The Iron Age 1906-07-05: Vol 78 Iss 1

V@i XXVIII. Pall JULY—DECEMBER, 1906. “4 NEW YORE DAVID WILLIAMS COMPANY 14-16 Park Place. THE IRON AGE New York, Thursday, July 5, 1906. Segregation in Steel Ingots.* Its Relation to Plate Specifications. BY CHARLES L. HUSTON, Manufacturers of steel are generally aware of the character of segregation in ‘steel ingots and the part it plays in their various lines of product, but I think users of steel are not generally so well informed, and even many engineers do not understand very clearly just how this segregation lies in the ingots. This paper presents the results of tensile tests and carbon analyses from plates, showing how the steel varies throughout the dif- TEST NO.2 TOP T.S.56120 57720 58400 Cc .18 13 16 BOTTOM Chart 2.—Ingot No. 2, Ladle Test Carbon, 0.18.—Ingot Rolled 370 Inches Long, 76 Inches Wide and 5-16 Inch Thick. Fig. 1.—Ingot No, 1, 9 x 12 Inches, Weight 900 Pounds. —Tests Were Not Made from This Ingot. ferent parts of the ingots; also showing that under the present standard practice and known methods of manu- facture it is difficult or nearly impossible to secure steel that even in one moderate sized plate will have any- thing like the uniformity generally supposed to exist, be- cause the tensile strength in almost any plate of a ton weight or over will vary 5000 pounds or more in tests taken from different parts. The tests here presented are applicable only to mild or soft open hearth steel, as my experience has been very limited with any other kind. The photographs were taken from ingots after they had been planed down to their center line and show the character of the interior of the metal. I think this throws some light upon the results shown in the tests hereafter explained. a eae eerie es eich ancctnngacencenpiehehihcetinp *A paper read at the meeting of the American Society for Testing Materials, at Atlantic City, N. J., June 22, 1906. Mr. Huston is vice-president of the Lukens Iron & Steel Company, Coatesville, Pa, 58140 These ingots are of different shapes and weights, pur- posely so selected in order to show the difference in the character and extent of the segregation in the different sizes and shapes, and yet at the same time show certain general characteristics common to all. It will be noticed that the thinner ingots show greater difference in hardness between top and bottom than the thicker and heavier ones: evidently caused by the quick chilling of the metal catching the hardening elements just as they were situated, and not allowing them to separate out and float into the unsound discard portion at the top. ; Figs. 1, 2, 3 and 4 are views of different shaped in- gots, all about 36 inches long, poured from the same : fara es 3 oR 56%0 T.S 16 4C 2.—Ingot No. 2, 16 x 18 Inches, Weight 2800 Pounds. Fig. melt of steel and at the same time by bottom pouring on one stool plate. One ingot of each size was planed for © photographing and its duplicate rolled into a plate for tensile and chemical test. Fig. 1 is from an ingot 9 x 12 inches, weighing about 900 pounds, being about the smallest size we use for direct rolling. Fig. 2 is from a 16 x 18 inch ingot, weighing 2800 pounds, a size nearly standard for many other lines of manufacture besides plates. Fig. 3 is a 12 x 26 inch ingot, weighing 2850 pounds, a size we make large use of for both sheared and universal plate. Fig. 4 is an 8 x 38 inch ingot, an unusual size, but one we find very advantageous for certain classes of work. The weight is 2950 pounds. Fig. 5 is a 15 x 22 inch ingot, a size which, like the 12 x 26 inch, is largely used. The weight is 3775 pounds. 2 THE IRON AGE July 5, 1906 Fig. 6 is ingot No. 8, a 12 x 26 inch ingot, with one- portion the hardening elements or metglloids, such as quarter section cut out to show more fully the condition carbide of iron, and these elements as a result steadily of the interior of the metal. The weight is 2800 pounds. increase in percentage in the liquid metal. There is TEST NO.3 TOP T.S. 54190 58660 58430 59830 §= 130 T.S Cc 13 17 18 18 13 C BOTTOM Fig. 3.—Ingot No. 3, 12 x 26 Inches, Weight 2850 Pounds. Chart 3.—-Ingot No, 3, Ladle Test Carbon, 0.18.—Ingot Rolled 330 Inches Long, 75 Inches Wide and 5-16 Inch Thick. TEST NO.4 TOP T.S. 55180 57590 59210 58160 55740 T.S8, c id 17 18 18 14 C BOTTOM Fig. 4.—Ingot No. 4, 8 x 38 Inches, Weight 2950 Pounds. Chart 4.—Ingot No. 4, Ladle Test Carbon, 0.18.—Ingot Rolled 350 Inches Long, 76 Inches Wide and 5-16 Inch Thick. It is agreed, I think, by all parties posted on the sub- also a tendency in these metalloids to float toward the ject that segregation occurs from two causes: One is the top of the ingot, being lighter than the pure iron. selective freezing of the steel, sending out into the liquid Steel with higher carbon, such as is used in rails, and July 5, 1906 steel treated with ferrosilicon and other similar mate- rials, such as is used for steel castings, have a different character and incline more to run to a pipe in the center, owing to the different behavior of the metal in the mold in process of cooling. These steels, as stated before, are not considered in this paper. It will be noticed that in all cases the outer skin of the metal as it chills first against the mold is very nearly uniform in its character, so that samples taken from all points equally distant from the surface will show prac- tically the same physical and chemical properties, with the exception of the slight difference between the upper and lower portions, as explained. By a misunderstanding ingot No. 1 was not rolled for test. Charts 2, 3 and 4 represent steel (ingots 2, 3 and 4) from the same melt and poured in the same group as before explained (Figs. 2, 3.and 4). Chart 5 is from an ingot 15 x 22 inch section (Fig. 5), about 32 inches long. One-half was cut away by planer TEST NO.5 TOP es rig easel Relat ia te eal T.S, 65980 65920 = 65240 Cc .2 4 23 BOTTOM Chart 5.—Ingot No. 5, Ladle Test Carbon, 0.19.