The Iron Age 1906-10-04: Vol 78 Iss 14

THE IRON AGE A Review of the Hardware, Iron, Machinery and Metal Trades. 2ublished every Thursday Morning by David Williams Co., 14-16 Park Place, Vol. 78: No. 14. Reading Matter Contents Alphabetical Index to Advertisers ‘‘ 276 Classified List of Advertisers ‘* 268]! Advertising and Subscription Rates ‘‘ 922 Clem FORSTER PULLEY WORKS, Cuba, N.Y. The American Mfg. Co. Ropes and Twines 65 Wall Street, New York THE BRISTOL COMPANY, Waterbury, Conn., U.S. A. Bristol’s Recording Instruments. For Pressure. Roupperature nd Electriciry. simple, Accurate, Reliable. All Ranges, Low Prices, and Guar- apteed. Send forC atalog R. SAMSON SPOT CORD Alse Linen and Italian Hemp SEE PAGE 203. Sash Cord. + iamson Cordage Works, ®este™ TORNBUCKLES aig fi fl pte Branch Office, 11 Broadway, New York. leveland City Forge and Iron Co., ~ Cleveland, O. BASIC PIG. Girard Building, Phila. illing & Grane Machesney Bldg., Pitts’g Empire Bidg., New York he Standard er since it entered the field, is the mviable record of DROP . AMMER MERRILL BROS. BROOKLYN, > tT Ty, PITTSBURGH APOLLO BEST BLOOM GALVANIZED SHEETS SEE AMERICAN SHEET & TIN PLATE COMPANY’S Ad, on page 18. a ve ‘ a -— New York, Set October 4, 1906. New York. $5 OO a Year, including Postage. Single Copies, 15 Cents. | Advertising advertising ~ We wish to advertise U. M. C. Advertising matter to all dealers. Our stock of lithographed hangers, cut-out cards, transparencies, etc., is especially designed to decorate sport- ing goods show windows. U. M. C. felt mats and folders are ready for your counters. You can brighten up your store and increase your trade against local and ‘out-of-town competi- tion during the hunting season. We offer you the means free. Out-compete your competitors. Prevent your customers from writing for out-of-town goods. Three hours of a clever clerk’s time in arranging a U. M. C. window, will bring in the amount of his week’s salary. A Window Display free for the asking. THE UNION METALLIC CARTRIDGE COMPANY, BRIDGEPORT, CONN. Sales Office, San Francisco, Cal. Agency, 313 Broadway, N. Y. Stirling Consolidated Boiler Co., “New york” WATER TUBE BOILERS uate perriinet. It is More Economical to Use ‘‘The Capewell’’ Nail Because the Small Sizes Possess as Great Strength as a Larger Size of Other Brands Made by The Capewell Horse Nail Company Hartford, Conn. DDI DbDi da CORRUGATED PATTERN. Excelsior Straightway Back Pressure Valve As shown in cut, this valve has a full, straight, unobstructed passage through it of an area equal to that of the pipe. No complicated con- trivances are required for its successful operation; on the contrary, it is extremely simple, well made, never sticks, and can be relied upon at all times, either as a back pressure valve, or a relief or free ex- haust for condensers. JENKINS BROS., New York, Boston, ee Chicago, anf Pp. THE AMERICAN TUBE & STAMPING COMPANY =. (Water and Rail Delivery) MAGNOLIA METAL. Best Anti-Friction Meta) for all Machinery Bearings. Pac-Simile of Bar. Ceware of imitations. MAGNOLIA METAL CO.,¢ Owners and Sole Manufacturers, 113-116 Bank Street, Chicago, Fisher Bidg. NEW YORK BRIDGEPORT, CONN. San Francisco, Montreal and We manufacture ali ies of Metals at com ve prices. Of making HAVE Bright Tin, be- ing particular— VER Y—about 0 ij b assortment. FOLLANSBEE Brothers Company PITTSBURGH Our wasters, therefore, are far above aver- age. They come in all kinds of sizes and gauges. THE IRON AGE Sina nats BRASS PLAIN STRAIGHT FACTS lst. The best produced, A strong statement, but the goods rove it. 2d. Brass cast and rolled on the premises. Care is taken in the stock, which is clean, ductile and the right temper. . Inspection rigid; packages contain perfect nails only. No splinters nor imperfect heads. . Packed in 2 oz, and 4 oz, metal boxes. 202., 40z., 4lb. and lb. papers. One dozen packages in a carton. All goods full weight. Get our prices. RIVER COMPANY, EL Waterbury, Conn. 5 Bridgeport Deoxidized Bronze & Metal Co. BRIDGEPORT, CONN Phosphor and Deoxidized Bronze Composition, Yellow Brass and Alumi- num Castings, large and small Matthiessen & Hegeler Zinc Co., LA SALLE, ILLINOIS. SMELTERS OF SPELTER AND MANUFACTURERS OF SHEET ZINC AND SULPHURIC ACID. Special Sizes of Zinc cut to order. Rolled Battery Plates. Selected Plates for Etchers’ and Lithographers’ use. Selected Sheets for Paper and Card Makers’ use. Stove and Washboard Blanks. ZINCS FOR LECLANCHE BATTERY. AUN ner PRE AH 105-109 So.Jefferson St., Chicago. NaN Ge NIP t COLO UISC INES Tree WUTUPTIT DI Emeka eet On Shert Notice NICKEL ANODES GERMAN SILVER | cncss'ononce. ss corven The Seymour Mfg. Co., Seymour, Conn. HENDRICKS BROTHERS PROPRIETORS OF THE Belleville Copper Rolling Mills, MANUFACTURERS OF Braziers’ Bolt and sheathing COPPER, COoOPrPvwER WiRE AND NHRIV=ETS. Importers and Dealers in 8 Ingot Copper, Block Tin, Spelter, Lead, Antimony, etc. 49 CLIFF ST., NEW YORK. THE PLUME & ATWooo M6. Co, MANUFACTURERS OF Sheet and Roll Brass —AND— WiR EG PRINTERS’ BRASS, JEWELERS’ METAL, GERMAN SILVER AND GILDING METAL, COP- PER RIVETS AND BURRS. Pins, Brass Butt Hinges, Jack Chain, Kero- sene Burners, Lamps, Lemp Trimmings, &c. 29 MURRAY ST., NEW YORK. 199 LAKE ST., CHICAGO. ROLLING MILL: | THOMASTON, CONN. SCOVILL MFG. CO. MANUFACTURERS OF BRASS, GERMAN SiLVER, Sheets, Rolls, Wire Rods, Bolts and Tubes, Brass Shells, Cups, Hinges, Buttons, Lamp Goods. Special Brass Goods to Or =r. FacTORIEs: WATERBURY, CONN. Depots: CHICAGO. FACTORIES : WATERBURY, CONN, NEW YORK. .BOSTON. Henry Souther Engineering Co, HARTFORD, GONN. Consulting Chemists, Metallurgisi : and Analysts. Complete Physical Testing Laboratory. Expert Testimony in Court and Patent Cases, Arthur T. Rutter & Co. 256 Broadway, NEW YORK. Small tubing in Brass, Oopper, Steel, Aluminum, German Silver, &c. Sheet Brass, Copper and Ger- man Silver. Copper, Brass and German Silver Wire. Brazed and Seamless Brass and Copper Tube. Copper and Brass Rod. “PHONO-ELECTRIC™ WiiRB. “it’s Toucr.” TROLLEY, TELEPHONE BRIDGEPORT BRASS 60., Postal Telegraph Bidg. Broadway and Murray 8t., New York PHOSPHOR-BRONZE Mills Bridgeport, Conn. THE RIVERSIDE METAL Co. RIVERSIDE, N.4. THE IRON AGE New York, Thursday, October 