeerteh. Since its in- uence is so potent on the life and safety of a structure it must manifest itself in a small test piece, when this is subject to stresses, as well as on a whole structure. This is indeed the case and is the reason why materials are tested according to pre- vailing methods. But testing will be worse than useless, and the time and money expended in this work be thrown i ane we are reasonably sure that the vior of the piece of metal under strain in the testing maclline is analogous and comparable with the behavior of the “same metal in the structure when that structure is subjected to stresses ; in other words, whether we can draw safe conclu- sions from the results of tests to serve as a . basis for designing, and the subsequent stability of the structure erected from the material tested. It is chiefly the results of tensile tests with which we are concerned, since it is by this method that most metals are tested. The form of the test piece may and does alter the results of tests, thus introducing elements of uncertainty into an otherwise most valuable method. We must find to what extent, if at all, such elements of uncertainty do exist, and how to avoid them, if possible. The fact that a full sized structure, or a girder, beam or bar does not possess the strength per square inch which the results of tests with a small piece of the same metal would indicate, is weil known. This difference in strength is noticeable with all the results of the djfferent methods of testing. Again there may be a difference of from 3 to 10 per cent. in the results of tests according to shape of section. To in- quire into the reasons why this is so will be the subject of the present paper. Tests were made by the Government of Holland with 32 full sized riveted girders, which were intended for bridges over the Rhine, at Arnheim and Nymwegen. In the table below, the difference in the re- sults of small test pieces. and full sized girders are given.* ft is perhaps not too — to say that —, instances are own to every experienced engineer. The breaking loads of the girders given are those loads at which fracture or permanent deformation of the girder took place. Average strength of Tensile girders. ous” ey eee per sq. in.|In pounds} In per +~ of test | ~per sq. | cent. of pieces. jin. of sec-|theoretic’l tion. | strength. Material. Crucible steel.| 119,400 88,400 74 Crucible steel.| 93,800 | 55,500 59 ee 65, 50,600 77 Wrought iron.) 55,400 | 52,000 94 Objection may be raised to the intro- duction of the results of the above experi- ment as not germane to the subject under discussion, because a girder is a joinved structure into the strength of which de- sign and workmanship enter as important factors. While such an objection holds good, to a certain extent, the weakening effects of these causes must nevertheless be considered 7 in the light of what might be called incidents contributary to * Wochenschri des Vereins Deutscher Ingenieure. 1882. No.1. _ THE IRON AGE, July. 3, 1890 the indisputable fact that the whole is| iron plate polished on one side And the weaker than its part, if such an expression | whole surface’ covered with intersecting is accepted as conveying the meaning. | squares or circles. If we now fasten the Even in a bar of 14 or 2 inch round | plate on each end in suitable grips and ap- iron, the difference between the full sized | ply sufficient force to stretch the plate be- bar and a corresponding test piece, with a‘ yond the elastic limit—that is, beyond that Zitz LZ Zz tj SSS SS LAL Lyzzzceecttttcctteteccccaelcetczccecceccccecccttcc Lz: Lizz SSSSSSSSSSSSSGS SSI SA SSS VEZ SSS SS SSSSSS = \ \ ie Le ) pm | y SSSSSSSSSASSSSSSSSS Un a \ ; /} ia LS I PI. Ve /P bot ae 4 Uy J i A AO \AXOMID VERTICAL SECTION AND PLAN OF ACCUMULATOR. 6 or 8 inch section, is often 5 per cent., ; point where the molecules, when drawn out and with a groove section, 15 per cent. of their natural position by external force, Let us now examine in how far the flow | do not return again to that position, then of metals contributes to this difference of | we will see how the oe or circles begin results in strength due to form and size of | to elongate all over the plate. The more section. Let us assume a large steel or| uniform the structure of the material the July 3, 1890 ore uniform. the extension of the in- scribed: figures will be. The flow of the metal, which is thus indicated by the ex- tension of the res, and which had, though imp ly, begun with the ap- plication of the smallest load, becomes more rapid as the force applied is in- creased. As the flow increases the surface of the sheet assumes a dull lustre, until finally it begins to look rough, the more so the softer the metal. As the metal stretches the width of the sheet, as well as its thickness, diminishes. If we now im- agine that no holding arrangement like the ips have interferred with the freest movement of every particle of the metal, then the result would be an ideal-and unre- strained exhibition of the natural strength of the metal tested. This natural condition of free and un- obstructed flow of every particle of the metal is reached in a full sized structure, girder, beam, bar or link, modified, how- ever, by the design of the structure and other circumstances, but still greatly to the advantage of the metal, in comparison with the artificial restrictions imposed upon the metal in