The Iron Age 1917-03-29: Vol 99 Iss 13

New York, March 29, 1917 ESTABLISHED 1855 Brass Manufacture in a Modern VOL. 99: No. 13 Plant Expansion of the Brass Industry in the Past Two Years, as Illustrated by the Stamford Rolling Mills Company BY W. E. VEN in these days of startling industrial PJsrowen it is not usual to find a business expand- ing from 30 hands to over 1250 in a little more than a year. Yet that is the story of the Stamford Rolling Mills Company, Stamford, Conn., from August, 1915, to February, 1917. It is perhaps un- necessary to state that the group of men respon- hor gra ae |__| The caster manipulates the crucible with large special tongs. ved end to fit the arm or body enables the helper to handle the crane much more ble with the ropes alone ble for this rapid growth had high ideals com- ined with scientific thoroughness and were pecu- larly free from the limitations of tradition and recedent in the brass business. In August, 1915, the Stamford Rolling Mills mpany, a new organization, took over the plant of the United German Silver Company at Springdale, Conn., a suburb of Stamford. At that time the plant nsisted of a small group of buildings with two tands of rolls and 18 fires and produced 200,000 Ib. { feed oP FREELAND of metal a month. Since that time the plant has been greatly extended and now has 7 stands of rolls and 108 fires in operation. In the fall of 1915 the American Cupro-Nickel Company started an entirely new plant on Fairfield Avenue in Stamford. pleted the Stamford Before this plant was com Rolling Mills Company took au An iron pipe attached to the trolley a rapidly and accuratel over the entire capital stock and immediately began making large additions. This plant, which is called the No. 2 mill, now has 14 stands of rolls and 96 fires. The Springdale plant is especially equipped to make German silver, sheet and strip brass and copper; the Stamford plant to make cupro-nickel and thin gage brass. The total production of the two mills is over,4,000,000 Ib. a month. The Springdale mill is located on the New Canaan branch of the New York, New Haven & 763 been cast and cooled the ire taker After the bars have to an alligator shear where the gates are cut off ; i the bar cut in two An industrial car carries the bars to the storag yard where the metal is stored show! int the mil ready to receive it The bars re weighs 50-bar lots Hartford Railroad. It has an extensive spur track installation so that the metal and other heavy ma- terials are easily handled directly into the plant. At this plant is a cabbaging building, storehouse, bonded warehouse, three casting shops, rolling mill, recovery plant, smelter building, pump house, sand- blast house, boiler house, transformer house, restaurant, garage and guard building, fire appara- tus and other buildings necessary to make a modern and complete rolling mill. The executive offices are located at this mill. A network of industrial tracks serves practically all the various buildings and plays an important part in the transportation of the heavy loads incidental to the industry. The company has THE IRON AGE March 29, 7 also under way another large building which w used as a hot copper department. A complete « ment, including three hot copper mills has bee dered for this building. In the cabbaging building, the brass ser: compressed by a special type of hydraulic called a cabbaging machine, into rectangular | of about 6 x 6 x 14 in., which are of an ave weight of 35 lb. This compression aids in the } dling of the loose metal and puts it into conven form for insertion in the crucibles. The stor building is used for general storage and mate: are unloaded directly from the cars. Metals stored in the next building, called the metal ro which has large bins for the different kinds metals. In this building is installed a large alli; tor shear for cutting scrap and bars. Here all th: metal for the casting shops is weighed and plac: in pans holding approximately 210 lb., each pan « taining the charge for one crucible. Between the metal room and the casting shop a large space given over to storage of coal and cok The coal is dumped into a hopper under the spur track. From this hopper an elevator of the co tinuous bucket type lifts the coal 50 ft. and delivers it automatically into a chute which extends over th: length of the storage space. At convenient inter vals in this chute are gates which deflect the coal to any desired storage pile. Hard coal, coke and charcoal are used. As the car of metal from the metal room enters the casting shops, it runs over track scales, which serve to check the weights as determined in the metal room. Along one side of each casting shop is a row of coal bunkers. In front of the bunkers is a row of fires in holes, 15 in. square, lined