The Iron Age 1908-09-03: Vol 82 Iss 10

THE Published Vol. 82: No. so. Reading Matter Contents........ page 682 Alphabetical Index to Advertisers ‘“‘ 270 Classified List of Advertisers = 260 Advertising and Subscription Rates ‘‘ 698 every Thursday Morning by David New York, Thursday, September 3, 1908. REED F. BLAIR & CO. FRICK BUILDING, PITTTBURG, PA. STANDARD CONNELSVILLE COKE FOUNDRY FURNACE CRUSHED The Original and only Genuine ‘* STILLSON WRENCH ”’ is manufactured by WALWORTH MFG. CO., Boston, U.S. A. And bears their registered Trade-Mark MANUFACTURERS OF } Bristol’s Recording Thermometers for Pressure, Temperature and Electricity THE BRISTOL CO, el aaa ccicamteeemrocare Conn. = ~ TURNBUCKLES | iii Cleveland City Forge and tron Co., - Cleveland, 0. TORN BVH LEAS. a MERRILL BROS. Maspeth, New York, N. Y. Hew York Be Low Phosphorus Pig. irard Building, Phila. Pilling & Grane envir'tlos: Sew vor Macheaney Bldg’, Piusbg. [UFKIN'= TAPES | RULES MADE IN AMERICS and THE BEST IN THE WORLD THE LUFKIN RULE CO. Sagiaee Mich., U.S.A. | New York, London, Eng Windsor, Can. | It is QUALITY that counts in galvanized iron—our “Apollo Best Bloom” Galvanized Sheets are of the highest quality. Base plate—perfect coating—thorough. AMERICAN SHEET AND TIN PLATE COMPANY ___ Frick Building, Pit*-burgh, Pa. See our Ad. con page 18 WATER TUBE IRON AGE Williams Co. 14-16 Park Place, New York. $8.00 a Year, including Postage, Single Copies, 15 Cents. Ses HE THIS CUT SHOWS IN REDUCED SIZE THE 1908 U. M. C.- REMINGTON WINDOW TRIM It is lithographed in six printings and is full of life and color. Can be adapted to any size of window 6 ft. or over in width free to any dealer who guarantees to use it for a reasonable length of time. Sent Write for this powerful business getter. HARTLEY COMPANY aav. Dept. 313 Broadway, New York City Ghe Babcock @ Wilcox Co., wei Wastes BOILERS so. meso? ktwvonn ‘‘ Driven All Over the World ”’ THE CAPEWELL NAIL Holds the Best! Drives the Best! NO imperfect NAILS TO SPLIT the foot. NO dull points to DAMAGE the most brittle or delicate HOOF. NO DANGER of your horse casting a shoe at a critical moment WHEN “CAPEWELL’’ NAILS ARE USED. M. Address Made by THE CAPEWELL HORSE NAIL COMPANY Hartford, Conn., U.S.A. JENKINS BROS. VALVES do not require constant regrinding. When necessary to repair, a new Disc will usually make the valve as good as new. /enkins Discs are inexpensive, and can be readily applied by any one without taking valve from the pipe. All parts interchangeable. Write for booklet ‘All genuine bear Trade Mark as shown in cut. JENKINS BROS., New York, Boston, Philadelphia, Chicago, London. “Swedon’” Cold Rolled Steel 's.et**: Drawing ax Stamping THE AMERICAN = & STAMPING COMPANY SEE 27 (Water and Rail Delivery) BRIDGEPORT, CONN. PAGE MAGNOLIA ,,.téron METAL The Standard Babbitt of the World We manufacture everything in the Babbitt Line. MAGNOLIA METAL CO. 115 Bank St. New York: Chicago: Fisher Building. Montreal: 31 St. Nicholas St. 2 THE IRON AGE BRASS} ",.(0 mnt se" (Sheet and Roll Brass COPPER}. WIRE BROTHERS | (GERMAN ste, | comer eintar Ssine matt SILVER WIRE Pins, ae snipe nny SEO C 0 M PA NY LOW BRASS, SHEET BRONZE, | | anil te _ 279 Broadway, NEW YORK PITTSBURGH SEAMLESS BRASS AND COPPER Room 508 Hayworth Building, East Madi- ONLY son St., CHICAGO, ILL. AMERICAN MAKERS TUBING, BRAZED BRASS AND Rolling Mill Factories THOMASTON, CONN. WATERBURY, CONN, = : = wT SGOVILL MFG. CO. Waterbury Brass Co. STEEL Sheets, Rolls, Wire, and FIN SHEETS WATERBURY, CONN. Rods. AND 99 John St., New York. Providence, R. I. Brass eae Buttons, ~~ Fee ae é' ee Spectal Beass Goods to Order. TN PLATE Bridgeport Deoxidized Bronze ean WATERBURY, CONN. Samples and Prices « Metal Co Depots: upon application BRIDGEPORT, CONN. NEW YORK CHICAGO BOSTON Dest. “SS” Phosphor and Deoxidized |, _ _.__,., ..-:. 7 Bronze Henry Souther Engineering Co. Composition, Yellow Brass and Alumi- HARTFORD, CONN. num Castings, large and small Consulting Chemists, Metallur- gists and Analysts. Complete Physical Testing Laboratory. Expert Testimony in Court and Patent Cases. Matthiessen & Hegeler Zinc Co. La Salle, Illinois. Artur 1. Rutter & Go . SMELTERS OF SPELTER AND MANUFACTURERS 256 Broadway, SHEET ZINC AND SULPHURIC ACID NEW YORK. Special Sizes of Zinc cut to order. Rolled Battery Plates. Selected Plates for Etchers and Lithographers’ use, Small tubing in Br. ass, Copper, » Selected Sheets for Paper and Card Makers’ use. Steel, Aluminum, German Silver, Stove and Washboard Blanks. &c. Sheet Brass, Copper and Ger- ZINCS FOR LECLANCHE BATTERY. man Silver. Copper, Brass and German Silver Wire. Brazed and Seamless Brass and Copper Tube BRASS FAvMoets J RYAN & CO, Jeatiriiatza ya 105 -109 So, Jefferson St.. Chicago. WIRD. “it’s TOUGH.” Vay ME URUIPAAR eC AUDI EO GUS CUA Se eye Sr TEe-VUTHIPEL 1 cha ld TROLLEY, —_———____________________________| f TELEPHONE GERMAN SILVER ee eee Aa and THE SEYMOUR MFG. CO. - - SEYMOUR, CONN.| \ TELEGRAPH ate iettetehiareacineemnateatdtatt nada lehthidenemiiaietd fa LIN HENDRICKS BROTHERS mitts BRIDGEPORT oo COMPANY Manutecturers of Bridgeport tal Telegraph Bldg. Sheet and Bar Copper, Copper Fire Box Plates onn. Sunnen te and Murray S8t., New York and Staybolts, Wire and Braziers Rivets| PHOSPHOR- BRONZE Importers and Deslers in GERMAN SILVER Ingot Copper, Block Tin, Spelter, Lead, Antimony, Bismuth Nickel, etc. ie pacce RIVERSIDE, N. J. 49 CLIFF STREET, - - - NEW YORK ™ (A hain tak tila Bn THE IRON AGE New York, Thursday, September 3, 1908. New Le Blond Milling Machine Attachments. A number of new attachments for milling machines have recently been brought out by the R. K. Le Blond Machine Tool Company, Cincinnati, Ohio. One of these is believed to be the first milling machine attachment for hobbing spur and worm gears that has proved a prac- tical success. Earlier attempts have been made to aglant a milling machine for performing hobbing operations by gearing the work with the spindle of the machine, but these generally have been suitable only for special jobs. The new attachment, as Figs. 1 to 4 indicate, will hob all classes of work and of any number of divisions within its capacity. The attachments shown in the remainder of the illus- fine feed is provided, and the work can be fed into the hob automatically and stopped when the proper depth of tooth has been cut. The attachment includes mans for connecting the driving spindle of the milling machine with the main spindle of the dividing head through flexible bevel gear joints and a shaft to drive the dividing head spindle with a positive speed ratio to the cutter spindle. Various ratios of speed between the two spindles for cutting various numbers of teeth are obtained by quadrant and change gears. The attachment is bolted to the com- pany’s standard plain dividing head and its upper end is supported by the overhanging arm of the machine. It is Fig?'1.