an ordinary tensile test. That the flowing molecules can be arrested and impeded in their movement is clearly shown when a hard spot is found amid the soft metal of a sheet or.bar. Just like a rock obstructs the flowing water and forces it to seek another path, so the at- tentive expert can see how the flowing molecules of the metal stop before the hard spot, while the rest of the metal flows on and t on either side exactly like a fluid. Should the hard spot happen to be at the edge of the sheet or bar, then buckling or bending edgewise will take place, since the soft side will stretch more than the hard side. Should the whole side happen to be uniformly hard and the opposite side. soft, then curving sideways toward the hard side will take place - to a certain point, when the hard side will fracture while the metal in the soft side continues to flow until maxi- mum strength is reached. In a small way this same occurrence takes place in a test piece in which the sheared edge was planed off on one side to remove the ae, effects of the shearing on the metal, while the opposite edge was left undisturbed and conse- quently hard. As the metal on the sheared edge is made very dense and hard by the compression from the shear blades, the metal in that portion flows slower in a very disproportionate rate compared with the soft side and hence curving and: pre- mature fracture on the hard side takes place, making the test worthless. Exactly the same g takes place frequently when testing ‘‘scrapy” irop, when the hard and crystalline portion not being able to stretch, that is to flow, as readily as the soft portion, snaps asunder while the rest continues to stretch. Enough has been said to show that“the free flow of the metal can be obstfucted“ und“ arrested and as a consequence the results of tests be made defective and misleading. Wherever and whenever, therefore, in testing any- thing more than a mere approximation of quality within a large margin is attempted, en the above mentioned facts about the Rosine influence of obstructions on the ee flow of the metal must be taken into consideration and accounted for, From the foregoing it is evident that with the size and shape of test section we may also ntroi- duce elements of error iuto our testing. As pointed out before, there may be a difference of from 8 to 10 cent,, and even more, in the results of tests of the same metal, due principally to the differ- ence in test section. ith a straight sec- tion (that is, with atest piece whose’edges are a and where there is consequently nothing to hinder the test piece breaking anywhere between the ends) that portion of the metal which is inside the grips is THE IRON AGE, hindered from wees 4 A test piece with straight edges would therefore be the most preferable, if it were not for the fact that it is liable to break in or near the grips, due to the injury done by the latter, where little or no elongation takes place. A shaped section is almost universally used in--order to confine the breaking point to within a defined distance. This being the case, it is obvious that that sec- tion will be the best and most preferable which, as nearly as possible, comes within the condition of a full sized bar or sheet; in other words, allows the freest and least interrupted. movement to the molecules when under stress, and is also large enough in area to represent within its limits some of the inequalities-of structure which are met -with so~frequently in metallurgical products, In every day engineering prac- tice we find test sections in use ranging from 1 to 10 inches in length, varying also in width. As has already been mentioned at the beginning of this article the differ- ence in results of tests between the well known ve or government marine sec- tion and an 8 or 10 inch section may be from 3 to 10 per cent, In his-letter to the American Boiler Makers Association {The Iron Age, Nov. 11, 1889), the writer has dwelt at some length on this point. The objections raised in that letter to the groove section apply in a measure to all shaped sections, because the very shape of a section offers resistance to that free flow of the metal when under stress which is so desirable to an unrestricted exhibition of the qualities of a metal. When making a test the experienced ob- server will notice that near the heads and fillets the metal does not flow so readily as in other portions of the test piece. Those rtions of the head of the test piece orming the fillets cannot take part in the flow, because the fibers having been cut, their connection with the test section in a longitudinal direction has been destroyed. Transversely, however, their influence is still omanel but in a way unfavorable to the free movement or flow of the molecules w acting like a double brake on the mid- dle portion of the test section, virtually as- suming the function of counterweights to the force pulling in the direction of the axis.of the test piece. Whatever movement or flow does take place in the filleted portion of the test piece is caused by an increased expendi- ture of force over and above that necessary to cause the flow.of the metal in the un- hindered part of the test section. The particles of the metal, instead of- moving away willingly with the mass of their fellow particles have to be torn away with more or less foree from their associates in the head and ‘fillets, and hence the increase