4, 1906. The Scullin-Gallagher Iron and Steel Company. Important Additions to the Steel Casting Plant. In no branch of the iron and steel industry of this ings. In the construction of freight cars and locomotives the use of steel cast parts shows a remarkable growth. country has a greater proportionate growth been recorded and of late rolling mill housings and engine bed plates in recent years than in the manufacture of steel castings, due to the steadily increasing demand for them as a are being cast in steel instead of iron. substitute for iron castings and large or intricate forg- In the West the industry has shown marked growth —View of the Charging Floor in the New Foundry No. 2. GAS PRODUCER PLATFORM 100 > FORTER-MILLER GAS PRODUCERS “ ™ . OO® So} + is JONE 10 TON CRANES 120 ] scares 4 18 LADLE & STOCKING DEP’ T, | EURNACE NO. 2 FURNACE NO; 4 @ Clmoror 20, TONS ase 20: TONS CaP'y,- | oe SAND MiLor <x : at a tf SANT MILL DEP’T. NO, 3 BL 1O% MORGAN ee a t att Oo One CHARGING MACH+ 1s FURNACE OEP'T * =——» MOULDING DEPARTMENT FOUNDRY NO. 2 TON CRANES 3 . (ererrrr »~CORE MAKERS oe <2 Two " MOVLOING OEP’T, | FOREMANS OFFICE | TON CRANES oer rT 6 a, FINISHING DEPARTMENT ’ 5 0 } sano em SHIPPING OFFICE COLD SAW » awen SCALES gy l Ont } ’ SWING onnoen® Ly) m © Fy ~~ SAND BLAST nue storrer |) 7 — 4 I i t SANO DRYING STOVE : 9, “ : mo . t ’ FINIEMIN Tw FLOUR GRINDERS MOULDING DEPARTMENT FOUNDRY NO, 3 ‘ lL. I 4 BLOWER oo < Fig. 2.—Plan and Cross Section, Showing Additions to the Steel Casting Plant of the Scullin-Gallagher Iron & Steel Company, St. Louis, Mo. 854 THE IRON AGE in the St. Louis territory, and with the completion of extensions to the plant of the Scullin-Gallagher Iron & Steel Company, which is located on a tract of 87 acres within the confines of the city of St. Louis, this district will have in its center the largest foundry for the man- COMING IN ~ CROSS SECTION ON FLUES REVERSIBLE 24" FORTER VALVE October 4, 1906 converters and two cupolas for melting the iron used in this pneumatic process. The annual output will thus be increased to about 60,000 tons, or 200 tons daily. The completed additions and undertaken extensions are shown in the general plan and cross section, Fig. 2. GOING OUT ga -!| * } ee Become coe ewcoon BASE FOR 24” FORTER. VALVE QB ~ Q> s <—> fi - Th - « Cp» , ER edt AF TOTO Li REAR END ELEVATION OF SLAG-CHAMBERS 0 5 4 on, OF | {_] cHARaina FLOOR. aoe at “= ee Fig. 3.—Details in the Open Hearth Building, Showing the Two 20-Ton Siemens Regenerative Furnaces. ufacture of steel castings in the world. Initial opera- tions were begun in 1900 with five 20-ton basic open, hearth furnaces, having an annual capacity of 40,000 tons, but within the past year two more furnaces have been added and a third projected, and another depart- ment is now being built, which will contain two Tropenas They consist of a gas producer house, 48 x 100 ft.; fur- nace, ladle and stocking department, 64 ft. 8% in. by 300 ft.; molding floor, 74 ft. 7 in. by 300 ft.; cleaning and finishing department, 74 ft. 8% in. by 300 ft.: foundry No. 3, including the molding floor and Tropenas depart- ment, 59 ft. 8 in. by 280 ft.; sand mill building, 44 x 87 October 4, 1906 THE ft.. and coreroom, 32 x 84 ft. cluded and 3, respectively, and the buildings, which are of steel construction throughout, are divided into five bays. Foun- dry No. 2 nas been designed on a plan similar to No. 1. The furnaces parallel the molding floor, with their pour- ing sides opening into this department, and the cleaning The two departments in- in the above are designated as foundries Nos. 2 ‘The Peuring Fig. 5.- and finishing floors again parallel the molding floor. Pro- vision is thus made for the rapid handling of castings and their transfer from one department to another. The open hearth building contains two 20-ton open hearth furnaces of the Siemens regenerative type, shown in Fig. 3, designed and built by the company, having the following inside dimensions: Width, 10 ft. 9 in.: Side ] a a lie I - IRON AGE 855 length, 24 ft., and hight, 7 Fig. 1, is served by ft. 6 in. The charging floor, above grade, is 180 ft. long and an electric charging machine, built by the Engineering Company, Alliance, Ohio. The re mainder of the building is used as a stockhouse, in which the charging boxes are filled, the material being unloaded directly from the cars in which it is received on a spur which is 9 ft. 1 in. Morgan ren Hearth Furnaces. « iT x ol ee ee Ue r The Molding Floor of Foundry No. 2 track running into this bay. A scale is conveniently located for the weighing of the charges, and as the floor of this department is at datum the filled boxes are lifted on the buggies from the stockhouse floor by a 10-ton traveling crane and lifted to the charging platform, where they are set on the track directly in front of the furnaces and are moved to suit the convenience of the charging machine. By this method the cost of handling the material is reduced to a minimum. The producer house, which adjoins one end of the open hearth building, contains six Forter water seal gas producers, installed by the Forter-Miller Engineering Company, Pittsburgh. The platform of this building is S ft. 6 in. above grade, and the coal is received on an elevated track and is unloaded directly from cars on the producer floor. From the gas main the gas is tapped out through the regenerating chambers into the furnaces, and another connection with the main provides gas for heat- ing the ladles. This type of gas producer, having an in- side diameter of 10 ft. 6 in., consists of a circular fire brick lined shell, with gas outlet on the side, and cast iron plate, containing the usual coal hopper and poke holes on top. Shell and lining are supported by four >>> 11-10" TO BOTTOM OF CHARGING poor FOUNDATIONS COMPOSED OF COMMON FIRE BRICK CONCRETE 20 . * 10 lw oad Fig. east iron columns, which rest on the foundation of the producer. An ash hopper, made of heavy steel plates and calked air tight, is suspended from the bottom of the shell, and extends a few inches below the top of the ash pan, thus forming a water seal with the water con- tained in the pan. At its upper end the ash hopper is provided with a wind box, adapted to receive grate sec- tions. A number of air tight doors are located in the wind box, through which the grate sections can be in- THE IRON Fig. 6.