with fire brick. The crucibles are set in these holes in direct contact with the burning fuel. Running down through the center of the shops are pits in which are placed in a vertical position the molds in which the bars are cast. In one of the shops are 24 : : : . : - ; e gears The breaking-down mill has 20 x 24-in. water-cooled rolls and is driven by a 250-hp. motor through herringbon which serve to eliminate the chatter marks sometimes caused by spur gears. March 29, 1917 fires; in the other two, 36 and 48 fires, respectively. One stack serves the smallest shop, a larger stack situated between them serving the other two shops. [he crucibles, on being lifted from the fires, are onveyed to the pouring position by hand-operated ranes of the I-beam trolley type, which have a range extending from the fires to the mold pits. A ength of iron pipe with an end portion curved to it the body or arm of the operator plays a part in he manipulation of this crane. With the rope con- trol in his hands and the iron pipe against his body, the operator is enabled to move the crane or trolley rapidly to any desired position. The position of caster in a brass shop has al- ways been held one of honor. In the olden days each caster was valued because of the peculiar secrets which he was supposed to possess and which . he took with him from plant to plant as his personal stock in trade. To-day science has lessened the im- portance of the personal element in the casting om. It is still true, though, that the caster is, and must be, a man of peculiar skill in his calling. His is a trade in which nothing has yet been found to supplant years of training and a large measure f personal experience. It is interesting to note the dexterity with which he handles the 200-lb. rucible and to learn that he determines the speed of pouring by the tone of the hissing sound pro- duced by the burning of the oil with which the in terior of the mold is coated. Other little tricks that he employs would pass unnoticed by the uninitiated; such as placing a block of soft wood on top of the hot metal in the crucible while pouring, so that the flames of the burning wood will help to lessen the oxidation of the surface of the molten metal; or his method of telling when the molten charge is at the proper pouring temperature by feeling the number of vibrations transmitted to the stirring rod which he rests on the bottom of the crucible for an instant after stirring the metal; or the clever way in which he uses his skimmer-rod to separate the flow from T = . a re « é + _ Set | _ Each finishing mill is driven by a 75-hp. motor superimposed on the gear casings THE IRON noe ido the crucible into two streams which better bars than single stream pouring where no strainer cap is used. A strainer-cap is usually placed over the top of the mold, particularly on the larger sizes, as its use produces a more perfect cast bar. These strainer-caps have holes of about % in diameter, the number and location of these holes varying according to the size of the mold. The cleaning of the molds is an essential part of successful brass casting. A special type of indus trial car upon which the molds are supported in a vertical position is used to transport the molds to a special blast building. The inner surfaces of the molds are cleaned with a blast of crushed steel shot makes several In locating the stands the roll ends Placed adjacent in each pair so that one roller can supervise two sets of rolls THE IRON AGE NM Tar —aore _—. it tesahiie dieie men | The annealing furnaces in both mills are loaded on muffie pans shown by iron hooks tate the handling of the the are of and are long sheets of iron muffle pans. which has been found more successful than the sand formerly employed. After the shot blast, the dust and dirt are removed by an air blast and the molds are again ready for use. The same molds are not used for brass and German silver, a special set of molds being used for German silver casting. The foreman of the casting shop at No. 1 is Frank P. Welton, nill who has been for many years a recognized expert in the manufacture of German silver. Mr. Welton entered the casting shop 35 years ago and has had an experience of 26 years as X ‘O ‘ ig Fe Nd aeanre. : - yt \ The truckloads of hot metal The apparatus consists essentially plates and the water is drained off of to a a perforated pipe with filtering plant oil under-fired muffle type pulled attached to chains wound up by a motor-driven winch. \ La are hauled under this spraying a March 29, with beds 30 ft. long. from the charging side mill trucks used have The strips of metal and pulled out as roller beds to facili- into the furnace The foreman and superintendent. For 22 years he was with the Benedict & Burnham branch of the Ameri- can Brass