—Ingot Rolled 378 Inches Long, 78 Inches Wide and % Inch Thick. for photographing and the remaining half was afterward rolled into a plate %-inch thick for physical test. Chart 6 is from a large ingot of 11,000 pounds (no photograph) and of quality about such as is used in making large plates of heavy gauges for the outside shells of marine boilers, where 60,000 pounds tensile strength is required. Chart 7 is from a large ingot of about 18,000 pounds weight (no photograph), first rolled down into slabs 29 inches wide by 3% inches thick, then these slabs ,were rolled into %-inch plates, all of one size and weight, for physical and chemical tests. Chart 8 is from an ingot 12 x 26 inch section (Fig. 6), about 32 inches long. One-quarter was planed out longi- tudinally for the photograph, then the other quarter was cut off and samples taken for chemical analyses, the re- mainder being rolled into a plate 44-inch thick for physi- eal and chemical test. Chart 9 shows the carbon analysis only from a still larger ingot of about 30,000 pounds, the drillings being taken from the ends of the slabs into which it was cut Fig. 5.—Ingot ’No. 5, Weight 3775 Pounds. THE IRON AGE 3 and from the center plane of the metal. These last two differ from the others in that their carbon analyses were taken from the center plane of the metal, and hence show greater segregation, while all the others were analyzed from drillings taken entirely through the plate samples and thus show the chemical test from the same metal as the tensile tests. ; Chart 10 shows the results of carbon tests taken to verify this theory and indicate what might be expected— namely, that the highest carbon is just in or inside the zone of gas holes, although it remains nearly as high all the way to the center. The steel when poured is very fluid and is in con- stant motion and circulation in the mold. This move- ment causes a continued generation of gases, which pass off through the molten steel and escape. At the same time there is forming against the mold a steadily in- creasing coating or wall of solidified steel. As the tem- perature falls, however, the molten steel becomes stead- ily less fluid until a stage is reached where the bubbles TEST NO.6 TOP T.S.|63400 78600 T.8. © |.29 50 T.S.|62700 69500 60500) T.S © |.24 35 . T.S. 63200 69000 C |.33 34 T.S.|63000 68500 C |.28 .33 T.S.|62400 66500 C 122 .29 T.S. 59600 65850 64700 59500 T.S, © .20 » ¢ 27 26 2% ; BOTTOM THE IRON AGE 15 x 22 Inches, Chart 6.-—Ingot No. 6, Ladle Test Carbon, 0.26.—Ingot Rolled 335 Inches Long, 94 Inches Wide and 29-32 Inch Thick. fail to pass off through it because of its increasing thick- ness of consistency, and are caught just at the one point, as shown. This thickening of consistency also operates to prevent the further circulation of the steel, and consequently the further generation of gases, that portion lying inside of this zone of holes first becoming of a pasty nature and then solidifying practically all in one mass. Although these different photographs are from a number of different sizes and weights of ingots they all show the same general characteristics as to the formation of the little holes or gas bubbles, all be- ing some distance in from the outer surface of the metal. This result is aimed at as the best average condition for producing the best results we can secure in making plates. Sometimes if care is not exercised the bubbles will form immediately under the surface, taking the shape of honeycomb cells at right angles to the surface of the ingots. These in the after heating and rolling will develop into a very rough or pitted surface, which makes the plates unfit for the market. Conditions of tempera~- 4 THE IRON AGE ture of pouring and consistency of the steel, judged by experience, are necessary to bring about these results and can be very largely controlled by the steel melters. The question would naturally arise as to these holes caus- ing unsoundness in the plate, but it is quite evident that they all or nearly.all close up if they are clean and free from oxides and dirt, the temperature at which the steel is heated for rolling being sufficient to bring about the’ practical union of the surfaces when they are pressed down into contact. This was strikingly manifest in some of the ingots July 5, 1906 Now, in the practice of rolling and shearing it is gen- erally not practicable to secure test pieces*from any por- tion other than the sides of the plate as rolled, and hence it is obviously necessary to so roll the ingot or slab that the sides of the plate will represent as nearly as possible the outer skin of the ingot. Otherwise there would be no uniformity of results, and consequently no satisfactory record of tests to report. It will be evident from this that in general mill practice, while we can report practically uniform tests from plates of the same size, rolled from the same melt of steel, yet there is TEST NO.7 BOTTOM THE IRON AGE Chart 7.—Ingot No. 7, 30 x 34 Inches, Weight 17,600 Pounds.— Ladle Test Carbon, 0.19.—Ingot Rolled 31% Inches Thick and Cut Into Slabs 67 Inches Long by 29 Inches Wide.—Slabs Rolled Into %-Inch Plate. which were planed down to half. thickness and subse- quently rolled. -They were heated with the hole side down and thus the cinder did not run into the holes, and they were left free to close up under the pressure of the rolls, the plates coming out with as clean a surface on that side as on the other. If they had been heated with the holes on the top side the cinder would have run down into them and could not have been eliminated in the rolling. The experiments seem to show that the portion of the ingot lying inside of this zone of holes (which might be called the core of the ingot) is practically all of one BOTTOM 7 SLABS | THE IRON AGE Chart 7a.—Slabs from Which Plates Were Rolled.—Tests Were Taken from the Plates.