—Cleaning and Finishing Department in Foundry No. NORTH ELEVATION 7.—Arrangement of Cupolas and Converters in the Small October 4, 1906 AGE serted or removed. These doors when open give access to the fuel bed through the grate sections, so that clinkers that should accumulate on the grates can easily be re- moved from the outside. A row of poke holes just above the wind box gives additional facilities for removing heavy clinkers. The air necessary for gasification and partial combustion is delivered into the wind box by twe a) -: steam blowers located on opposite sides of the box and enters the fuel through the circumferential grates. <A third steam blower delivers air through a centrally lo- eated vertical pipe covered with a cone-shaped hood to the center of the fuel bed. The fuel is supported on a ‘bed of ashes, which rests in the pan below the hopper. The grate is inclined at a steep angle to the horizontal, thus allowing the incandescent fuel and the ashes to easily slide down on it. et o 8 35 4.P, MOTOR . HIGH PRESSURES __ MOTOR ~~ SLOWER. i \ Oi) 5ST SSA, ~ eocommmal : Le Ys - 7 * a ar _* Tan Lm “ay *@ be 4-By-—pl * Web 2482» "? | | 36° 1 “er | pounDaTION > ¥ Sem oe 13. ok 9” pig — - —9'9— - —oe— - -1'3- ~ THE (RON AGE Castings Department in Foundry No. 3. The platform of the open hearth building and the pro- ducer house are connected by a walk elevated above the stockhouse floor, thereby bringing these two depart- ments into direct communication. The pouring side of the furnaces, Fig. 4, opens directly into the molding department, shown in Fig. 5. The metal is cast in 20-ton bottom pour ladles, from which the molds are poured. The greater portion of this department is devoted to floor work, although there are a few machines October 4, 1906 THE and some benches for the lighter castings. The floor is served by two 30-ton electric traveling cranes, built by the Morgan Engineering Company, and eight 3-ton pneu- matie jib cranes having a radius of 15 ft., installed by the Curtis & Co. Mfg. Company, St. Louis. These are conveniently located along the sides of the floor and are used in handling heavy flasks for large work. In pour- ing, the ladles are carried by the traveling cranes, which are also used for handling large flasks and castings. Two mold-drying ovens open into one end of this building. They have an inside area of 20 x 32 ft. each and aré heated by producer gas. Two tracks extend from the molding floor into each oven, and the buggies operate on balls on the tracks, which are V-shaped. This arrange- ment dispenses with wheels and tracks entirely and has been found very satisfactory in operation. The sand stock and mill building and the coreroom open into the opposite end of the molding department. The former, in addition to a sand mill, contains bins in which stocks of the different grades of sand used in the foundry are car- ried. The facing is likewise mixed, and the sand for the molds is prepared in this department. Adjoining the core- room is an oven, 10 x 24 ft., heated by coal. The finishing and cleaning floor, Fig. 6, is located in a bay tbat parallels the molding department, and is served by two 15-ton Morgan electric traveling cranes. At one end opposite the grinding equipment and the ma- chine tools are three pneumatic jib cranes having a radius of 15 ft. that are used to facilitate the handling of castings on this floor. In addition to the sand blast for cleaning, the following machines are provided for fin- ishing: Three floor grinders, a swing grinder, drill, cold saw, planer and slotter. One end of the building is used for shipping purposes, the castings being loaded directly on cars after they are finished and weighed. As the company has experienced a constantly increas- ing demand for small steel castings, and as these see- tions could not be made and handled to advantage in the other departments of the plant where large work pre- dominates, it was recently decided to build an addition to be devoted largely to small work. This department is to be known as Foundry No. 3, and its steel making equipment will consist of two 5-ton Tropenas converters of the Fisher type. This addition, which will practically be a bay of the building which it adjoins and parallels, will be 60 x 280 ft. and will be served by two 5-ton electric traveling cranes. The cupolas will be located in an annex 20 x 60 ft.. having a hight of 32 ft. 6 in. to the lower chords of the roof trusses. Iron for the converters will be melted in two cupolas having inside diameters of 45 in., which will be installed by the Whiting Foundry & Equipment Company, Harvey, Ill. The rated capacity of each is 7 to 9 tons per hour, and they will be operated alternately. The cupola charging platform will be 19 ft. 3 in. above grade, and will be served by a pneumatic elevator located outside the building, which will be in- stalled by the Curtis & Co. Mfg. Company, St. Louis. To provide against accidents to the pneumatic machinery it will be provided with attachments for hoisting by hand. No stock will be carried on the charging platform, as the material is stored in close proximity to the cupola house In the yard. Blast will be furnished the cupolas by one low pressure blower, to be installed by the P. H. & F. M. Roots Company, Connersville, Ind. It will be driven by a 35-hp. General Electric motor. Blast for the converters will be supplied by one high pressure Roots blower driven by a 70-hp. General Electric motor. The 12-in. blast pipe to the converter will be underground. The converters are designed for alternate operation, per- mitting one to be constantly idle for repairs and relining. The distance the iron has to be carried to the converters has been reduced to a minimum, as shown in the arrange- ment of the cupolas and converters, Fig. 7. The adjoin- ing cleaning floor will be utilized for finishing the bulk of the castings from this department, and shipments will likewise pass through the office referred to above. The buildings have been ingeniously constructed, with a view of securing ample light, and that