Company, Waterbury, Conn., and was one of the organizers of the Waterbury Rolling Mills. The Rolling Mill and Its Equipment After the bars are cast and cooled, they are loaded upon an industrial car and carried to one of several large alligator shears, located at convenient places in the casting shops, where the gates are cut aoae! Wl TD dll arrangement which drenches the metal quick-acting valv > at one end. The floor for about 3 mir is of checkered and cleansed for re-use. March 29, 1917 This view of the slitting operation shows ned on each edge and split into tw strips of equal an ind feed-out rolls. the latter serving to rub down off and the bars are cut in two. The cast bars are carried to an open space between the casting shoy and the rolling mill which is used for the storage of such bars as the mill is not ready to receive. The industrial track system is arranged so that a car load of bars from the storage yard can be run di rectly to the sticking or feeding side of the break- ing down mill, supplanting the former method of carrying these heavy loads to the mill on mill trucks and obviating the extra handling necessary when mill trucks are used. A view in the finishing department etimes called flatteners, and a squaring shear long boxes in which the strips are driven by rolls through | in similar boxes of sawdust one of the older THE IRON AGE in the older portion of the rolling m are of heavy wood planks fastened to sleepers laid in sand. In the new part of the mill, the floors ars of wood blocks resting on concrete. a base of 6-in. reinforced A departure from standard practice wa made in laying these blocks. Instead of being laid in sand alone, a 5-to-1 sand and cement was employed. This mixture was struck off and the surface sprinkled with water just in advance of the laying of the blocks. It has found that b using the concrete mixture in place of straight sand mixture ol been In the immediate foreground are two sets of 17-rol] straighteners, or as they ar: In the background are slitting mach sawdust nes and drying-out machines, whic! On heavy material the drying-out is usually done t 768 the blocks do not tip under heavy loads owing to the increased stiffness of the mixture, yet but little of the cushioning effect of the sand is lost. The seven stands of rolls comprise one set for breaking down, two sets for running down, and four sets for finishing. The breaking-down mill has 20 x 24-in. rolls and is driven by a 250-hp. motor. It is the common practice throughout both plants of the company to equip the mills with cut steel her- ringbone gears which practically eliminate all pin- ion or chatter marks on the stock being rolled. The running-down mill also has 20-in. rolls. There are three finishing mills with 18-in. rolls, and two fin- ishing mills, used for thin gage metal, with 10-in. rolls. The 20-in. running-down mill and the 18-in. finishing mills are equipped with 3-roll motor-driven coiling machines of the latest type. The 10-in. fin- ishing mills are equipped with fully automatic block- ing machines. Four additional finishing mills of the latest type (as described later in this article in the description of No. 2 plant) are soon to be in- stalled at this mill, together with additional motor equipment of about 1000 hp. The overhauling—which is the trade name for the removal, after the breaking-down operation and previous to the passing of the bars through the running-down mill, of the scale and imperfections which are inherent in all cast bars—is accomplished by means of large milling machines called “slab mill- ers” or by 12-in.-stroke crank-type overhauling ma- chines. Annealing Equipment and Methods For annealing, which enters into the cycle of op- erations after every two or three passes through the rolls, this plant has one double-chamber muffle fur- nace of the oil under-fired type and two similar single-chamber muffles. The beds of these muffles are 30 ft. long. The floor on the charging side of the muffles is concrete and the cooling bed on the feed-out side is composed of checkered iron plates. The bars and coils to be annealed are loaded directly from the mills on muffle pans which are placed on mill trucks that have platforms made of rolls to facilitate easy removal of the heavy loads. These muffle pans are long, thick sheets of iron, turned up at each end. Holes are bored in plates at the turned-up ends to accommodate the hook of the charging apparatus. When a muffle pan has re- ceived its full load, the truck is moved to the charg ing side of the furnace, ready to be hooked to one of the pans being annealed. By this method when one or two pans are removed a corresponding num ber are at the same time charged, thus combining in one operation the charging and discharging of pans of work. To the