—Hobbing a Large Worm Wheel on a Milling Machine Tool Company, trations include a universal spiral gear cutting attacn- ment (Fig. 5), a universal milling attachment (Fig. 6). a circular milling attachment (Fig. 7), a slotting attach- ment (Fig. 8), a rack spacing attachment (Fig. 9), and a vertical index head (Fig. 10). Descriptions of all of the attachments, beginning with the one for hobbing gears, are given in the following, and in the order in which they have been mentioned above. Worm and Spur Gear Hobbing Attachment, Equipped with this attachment the milling machine assumes all of the capabilities of a machine especially designed for hobbing gears and worm wheels and pos- sesses the same advantages; that one hob will cut all numbers of teeth of a given pitch; that it generates cor- rectly formed teeth; that it cuts continuously, no time being lost fm returning the cutter and indexing the blank, and that in cutting worm wheels the hobbing at- tachment is particularly efficacious, as the preliminary operation of gashing each tooth is dispensed with, se- sulting in gears being produced in one-fourth or one- fifth the usual time, depending upon the gear. <A very with the New Attachment Made by the R. K. Le Blond Machine Cincinnati, Ohio, driven by a gear screwed on the spindle nose. The splined shaft on the attachment is connected at each end by a pair of miter gears supported in swivel bearings. This combination makes a universal joint, which, unlike a knuckle joint, transmits motion evenly and positively in any position. The quadrant and change gears are carried at the end of the attachment, and are so arranged that the driving shaft can be connected either directly to the spindle for cutting low numbered divisions, or through the worm and worm wheel for large numbers of teeth. A set of compound gears is furnished for giving a 20 to 1 reduction of the feed. This is required because the feed per revolution of the cutter is proportional to the number of teeth in the gear. For example, if when cut- ting a spur gear with 60 teeth it is desired to feed the work transversely to the cutter at the rate of 0.06 in. per revolution, it will be necessary to set the feed for one-sixtieth of this amount, or 0.0001 in., to obtain the required rate of table feed. Change gears are furnished for cutting all numbers of teeth from 9 to 100. : 618 Fig. 2.—The Attachment Applied to Spiral Gear Cutting. The use of the attachment on various classes of work is illustrated in Figs. 1 to 4. In Fig. 1 a large worm i wheel is being hobbed on a plain milling machine, with- out previous notching. This gear has 120 teeth, 0.39 in. circular pitch, and is about 15% in. diameter. Fig. 2 shows the setting for cutting a coarse pitch worm or spiral gear. The gear has 26 teeth, 6 pitch, quadruple thread, and is 25 in. diameter. The attachment in this case is geared direct to the spindle at a ratio of 6% to 1. The work is fed into the hob with power feed, and when the proper depth is cut it is automatically tripped. These gears are hobbed complete in 12 min. apiece. To cut spur gears it is necessary to use the attach- ment in connection with a universal milling machiue where the table can be swiveled to correspond with the angle of the spiral on the hob. The hobbing of a long spur pinion of 6 pitch, 24 teeth and 14 in. long is shown in Fig. 38. Such a long gear, it is stated, cannot be cnt THE IRON AGE September 3, 1908 Fig. 3.—Ilobbing a Long Spur Pinion with the Attachment. on any standard automatic gear cutting machine. A contrast in an operation of the same kind is the one illustrated in Fig. 4—the cutting of large spur gears of 8 pitch and 102 teeth. The drive in this case is through the worm and worm wheel of the dividing head. Gears 16 in. in diameter can be cut in this way. Universal Spiral Gear Cutting Attachment, This attachment, shown in Fig. 5, is designed for cut- ting spirals or worms on a plain milling machine. The swivel movement to the cutter head, which allows it to be turned through a complete circle, well adapts it for cut- ting racks. screws, &c. On a universal milling machine the attachment can be used for cutting gears of greater than 50-degree angle, such as gas engine spiral gears, for which the swiveling movement of the table of the machine would not be sufficient. There are several novel features in the design of this Fig 4.—Two Larger Gears Being Cut ai One Setting with the New Hobbing Attachment. September ss 1908 Fig. 5.—The Le Blond Universal Spiral Gear Cutting Attachment. attachment. It is bolted to the column and the outer end is supported by the overhanging arm of the machine. The drive is from a clutch gear on the spindle, through a series of spur and bevel gears to the cutter spindle. The cutter spindle is carried in a slide which can be moved longitudinally—i, e., parallel to the axis of the cutter spindle—by an adjusting screw. When the required ad- justment is made the slide is clamped in position. The cutter is mounted between two bearings, one of which is removable to permit inserting the cutter. In setting the cutter the main slide is adjusted until the center line on the cutter coincides with the swivel axis of the attach- ment. This is done by first setting the point of the footstock center to coincide with the line on the attach- ment, and then adjusting the cutter to suit. Thereafter the attachment can be swiveled to any angle, and the correct relation of the center of the work and cutter is always maintained. Universal Milling Attachment. Fig. 6 shows a new