this has been achieved in its fullest measure is indicated by the fact that no artificial illumination is necessary even on the IRON AGE 857 // gloomiest days. The overhead clearance is unusual for devoted to foundry purposes, the buildings comprising department No. 2 having a uniform hight of 25 ft. to the top of the crane runway rails and 35 ft. to the lower chords of To carry off the heat from the furnaces and the smoke and gases arising from the molds when they are being poured the apex of the gable roof over the molding and open hearth de- partments is 82 ft. high. The original plant, known as Foundry No. 1, is de voted principally to the manufacture of cast steel bolsters and couplers, and consists of an open hearth building, gas producer house, molding floor and cleaning and fin- ishing department. The open hearth building is 68 x 400 ft. and contains five 20-ton basic open hearth furnaces served by a Wellman-Seaver-Morgan charging machine and a 10-ton electric traveling crane. The gas producer house is 50 x 130 ft. and contains 10 Duff gas producers. The molding floor is 75 x 500 ft. and is served by three 30-ton electric double trolley electric traveling cranes and 18 5-ton pneumatic jib cranes. The cleaning and finishing department covers an area 75 x 500 ft., and is provided with two 15-ton electric traveling cranes and additional hoisting machinery for handling castings up to 80.000 lb. It is also provided with lathes, planers, grinders, &c. The core room is 40 x 150 ft. Located be- tween the Missouri Pacific and the St. Louis & San Fran- cisco railroads, ample shipping facilities are provided. The product of the plant consists of various classes of castings used in the manufacture of steam and electric car and locomotive parts and miscellaneous sections for all purposes. The officers of the company are: Frank H. Johnson, president; John Scullin, chairman Board of Directors; Thomas M. Gallagher, vice-president; J. N. Maher, general manager; V. C. Turner, secretary and treasurer, and P. J. Howard, chief engineer. —_—_3-- oe ———_—_——— structures the roof trusses. The Casting of German Silver Knife Tips.—The Brass World says that many of the German silver tips on pocket knife handles are castings, being probably the smallest that enter the brass foundry. In the use of sheet German silver the tips must first be blanked out. This necessitates the production of 40 or 50 per cent. of After the tips have been blanked they must be formed under a drop, with successive annealings, until they are formed into the oval shaped ready for use. The cast German silver, however, only requires polishing and is ready for use. The tips are cast with a large number on a gate and with two gates in a flask. They are poured “on end.” Scrap German silver is used, and about 2 oz. of aluminum are added to 100 lb. of metal. The aluminum reduces the oxide in the German silver and the metal then runs very freely. The color is also much improved and soundness is imparted. In the smallest sizes it takes several hundred cast knife tips to make a pound. The price is from 50 cents to $1 a pound. scrap. | Le The new order of the Interstate Commerce Commis- sion promulgated last year which requires that 75 per cent. of the cars in every freight train shall be equipped with power brakes is being promptly complied with by the leading railroads. The Pennsylvania Railroad re- ports that 98 per cent. of its freight cars on lines east of Pittsburgh are now equipped with automatic airbrakes. A similar percentage is reported for the New York Di- vision of the New York Central. The Railway Age says that cars not now equipped with power brakes are old ones of small capacity, principally used in local service and at shops and terminals. It is therefore easily pos- sible for all roads to operate the brakes on 75 per cent. of the cars in a train and the necessity seldom arises for switching cars not so equipped to the rear of the train. After several years of depression, in which such work was neglected, an effort is now to be made to resume railroad construction in South Africa. A bill has been introduced into the Cape House of Assembly to authorize the Government to raise £2,011,166 for building 483 miles of new lines. Annealing and Crystallization of steel. BY JAS. H. BAKER, The field of knowledge, investigation and possibilities concerning stee] is so wide that it is better to treat the matter in sections as far as possible. This article deals with steel for hard service, say open hearth steel of 0.60 per cent, carbon, but the principles involved in its treat- ment apply equally to other carbons and other steels, Fig. 1. Annealing in its broad sense has come to mean almost any heat treat- ment of steel. In its old sense, and as generally understood now when stated simply, we take it to mean heating the steel to a red heat and allowing it to cool slowly, and it is in this last sense I use the word in what follows. I believe serious error prevails gen- erally as to the usefulness of annealing in order to get steel into its most trust- worthy condition. I need hardly say annealing has its uses in removing the strains which have arisen in forgings by varying degrees of work given to different parts, and strains resulting from unequal cooling of forgings or castings. It also has its use where a piece of work has been finished at a high temperature, because there is a great difference in results between al- lowing a high heat to run down to a certain temperature and then cool slowly, as against bringing the heat up to the same temperature and cooling slowly. Again, annealing is useful as applied to metal which has _ been strained beyond its elastic limit, such, for instance, as chain links which had been pulled until they became more or less distorted in shape. But as to annealing producing the best condition in steel both as to strength and safety—in other words, the highest possible tensile strength combined with the greatest ductility— instead of its being useful it is a detriment, and a serious: one as compared with treating the steel in a proper way. Annealing is practiced by workmen to render hard steel THE IRON AGE October 4, 1906 easy to work—i. e., lessen the cohesion of