other end of the hook is attached a chain which passes around sheaves fastened to the floor and is wound up by a motor-driven winch. The whole appliance is usually spoken of as a “pan puller.” After the annealing period is le pans are pulled out in a similar manner on to mill trucks which are then hauled into position below one of the sets of sprays. The spraying apparatus con sists of lengths of iron pipe, suspended horizontally, which are perforated with rows of small holes. At one end of the spray pipe is a quick-acting valve and the operation of drenching the pan of hot metal consumes but 2 to 4 min. Some of the alloys rolled at this mill it is necessary to air cool f over, tl instead of water cool, due to the harmful effect on their struc- ture that the quicker water cooling method would entail. This is particularly true of the nickel alloys. For the pickling operation, the coils of metal are placed on racks which measure 3 x 5 ft. and hold from 1200 to 1500 lb. of metal. The pickling °O1 2 o THE IRON AGE March 29, 1917 is done in two tubs, measuring roughly 4 x 20 which lie parallel and are served by an I-beam tor trolley crane. The first of the tubs contains pickle bath, the second, water. A rack with its | of coils is lifted from a transveyor platform re to be carried away. There is a set of pickle t in front of each of the 18-in. finishing mills an: set which serves the two 10-in. mills. In addit there are three sets in the space between the «: ing bed and the finishing department. Outline of Manufacturing Processes The processes of casting, rolling and temperi: brass and similar alloyed metals are well standar: ized. In weighing up metal for the casting sho; nech press turning out the disks from which cases are drawn The disks are closely inspected diameter and finish by inspectors representing the e! in the usual practice the scrap strip is cut int t b hears which operate simultaneously tl the punching die there is a definite mixture obtained to meet stand- ards established by the laboratory. The metal pans contain usually 210 lb. which gives a normal charge for the crucibles used in the casting shops. Ordi- narily one bar is cast from each pot of metal and these bars are then cut in two, leaving each section of an approximate weight of 100 lb. The molds are ’ two sections, having a parting line down the The inside of each half is slushed and the halves joined together by driving wedges between the body of the mold and a stout rectangular clamp, called a mold band, which is slightly larger than th« mold. The placing of the wedges and bands r¢ quires considerable care and experience in orde! that the cast bar may be perfect and not vary gage between one side and the other. After the bars are cast, the mold bands are moved by a sharp blow from a hammer, the mold falling apart. The bar is then lifted out by heav) After cooling, the gates are cut off and the bar cut in two sections by a large alligator shear The cast bars are then conveyed to the mill storage sides. tongs. farch 29, 1917 om from which they are weighed into the mill in -bar lots. The orders to the mill specify the gage d finish desired and the methods to be followed in successive operations. The operations are all andardized, but vary according to the material to rolled and the mill equipment to be employed. The st bars are carried to the sticking-side of the eaking-down rolls on an industrial car and are in through a sufficient number of passes to bring e thickness of the bars down to a predetermined easure. From the breaking-down rolls, the bars » carried on mill trucks to the 9-roll straighten- g machines which flatten the bar, then to the over- uling machines where the surface is either milled or trimmed off with a tool somewhat resembling hisel to which is given a reciprocating motion. this operation all scale and dirt is removed and so all defects which might cause splitting or check- g in further rolling operations. The bars are then taken to the annealing furnace nd left in the furnace for a definite period under pecified temperatures which vary according to the aracter of the metal and the results desired. After the first annealing the bars are cooled under the pray pipes and are then pickled and washed in ater. The bars are now carried to the running- ywn mill, the number of passes in the running- lown and the finishing mills varying according to the specifications for the finished product. Usu- lly the metal is run through the mill for two or three passes, is annealed, continuing to pass through this cycle of operations until gage No. 10 (B. & S.) wr thereabouts is reached at which point pickling and washing are added to the cycle of operations intil the desired gage is reached. Before the final finishing passes, the coils of metal are pickled