of power necessary to. break a small sec- tioned test piece over one with a large section. In the groove section we have all head and fillets and no, what might be called, free-metal-at-all. The leverage to move the r toad is so short that the deficiency haa to be made up by addi- tional force. The longer the test piece the less this retarding and opposing force comes into psy the smaller the propor- tion of. artificial resistance to natural re- sistance. \ This artificial resistance may be called zero. in a full sized girder beam, link, bar or sheet, leaving out of consider- ation lapping, riveting or gripping, and 100 in the groove section. ~ “Or, to use another illustration, the difference in.foree necessary to overcome the cohesion of the molecules in the two mentioned extreme cases, may be likened to two spiral springs, the one short, of heavy wire and high temper, the other long, thin and comparatively soft. There is no question which of the two springs can be extended with the least expenditure of power. ere is no more striking proof of the influence of size of test section—namely, the amount of metal.to flow without re- straint on the results of test, than the re- sults of a series of tests made at Watertown Arsenal on iron .and steel boiler plates.* The series consisted of 96 test pieces, 48 of which were iron and 48 steel sheets t-inch thick. Each series of 48 was divided into four sets.- For each one set of iron and steel test pieces the section was the same. All were groovesectioned, that is two holes were drilled and the metal on each side of the section slotted out to equal width with diameter of hole. Length of section for the eight sets was +, 4, % and 1 inch ively The width of section was 4, 1, 14, 2, 24 and 3 inches for each set. In this varying width of section we find a confirmation of all that has been said thus far in regard to the relation of the flow of metals to testing. The results of these tests show an almost uniform decrease of strength with the in- crease of width of section. Summarizing the results of the 4 inch and 8 inch sec- tions we find an average of 9450 pounds greater strength in the 4 inch over the 8-inch section for the iron and an average of 5300 pounds for the steel test pieces of the same dimensions. This is equal to 17 and 8 per cent. respectively of an increase in strength due entirely to such a form of section which most effectually prevents the metal from flowing freely and properly. This conclusion is still more foreibly proven by the statement in the report of the steel late tests: ‘‘Specimen 4 inch wide at ttom of groove, break square across, leaving the fractured ends straight.” Properly interpreted in the light of the arguments advanced herein, this means that no flow at all has taken place in this class of sections. Consequently, the 9450, or the 5300 pounds more re- quired to break the 34-inch wide sectioned test pieces, clearly represent the ‘ excess of force necessary to overcome the cohesion of the molecules unassisted by a previous flow and a weakening of the metal due to that flow. As explained before, the mole- cules or particles of the metal have to be forcibly torn out of their positions, instead of they leaving these tions voluntarily on the application ha. load somewhat higher than the elastic limit. It may be said here in passing that for these reasons, also, the results of taxing the elastic limit on a section shorter than 8 or 10 inches are entirely worthless, un- reliable and misleading. If the thickness of the above test pieces would have been + inch instead of tinch, the difference be- tween the 4-inch and 3-inch wide sections would have been found to be higher still, because of the greater sectional area to be torn apart. In the foregoing, only the re- lation of the flow of metals to testing their strength has been considered to a necces- sarily limited extent, without any reference at all to elongation, contraction, fatigue, detail fractures and other relative sub- jects. RI The French Government. is about to sell out the nation’s interest in the celebrated Sevres porcelain factory, which has had a yearly subvention from the State since Louis XV took possession of it 130 years ago. Instead of spending $150,000 a year for this manufactory, the Government proposes to establish a national school of ceramics, at about half that cost. The English syndicate formed to acquire the works, stock in trade and trade-mark in- tend to restore its former celebrity. The Panama Canal scheme has hopelessly collapsed after sinking $225,000,000, but Lesseps’ ditch offers an inviting field for . enterprising junkmen and dealers in sec- ond-hand machinery. * Congressional Record, Forty-seventh Con- gress, Second Session, Ex. Dec. 1. Report of ance Office, 1882. qd Controlling Apparatus for Bessemer . Converters. At the March meeting of the South Wales Institute of Engineers Nicholas Watts presented the following paper on ‘* Apparatus for Automatically Controlling Bessemer Steel Converters and Center Cranes :” The value of any apparatus or appliance designed to afford immunity from danger to life and limb, and to obviate loss of property, does not require dilating upon. The high importance of the application of such a safeguard to Bessemer converters and center cranes will be appreciated by steel makers. At the autumn meeting of 1883, of the Iron and Steel Institute, Mr. E. P. Martin