the particles so that they may be parted easily by cutting or other tools. Or, stated in another way, annealing means, besides the other effects named, disintegrating or breaking down the integrity of the metal, and therefore is just what is not wanted to fit steel for strength and safety. Noncrystal- line steel is very hard to work, for the very reasons which make it serviceable in use. It is true that annealing renders much steel better than it was before, but this is largely so because of the very poor and varied condition it was in. There has been a great deal said about steel crystallizing in use, but there is room for doubt on this point. I have taken pieces of noncrystalline steel about of the quality of sample No. 2 in the accompanying Table of Tests and had it hammered lightly for a long time cold, and other pieces have been bent back and forth slightly under a press until nearly destroyed, and on cutting and breaking these pieces there was no sign of crystallization. Other things equal, the size of the crystals indicates what steel will stand in the way of vibration, bending back and forth, or other punishment. Recently I saw a lot of eye bars which had been tested to destruction. They showed a crystalline fracture with little reduction of area, and yet these were made of special steel and annealed. When this kind of a bar breaks, as all things will when used enough, it will be said of it, “ crystal- lized by use.” The fact is that the lot of bars out of which these samples ‘ame was sent out in a crystalline con- dition and use will simply separate the faces of the crystals, and the coarser the crystals the sooner will this occur. Fig. 2. In speaking of a crystalline condition, I mean as viewed by an ordinary glass, because, after all, steel in any condition is composed of particles. It has been dem- onstrated that ordinary steel may be made quite hard, and therefore with a high tensile ultimate and elastic October 4, 1906 limit, and yet be quite ductile. As an illustration of this, note the tests here given of some specimens: Table of Tests. Elastic limit. Tensile strength. Elongation. Reduction Pounds per Pounds per in 2 in. of area. Sample. square inch. square inch. Per cent. Per cent. he Seer eerre 58,290 108,700 20 23.7 Mee Mek cae wees 89,S80 148,000 19 27.4 ee ee 138,400 152,600 Not given. 27.1 Pe Gikss'« Sea ues 143,900 170,200 17.5 26.6 Pe ea) aed ns 153,000 181,200 Not given. 18.4 No. 1 was like Fig. 1, the balance appearance of fracture. In fact, No. 1 was annealed. being like Fig. 2 in Fig. 3.- duction are shadows, same all over it. as the surface of the steel sample No. 2 is the identical fracture shown in Fig. 2, while the balance of specimens showed fractures yet more silky than sample No. 2. The ideal condition of steel, at least as far as com- bined strength and toughness are concerned, is that of a noncrystalline condition. Whether a crystalline condi- tion is needed to produce the best antiabrasive qualities for such articles as ear another question. But if it is so needed the crystalline structure should be fine. The illustrations shown were from 114-in. round bars. Fig. 3 is a magnified view of the fracture of steel like specimen No. 2. This steel, notwithstanding its hardness and high tensile quality, was bent cold back and forth 125 times and took 15 bends back and forth to break it after the first crack appeared, the increment of the cracks from each side being clearly shown in the illustration. A bar of the same size of commercial open hearth soft steel will not stand the same bending one-third as many times. Again, in transverse tests the steel of specimen No. 2 is fully three times as stiff as ordinary open hearth steel, and yet more ductile. It now seems possible to tell by the fracture of a broken bar pretty closely what it will develop in a physi- cal test if the ordinary analysis is given. But it is clear that for hard service steel should be as free as possible from crystals. And this we do not get by what is known as annealing. gears, wheels, &c., is uiieemgiiiimiiecaaiaes The James H. Watson Company, Bradley, Ill., bas incorporated with a capital stock of $100,000 to manu- facture sheet metal goods. The incorporators are Eliza- beth R. Watson, Malby R. Failey, and Austin H. Long. THE IRON AGE It should be noted that the dark streaks on this repro- Fluorspar in Foundry Cupolas. George G. Blackwell, Sons & Co., Limited, Liverpool, Kngland, have published a statement replying to the ob- servations concerning fluorspar in foundry cupolas con- tained in the paper by N. W. Shed, Buffalo, N. Y., read in June at the Cleveland convention of the American Foun- drymen’s Mr. Shed stated that he found fluorspar to be an inferior flux; that it did not remove sulphur; that proved by Association. the properties of the iron were not im- its use, and that limestone was far cheaper and at the same time a better flux. In answer the following points are made: flux, not only in much Fluorspar as a cupola practice but generally is, more valuable than limestone, and on that account its use in metallurgy is very rapidly increasing. The produc- tion of our mines is now over 50,000 tons per annum, and is steadily in- creasing. In the second place, a large number of the founders in this coun- try admit that they do find a reduc- tion of sulphur content in the iron when fluorspar is used. Its action on sulphur is also borne out by the fact of its extensive use in the basic open hearth furnace for the elimination of sulphur. As to the improvement or otherwise of iron, when fluorspar is used in the cupola, we have evidence of a large number of the best founders in this country that they do find the Fluorspar undoubtedly assists in eliminating slag. The slag is thinned, and the metal is kept hotter; consequently, sharper castings will be the result. In addition to this the charge in the eupola is brought down more rapidly by the use of fluor- As to the contention that lime- iron improved. spar. stone is far cheaper than fluorspar, this, of course, goes without say- ing; but the intention is not to use was the fluorspar alone as a flux, or as a substitute for limestone, but that the fluorspar should be used in con- junction with