—Two Sets of Coupons from the Bottom Slab. character, with a slight excess in the tensile strength and hardness at the top, as compared with the bottom, caused by the hardening elements floating toward the top, as be- fore explained. They also show that the larger the ingot and the greater the mass of metal, with the greater length of time taken in solidification, the greater is the extent and degree of this segregation, so that though a large ingot may be rolled out and cut up into separate slabs, as shown in chart 7 (from an ingot weighing ‘ about 18,000 pounds and cut into eight slabs), there is still a very great difference between the outside edges and the center of each slab, so that a discard of even a larger percentage from the top part of the ingot will not materially lessen this condition. metal in all these plates higher than the records show, and this in case of steel specified to be of high tensile strength runs up very close to the danger line, often- times seeming to us, as manufacturers, to be over the danger line. Take, for instance, plates 1 inch or thicker, for marine boilers and specified to be 60,000 pounds or more minimum tensile strength; this requires a hard steel at the best, and where test pieces have to be taken from opposite diagonal corners of the plate, as is now re- quired by the United States Board of Supervising In- spectors of Steam Vessels, necessitating bringing up the softest part of the steel to the minimum requirement, and the hard core or center, which necessarily remains in the plate even after discarding a large proportion, say, the top third of a large ingot, goes into the boiler, is liable later on to cause cracking and trouble, if not danger. Metal which if tested in moderate thickness, say, %- inch, would show 75,000 pounds tensile strength, would be considered too hard to use; yet the same steel is contin- ually required to make plates of 1% inches thickness or thereabouts, in order to produce 60,000 to 65,000 pounds tensile strength, and considered quite acceptable. As a matter of fact it is much safer in the %-inch thickness than in the 1%-inch thickness, because of the refining effect of the rolling action. I _ believe statistics will show that troubles attributable to the steel in boilers and structural work have arisen from steel being too hard and seldom from being too soft. Hardness is needed mainly to withstand abrasion or wear and in itself is of less importance for the strength of structures, where a liberal factor of safety is provided for the working stress. It has long seemed to the writer that the whole manner of figuring strength, factors of safety, &c., is wrong and that a better way would be to specify the standard desired; the steel to be accepted if it does not fall below or above by a given allowed margin, and that the strength of the structure be based on the medium tensile strength specified. The lower strength material which may be found in the plate, while it has a little less tensile strength, has other elements of value, such as increased ductility, &c., which make up for that lower tensile strength and make the steel worthy to be used up to the same working strain in a bridge or boiler just as safely as the steel that runs up toward the upper margin. ‘This would be a much simpler way of figuring and would result in greater satisfaction among steel makers and save a great deal of unnecessary friction and drawing of fine lines between inspectors and manu- July 5, 1906 THE IRON AGE 5 facturers as to the acceptability of the steel under pres- does not seem to me that this fits this case. One part ent practice. may appear weaker in point of tensile strength, and yet It is, of course, a common saying that the strength of be better, because of greater ductility and average value. a structure is the strength of the weakest part, yet it The rule of the Philadelphia Department of Public Safety TEST NO.8 TOP T.S. 56380 66440 57940 56050 55900 T.S. @ Az 16 18 15 16 C BOTTOM Chart 8.—Ingot No. 8, Ladle Test Carbon, 0.19.—Ingot Rolled Fig. 6.—Ingot No. 8, 12 x 26 Inches, Weight 2800 Pounds. Into %4-Inch Gauge After Being Planed Down to % Inch Thickness.—Carbon Test Taken from Center Plane of Ingot. TEST NO.9 | | TOP TEST |NO.10 ta es iets hell iain aga coeaneinds i che C38 C.68 C51 C15 Hod AMV Fo pag . op ba e De | RY : d | ? “ | v is Y Do | © | 2 Je > Ge “0 0 2 “wb ) "2D S\ 0 | gs i 83 ! ee yy 9 =e o—— <= —— 0 | 9 ge ofp J] | Z g | od ny ( | | BS x | | ees AA # 7, ee & S&H J | chs C30 ©. C38 C17 ri % \ ( C1 .16 [18 .%5 “95 .24 94 23 193 23 & $ | On | (\ ou is PP es 7? | | 0 90 | | of) | .- | y | | e - | $ | 0 “ | ” f\ | i” eS — » ode “°° | | ® eo? | | a | a | | | a “ | | 9 om” Fa tine Ses tel Ose | | 3 XO OFIQSSO Ci23 C.22 C.21 C.22 C.24 k 132 ie csaseiacal era viene. THE IRON AGE BOTTOM THE IRON AGE Chart 9.—Ingot No. 9, 30 x 50 Inches, Weight 30,600 Pounds. Chart 10.—Diagram of Gas Holes.—Ingot 16 x 18 Inches, Cut —Ladle Test Carbon, 0.23.—Ingot Rolled 15 Inches Thick Longitudinally through the Center and Drilled for Carbon and 50 Inches Wide.—Test Taken from Drillings through Determination. the Center of Each Cut. 6 THE IRON for the construction of boilers, as adopted by the City Council in 1882, one of the earliest specifications and prepared after careful study by prominent practical ex- perts, provides that when iron plates show a ductility of 15 per cent. in a given length, a factor of safety of 5 shall be used in figuring the pressure allowed in the boiler, but if the plates show a ductility of 20 per cent. and stand a good bending test, they may be used with a factor of safety of 4. This would give 10,000 pounds working strain on iron of 50,000 pounds tensile strength with 15 per cent. ductility, or 12,500 pounds on iron of the same tensile strength with 20 per cent. ductility. I believe experience in bridge construction and also experiments on steel have demonstrated that a piece show- ing, say, 50,000 pounds tensile strength, can work right alongside of a piece of 60,000 pounds or 65,000 pounds tensile strength and do its full share of the work; the coefficient of elasticity of steel within these ranges be- ing practically the same. In other words, equal stresses upon the two pieces of steel will produce equal degrees of elastic yielding and not strain either one of the steels or throw any undue burden upon the higher test steel, the soft steel standing up alongside of it and doing its full share of the work up to the limit allowed in work- ing strains, which is usually about one fifth of the ulti- mate strength of the material. In conclusion, I venture the prediction that a fuller knowledge by engineers and users of this class of ma- terial of the actual conditions necessarily existing in all standard steels, and the excellent results obtained as a whole heretofore from steel showing much greater varia- tions than here indicated, will result in less disposition to draw fine lines and restrictions in both physical and chemical tests. There will also be a more definite tracing from effect to manifest cause in the constant effort to improve upon the selection and preparation of this and other classes of materials of construction. a ee The Bankruptcy Law Amended in the Interest of Salesmen. Wasuineton, D. C., July 3, 1906.