universal milling attachment, the cutter spindle of which can be swiveled to any position in a horizontal or vertical plane. It is therefore applica- ble to all kinds of work involving drilling, milling or key seating at any angle. The attachment is bolted to the column of the machine, and the outer end is supported by the overhanging arm. The cutter spindle is driven by a clutch on the main spindle through two pairs of miter gears. The front bearing, which is tapered, is hardened and ground. The rear bearing is straight and is adjusted by drawing in a taper bush. THE IRON AGE 619 Circular Milling Attachment, As shown by Fig. 7, this attachment is very compact, particularly in hight, to give all possible distance for work when the attachment is used in conjunction with a vertical or universal milling attachment. The worm wheel, which is large, having 120 teeth, is driven by a worm made in one piece with its shaft. The worm is carried in an eccentric sleeve, by which it can be with- drawn from engagement with the worm wheel to permit the table to be turned by hand. The end thrust of the worm is taken by ball bearings. Power feed may be obtained from the feed box of the machine through an independent shaft, which does not interfere with the regular feeds to the table. Hence it is possible to use automatic feed for milling pieces of irregular shape, or of both straight and circular outline. The attachment can be operated in either direction, and has trip dogs, which automatically trip the feed to a line at any point. The feed is reversed by bevel gears. This attachment is also arranged for spacing. The head wheel can be removed and an index plate or a sector substituted. Accurate dividing can be done, and the same number of divisions obtained as on the standard dividing head. The table has a taper hole at the center to receive a plug for use in gear cutting. Slotting Attachment, Fig 8 shows a new slotting attachment that can he swiveled to any angle in a plane parallel to the face of the column, enabling slotting to be done at any angle from vertical to horizontal. The slotter head is driven Fig. 6.—The Universal Milling Attachment. Fig. 7. The Le Blond Circular Milling Attachment 620 THE IRON AGE Fig. 8.—The Slotting Attachment. from a clutch on the spindle nose of the machine and is adjustable to any length of stroke up to its maximum. The tool holder is graduated and can be swiveled in its bearing and clamped, so that the cutting edge of the tool can be set in correct relation to the work without dis- turbing the adjustment of the work. Rack Spacing Attachment. For use in connection with a rack cutting attachment or the attachment shown in Fig. 5, when applied to the cutting of racks, the rack spacing attachment, Fig. 9, has been-developed. This attachment consists of mech- anism for advancing the table between cuts when milling rack teeth, without depending on the graduated collar on the longitudinal feed screw of the table. It is bolted to the table and carries a quadrant and change gears to connect the feed screws with the locking September 3, 1908 disk. This locking disk is made in two sections, and is reversible—one side containing two notches, the other side one, for spacing whole and half revolutions. Fifteen change gears are furnished for spacing all diametral pitches from 3 to 6 by half pitches, 6 to 16 by whole pitches, and 16 to 32 by two pitches, or all circular pitches from 1-16 to % in. by thirty-seconds of an inch, and 4% to 1 in. by sixteenths of an inch. Vertieal Indexing Head, This head, Fig. 10, facilitates such work as the mill- ing of the teeth of positive jaw clutches, the heads of screws, &e. The divisions are made by a vertical notched plate, which can be handled very rapidly. After the division is made the small lever shown in the side of the spindle locks it securely in position. The spindle is tapered and the front flange is extended to cover and protect the index plate from chips, &e. The spindle has a No. 11 B. & S. taper hole. The whole attachment is rigid and will stand up to very severe work. Editorial Comment, Without meaning to detract from- the credit that is due the other standard forms of machine tools, each of which has its special purpose for which it is more suitable than any other tool, it is indisputable that a universal inilling machine, especially when equipped with such at- tachments as those that have been described in the fore- going, is the most versatile single piece of equipment that can be put in a machine shop. In an emergency it can Fig. 10.—The Le Blond Vertical Indexing Head. perform the functions of almost any other tool, or at least approximate the same result in the work done, as- suming, of course, that the work is not too large or too heavy to be handled by a miller. To an extent the same may be said of a lathe, but when it branches out much beyond its ordinary field, as when the work and tool change places, it is converted practically into a milling machine itself. What is more important than the fact 7 Mad 4 4 : ee pS oui eh a : { a ye September 3, 1908 THE that a milling machine can be substituted for most other tools, although that is not a practice to be commended where the obviously proper tools can be afforded, the milling machine has its own particular lines of work that no other tool can perform, unless it be a special machine that is an adaption of the milling machine principle. —_+-e——____.. The Evolution of Spur Gearing. A paper by Thomas Humpage on “The Evolution and Manufacture of Spur Gearing” was read at the receat meeting in England of the Institution of Mechanical En- gineers. The writer reviewed the development of gear cutters, both in Great Britain and the United States, and presented illustrations and details of various types of machines. The London Times Engineering Supple- ment gives the following partial synopsis: One of the first known makers of wheel cutting ma- chines was J. C. Bodmer, whose works were at Man- chester. In 1835 Joseph Whitworth was granted a patent for a wheel cutting machine, and in all probability this was the first machine to generate involute teeth. The early formed milling cutters were very expensive, owing to the fact that it was