the limestone, the usual mixture being 20 Ib. per ton of iron melted. All of the fluorine in the fluorspar combines with silica to form fluoride of silicon, which is a volatile compound, and goes out of the stack. This relieves the slag of that amount of silica, and consequently reduces the refractory nature of the slag. The balance of the calcium fluoride (fluorspar ) is then left behind as oxide of calcium, or quicklime, and this behaves exactly as an equivalent amount of limestone would, but as the limestone formed by the decomposition of the fluorspar is pretty well broken up and distributed through the charge in a very fine state, it forms an ex- ceedingly active flux. One reason why less fluorspar is necessary for fluxing a given weight of silica is the fact that part of the silica is driven out of the chimney, and part of it slagged off in the charge. In this way every ounce of fluorspar is used for fluxing, while in the case of the limestone all of the carbon dioxide gas contained in the limestone is driven out of the cupola without as- sisting the fluxing in any way. — >s~ooe—_ building an automobile which will However, Locomotive Company is extension to the building occupied by its department at the Providence, R. I., works, be used for the manufacture of drop forgings. no large equipment for drop forging is contemplated for the present. The American John A. McGregor has been appointed president of the Union Iron Works, San Francisco, a subsidiary of the Bethlehem Steel Corporation. 860 THE IRON AGE The American Exporter’s Methods. An Answer to a Recent Criticism. BY R. I. CLEGG. Seldom indeed has so caustic an indictment of the American exporter appeared in a trade journal as that contributed to The Iron Age of September 20. The two pages, 730 and 731, present so emphatic a denunciation of American export practices that readers possessed of no other information than that submitted in this remark- able tirade must be constrained to the belief that Amer- icans in everything pertaining to the merchandising of goods abroad are a nation of fools. We are told with bland assurance that the American “has never studied, and to-day is not studying, the circumstances under which his machines will have to work.” ‘“ He knows lament- ably little about the character of the people he would like to deal with, and he is making practically no effort to learn their customs and requirements.” And further: The American ships his goods in ton cases when they are to be lightered from the vessel; he packs them in 1000-lb. pack- ages when they are to be transported muleback ; he sends open bearings to the Sahara Desert, and the trouble is he does all this when he knows better. But he is only firm, not obstinate. He sends tons of beautiful literature, written in perfect Eng- lish and embellished with the finest engravings, to countries that only know a mighty little of their own tongue. A personal representative he has heard of, but only the slow-going Germans do that trick, and he does not believe in that way of introducing his wares to a distant people. He makes his machine 10 ft. wide, and is not troubled as to whether it will go through the custom house of the country or not. That is the way he has always built it, and if they don’t want it they can leave it alone. If an American purchaser wanted that same machine turned upside down, with the legs waving in the air, he would cheerfully build it that way, under the impression that the purchaser knew what he wanted and since he was willing to pay for it he ought to have it. But the pleadings of all the wild men of Borneo would not induce him to add half an inch to the length of an unimportant screw. And what is the reason assigned for so crass a con- dition of merchandising ignorance? We are not left in the dark. We are coolly informed that “the keynote of the whole matter may be found in the overwhelming con- ceit of the American producer.” Consul Answers Consul, Now I do not have the very great regard for state- ments of consular representatives in these matters which the author of the contribution in question seems to have, but it is fair to quote these authorities on the other side. If reliance is placed upon their utterances to prove the idiocy of the American producer when engaged in the export business, we may offer similar testimony to offset, at least in part, the chastisement based so con- fidently upon consular evidence. I will take the latest issues of the Daily Consular and Trade Reports, and un- der date of September 22 I find a paragraph about sales- manship of the American brand. The item is headed “ How Sales Are Made.” It reads thus: How an American machinery agent secured an order in Japan is related by the commercial agent of New South Wales in the Far East as follows: It was a question of some lathes for a large factory which was being started. They were required of a certain size. The agent for the British firm said, ‘‘ That is 3 inches longer than they are made, and we can make no alteration.” The American said, “I will make them to any size you like.’ The American secured the order. Evidently that American was not aware that later on Mr. Burr would declare that very practice impossible. And what in the name of common sense was that Amer- ican doing there? Perhaps he did not know that we have never heard of personal representatives abroad. These facts are somewhat destructive of Mr. Burr's assertions, and it may be that he cares little or nothing for the opinion of the commercial agent of New South Wales. Let us set that down as the product of British banter and of no account, and then turn to a still later issue of that enlightening periodical from which the gist of the information in the article of September 20 was drawn. In the Daily Consular and Trade Reports of September 24 the Consul-General, A. M. Thackara, has something to say of typewriter supplies and their intro- October 4, 1906 duction to the German trade. The concluding paragraph of his report is as follows: German, English or French commercial travelers and agents of American makes frequently call on the dealers, hear their complaints, rectify any faulty shipments, fill smaller orders than if the dealers had to