—Congress passed at the session just closed a bill making an important amendment to the Federal Bankruptcy law in the interest of traveling or city salesmen, whose salaries are made preferred claims against bankrupt estates. At the same time it was announced in the House Committee on the Judiciary that the active campaign for the repeal of the Federal Bankruptcy law which had been waged for a month would be without result, the judiciary committees of both houses being opposed to any attempt either to wipe the law from the statute books or to amend it in such a manner as to weaken any of its provisions. While it is admitted that the law is not perfect, and that there is much merit in several of the pending propositions to amend it, it is believed to be unwise to begin any whole- sale process of tinkering, in view of the effort which certain interests are making to repeal this act. Provisions of the Amendment, The amendment of the law is the result of a move- ment undertaken in the House Judiciary Committee in the last Congress, but which failed for lack of time. The change is in clause 4 of subdivision b of section 64 of the bankruptcy act, which, as amended, reads as fol- lows: Fourth.—Wages due to workmen, clerks, traveling or city salesmen, or servants, which have been earned within three months before the date of commencement of proceedings, not to excced $300 to each claimant. Before the Judiciary Committee Representative Tay- lor made an interesting statement indicating the wide- spread interest in the bill. He said in part: “TI was led to introduce this bill as the result of rep- resentations made to me by various traveling men’s or- ganizations. It so happens that one of the largest asso- ciations of this kind has its national headquarters in my district—the city of Columbus, Ohio—the United Commer- cial Travelers of America. I have numerous letters from traveling men citing instances where they have been away from home and where they have not had a settle- ment with their firms for five or ten years. They use July 5, 1906 the firm as a bank, issuing orders to their grocer and others upon their allowance or salary, and only making settlement at intervals of two or three years, so that in many instances they have lost several thousand dollars by reason of a failure of their firms. For that reason such organizations as the Travelers’ Protective Associa- tion of America, with 30,000 members; the United Com- mercial Travelers of America, with 33,000 members; the Commercial Travelers of New York, with 40,000 mem- bers; the Iowa Traveling Association, with about 33,000 members, and a number of smaller organizations, of which the Western Travelers’ Accident Association of Nebraska is an example, have urged upon members of this Congress and the last Congress that such an amend- ment be granted, that the traveling men may receive equal benefits with the clerks and servants now provided in the act sought to be ‘amended. “There are about 450,000 or 500,000 traveling men in the United States, and very nearly 300,000 of them are in these various orginizations, all of which act as one body in matters pertaining to their mutual interest through the Association of Commercial Travelers, com- posed of the chief officers of all the various unions or associations. “TI do not see anything to press upon this committee. It seems to me a just claim, and this committee reported the bill favorably last Congress, but it was not acted upon. I want to say that a number of States, through their Legislatures, have passed in their bankruptcy or assignment laws legislation preferring traveling men along with other laborers and clerks to the extent of $300 for wages earned within three months only prior to the assignment or bankruptcy.” Repeal Bills Rejected. The decision of the House and Senate leaders not to permit the consideration of any of the numerous pending bills providing for the repeal of the Federal Bankruptcy law will be very generally approved. The demand for re- peal comes from a variety of interests led by certain bank- ing institutions which do not relish being put on an equal footing with other creditors when in the past they have al- ways been preferred. These banks have endeavored to rele- gate the country to the old system of State laws, under which they have enjoyed preferences, and this is the rea- son that bankers’ conventions have passed resolutions denouncing the act, and have forwarded copies of their memorials to Washington. In none of these memorials has a single definite reason been advanced why the law should be repealed. None of these bankers have come to Washington to ask for repeal, and they have under- stood perfectly that to do so would involve sufficient cross- examination to develop completely the reasons underly- ing their opposition to the present statute. Another class of advocates of repeal are the wealthy trust companies, which under the old State laws re- ceived large fees for acting as trustees. One strong fea- ture of the Federal statute is the fact that all fees thereunder are very moderate, the bulk of every bank- rupt estate being carefully protected for division among the creditors. These trust companies have also received co-operation from local officials in various sections, espe- cially county officials, who received fees and other per- quisites under the State system. These fees in the aggre- gate made a heavy drain on bankrupt estates and nat- urally the officials miss them. WwW. L. C. — »@—-e—__. A remarkable building is to be erected at the corner 0. Wall street and Broadway in New York. Its site is the costliest in the country and probably in the world. Some details are given by the Engineering Record. The lot measures only 29.1 x 39.1 feet