remarked that one of the worst accidents in steel works resulted from the fracture of hydraulic pipes, and he considered it very desirable to guard against the effect of such failures as far as possible. In the United States he had seen an arrangement to prevent a center crane from being tipped by striking the ingot molds; in the event of its running down, the crane was stopped so that it just cleared the mold. The author therefore pro- poses to devote no more space to the in- troduction of the subject, but to proceed at once to describe the apparatus under notice, which is equally adapted for appli- cation to converters where the main hy- draulic cylinder is movable as in cases where it is stationary. The apparatus is also adapted to control the movements of center cranes with single or double rams. On page 5 we show two longitudinal sections of the hydraulic controlling appar- atus, the upper section illustrating its application to a converter, the main hy- draulic cylinder C of which is stationary. Governing the communication between each pene of the main hydraulic cylinder C and the pressure supply pipe, is a valve, a, seated at one end of a small cylinder, >, in which is a plunger directly connected to a small ramec. The valves @ open upward. The plungers of the cylinder} and of the ram ¢ are all connected to counterweighted - pawls, d, carried on a shaft conveniently placed in relation to the pinions of the con- verter A. Above each valve, a, is a similar valve, a’, also opening upward, and govern- ing the communication between the cylin ders 6 and the return channel. Water entering either of the cylinders 4, accord- ing to the direction in which it is desired to move the converter, first raises the lower- most of the valves, and, passing beyond it, forces back the plunger beyond a port, p, which communicates with the corres- ponding port of the main hydraulic cylinder. At the same time the water acts on the upper face—larger area—of the uppermost valve and keeps it closed. The plungers being connected, the port communicating with the opposite end of the tilting cylinder is simultaneously opened for the escape of the water at that end. The pawls normally tend, under the influence of their counterweights, to gear with the pinion of the converter, and are sufficient, without the assistance of the hydraulic pressure, to hold the converter in any position. These pawls are directly connected to the plungers of the cylinders 6, and in virtue of this arrangement the pawls are thrown out of gear with the converter pinion as the plungers are forced back by the water. e vessel is then free for tilting, and may be moved in either direction as required, so long as the proper pressure of water is maintained. If now the water pressure fail, from ‘ accident or default on the part of the operator, the counterweights, being no longer counteracted, return the pawls into gear. At the same time the returning plungers in the cylinders } close the ports in them, and prevent escape of the water THE IRON AGE, from both ends of the tilting cylinder, so that the converter cannot move, it being locked both by the water pressure and in- dependently by the pawls. An important feature in this invention is the ram ¢, which is shown between the two plungers. This ram is independently connected to the main pressure pipe, the communication being governed by a valve at the pulpit. The plunger of the ram is of larger area than either of the plungers in the cylinders b. When the vessel is lowered to a hori- zontal position for the purpose of charging, or for the purpose of adding at any time heavy scraps to the charge for cooling the same, the ram is then brought into use for locking the vessel in the horizontal posi- tion, so as to sustain with safety the ad- ditional strain; this is effected by estab- lishing communication through the inde- pendent pressure pipe e, between the ram and the main. It will be seen that, under this arrange- ment, not only is danger of overbalancing thus obviated and injurious shocks to the machinery prevented, but the vessel is held without the necessity of exerting a varying pressure from the pulpit. Again, when repairs are required, as some- times happens while the vessel is charged, the ram is brought into use to hold it. The converter, when thus locked, can only be released by expelling the water from behing the ram. Simultaneously with closing the valve through which the water is admitted to the ram, the escape valve for the return water is opened. Water pressure is theu admitted to either of the small cylinders, and there being no resis- tance to be overcome other than that offered through the counterweighted pawls d, the vessel becomes unlocked. A further feature of great importance in this inven- tion consists in the employment of means for obtaining increased steadiness in tilting the vessel. Each valve, a’, by which the return water escapes from each cylinder, 5, is acted upon by a counterweight, /, carried in connection with a system of levers pivoted at a convenient point and con- nected independently to the converter pinion. The arrangement 1s such that as the converter is lowered below the hori- zontal position, one of the weights is de- pressed ond keeps the escape valve of its cylinder closed, and thus the vessel is automatically balanced during the pouring of the metal. When the vessel has been discharged, the