impossible to sharpen them with- out spoiling them, and this gradually brought about the introduction of the backed off cutter. In 1874 Brown & Sharpe brought out complete sets of machine relieved involute gear cutters, and in 1880 P. R. Jackson & Co. introduced the double helical spur gearing. The Gleason Works of Rochester, N. Y., made machines for planing the teeth of spur gears up to 24 ft. diameter by 24-in. face and 6-in. pitch. Other machines are the Bilgram spur gear generating shaper and the Fellows gear shaper, while other links in the development of wheel cutting machinery are exemplified in the Brainard, the Sellers, the Thompson & Fitton, Birch’s, Gibson’s (worm and bevel wheel cutter), Smith & Coventry’s, and the Oerlikou machines. In all these machines one tooth must be finished before the next is begun, but in the gear hobbing machine the teeth are generated in circles, and they are all begun and finished practically simul- taneously. During recent years there has been a great tendency toward grinding the teeth of change gears for motor cars, and Messrs. Reinecker have brought out a machine on the same principle as that employed in the Fellows gear shaper. Gears ground by these machines show a great improvement over those which have not been ground. The writer referred to his own machine for grinding the involute teeth of gear wheels, which “work on the principle of the hobbing machine. He had ground up several cast iron wheels of 7 pitch on the experimental machine. In the best results so far obtained a cast iron wheel of 70 teeth, 7 pitch and 1%4%4-in. face was completely ground in S min. In an improved machine an arrange- ment will be provided to bring about even wearing of the corundum worm. He believed that every kind of metal should be ground in the soft state, no matter for what purpose the wheels were required. The wheels should be roughed out rapidly in the gear hobbing machine, with no attempt at finish, and then sent to the grinding machine to be finished. ——_-+ eo A World Record in Steam Power Efficiency.—F. E. Junge, writing in Power, makes this interesting state- ment: That the manufacturers of high-grade steam en- gines have not been slow improving their products while gas power is making such forcible strides ahead, will be realized from the figures which Professor Gutermuth, of Darnstadt, reports of a Wolf “ lokomobile.” This is the name for a type of semi-stationary steam engines working with superheat (boilers and engines combined in one unit), which are manufactured in various sizes in the Wolf works in Magdeburg-Buckau. The engine tested had a capacity of 100 effective horsepower. The steam consumption per effective horsepower was determined as 3.93 kg. (8.6 lb.), and the coal consumption as 0.4738 kg., or 1.04 lb. Figuring on coal as costing $5 per ton in the particular locality, the fuel cost per horsepower comes IRON AGE Gat out as low as 0.22 cent per hour. This is probably the best coal consumption figure ever attained in the genera- tion of steam power. —_—_+-o>—___- Canada’s Trade Outlook. Toronto, August 29, 1908.—Trade in Canada improves, though less rapidly than some of the forecasters calcu- lated. Production in the fundamental industries, such as farming and mining, never declined to the low state that most people were prepared for early last winter. The dairy industry, fostered by weather that has been almost steadily favorable since the early spring, has given a splendid account of itself, as have some branches of the live stock business. In the Cobalt region mining has kept up very well, as it has also done in the coal regions on the Atlantic, on the Pacific and in the Western interior. In some lines of manufacture, notably in agr:- cultural machinery and mining machinery, operatious were fairly well sustained, even in the dullest period. Ontario has yielded a fairly good grain crop, and the Western provinces will have at least 100,000,000 bushels of wheat this harvest. Its crop of oats will also be a fine asset. Trade should show brisk improvement when the marketing of the crop gets well started. Canada’s foreign trade in the first four months of the current fiscal year, opening April 1, shows the effects of the reaction. The exports fell off only $6,485,346 by com- parison with those of the same four months of 1907, but the imports declined $39,915,809. That the exports kept so nearly up to the large volume of those of 1907 that they are compared with is to be attributed pretty much to the same home conditions as is the waning of the im- ports. Imports declined almost exactly $40,000,000 for the reason undoubtedly that Canadian consumers could not afford to buy so much foreign stuff as they bought in the same period of last year. Exports kept relatively high, not because production was energetic, but because consumption was in low tone. Canadians were as unable to buy of tue usual quantum of their own products as they were unable to buy the usual quantum of foreign products. Hence, goods that would otherwise have been absorbed at home went to swell the exports. It is altogether improbable that the trade of the next twelvemonth will be of the magnitude of that done in the twelvemonth immediately preceding the last one. In 1906-1907 Canadian trade was at high tide. In 1207-1908 it was probably at its lowest ebb. In 1908-1800 it will probably come somewhat short of its high water mark. Yet the money value of the natural products that the next twelvemopth starts with is far greater than that of the 1906-1907 yield. But there will be more caution in the coming year than there was in Canada’s biggest trade year. The banks were not proof against the spirit of almost reckless optimism that prevailed for some years up to the latter half of 1907. There seemed to be a general feeling that there could be but one direction of movement for Canada’s trade and that was forward. Setbacks in a country with such great headway, and with such a clear stretch before it, seemed out of the question. A setback, however, came, and the lesson of it that the banks are now impressing is to adhere to a conservative policy. Ex- pansion must not be allowed to project greatly over the foundation lines of financial