and has an area of but 1170 square feet, yet it cost the present owners $700,000. The — building will be 18 stories, or 235 feet high, and each floor will be rented as a whole, so that none of the precious space will be taken up by halls. The average rental for the building is understood to be about $5 per square foot. Three 4 x 5 foot elevators will be employed, opening directly into the office of the tenant on each floor. The ground floor and basement, having a total area of but 1568 square feet, have been rented for a cigar store for $40,000 a year, or about $25.50 per square foot. AGE July 5, 1906 A Cedar Rapids Lever Shear. Especially for use in scrap iron yards and rolling mills the Cedar Rapids Foundry & Machine Company, Cedar Rapids, Iowa, has designed the heavy power shear known as No. 4, herewith illustrated. The shear blades are 14 and 16 inches long, respectively, and both are 4 inches deep by 1% inches thick and all four long edges on each knife are cutting edges. The maximum opening between the shear blades is 5% inches. The tight and loose pulleys are 26 by 6% inches and run at a speed of 175 revolutions per minute. Other dimensions of parts of the shear are as follows: Fly wheel, 48 by 4% inches, weighing 1050 pounds; crank shaft and pin, 5 inches in diameter ; lever pin, forged steel, 414 inches in diameter ; gear wheel, 40 inches in diameter, 6 inches face and 2- inch pitch; pinion, 10 inches in diameter, 614 inches face, 2-inch pitch. The shear will cut iron and cast steel up to 2 inches square or its equivalent in other shapes and has a speed of 44 cuts per minute. The parts are-heavy and are adjustable to take up wear. The manufacturer The No. 4 Lever Shear Built by the Cedar Rapids Foundry & Machine Company, Cedar Rapids, Iowa, states that a great variety of work can be handled with this machine. A floor space 3 feet 10 inches by 9 feet is occupied by the shear and its complete weight is 8800 pounds. Seen nan ae The Naval Appropriation Bill. WASHINGTON, D. C., July 3, 1906.—The Naval Appro- priation bill, covering the fiscal year beginning July 1, 1906, has been bassed by both houses of Congress and approved by the President. Much interest attaches to the provisions of the new law with respect to the proposed increase in the navy. The House of Representatives decided to authorize the construction of a battle ship exceeding in tonnage and armament any vessel ever built for the United States navy at a cost not te exceed $6,000,- 000. The House also authorized the construction of three torpedo boat destroyers to cost, exclusive of armament, not to exceed $750,000 each, and in addition authorized the Secretary of the Navy to contract for or purchase subsurface or submarine torpedo boats to an amount not exceeding $1,000,000. For new and continuing contracts for armor and armament the House appropriated $15,- 145,000, with the stipulation that no armor be purchased except upon contracts to be awarded to the lowest bid- der, “having in view the best results and most expedi- tious delivery.” The Big Battle Ship Deferred, The Senate Naval Committee agreed to the House provision regarding the big battle ship, but when the bill was taken up on the floor much opposition developed and an amendment was finally adopted requiring the Secretary of the Navy to report to Congress full details covering the proposed battle ship, including its armor and armament before advertising for bids. This amend- ment is regarded in some official quarters as indicating that the proposed big battle ship will never be built; in any event it is tolerably certain that no contract therefor will be let within the next 12 months. The bill provides as follows concerning the first-class battle ship: That before approving any plans or specifications for the construction of such battle ship the Secretary of the Navy shall THE IRON AGE 7 afford, by advertisement or otherwise. in his discretion, a rea- sonable opportunity to any competent constructor who may desire so to do, to submit plans and specifications for his con- sideration, for which said plans, should the same be used by the department and be not submitted by or on behalf of a successful bidder for the contract, such compensation shall be paid, as the Secretary of the Navy shall deem just and equit- able, out of the amount herein appropriated under the head, “Contingent, Navy"; provided, that before any proposals for said battle ship shall be issued or any bids received and accepted the Secretary of the Navy shall report to Congress at its next session full details concerning the type of such battle ship and the specifications for the same, including its displacement, draft and dimensions and the kind and extent of armor and arma- ment therefor. After providing in general that the torpedo boat de- stroyers shall be of domestic manufacture in all their parts, the bill says: The steel material shall be of domestic manufacture and of the quality and characteristics best adapted to the various pur- poses for which it may be used, in accordance with specifications approved by the Secretary of the Navy, and not more than one of the ‘vessels provided for in this act shall be built by one contracting party: Provided, That the Secretary of the Navy may build apy or all of the vessels herein authorized in such navy yards as he may designate, and shall build any of the ves- sels ‘herein authorized in such navy yard as he may designate, should it reasonably appear that the persons, firms or corpora- tions, or the agents thereof, bidding for the construction of any of said vessels have entered into any combination, agreement or understanding the effect, object or purpose of which is to de- prive the Government of fair, open and unrestricted competition in Jetting contracts for the construction of any of said vessels. The bill also provides that the limit of cost of the battle ship Connecticut, authorized by the act of Congress approved July 1, 1902, be in- creased to $4,600,000; that the cost of each of the two training vessels authorized by the act of Congress approved March 3, 1903, be in- creased to $410,000, and that the cost of each of the two colliers authorized by the act of Con- gress approved April 27, 