and left under water until the roller is ready to pass them through, in order to prevent surface oxida- tion. The cycle of operations sometimes varies from this standard procedure, due to special re- juirements in the final result. Due to the recent mprovements in automatic blocking and coiling machines, the metal is now handled almost wholly form of coils from the time it leaves the running-down mill. If the final product is to be of soft temper, the s of metal go through the annealing and pickling erations once more and are then run through a ng-out machine. If the metal is to be left with ard temper, it goes immediately from the finish rolls to the slitter. In the slitting operation, coil may be merely trimmed on each edge to ob n a precise and uniform width, or it may be split to two or more strips at one pass through the ma ne. Thin gage metal is again coiled as it leaves slitter and then goes to the straightening rolls. t is to be shipped in flat lengths, it is ired to length, and is then inspected for gage finish. From the inspection benches it goes to packing department, where it is weighed, packed marked for shipment. To give some typical operation, it is necessary scribe the number of runs and passes before inal product is secured. In making strips to it into disks for 3-in. shrapnel cases, there is run of two passes through the breaking-down one run of two passes through the running- mill, and four passes through the finishing Between each run of two or more passes the tal passes through the annealing cycle. To make thin gage brass, say of 24 gage or 12 in., the number of rolling operations is greatly tended. In this case the cast bar is reduced from the next thickness of approximately 1%< in. to °¢ in. by WO passes through the breaking-down mill. Re- THE IRON 769 AGE duction from 5, in. to No. 0 is obtained by two passes through the running-down mill. From No. 0 to No. 5 requires two passes and the same number of passes are required from No. 5 to No. 10, No. 10 to No. 15, and from No. 15 to No. 20. On pass then reduces the metal from No. 20 to No. 23 All of these runs are through the run mill. The coils are then conveyed to the mill where in two passes the metal No. 23 to 0.012 in. fron ning-dow1 finishing is reduced from variety of There is a great changes in the successive steps of production for different classes of metal, gage and finish. Con- tinued study and extensive experiments have re sulted in the establishment of standards which en able the planning department to issue production orders which contain precise instructions for each operation. Finishing and Press Departments The finishing department contains a variety of coils of in detail, more space machines and appliances for metal into marketable shape. each of these machines would require than is available in this article. The « turning the To describe quipment in cludes sawdust drying boxes, slitters, straightening roils (both belt and motor driven types), circular trimmer, coilers, automatic roll straightener and shearing machine, and several shea f the guillo tine type. In the press department are three 300-ton disk ing presses with individual motor drives, three smaller disking presses of which one is also equipped with shears, and a cupping press One corner of the rolling mill building is given over to a completely equipped machine shop Ad joining this are a locker and wash rooms with mod ern installations of toilet A new two-story adjoining the rolling mill, houses the offices shipping room, the shipping roon ground floor. The spur track runs close side of the shipping room a that four or more c time. The shipping platform is structure, 75 x 135 ft. in size, and pving the along one nd doors are provided so loaded at the same inside the build ars can de ing, extending the full length of this side of the room and is served by an I-beam electric trolle) crane. This crane is so arranged that the trolley can be run off on I-beams in each ba affording convenient facilities for mov ship ments to any point desired or to ar r door. These facilities for handling freight otl ming an outgoing, are so complete that freight cars are a most always released within the time allowar T'o be continued As a result of the Var, the “Sout! \ e} i y ,00k,” the standard ference WV Sout An is hereafter to be edited and published in the | States by the Americas Publishing & Printing Corpora tion, with offices in the Evening Post Bu , 20 Vesey Street, New York. Heretofore tl W een | ished by the Louis Cassier Compar Lt I It is the intention to increase the valus { DOO} the people ‘ f this country | , ditir ° ‘ , ry in An ean standpoint. In furtherance of tl lea, specia , attention will be given to nforn or extension of American commercial and ests in South America. The 