resources. Those who were before indulged by the banks have now to restrict their operations closely to the limits of their own solid security. It is the present policy of the banks to induce their cus- tomers to get in all that is owing to them, and thus man- age to do with lighter advances. That being so, farmers who are in debt will have to pay their bills and notes before they will be allowed to begin spending on a large scale. As the total indebtedness to be liquidated by crop raisers is very large, and as bankers are likely to be ex- ceedingly careful about making advances, the increased activity looked for in trade is certain not to get out of hand. Cte 6. He Se es Last month there was started at the Rombach Works, in Germany, the great universal structural mill designed by H. Sack, of Rath, near Duesseldorf. | a acta 2B CN A TS eee. a rr re 2 a ee, ee ee eae 622 THE The Bollinger-Andrews Construction Company. The Bollinger-Andrews Construction Company, 409- 411 Empire Building, Pittsburgh, fabricator and erector of structural steel of all kinds, is making extensive addi- tions to its plant at Verona, near Pittsburgh. The com pany owns over 20 acres of land and is erecting several new buildings. One of these is a pattern shop, 50 x 84 ft., of steel construction, with composition roof. The Briggs Machinery Company, Pittsburgh, has an order for its equipment, including universal saw table, hand joiners, band saw machines, Smith patternmakers’ lathe, Perkins trimmers, &¢., which will be operated by 25 and 40 hp. Westinghouse motors. Another new building is a power house, 35 x 50 ft., of steel and brick construction, which will contain two 175-hp. Westinghouse gas engines, di- rect connected to 100-kw. Westinghouse generators for furnishing current for lighting and power purposes; two Chicago Pneumatic Tool Company's air compressors, Fig 1.—The New 16-In making a total of three machines, with a capacity of 1600 ft. of air for operating the pneumatic tools, &c. A third new structure is a large steel building, 130 x 320 ft., which will house the foundry, where castings for structural supports, for the company’s own use, as well as a line of heavy mill castings and ingot molds, will be made. The foundry equipment consists of two 84-in. Whiting cupolas, of 250 tons daily capacity, a Whiting elevator, ladles and a No. 6 Piqua positive pressure blower purchased through Samuel W. Hay’s Sons, Pitts- burgh; three Morgan 20-ton electric cranes, &c. An addi- tion is being made to the structural building, and rotary planers, lathes, punches, beam shears, blacksmith tools and a 1050-lb. hammer are being installed. All machinery will be operated by Westinghouse motors, and when finished the structural department will have a monthly capacity of about 3500 tons. A new Standard Scale & Supply Company’s scale is also being installed, and a siding two miles in length over the company’s own prop- erty is being built. The company is now contracting for its supply of foundry and Bessemer pig iron, expecting to have the new additions in operation by about Octo- ber 1. Thomas L. Andrews, formerly superintendent of the Marshall Foundry Company, Pittsburgh, will have charge of the foundry operatiors IRON AGE September 3, 1908 The New 16-In. Walcott Engine Lathe. The new 16-in. Walcott engine lathe, shown in Fig. 1, contains an interesting device in the quick change feed mechanism. This gives six changes of feed by the action of two lever handles, and can be used in connection It is a plain manufacturing lathe, with ample stiffness and cutting power. The back gear ratio is 10 to 1, with generous width of belt on the driving cone. The lathe is positive in its drive; the apron, of effective design, being without friction. The machine is built by the Walcott & Wood Machine Tool Company, Jackson, Mich. The details of the quick change feed mechanism are shown in Fig. 2. On the rear end of the spindle are the sliding gears a, b and c, actuated by the handle g, also shown, at the head of the machine, in Fig. 1. The sliding gears engage gears d, ec and f, according to the position of the handle, position one giving the slow speed, posi- with thread cutting. Satine heeled ie ante ee 4 ie 4 _ SeREEnSneeEneeniee ee Engine Lathe Built by the Waleott & Wood Machine Tool Company, Jackson, Mich. tion two the fast and position three the medium. The number of changes of feed is doubled by means of the lever k, Fig. 2, also seen at the end of the bed in Fig. 1, this lever actuating a spline, engaging either gears h or i with intermediate gears | or m, thus securing the two series of feeds. It will be noted that this mechanism is a simple one, yet serves its purpose with ample efficiency. In thread cutting, the gear box at the head of the spindle is used. By this means only about one-half of the changes commonly required are necessary in getting the different pitches. The index plate corresponds with the figure numbers 1, 2 and 8 on the gear box for the different pitches. However, the thread cutting feature was not considered seriously in designing the feed box, the aim being to get a positive feed, quick change mecb- anism as constituting a very important feature in a man- ufacturing lathe. The already whatever, being positive by friction means of as will be noted in the detailed drawing, Fig. 3. 30th the longi- tudinal and cross feeds in either direction can be accom- plished from the apron, and the two cannot )e thrown in together. The binding arrangement and the means of throwing in the screw nut for thread cutting are at the front of apron, as stated, contains no gears, feeds the apron, easily accessible to the nee : 3 a snd) gaa September 3, 1908 Fig. 2.