1904, be increased to $1,550,000, these amounts being in each case exclusive of armor and armament. The Secretary of the Navy is authorized to contract for or purchase subsurface or submarine torpedo boats to an amount not exceeding $1,000,000, after such tests as he shall see fit to prescribe to determine the compara- tive efficiency of the different boats for which bids may be submitted, provided that such tests shall take place within nine months fromthe date of the passage of the act. Cost in Different Navy Yards, In view of the provision that the Secretary of the Navy may build any or all of the vessels authorized in the appropriation bill in such navy yards as he may designate, great pressure has already been brought to bear upon the President to instruct the Secretary to cause one of the three torpedo boat destroyers to be built at the Brooklyn yard. ‘The differential of cost against the Brooklyn yard in the construction of the battle ship Con- necticut as compared with the Louisiana, built by the Newport News Shipbuilding & Dry Dock Company, proves to have been approximately 15 per cent. This has done much to strengthen the opinion in official circles that it is a mistake to do any more construction work in the navy yards than is necessary to keep their plants in fair condition. The differential which the bill allows contractors on the Pacific Coast over those on the At- lantic seaboard is only 4 per cent., or only about one- fourth the difference in the cost of the Connecticut and Louisiana. The recent experience of the department in soliciting bids for the battle ships Michigan and South Carolina, the details of which were given in this correspondence last week, has demonstrated that there is no ground for the suggestion that “ithe persons, firms or corporations or the agents thereof bidding for the construction of any of said vessels have entered into any combination, agree- ment or understanding the effect, object or purpose of which is to deprive the Government of fair, open and un- restricted competition in letting contracts,” &c. A large number of bids were received for the two battle ships, and it is believed the contracts will be let at prices much below the cost of the construction of either vessel in a Government yard. + Wa tee Ge THE IRON A Carlin Six-Drum Hoisting Engine. A special type double cylinder hoisting engine, having six friction drums and two winch heads, and designed to enable one operator to manipulate a number of lines, was recently built at the shops of Thomas Carlin’s Sons Com- pany, Allegheny, Pa. The drums can be used separately or all at one time and the winch head can be used inde- pendently of the drums. ‘The levers, as the illustration shows, are placed in a quadrant stand on a platform over the engine and are conveniently arranged for controlling the different operations; one drum being used for moving forward, one for backward, one to right and one to left, the remaining two being used for the operation of the dredge machinery and the winch head for moving heavy bodies such as logs, rocks, or other obstructions,. when occasion requires. The engine shown is used for operat- ing a gold dredging machine in Surinam, South America. AGE July 5, 1906 The Automobile Trade in Mexico. The development of the automobile trade in Mexico in the past ten years has been remarkable, when it is remembered that the horse stands very close to the affec- tion of the natives and that only a limited class can afford to indulge in the luxury of a mechanically oper- ated carriage. From a review of the local trade in the City of Mexico, to which a journal of the capital devotes four pages of a recent Sunday issue, the following ex- tract is taken: The automobile business here has been booming during the past few months and competition is very keen. The prices ob- tained for cars here is about 50 per cent. more than in the United States for American-made cars, the difference being slight, considering the freight and duty charges. On Euro- pean automobiles the prices are little more than half those charged in the United States for the same cars, on account of the difference in duties, the United States duties being ad va- lorem, and those into Mexico being by weight. However, in spite of this discrepancy, the sale of European vehicles is much less than that of American, for the reason that for low- priced cars, for which there is naturally the greatest demand, there are none in the world that equal the American makes. For the higher-priced cars the European gives better values and are largely sold, although the aggregate number looks very small beside that of the American cars. At the present time there are in the capital no less than 450 automobiles, owned by residents, as shown by the number of licenses issued by the local authorities. What is true of the capital in relation to the trade in A Six-Drum Double Cylinder Hoisting Engine Built by the Thomas Carlin’s Sons Company, Allegheny, Pa. This type of engine follows closely in design the double, triple, four and five drum engines manufactured by the same company, and is also adapted for operating clam shell derricks, two of the drums being used for slewing the derrick by means of a bull wheel, one for manipulating the boom, one for tripping and the other for load and counter balance. For this work some prefer to use a three tandem drum engine, with a Carlin patent swinging attachment, which consists of two friction drums with tension giving a reverse motion and con- trolled by one lever. ——_3--———_—— For its new power plant at Fifty-ninth street and Eleventh avenue the Interborough Rapid Transit Com- pany, New York City, recently placed a contract with the B. F. Sturtevant Company, Hyde Park, Mass., for 28 staggered pipe economizers to serve 26,000 boiler horse- power. Each section of the plant, consisting of two engines and 12 600 horse-power boilers, will have eight economizers, which provide 4 square feet of heating sur- face per boiler horse-power. The size of this economizer installation is indicated by the great number of pipes, 7840, which if placed end to end would cover a distance ef 15 miles. automobiles is, relatively speaking, true also of the other principal