purchase their supplies direct, present their newest goods, &c. Our Consul-General and Mr. Burr can settle their dif- ferences of opinion regarding matters of fact in any way that is agreeable. They are far from agreement at this time. One knows that we have personal representatives even among the Germans; the other asserts that we have heard of such practices but that we do not believe in that way of doing business. Somebody is sadly mis- informed. I do not forget that it is possible for equally sincere men to have widely diverging beliefs. Members of the American Society of Mechanical Engineers will remem- ber a recent meeting where statements were made regard- ing the smoke consuming apparatus of the New York Post Office. Two members having offices within easy range of that building were diametrically opposed in telling what they actually saw in their observations of the post office stack. I well understand the possibilities of getting facts distorted even in the evidence of eye witnesses, and therefore I wish to be as charitable as I can. But granting Mr. Burr’s good faith in the matter, I cannot but demur to his indictment as a whole... Where he un- doubtedly errs is in making general application of cer- tain complaints recorded by consular representatives of the United States. These individual instances are pre- sumably true, but that they are typical of the exporting producer as a class is almost too absurd for patient refutation. Consularitis is a widespread disorder, and a careful reading of the reports sent home by the repre- sentatives of other nations will disclose a series of com- plaints quite similar to those that furnish material for strictures on American shortcomings. Examples of American Euterprise in Exports, I'd like to bring the writer of the article of September 20 in contact with certain typical American manufactur- ers and let him hear what they have to say about mer- chandising abroad. A certain maker of trimmers in Grand Rapids took his machine abroad, put a working Sample on a team and set out through the land to give demonstration of the possibilities of his machine in pat- tern making. He built up a trade in a way that I have yet to hear of any foreigner improving. He was there with the goods, showed what they would do, planted the germ of fruitful discontent among old practices and has an Office in Manchester and doubtless other places abroad. I recall another American, a maker of twist drills, this year the president of the Chamber of Commerce in his home city. He has built up a magnificent foreign business and his plant has shown a truly remarkable growth. He has traveled extensively, has made about as thorough a study of the export trade as any man I can now call to mind, and is as deservedly successful as he can well expect to be when he so flagrantly violates the practices laid down by Mr. Burr as typical of the American. There are also certain manufacturers of the Queen City of Ohio who I know have made systematic visits abroad for the purpose of posting themselves on the na- ture of the foreign demand and the best possible way to supply it. Another acquaintance of mine represents a Cleveland manufacturer of screw machines and has returned from an extensive business trip through Europe with the treas. urer of his company. This is but the repetition of a similar journey made last year. I remember, too, a very bright representative of a boring mill manufacturer in Connecticut who made quite a record for himself, especially in France. He was of the engineering type that could make machines do all that was claimed for them. And there is another shop-bred salesman I last heard of at Birmingham, England. He is pushing the product of an enterprising builder of screw machines that has headquarters in Vermont. If these are not personal representatives of the best a de ee te October 4, 1906 possible sort I fail to understand the meaning of the term. The Personal Equation. I am not now engaged in manufacturing lines, so that what is here written is in no sense a personal matter. But it so happens that I have had the privilege of erect- ing American machinery abroad. I have also erected English and Belgian machinery in America. For six years I was with an English (Lancashire) engineering firm exporting large quantities of machinery, and I have had the additional experience of being for a number of years with a New England firm that was reasonably successful in its efforts to get foreign business. My ex- perience teaches me that the American manufacturer is no less alert to the possibilities of foreign trade than his competitors in England, France, Germany and Belgium. It must be remembered that there are wide differences between manufacturers of the same nationality, the spread being often as great as between two of different countries. I once exchanged experiences with an Ameri- can manufacturer regarding a certain importer in a Ger- man city. His accounts with my firm were promptly met and the connection was very satisfactory. But my friend’s experience with the same man had been different. Credits were altogether too long and there seemed to be a string of unsatisfactory conditions attached to the relation. I have always set the difference down to the way in which the man was handled. There are doubtless many paral- lels, cases in which the uncomplimentary things come to the Consuls and are recorded as habitual and distinguish- ing factors. Adaptations of American Products, Surely it is not true that an American manufacturer absolutely refuses to make any change in his product to suit the foreign purchaser. I have seen American built planers abroad with marked and important variations from the standard type. As a matter of fact, this ap- praisal of the peculiar advantages of the market abroad has been going on for years, certainly as long ago as the trip made to England late in the 50’s by Messrs. Brown and Sharpe. They were becoming interested in the fine tool trade and mustered up courage to visit the Whit- worth shops at Manchester. They little expected to see the progress of any of the work as it was carried on there —as competitors they were seeking no favors of the kind —and they were pleasantly surprised