weight ceases to act upon the valve, and the converter is lowered for cleansing. The vessel is restored to the horizontal —s inthe usual way, but between that position and the vertical position it is controlled by the other counterweight in a manner similar to that described with reference to the first counterweight. The result is, that the operations of lowering and raising are greatly steadied, and waste of metal in pouring and jarring of the machinery are lessened. Moreover, the weights and their connections constitute a means for locking the water at any stage in the operation of lowering or raising the vessel, which will be thereby rendered absolutely stationary in any position. The lower section illus- trates the application of the —— toa movable tilting cylinder. ere is no difference, except in afew details, be- tween this arrangement and that shown in the upper section. The apparatus has been a to a con- verter at Blaenavon Steel Works, where it has been in use with complete success since September last, and a second converter has been recently fitted with the safety appara- tus, and is now in full work. At Ebbw Vale a converter was fitted in January last, and has worked uninterruptedly since then ; the converter and its charge is readily held ‘stationary, during the operation of pour- ing, by the intermediate ram acting against it and the water behind it. The engrav- ing illustrates the application of the ap- girder to the required hight. at the pulpit may then be left. The escape valve @ at the crane is kept closed by « counterweight, /. of pressure, the water is imprisoned be- tween the two valves and the girder is maintained stationary. The action is in- stantaneous, which, seeing that the girder is usually about 6 inches only above the molds, is of the highest importance. girder is kept perfectly steady, notwith- standing any leakage through the valve at crane. of the girder. crane or a converter afforded by this ap- existing plant. compact and inexpensive, and by its use many lives and many tons of metal would annually be placed beyond risk of loss. July 38, 1890 paratus to a single ram center crane. The water admitted to raise the girder carrying the ladle passes through the lower valve a to the underside of the ram and raises the The valve In the event of failure The the pulpit. In order to lower the crane—to meet various hights of molds—the operator at the pulpit placing his foot on a lever opens a stop valve situated in an independent pressure pipe communicating with the main and with a small ram, ¢, at the The resistance of the counter- weight / is overcome, and the escape valve a' rises and allows the water to out, and when the crane has been owered to the desired extent the stop valve is closed to prevent further descent The control over a center paratus is absolute, while it occupies but a small space and involves no alteration in The apparatus is simple, The following-extract is from the report of the Chief Inspector of Factories and Works to the Home Secretary for the year ending October 31, 1888: ‘‘ Before leav- ing this subject of sate , I would call special attention to the completion of a patent appliance which has for its ob- ject the preventing of accidents in Besse- mer steel works, due to the jerking and sometimes tilting over of the converter when containing its full charge of molten metal. In the success of this appliance I have taken much interest; and in H. M. Chief Inspector’s report for last year, H. M. Superintending Inspector, Mr. Whymper, made special reference to the same, and to the risks to life and limb which which it was calculated to avert. I am now in a position to report that sucha safeguard has been completed, and fitted to one of the converters at the works of the Blaenavon Company, Monmouthshire, and that it has fully realized the most sanguine expectations of the patentees, Messrs. Phillips and Evans, of Newport, Mon., aud all parties concerned in its success. It has been subjected to the most severe tests at the Blaenavon Works, and has stood the ordeal to the entire satisfaction of the management and the joy of the workpeople, and it can now be ae asserted that with this appliance fitted to the converter the Besssmer process of steel ingot making may be carried on with comparative freedom from risk to the men and from loss to the occupiers.” I The official report of the Secretary of State of the Republic of Mexico for the fiscal year just ended contains some coy ilations interesting to people of tHe Dnited States. The total exports from Mexico were valued at over $60,000,000. Of this amount more than $40,000,000 went to the United States, $13,000,000 to England, $3,000,000 to Germany and $3,000,000 to France. Of the 35 custom houses El Paso stands first, Vera Cruz second, Progreso third and Loredo fourth. El Paso did 25 per cent. of the entire busi- ness, Some of the old ferryboats for the North River side are being rebuilt with double decks, adapted to the elevated railway system. AGE. THE IRON July 3, 1890 ‘SUALUAANOO UFWASSAA UOX SALVUVddV HPNITTOULNOO er GFZ ON WZ Ay Yl: ELLA pi BPD 4 2 VAAL LLL Y a etna ne y, : 7 «te \ Bes a err tes- 4} NZ Vit, twa \Q ES 5 Pees a. a a ate —nere. SS ee See ee a nn nn Serene aah tp adele senna ee at 6 THE IRON AGE, Spinning Metals into Irregular Shapes. It is difficult to conceive of the vast vari- ety of so-termed irregular shapes which can be madé upon what we might call mod- ifications of the ordinary lathe. By pro- viding certain adjustments, and usually one or more additional motions, almost any form can be readily turned and a given pattern exactly reproduced. Heretofore irregular spiral or rope shapes have usually been made, either by stamping two halves of sheet metal and then placing them to- gether and soldering, or by placing a tube of metal upon a properly shaped mandrel and then pressing in the metal to make it conform to the shape of the mandrel by riot aalals Fig. 2.