--Details of the Quick Change operator. In thread cutting, one turn of the hand wheel moves the carriage approximately 1 in., so that the car- riage can be moved back by hand, and by keeping count of the number of whole turns on the hand wheel the lead screw nut can be thrown in to engage at the desired point. The lathe is designed to meet the severe service with high speed steel, with its high speeds and heavy cuts. The bed is deep and cross ribbed at short intervals its entire length. The headstock is very heavy and is bolted rigidly to the bed. The heavily constructed tailstock, is provided with a set-over for turning tapers, and is off- set to allow the compound rest to swivel parallel to the bed. The cones have four steps, with 2 9-16-in. face for 214-in. belt, the largest step being 9% in. in diameter. The spindle, of high carbon steel, accurately ground, has a front bearing 2% in. diameter and 414 in. long, and has a 11-16-in. hole its entire length. The bearings are of phosphor bronze, with ample provision for oiling. The massive carriage has a deep bridge and a continuous bear- ing 22 in. on the ways. The lathe is tested to an align- ment of 0.002 in. in both longitudinal and cross feeds. THE IRON AGE 623 Feed Mechanism of the Walcott Lathe. The lathe swings over all 168% in. The beds are froin 6 to 10 ft. in eveh lengths, as desired, the 6-ft. bed taking 3 ft. 3 in. between centers. A double friction counter shaft is used with pulleys 12 in. diameter by 3% in. face, with speed forward 220 revolutions; backward, 250 rev- olutions. The machine will cut threads ranging from 5 to 36 to the inch. Its net weight is 1700 Ib. ~~ The Clark Steel Hoop Company.—This company, re cently organized, has received a charter in which the fo! lowing incorporators are named: S. A. Rinn, J. A. Weber, E. C. McKibben, J. M. Grubb, Lon Pantall, J. B. Eberhart and H. E. Bowers, all of Punxsutawney, Pa. The company proposes to build a plant at Punxsutawney for the manufacture of steel hoops and bands. Actively connected with the company is Frank L. Clark, formerly of the Sharon Steel Hoop Company at Sharon, Pa., and before that with William Clark’s Son & Co., operating the Solar Iron & Steel Works at Pittsburgh, which was taken over by the American Steel Hoop Company. 4—* Ti fl 624 THE IRON AGE Results of the Piecework System. Output Increased 52 Per Cent. and Earnings of Machinists 33 Per Cent. A remarkable showing is made for the piecework system in a report recently prepared by the mechanical superintendent of a large railroad, which is not named, and published in the Railroad Age Gazette. The results to the road and to its machinists are summarized in this sentence: “If the 772 engines repaired in 1906 had re- ceived general repairs to tires, boxes, flues and machin- ery under the non-piece-work conditions existing in 1904 and 1905. the additional cost to the company would have been $163,470, or $211.75 per engine, whereas the aver- age rate per hour for all machinists working piecework on the system in January, 1907, was 34.2 cents, as against 25.9 cents, average rate for day work during the same month—a gain to the individual workman of one- third.” Interesting details of the operation of the system are furnished and some extracts from these are given below, taking up first the Piecework Organization. as it was introduced September 1, 1904: (a) The mechanical superintendent, whose final ap- proval of each price is necessary before it is put into effect. (b) The assistant mechanical superintendent in charge of shop work, who approved all prices before they were submitted to the mechanical superintendent. This office has since been abolished. (c) The shop specialist or piecework expert, who has general charge of making all schedules and putting into effect the piecework prices in all the different shops along the line and who reports directly to the mechani- cal superintendent. (d) The master mechanic of the shop, who passes on all prices before they are submitted to the shop spe- cialist. (e) The general foreman of the shop, who personally signs all prices before they are submitted to the master mechanic. (f) The assistant to the general foreman, who times all operations on which it is desired to make piecework prices, giving in detail the time necessary to perform the operation, which if performed on a machine would in- clude: ° Time to set up work. Time to take finish cut. Time to get machine ready. Time to take rough cut. Time to remove work from ma- Time to set and grind tools. chine. Kind of tool steel used. Kind of casiing. Speed and feed. Kind and number of machine. His day rate. Name of man performing work. Total cost per piece. Number of pieces machined. The piecework price finally fixed for the work. The workman must know in every instance that he is being timed for a piecework price, and he may also know, if he desires, the actual time that it took him to perform the operation and the piecework price that is going to be recommended for same. He has a perfect right to raise a question at any time when he is per- forming an operation on which it is intended to fix a piecework price. (g) The piecework checkers who are employed in the different departments check up the amount of piecework performed by each man from day to day and make an accurate record of same on a blank card prepared for this purpose. Comparative Efficiency. The following statement shows shop output and cost under piecework as compared with day work. The fig- ures include all costs in connection with the piecework organization, except the salary of the shop specialist and his office force, consisting at present of one man: September 3, 1908 Statement Showing Cost of Engines Recciving Gencral Repairs for the Year—January to Decembcr, Inclusive—as Com- pared with Fiscal Year Ending June 30, 1905. July to June, January to December, ————-1904-1905.-———___ -——-inclusive, 1906.-——_, TBMF Cost. TBM Cost TBMF Cost. TBM Cost. Shop A.... 36 $39,661 27 $19,749 79 $63,243 8 $4,305 Shop B....130 160,417 51 35,485 207 193,280 7 3,729 Shep C.... T3 68,776 19 9,386 161 116,286 1 457 Shop D....113 113,293 4 994 198 173,612 4 1,659 Shop E.... 37 30.438 2 733 72 50.544 0 re Shop F.... 23 25,630 12 4165 55 56,722 12 7.0'8 Totals. ..414 $438,215 115 $71,912 772 $653,687 32 $17,248 Aver. cost*. $1,058.49 $625.32 $846.74 $539.00 * Per engine. TBMF. = engines receiving general repairs to tires, boxes, flues and machinery TBM. = engines receiving all necessary repairs except flues. SORUOIND BR GOD GUIDE» o.oo. 5 5:56. 0:0'sn'nse0.0's 000 enc OR DOP Comt. Saving per engines, TBMF. repairs 1906 over 1904-5 $211.75 Saving per engine, TBM. repairs 1906 over 1904-5. . 