1917 edit ‘ in September. It will have the most plete pn of * South America so far printed, 50 x 40 lr J compiled by Alexander Gross, F. R. G. 5 The Kieselguhr Company of America, 11 Broadw New York City, maker of heat sulation for hot toves and mains, annealing furnaces, etc., has chang: its name to the Celite Products Compa f New Y 770 TWO NEW DRILLING MACHINES Addition of Multiple Heads and Use of Vernier Adaptors to Increase Output DRILLING and bering machine, designed to handle 3-in. high-speed drills, has been placed on the market by the Medina Machine Company, Medina, Ohio. It is designed with a view of adding special multiple boring heads for manufacturing work if desired. The machine, it is pointed out, is simple in construc- | tion and operation, | being free from complicated levers | or handles, with | all levers at front of machine and in easy reach of op- erator. All gears are protected with guards. The spindle is 31% in. in diameter and is driven by its largest diam- eter and close to the work. The spindle sleeves and spindle are cruci- ble steel forgings, THE IRON AGE March 29, 1917 change and four semi-steel wide-face gears that erate from the clutch. Only two idler gears ar mesh when the machine is in operation. Gear chan; are made by a roll-in gear. The drive, whethe belt or motor, is at constant speed. When the lat is used the motor can be mounted on a bracket in rear of the machine, and if an adjustable-speed mot is employed, the gearbox can be eliminated. For sing purpose manufacturing work the speed box can eliminated and a single-speed drive or a three-st cone pulley and a countershaft used. A vertica spindle traverse 14 in. is provi ed. Four spe changes ranging from 0.006 to 0.0 in. per revoluti of the spindle a secured by © sli key and _ sliding semi-steel gears To protect the feed mechanism the feed gear is provided with a safety friction. The machine has an automatic knock-off to dis- engage the feed clutch. The table is of ground their en- plain box section, tire length, the strongly ribbed, spindle sliding and has a channel through a sleeve, — a around the edge which alone runs Multiple Boring Heads Can Be Added to the Boring and Drilling Machine at ‘to carry off com- in bearings. The the Left to Adapt It for Manufacturing Work, while the Use of a Vernier pound. It is pro- 7 E ‘ Adaptor n Cor inction with Standard Gage Blocks Enables the Machine at a : h > sleeve has a coni- the Right to Drill Set Irregularly Spaced Holes Easily without Employing vided with eavy cal journal at the Jigs straps to secure lower end. The the table to the upper end is straight, with a conical sleeve that fits closely over the spindle sleeve proper and is driven with the spindle sleeve by a key. The spindle head is rigidly fastened to the column and is self-contained in a unit with the spindle driving gear and feed mech- anism. The bevel driving gear, feed worm and worm gear run in grease. The head is bored to receive solid Lumen bronze bearings for the spindle sleeve drive. With a driving pulley speed of 400 r.p.m., the spindle has eight speeds ranging from 54 to 414 r.p.m. The drive is direct from the bevel pinion of the speed gear- box to the large bevel driving gear mounted on the spindle sleeve. The bevel gear drives the spindle through the sleeve with the two steel keys. The thrust of the bevel driving gear and the two spindle driving keys are taken on an S. K. F. thrust bearing. The machine is equipped with a Johnson double friction clutch for starting and stopping. The driving gears run in oil in a speed box having column and keep it in alignment. The table has a liberal bearing surface on the column. The working surface of the table is 19 x 20 in. and its lift is 16% in. The maximum distance from the spindle end to the table is 32 in. The distance from the center of the spindle to the face of the column above the knee is 12 in. The table is raised and lowered by a jack screw. The company has also brought out a drilling, boring and spacing machine, that in addition to being a vertical boring machine with the essential construc- tional features, operating parts and dimensions similar to those of the machine described above, is designed for jig boring work and for boring holes to a close limit without the use of jigs for manufacturing work. This is possible by the use of a set of gage blocks and an adaptor gage in connection therewith. It is stated that with the use of these, holes can be spaced within 0.00001 in. as readily as by the use of the micrometer or other measuring devices. This machine has a base with a working surface of a tight-fitting cover. There are nine hardened steel ETE LL EIR | 4 Ap = - —————e -\_+ 9 FS SY | 1 How the Gage Blocks and a Set of Vernier Adaptors Are | Employed for Drilling