—Cross Section through Holder. lat iletal ieeeeee a ET it eet aia IAS travel of the wheel over the length of the mandrel. The operation of the machine will be readily understood. The tube being slipped on the mandrel, the latter is allowed to rotate at any speed desired. Before starting the wheel to spinning the tube into the shape of the mandrel one end of the tube is pressed into the grooves on the mandrel, so that the wheel may obtain a hold to impart to it the im- pulse fo rotate upon its vertical axis. The oblique grooves in the mandrel act as a worm with respect to the wheel and cause it to rotate without regard to whether it is moved longitudinally over the mandrel or not. While so rotating the slide rest is moved longitudinally or parallel to the surface of the mandrel, ——— a rr \ <= \ NZ A Fig. 3.—Sectional Plan of Wheel and Mandrel. July 3, 1890 Aluminum in the Drawing-Press. * BY OBERLIN SMITH, BRIDGETON, N. J. The experiments described in this paper have been very incomplete and only pre- liminary to those I hope to make in future. Having had a good deal of experience in cutting, forming and drawing sheet metals, and feeling a great interest in the commer- cially new and wonderful metal, aluminum, I applied to my friend, A. E. Hunt, for some specimens in sheet form, that I might from time to time test its working prop- erties in presses with which we happened to be experimenting at the works of the Ferracute Machine Company. Thechances Fig. 4.—Handle. Fig. 5.—Blank and Finished Spiral. Ea Fig. 6.—The Spinning Wheel. SPINNING METALS INTO IRREGULAR SHAPES. hand tool. On account ofthe joints the and thus breaks down or spins the metal | for such trials being accidental only, and former method is objectionable, while the tube in the desired shape, as shown in| the time having been limited to the last Fig. 5. It is evident that the wheel acts | few weeks, no crucial experiments have exercise of great skill. The machine we simply as a worm wheel and rotates freely | been tried, and no exact data have been without necessitating any longitudinal | obtained for a rigid comparison with other Browning, of 2139 North 29th street, Phila- | movement, except in so far as is required | metals. The results of what little we deiphia, Pa., and has been used with most to insure the ultimate travel over the | have done, however, are shown in the art- satisfactory results in the manufacture of entire length of the tube on the mandrel. | icles exhibited in connection with the silverware by one of the largest concernsin | During such travel of the wheel the/| reading of this paper, which comprise var- Philadelphia. In the lathe shown in plan, | mandrel may make 100 or 1000 revolu-|ious cups, plates, boxes, bells and cart- latter is expensive, slow and requires the here show is the inveation of Joseph | in Fig. 1, isa mandrel, B, held in the chuck tions. It is apparent that the axis of the | ridge cu and shells. For the latter I A, and upon this mandrelthe metal tube wheel may be changed from the vertical to | am indebted to my friend, Mr. Hobbs, of is spun. The metal tube D is in this case | any angle which will enable it to be|the Union Metallic Cartridge Company, represented as tapering. The periphery of driven by the mandrel as if it were a| who, at my request, ran several pieces of the spinning wheel E, Fig. 6,is formed with| worm wheel. In Fig. 4 is shown the/|sheet aluminum through the dies with grooves, and is mountedon an axle pref-| mandrel, cup and center for spinning a| which he was making brass cartridges. erably at right angles to that of the man- | handle. The mandvel in this case is | The specimens are rougher than they would drel. This wheel is journaled in the holder | collapsible, so that it can be withdrawn | be had the metal not been a little too thin F, Fig. 2, clamped in atool holder of a| after the completion of the spinning. It | for the particular dies which he happened slide rest which is movable parallel with | will be observed that by altering the|to be running. They show, however, a and away from the work. allowed to rotate freely and runs at as he wheel is| mandrel and producing a wheel to cor- | wonderful,and to mea somewhat unexpect- respond, irregular sha commensurate with that of the mandrel, ‘description can be readily made on this and this is irrespective of the longitudinal machine. of almost any * Read at the are meeting of the American Institute of Mining Engineers. July 8, 1860 ed, adaptability to this kind of work. Mr. Hobbs writes me as follows: ‘The metal does not appear to stand nearly as much strain in bending as brass or ‘gilding,’ but in drawing will ap- parently stand much more than either, without annealing. The longest tubes sent you were brought to the present condition in three drawings without any annealing, the metal being .026 inch thick.” We