cities, where horseless carriages, which only a few years ago excited the wonder and in some districts the fear of the natives, have become so common as to awaken little notice. —__—_~»--@_ -- -——- On Saturday, June 23, on the ruins of the old Sterling charcoal furnace in Orange County, N. Y., a_ tab- let was unveiled in commemoration of the fact that from iron produced in this furnace was made one of the chains’ stretched across’ the Hudson River near West Point by General Washing- ton’s order in the War of the Revolution. This fur- nace was built at the outlet of Sterling Pond, the ore being supplied from Sterling mine, which is still in existence. The mine and the furnace site are included in a large tract of land known as the Sterling property, lying in Orange and Rockland counties, New York, re cently purchased by. a party of prominent New York men, to be converted into a great residential park. The pur- chase was made by buying 90 per cent. of the stock of the Sterling Mine & Railway Company, which acquired the land in 1865. Sterling furnace is about 15 miles west of the Hudson River, opposite Haverstraw, N. Y. July 5, 1906 THE IRON AGE 9 The Jones & Laughlin Steel Company’s New Structural Mill. The enormous increase in the consumption of struc- tural steel in the last few years has severely taxed the capacity of the mills and has made additions to rolling capacity absolutely imperative. Among the manufacturers who have greatly increased their capacity for turning out structural shapes is the Jones & Laughlin Steel Com- pany of Pittsburgh, which has recently completed the building of a large structural mill adjacent to its Amer- ican Iron & Steel Works on the South Side, Pittsburgh, the mill being known as No. 14. Illustrations of this mill are presented herewith. The principal shortage in structural shapes has been in the intermediate sizes, and the new Jones & Laughlin mill was designed and built for the making of these sizes, which include 5 to 12 inch beams and channels, 4 x 4 to 8 x 8 inch angles, flats from 6 to 14 inches wide, Z bars and other special sections. The mill was erected in record breaking time, ground being broken on October 2, 1905, and the first steel rolled April 2, 1906, or in just six months from the time work was started. The mill contains some new features, prom- inent among which are its massiveness, which makes possible great records for output; the supplying of blooms by narrow gauge tracks in a subway which was extendeu from No. 12 mill, and the suspension of the center crane girders in the hot bed, stock and shear buildings. While this involved an enormous expenditure, it is believed that the advantages gained will fully warrant it. By this method of construction it is possible to handle finished material and load it in cars in 120-foot lengths. Modern structural shop practice would indicate that in the future there will be a constantly increasing demand for bars in these long lengths. The General Arrangement. Reference to the ground plan, Fig. 1, and cross sec- tions, Figs. 2 and 8, will convey a very clear idea of the general layout, the mill proper being contained in a steel structure 490 feet long and 90 feet wide, containing the heating furnaces, which are of the Alex Laughlin & Co. type, roughing and finishing trains, roll racks and other equipment. There are also a hot bed building, a shear building and a stock building. All the buildings have ample crane service, there being a total of 13 elec- tric cranes in the different buildings and stock yard, all supplied by the Morgan Engineering Company, AIlli- ance, Ohio, and all of which are equipped with West- inghouse 220-volt direct current crane motors, controlled by the Cutler-Hammer system of control. Connected with the mill is a billet yard with a stor- age capacity of 4000 tons. Billets from the blooming mills are conveyed to this yard on two narrow gauge tracks in a subway which has spurs at different points for the distribution of billets to the mill. The billet yard is commanded by two 20-ton electric cranes of 32 feet 6 inches span each. The craneways are equipped with pockets at the back of the heating furnaces, which provide storage for the blooms before they are charged into the heating furnaces. Two jib cranes take one bloom at a time ‘and lay it on the charging table back of the furnaces. There are three heating furnaces of the regular auto- matic type, one billet being pushed in at a time at the charging end of the furnace and another out at the dis- charging end by means of a large hydraulic cylinder at the back of each furnace, the front end of the ram being carried by supporting beams which act as girders to keep it in line. These three heating furnaces were built by Alex Laughlin & Co., and are of their regular type and contain no special features. Each furnace is 17 feet inside diameter, and one or two rows of billets can be heated, as may be desired. Each furnace has five skid pipes, and natural gas is used as fuel. Ground has been reserved for a fourth furnace of the same type. Roughing and Finishing Mills, The billets are delivered from the heating furnaces on a common table and then taken to the tilting table at the roughing train, Fig. 4, which is equipped on both sides with a tilting traveling electric table operated by Cutler-Hammer controllers, The piece is given from one to five passes on this roughing mill, the number depend- ing on the section to be rolled from it. The arrows on the ground plan, Fig. 1, show clearly the course taken by the piece after it leaves the roughing train until it is rolled into a finished section. From the roughing train the piece is carried on a stationary table and enters the finishing train on the top pass. It then falls auto- matically on another table and is carried by rollers in on the bottom pass without any handling whatever. It is next taken into the top pass of the second finishing train, Fig. 5, whence it is carried on another table, the rollers of which are revolving in a direction toward the third train. After receiving the bottom pass in this train the piece travels along a stationary table into the last fin- ishing train and is then delivered to the hot bed. Straighteniug