when they were offered the freedom of a visit through the plant. There began the official recognition of the open door policy at the famous Providence plant, and as Mr. Sharpe once told me: “‘ We decided on the boat coming back that if Whitworth could stand it we could, and it turned out a good thing.” The Packing of Goods for Export, The condition of goods as they reach the consignee is all important, but I fail to see how American products suffer in any general comparison. I have heard experts condemn some English textiles in comparison with German and American goods, the point being made that the latter were not weighted with the excessive sizing that characterized the former, and specimens that have come under my observation would bear out that statement. I have unpacked wood screws from Nettle- folds as well as from the American Screw Company, and I do not remember that in any wise were the English screws packed in a superior manner. And in going through hardware stores abroad I have found a general recognition of American acuteness in presenting an ar- ticle in attractive style. One salesman actually attrib- uted the selling quality of American made goods to the manner in which they were packed and their merits set forth. In his opinion the native product was more sub- stantial in wearing qualities. It is beyond all question that the way in which small tools are sent out of this country preserves their “newness” in admirable style. I have a scale on my desk that has traveled several thousand miles since it left the American factory where it was made. It is wrapped in oiled paper, then inserted in a thin leather case and put into a pasteboard box. That explains the individual packing that insures the ar- rival of tools with perfect edges and entire lack of scratches. It is a delight to pick up a micrometer sev- THE IRON AGE 861 eral thousand miles from home and to note its excellent condition. Foreign Opinion of American Machinery. Certainly I have heard criticisms of American made products. One in particular is worth repetition because it came from an English manufacturer of machinery, who has an imposing array of gas engines designed in Pitts- burgh. In point of fact a Westinghouse representative in England, when I asked him for the location of a not- able plant, advised me to visit this particular works. When I arrived and had been there long enough to feel quite free about the propounding of questions, I inquired if they had any criticism to make of machine tools built in the United States. And the only thing that occurred to them was the advisability of a greater use of steel for some of the small parts that were made of cast iron. Whether it is that these get more rough use abroad than they do here, or whether less care may be exercised in moving machinery, is open to further light. It was not made clear that any great trouble had been occasioned by the weakness referred to, but I offer the testimony as a friendly criticism from an Englishman with a very cordial regard for things American. The Value of Consular Testimony. But to get back to the basic evidence for the attack on the American. I think I have shown that there are many facts on the other side for which I can person- ally aver. How stands the Consul?. The American con- sular service has been largely recruited from the faith- ful who were in the thick of the fight when the campaign was pushed to a winning finish. They were rewarded by exportation and under the circumstances have turned out as well as could be expected. In most instances they were untrained for the positions to which they were appointed, and the trouble this incapacity has oc- casioned successive administrations is shown by the reg- ularly recurring attempts to take the consular service entirely out of politics. Consuls of all countries never seem to forget that they themselves are exported goods. They listen sym- pathetically to the woes of fmporters and others and then find relief in a homeward letter brimful of the business blunders of their countrymen. Knowing the circumstan- ces under which they have been shipped abroad and the manner in which they loosely fill the bill of lading they are, aS a class, suspicious of all things exported. There are exceptions to most rules and the Consul, circumspect and familiar with the country he represents as well as the one to which he is accredited, can and frequently does prove his worth. But consular criticism from these exported Americans does seem altogether too much the result of introspection. For instance, a hastily picked sample of raw consular material is shipped abroad. He lacks linguistic qualifications in all probability, and thereafter he can hit hard at exporters who send to for- eign lands catalogues printed only in the vernacular of the United States. Remembering how ill he was fitted to the job, he well knows the annoyance of misfit shipments. One must not be too receptive of the assertions of these expatriates. What they aver should be checked by what we know of the American manufacturer at home, and when there comes that ebb of the now flowing tide of domestic prosperity we may reasonably expect a greater impetus toward the markets of the world. When that time comes the American will not be found a sleepy laggard. He will take up the work with the old zest; he will renew former activities and the farsighted for- eigners revered by so many of our Consuls will, of neces- sity, get a better polish on their specs if they would be sure of seeing his finish. Under the terms of the sliding scale bill passed by the last Massachusetts Legislature the Boston Consoli- dated Gas Company has just made public its report. The most important feature is the statement that the total cost of gas during the year, including repairs, but exclud- ing interest, depreciation and reserves, was 57.11 cents per 1000 ft. This was divided as follows: Cost of manu- facture per 1000 ft. sold, 31.75 cents; cost of distribution, management and other expenses, 25.38 cents. The Graham Piston Ring Grinder. A machine for finishing piston rings, particularly au- tomobile and gas engine rings, is a new product of the THE IRON AGE October 4, 1906 of the piston to take the ring. In