thus see that a very valuable prop- erty of aluminum in this kind of work consists in its not needing the frequent ALUMINUM IN annealings which are required by the brass | in common use, and also by iron and steel, | when drawn into deep articles. The fail- ure in bending referred to is perhaps rather a failure to stretch, as shown by one of the samples, where the metal has been torn partly through, in attempting to draw a deep ‘ pocket” or depression in the flat surface. This is probably ac- counted for by the known tendency of the metal to elongate under tension locally, rather than over a considerable space. The stretching of a pocket of this kind does not, however, come under the ‘drawing process ” ay which con- sists, not in stretching the metal, but in causing it to flow together, or ‘‘ upset,” in a circumferential direction, while at the same time it is flowing further apart, or THE IRON AGE, stretching, in a radial direction. Thus treated, its thickness remains the same, except in some cases, where it is subjected to a combined operation—‘“‘ broaching ” and ‘‘ drawing”’—as happens in some of the operations of cartridge making, &c. This broaching consists in squeezing the metal thinner, by having the space be- tween punch and die less than its original thickness As. what is known as the drawing pro- cess may not be familiar to all, I will briefly describe it, in its simplest form, as used for drawing a flat disk of sheet metal into a cylindrical or cup like shape. The operation consists in holding this disk so tightly between the two parallel, flat an- nular surfaces of the dies that it cannot wrinkle, while the punch which gives it its interior form is pushed down, through a hole in the upper die into a recess in the lower die, which fits it with the pore allowance to give space for the metal be- tween. A set of these dies is shown in Fig. 1, in vertical section through their axis. In Fig. 2 is shown an axial section and a tup view of the disk of metal, tech- nically known asa ‘‘ blank,” before it is drawn. In Fig. 3 are shown the same views, respectively, at a later stage of the operation, when it has been drawn to about one-thifd of its final depth. In Fig. 4 it THE DRAWING-PRESS. 7 is shown at, say, two-thirds depth, and in Fig. 5 as completed. Four small dots will be noticed in Fig. 1, marked upon the blank, and forming the corners of a square, with its diagonal placed in a radial line. In the subsequent figures it will be noticed that two of these dots, upon either side of this imaginary radius, have u- ally approached each other, while the other two dots, lying in the radial line, have re- ceded, thus beautifully illustrating the re- spective directions in which the molecules of the metal have traveled in reach- ing their new locations. In Figs. 6, 7, 8 and 9 are shown a set of dies, and the work in its several stages of a torm conical rather than cylindrical. The dies, as shown in Figs. 1 and 6, are made so that they cut the disk froma large sheet of metal at the cutting edges cand ¢’,as the upper die U descends to perform its mission of holding the blank from wrinkling between its lower flat sur- face, and the corresponding flat surface of the lower die L. hen U has descended until it is firmly in contact with the blank, it stops and remains rigidly in position until the punch P has descended and drawn the metal from between the two holding surfaces, over the rounded corner, d, and down below s, into its desired shape. The lower edge of the working part of the die sis called the ‘stripping edge,” and is kept quite sharp, so that the metal will not be pulled up again by the friction of the punch. Although it has just passed through the die, its elasticity expands it very slightly, so that this strip- ping edge is usually found sufficient to keep it down. That a blank not confined by a holding surface will wrinkle is a fact easily proved by experiment. e y = Dye 7 a In practice it is found necessary to pu an ample vent hole for air through the punch, or else the cup is pulled up after- ward by suction, in spite of the stripping edge. In one of the sample cups shown the vent hole was insufficiently iarge for aluminum, although it had workedgall right with tin plate. This difference was owing to the stiffness of the latter mate- rial. The aluminum, being softer, was pulled up by the air suction just before the cael left the cup. This, of course, would not have happened had the press been running at a slower speed. The dies shown will do equally well for blanks, which have been previously cut elsewhere. In some cases, instead of the cutting edges c¢ a mere rim, with a rounded corner, projects above the surface, serving as a THe IRON AGE, July 3, 1890 gauge to locate the blank centrally when it is thrown in. In Fig. 10 is shown a pair of ‘‘ deepen- ing dies,” so called, which take a cup, Fig. 11, that has already been drawn in dies, like Fig. 1, toas great a depth as the metal will stand, and deepen it to the form shown in Fig. 14. The successive intermediate stages of the operation are shown in Figs. 12 and 13. These and subsequent similar processes are the ones used in cartridge drawing, except that the metal is usually somewhat thicker than the space between the punch and die, so that it is also subjected to a stretching eae similar to wire drawing. This re- ucing in thickness is often called ‘**broaching,” but there