Irregularly Spaced Holes March 29, 1917 in. x 6 ft., which is provided with three T-slots run- g lengthways for clamping jigs, work table or g.e plate. At the rear of the base is a planed cast ip lined with hardened steel blocks, against which set gage blocks. Two platens are provided, one with vorking surface of 22 x 48 in. and the other with a surface of 16 x 18 in., both being 6 in. high platen has three T-slots holding the ‘ or clamping down the smaller platen. It has two re working edges, provided with hardened strips the use of gage blocks. There are clamping strips the ends and sides for fastening to the table. The ller platen is used in connection with either the e or with the larger platen as desired. two KIng | larger for This platen T-slots for holding the work. It has nping edges, and steel blocks are inserted for gaging faces the same as the larger platen. Three parallels 6 x 28 in. are provided to set up the larger suit the work when desired, so that the iller platen can be floated around on top to suit the ting for spacing with the gage blocks. \ gage block end stop is provided to fit the center in the base or the platen. This has a dened steel face to set the gage blocks against and mping bolts to hold it in any desired location. The ige blocks are provided in three sets and are made of ardened ground and lapped tool steel in seven lengths ym %4 to 7 in. Any variation in the gage blocks is hed in, making them accurate to within 0.00001 in. blocks are used to advantage with the adaptor ge and also with the Johannsen blocks when desired The adaptor gage is hardened, ground and lapped is provided with a Vernier scale divided into 250 m. spaces, and a Vernier strip with 100 spaces makes also iten to larger This Truck Roller to possible by the wedge construction to get within 00l-in. spacings up to 25,000 or % in. ee adaptor gages are provided for each machine nnection with gage blocks, one being used on the and two on each side of the platen for spacing. scales are placed so that they are visible when the ptor rests on the platen. It is pointed out that ing with these blocks eliminates the trouble ex- enced with a screw and saves trial boring cuts to e, as is the case in usual hole spacing. lhe general specifications of both machines are the When desired, the second machine is furnished a compound table clamped to the base. This has both longitudinal and transverse slides pro- d with coarse-pitch screws and dials for spacing. regularly built with the upright clamped to the but a knee or sliding table construction can be vided when desired. An angle plate and hardened blocks for use as set blocks are furnished as al parts Spaces he Swastika Flexible Metals Company, recently porated with a capital stock of $250,000, by Louis Pritchard, U. R. Talbot, Edgar M. Hirsch, and ers, has acquired the plant of the Alloys Foundry pany, Warwick, Ohio, and will manufacture various ’ steels under a patent process. The plant is being irged. The company’s offices are at 909 Swetland ding, Cleveland. THE IRON Is Raised by the J te Slipped T 771 AGE Adjustable Lift Truck for Heavy Loads An interesting type of truck for handling machinery, large castings, general freight, etc., is being built by the F. J. Bloodgood Company, Binghamton, N. Y. It has a capacity for loads ranging from 1000 to 6000 lb. and is designed and constructed to eliminate the use « Ose rollers in transferring heavy objects, as well as being adjustable for loads of various widths and lengths The truck has a U-shaped frame, the opening for the reception of the object to be lifted being toward the rear \ powerful lifting jack is attached to the base of the I at the front of the truck. The truck is guided by a tongue attached to the front of the carriage and, it is emphasized, can be turned around within its own lengtl The frame can be adjusted to take care of variation the width of the load, while the wheel car ges on the sides of the frame can be slid along for the length, o1 if necessary, additional sections can bi te this way, it is pointed out, the truck adjusts itself position around the load instead of requiring the latter to be moved to the truck. When it is desired to load a piece of mac! other », the foot piece of the inderneath. The jack is then operated by the ntil the article is raised sufficiently bar to be articl f screw jack tront to pel r 1 inserted through the rear wheels whic] the Right Until It Clears the } or Sufficient! f hrough the Rear Wheels placed slightly back of the center of the load. When this is done, the jack is lowered until the rear end of the load clears the floor. The greater portion of then supported by the roller bearing wheel the frame not being relied upon to any great extent for support. I the load i at the rear, After the article