86.32 On this basis had the 772 engines in 1906 received TBMF. repairs under same conditions as existed in 1904-5, they would each have cost $211.75 hs Oe Oe Nia ake pce uwk cnc deen $163,470.00 If the 32 TBM. engines had been overhauled under conditions as cited above, they would each have cost $86.32 more, or a total of............... 2,762.24 Therefore, total net saving on engines receiving gen- ee RD WD OO Rs os wa ncdaadsbundewase $166,232.24 The year 1906 shows an increase in output over 1904-5 of 275 engines receiving general repairs, and it is worthy of notice that but 32 engines received TBM re- pairs in 1906 as against 115 engines in 1904-5. In other words, in 1906 we gave practically all the engines that went through the back shop a thorough overhauling, thereby making them good for the maximum amount of service. The normal output of our locomotive shops is about 1000 general repair engines per year, and on this basis the above figures would show a saving of over $200,000. Explanation of Output Statement, It is not claimed, of course, that piecework is respon- sible for all the saving shown above. The new machin- ery, consisting principally of lathes, planers, boring mills, shapers, slotting machines and such other machines as are used on the machine side of the back shop had a great deal to do with reducing the cost of output. But in this connection it is fair to assume that the large increase of output in the new machinery was much of it due to the fact that we were making a systematic study of this work and that when piecework prices were once fixed the workmen were then required to perform the work in at least the fixed time in order to make their day rate, and when the earnings of the men were in- creased the increase in output was of course in exactly the same proportion. As one among hundreds of cases illustrating this fact we might cite the operation of boring tires on a new 90- in. Niles boring mill in Shop D. The machine had been run for some months on a day work basis with an out- put averaging about five tires per day of 10 hr., day rate ot workman 25 cents per hour, but the next day after a piecework price of 17 cents per tire was fixed the same workman bored 20 tires in 10 hr., thereby increasing his earnings 36 per cent., while the capacity of the machine was increased 300 per cent. It should be remembered also that in places like F, E and A very few improvements have been made in the boiler shop, blacksmith shop, tank shop, paint shop, car- penter shop, fitting department, tin and pipe shop and erecting shop. The improvements at these points consist chiefly of the new machinery placed on the machine side of the shop. It is a fact, however, that the addition of pneumatic hammers, air hoists, special devices for han- dling certain classes of work in the departments enumer- ated above, some new furnaces in the blacksmith shops, with a new steam hammer here and there and an occa- sional small power hammer, has added very much to in- creasing the output, but it must not be forgotten that new tools alone will add little to the output of any shop unless they are worked up to their capacity. The Gain to Employees. Piecework benefits the employee by affording him an opportunity to increase his earnings, as illustrated in the following statement: er era ar September 3, 1908 Gain Per Cent. Per Hour, by Piece Work Over Day Work for All Machinists Working Piece Work on the System, Month of January, 1907. Gain Average per hr. c ——Piece work. ——~ rate piece Total hours Total Aver. rate per hour, work, worked. earnings. per hour. day work. per ct. ae eee 7,028 $2,167.57 $0.308 $0.249 23.7 ee eer 2,436 723.72 0.297 0.244 21.7 Gee ©. .6K:0% 1,430 569.48 0.390 0.277 40.7 aaep D....... 2600 782.49 0.380 0.278 36.7 eee 1,916 692.82 0.361 0.273 31.9 weep F........ 38a 1,414.77 0.360 0.254 41.7 Shop G.......15,888 4,977.11 0.315 0.244 28.2 7 ae 9,969 *8,931.07 0.394 0.261 50.9 Totals... .44,607 $15,259.03 0.342 0.259 53.0 We use the above rates, which apply to machinists only because we had the figures at hand. The per cent. of gain to workmen in other departments is substantial- ly the same. The increase in shop output, as shown by a preceding table, is 52 per cent., while the increased earnings of the men amount to 33 per cent. The month of January was selected because this usu- ally is the coldest month in the year, and if any difficul- ties could arise which would retard the speed of the workmen and decrease their earning power they would show up at this time. Attitude of the Men. We do not believe our workmen as individuals are opposed to piecework. It is only when we come in con- tact with the organizations to which some of our em- ployees belong that we find an antagonistic feeling to- wards this method of shop organization. This statement is proved to be true from the fact that since September 1, 1904, when we first commenced to introduce piecework in al] shops along the line we have had no trouble what- ever with our blacksmiths, boilermakers, tin and pipe fitters, tank men, painters and carpenters. None of the above classes of labor have been organ- ized within the time specified except the blacksmiths. This department had the remains of an organization when we commenced the introduction of the present piecework system, but as the piecework went into effect the organization gradually went out of business. Organization’s Objections to Piecework. The Machinists’ Union objects to piecework because, as it claims, it puts one man against another, father against son and son against father in the scramble to increase their daily earnings. As a matter of fact, it simply places every man, regardless of relation, on his own merits. When the piecework price is once fairly es- tablished, it presents to all alike an equal opportunity to increase their daily earnings in direct proportion to the effort. Labor organizations always have maintained that a uniform day rate should prevail for each indi- vidual class of mechanics. Piecework, of course, is dia- metrically opposed to this proposition, because it fixes a fair price on the individual operation and then leaves it open for each workman to earn wages in proportion to his ability. The foregoing tables clearly demonstrate this fact, because while