is considerable confusion of terms used by various manu- facturers. The presses used for all the dies just described are, of course, of special con- struction, being made with an ‘‘inner” and an ‘‘outer” ram. The latter carries the upper die and is arranged to stop for a time, after a part of the stroke has been made, while the inner ram, carrying the punch, descends to the bottem of its stroke and rapidly returns, just as does the ram in an ordinary single action press. A fuller account of this interesting process, together with rules for the construction of the tools used and a description of the we erage obtained, may be found in a ecture which I had the honor to deliver before the Franklin Institute, and which was published in its Journal for Novem- ber, 1886. In general, I can say, with re- to the drawing of aluminum, that, as ar as my experiments have gone, it seems to be excellently adapted to be drawn into a great variety of household utensils, parts of scientific instruments, ornamental hard- ware, cartridge shells and for very many other purposes, some of which we, prob- ably, can scarcely conceive of as yet. One of its great advantages is, as before inti- mated, its capacity of working without frequent annealing. In the imperfect trials made at our works, in dies which were not especially prepared for it, it seemed to work (outside of the non-annealing) about the same as soft brass, but in some cases was not quite as tough. It, of course, did not show as well as tin plate in regard to tensile strength. As far as I can now judge, it may be said, generally, that it is well adapted for deep drawing, and that the success of any given shape and propor- tions will, in comparing with other metals, be directly proportionate to tensile strengths. This view, however, may be somewhat modified in future, as the result of more careful and accurate experiments. Since the foregoing paragraphs were written, I have seen some ‘‘ drawn work ” that Mr. Hunt had made, which is larger than any for which I Cofbcea to have dies on hand. Among his specimens are & saucepan and tea kettle, which corrobo- rate my impressions as to the perfect adap- tability of aluminum to the making of deep, seamless utensils—which will open to the housekeeper a new era of healthful- ness and cleanliness in the kit chen. EEE Interest has been revived in the case of Coxe Bros. & Co., the prominent indepen- dent coal operators of Pennsylvania, against the Lehigh Valley Railroad Com- pany, which has been before the Interstate Commerce Commission for a year, involv- ing the question of discrimination in coal tolls, by the complaint of John C. Had- dock, an individual coal operator, to the Commission. Mr. Haddock alleges the same evils complained of in the earlier case. He declares that the Delaware, Lackawanna & Western discriminates against him by charging $1.80 per ton for transportation, while it hauls its own coal for $1.50 per ton. As bearing on the foregoing the statement is significant, ap- parently on authority, that the Lacka- wanna es refunded to shippers all amounts collected over the 50 per cent. rate since the passage of the Interstate act. The re- bate in the case of one shipper amounted to more than $45,000. Sheet Metal Punching Press. The cut herewith presented shows an improved roll-feed perforating press which, in connection with the one shown in our issue of June 12, represents the two leading machines for this purpose. Probably two-thirds ofall the perforated metal made in this country is punched on either one or the other of these machines. This machine is intended for sheets which are to be fin- ished in passing through once. They are made in various widths of slides and feed rolls. The cut is sapposed to show a 50- inch machine, which is about a standard size, as sheets for this purpose seldom come any distance from 0 to 1} inch or even more if special sheets require it. The arrangement of the punches is such that should any one of them break it is an easy matter to re- place it by anew one. The weight of the machine complete is about 7500 pounds The builders are the Stiles and Parker Press Company, Middletown, Conn., and 207 Centre street, New York. EE The St. Louis Ore and Steel Co. The St. Louis Ore and Steel Company has gone into the hands of a receiver. While tbis announcement will be a great surprise to the general public, it will be no news to the bondholders of the com- pany, who have for some time been cogni- zant of the facts leading up to this action, and which are unusual to a degree. A\l- though a receiver has been appointed to take charge of its affairs, the company is in no sense insolvent and does not owe a | HP aogygguuensn enn uessaebavitet } | | s SHEET METAL PUNCHING PRESS. any wider The perforating capacity of this press is sheets up to 50 inches wide, and any length the sheets can be made, and in thickness from thin tin to steel sheets 4-inch thick. When the press is run on common stock as a flywheel machine at 80 strokes per minute, it is capable of punching 21,920 holes 4-inch diameter per minute. The press is of the arch or straight sided pattern, which is the strongest form ia which iron can be put for a power press. The Stiles patent eccentric adjustment is used which is so arranged as to adjust both pitmen at once, and in this way always keeps the slide in perfect alignment with the bed of the press, a feature whic