Equipment and Shears. When the piece is delivered from the last finishing pass to the hot bed, Fig. 6, it is shoved over to the hot bed rails by a hot push-off, a distance of about 6 feet from the table. By this arrangement, if the piece happens to be a beam or channel which has to be turned up on edge, this can, be done at once in this manner. If the piece is an angle it is handled directly by the cold pull- over, which is operated by a number of wire ropes or drums in the usual manner. On the hot side and also on the cold side of the hot bed is a cold pull-off, these being necessitated by the use of a straightening machine, there being at the present time but one straightening machine, which serves two hydraulic shears, room being reserved for a second straightening machine and two more shears should the output of the mill require them. The straightening machine is driven by a Corliss engine which is large enough to drive the second machine should it be found necessary to install it. This engine is equipped with a change gear arrangement by which the delivery speed of the rolls can be varied from 130 to 400 feet per minute. After being straightened the finished piece is delivered to a roller table which stands in the middle of an ar- rangement of skids. By means of pull-overs so arranged the bar can be shoved either on a roller table feeding into a hydraulic shear or dropped into a pocket, from which it is taken by overhead cranes and deposited on the lower table leading into a gag press, which further straightens it if necessary. The two roller tables are wide enough to fit the full width of the shear knives, Fig. 7, 3 feet 6 inches, making it possible to shear four pieces of 6 x 6 inch angles, or several flats, at the same time. These shears are also equipped with two side clamps, making it possible to shear two beams or two channels at the same time. The shears are also provided with a steam intensifier, which insures a sufficient positive shearing force. The subway, referred to above, has a branch which leads directly to the front of the shears, thus allowing all scrap to be loaded directly from the shears into a car on the narrow gauge spur tracks below. After being loaded each car of scrap is taken to a convenient point under one of the shipping cranes, where it is picked up and its contents loaded into a broad gauge car. This ar- rangement provides for the handling of pieces 3 feet and under in the same manner. The shear tables are com- manded by three overhead traveling cranes with suspend- ed girders, as noted above, permitting the handling of bars 120 feet in length, the finished pieces being taken from these tables by the cranes and loaded on broad gauge cars for final shipment. A gag press has been installed, which is used for straightening any pieces which may be found. to be im perfect and also to restraighten any material which the cranes may happen to bend while handling. Between the hot bed building and the stock building is a 52-inch cold saw driven by a 220 horse-power direct current West~ ‘TUN [Banjonayg Man SAUBdUIOD [901g UT[YSNe] Y souor oy} Jo uv[q punoiNn—T ‘Sy CMCC LE #11 II || TORTI coor | : press (LITT TT) TTT HUAN 1 { ! ' 1 ! ' 4 Nivuél ONIHSINIZ ze xX Ob P 2 S'3) 2 OO . — an ae L 30vNuN 8b xX 99 BE HONI $9 X $2 ONV zp aasodoud 3NIDNZ : tT 7 i O Q uN4 40 SNOVLS TTT caeceaail OWN) 4 O © uaHsnd Ty O}O}} 0} 10})0}}0}}0) OO} OF ON GW OO NoHo 2 D}}0}}0}}0}}0)}0)/0 BSe8) 1m angela: aia: aacaaaeaaaee ae ssc YANILHOIVELS (III IIe rr tr It it_it it iti mm oE ‘oT mM TY a a a ZOvNUNS aovnuns Ln ee UZISISN : ' ' ' | 2 o < a oO m4 e fe x e QUVA ONIGTING [G38 LOH ONIGIING HOOLS ONIGTIING HOOLS Ge S83ud OVD ET TTT TT TT TT TTT TT TT eT Pe iT CTIA ricer UT TT tT tt tT) i] GYVA ONIddIHS a July 5, 1906 THE IRON AGE II inghouse motor, this saw supplanting the work of the hydraulic shears. In one corner of the hot bed building is a large scrap shear driven by a 120 horse-power West- inghouse type S motor, and which is used for reducing cobbles and any large pieces of scrap to a size suitable for the open hearth charging boxes. The shipping facilities of the mill have been admirably arranged and allow the material to be handled from the shears and straightening machines to the cars for ship- ment at the least possible cost. The transverse crane- o| ways are carried out half way-across the longitudinal ell shipping craneway, this arrangement permitting the shear cranes to deliver material directly from the shears on the cars without necessitating their transfer to the shipping train. As noted above, this new mill has a number of inter- esting features, among which is a unique arrangement for the storage of rolls. In order to economize space roll racks were placed in pits 6 feet in depth along one side ‘of the mill building. The rolls are racked in these pits six high and by this arrangement light is not excluded from the interior of the mill. CRANE 10 TON I 10 TON CRANE Heavy Rolling Mill Eogines, Semel _( a, The design of the mill is exceptionally heavy. It is a 26-inch mill, the rolls being 66 inches long. When new the rolls are 28 inches in diameter, but will be worked down to 24 inches in diameter. The engines driving the 15 TON CRANE O_O oO O.O 0 O-< THE IRON AGE CRANE RUNWAY > (ross Section at A A, Fig. 1, of the Jones & Laughlin Steel Company's New Structural Mill. SHIPPING YARD SECTION B-B SECTION A-A Tt Cross Section at B B, Fig. 1, of the Jones & Laughlin Steel Company's New Structural Mill. CENTER SECTION OF BUILDING Fig. 3. 10 TON Fig. £ SHIPPING_YARD 20 TON CRANE 13 THE roughing and finishing trains were built by the C. & G. Cooper Company, Mount Vernon, Ohio, and are of the Corliss type and especially designed for heavy duty roll- ing mill service, working at a steam pressure of 150 pounds with a maximum in the low pressure cylinder of 75 pounds. The larger engine, intended for driving the roughing train, is 42 inches diameter of high pressure cylinder, 74 inches diameter of low pressure cylinder, with a 54-inch stroke. An 18-foot cast iron fly wheel IRON AGE July 5, 1906 for obtaining a speed range of from 60 to 110 revolutions per minute. Engine lubrication is automatic throughout. The crane service installed is ve