the piecework prices are practically the same and in many respects the conditions are the same, a study of the figures will show that some shops earn much more than others on the same class of work. This is directly due to the intelligence, mechanical ability and efforts of the workmen. The principal effect, however, of a piecework organization is that it reduces to a min- imum the number of mechanics required in the different departments of the shop, because the number of men must be reduced in direct proportion to the increase in efficiency of each individual mechanic. It is a selfevident fact, however, that the more me- chanics a shop employs in a certain line of work, the more money there is in it for the labor organizations, and it is therefore to their interest to maintain a stub- born fight against the further introduction of a fixed price for a given amount of work. —_- McCoy & Brandt, 619 Ferguson Building, Pittsburgh, have recently been appointed local agents by the Ameri- THE IRON AGE 625 can Electric Fuse Company, Muskegon, Mich., for its line of Allen-Bradley electric crane controllers. —_.§-- The Grondal Continuous Charcoal Kiln. The recently published literature of the American Gréndal Kjellin Company, 45 Wall Street, New York, de- scribes the Grindal charcoal kiln, which has been exten- sively used in Sweden, though no plant has thus far been erected in the United States. The general arrangement of the kiln, which is designed by Dr. Gustav Gréndal, takes the form of a long tunnel divided into two main compartments, one for charring and the other for cooling. There is a lock at each end of the kiln to facilitate charging and discharging the cars. The wood is stacked vertically in open steel cars with a capacity of 250 cu. ft. These cars have latticed sides and ends, giving free circu- lation of hot gases. The cars are in contact throughout the length of the kiln, and as a car of timber is charged through the entrance lock a car of charcoal is discharged from the lock at the other end. The heavier by-products drip through the open lattices of the car and collect in a channel between the rails. There are cross leads at inter- vals, and these drain through into an outside sump. The gaseous by-products ascend to the crown of the kiln and are led off through condensers. The crude by-products are treated in a series of heating and distilling vessels working in a vacuum according to Bergstrom’s distilla- tion process, the surplus heat of the kiln being utilized. Details are given of the results of three months’ operation of a Gréndal kiln. The wood used was sodden spruce board edgings from sawmills, averaging 6 ft. long, 2 to 6 in. wide and % in. to 2 in. thick. The gas producer which furnished heat for the charring chamber was sup- plied with the same edgings and with sawdust, the con- sumpticn being equal to 15 per cent. of the wood charged into the kiln, The charcoal recovered amounted to 74 per cent. of the wood charged, or 74 bushels per cord, and the average output per kiln was 2270 bushels in 24 hours. The average recovery of by-products over the three months was as follows: Raw turpentine, 1.36 gal.; thick tar, 2.36 gal.; tar oil, 6.5 gal.; concentrate, 289 gal.—all per cord. From the concentrate 5.46 gal. of acetic acid per cord was derived, and 2 gal. of methyl alcohol. Naturally the rate at which cars pass through the kiln depends ou the amount of moisture in the wood. With sodden saw edgings of pine the average number of cars withdrawn in 24 hr. is 22 per kiln. With forest air dried timber the Puinber runs up to 36 cars in 24 hr. Owing to the spe- cially designed regenerative system on which the kiln works uncondensed gases are returned. to the gas pro- ducer to be burned, and in the case of forest air dried timber these gases suffice to do all the necessary heating. The number of men per shift required for working two kilns is 20, of which number 9 are employed in filling cars. The total wages paid per shift for two kilns was 76 shillings 6 pence. On an output of 4540 bushels per shift the labor cost per bushel of charcoal is thus 0.2025 penny, or about 0.4 cents. a Ingot Iron Sheets.—Recent literature of the Amer- ican Rolling Mill Company, Middletown, Ohio, calls at- tention to the work this company undertook, following out the suggestion of Dr. Allerton S. Cushman of the Department of Agriculture, Washington, D. C., as to methods of making steel less liable to corrosion. In line with his discoveries, connecting electrolytic action with rusting, Dr. Cushman urged that iron and steel be freed as far as possible from other metals which differ electro-chemically from iron. The American Rolling Mill Company says that it has succeeded in manufacturing an iron sheet which is “99.94 per cent. pure.” It offers this product as less liable to corrosion than charcoal iron and very much less liable to rust than steel. It is claimed that when used for roofing, guttering, spouting, corru- gated culverts.and for all service in which rapid rusting ordinarily occurs, ingot iron will demonstrate the value of the special methods followed in its manufacture. carpe Re ee RRR ER I STN we SOS = ey — Se eR ee 626 The New Plant of the Standard Weld- ing Company. The gradual development of electric welding during the past few years in the lines to which it was originally applied, and the new uses to which it has been found well THE IRON AGE September 3. 1908 The Standard Welding Company was organized July 1, 1899, and first occupied 20,000 sq. ft. of floor space. As the business grew this was increased gradually to 50,- 000 sq. ft., with a further expansion to 125,000 sq. ft. in the new plant. At first the product was tubes and elec- trically welded seat posts and other bicycle parts. Six years ago clincher rims for automobiles were added and eat (cise _ Siemet aT OOo I \| 1} ] It it | T . 7 D a | i| I || | BOILER ROOM lI a= I II | oO 00 2 0 fh | 2 | || I WwW || i] | ii 5 i | L 0 OF b f fi x “o i I] ee = >= I | ] 0 9 = o T 0 ie | l | | O 00 : 4 H ENGINE ROOM } > t T | i] _ II | a 7 °o © _O——— | I | 1] a oe | I SO) = } 0 =e — Hs i i “i =o SAW TOOTH BUILDING T 443’ LONG | 15 SAW TEETH ih | > ee ee ees pesa(]ernss( fea he::- ---$----- - a ee