has moved without stopping to the desired location, as 1 replacing or changing of rollers is required The truck weighs about apart and put together again in 10 min., it phasized that only one man is required to load and un load the bulky articles carried. In a recent test of one of these trucks, a large leather cutting m ing 8500 lb. and measuring 12 ft and 5 ft. ir width and 7 ft. high was loaded and placed in in 10 min. by one of the trucks. been loaded it can be 1000 ib. and can be taker being em icnine we gh in length position The new foundry of the Gartland-Carroll Foundry Company, Sandusky, Ohio, is about completed, and it expected to be in operation in a few days. consists of two buildings, one 300 x 100 ft other 100 x 100 ft. J. J. general manager. The plant and the Carroll is vice-president and The Findlay Steel Castings Company has purchased the plant in Findlay, Ohio, formerly occupied by th« Grant Motor Company, and will equip it facture of steel castings. for the manu Allowing Blast-Furnace Shaft to Expan Noteworthy Features of the Rebuilt Plant of the Pulaski Iron Company — Modified Top and New Ore and Coke Bins OME remarkable mechanical engineering of which the upper parts are of concrete and achievements have been made in the rebuild- bottoms of suspended steel work; in a new fi ing of a blast-furnace plant at Pulaski, Va. of screen in the coke discharge to the skip ca Foremost is the provision of vertical expansion in the arrangement for disposing of the co Ye ? ‘ T » TT a | ‘ f | , » = fi 4 ‘ f ™ “7 } ? "Ty ai + # r — ed = rate A | ' Shey) nh i _ te r . La et = J ms \ Ste — a ~ —— ” x —_— r | - a ca gegen inept 4 j ; NF ‘ ~>\J } , ~} ‘ » iH mT { ¥ - x > SX —_ | as I { . 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Y b : . i _ d = C 0 4 , f > 4 \ ke P he J , c/EVATNR } e LEVATL j ¢ r vA + y ? 4 » y A 4 i "* jd ? a / r) Che shel f the irnace as Vert ‘ opposite ex] on joints were provided t the ” gf ore Al ele itor takes the joints in the shell of the furnace shaft to allow breeze; in the design and disposition of the for a gradual increase in the volume of the lining operating mechanism at the furnace top; in resulting from the action of zinc in the iron ore. scheme to remove zine oxide which builds Other outstanding features are found in ore bins, the gas pipes, and in the provision of point ‘ ) March 29, 1917 2$ Dia. 6-6 long cee | aged both ends ~~ Me te nae 7 5 } f ( | Mer Covntersink outside -- \ to clear ex- PTS 5535 \ _, pansion bolts Kan. | + straps \ ries of 214-in. bolts forms the main members of the expansio: shell. Periodic inspection will disclose any bolt which has beer ess to the top of the shaft to care for the ver- al expansion of the lining. In the new equipment, rbine-driven centrifugal compressors are used r blowing. The work was done last summer for the ‘ulaski Iron Company and the plant has now een in operation for some time. The old furnace d foundation were removed and replaced by) modern skip-filled stack of increased capacity. Stock trestles, storage bins and stock-handling equipment of improved types were installed; the blowing engines were replaced, as stated, by turbine-driven centrifugal compressors and the ower-house equipment augmented by the addi- tion of two turbine-driven generator units, to gether with complete condensing equipment and a feed-water heater. The boiler plant was over- iauled and furnished with new steam and gas piping. One hot blast stove was removed to make room for the new skip bridge, and another hot blast stove was increased in height from 60 ft. to 100 ft. The cast house was equipped with a 10-ton crane and a pig breaker. Various other bor saving devices and improvements were in- led to bring the plant to a high degree of lency. The Pulaski Iron Company has for years been cessful in mining and smelting Virginia ores, well as reducing large quantities of nodulized terial obtained from the iron content of native rites. There are several unusual problems in- ved in successfully smelting these materials, hich necessitate certain deviations from stand- blast furnace construction practice. The ef difficulties encountered are due to the pres- » in the ore of small quantities of certain forms zinc. The zine sometimes reaches the upper tions of the bosh and appears at joints in the kwork in thin sheets of the pure metal. Most the zine contained in the furnace charge, how- never reaches the lower portions of the fur- It is volatilized some distance above the tle and attacks the firebrick lining, and par- ilarly the fire clay joints, forming a compound alumina which expands as it is formed. This n is slow, but progresses throughout the ‘f the furnace lining and causes the lining to ind in all directions. The results of this ex- sion have been manifest by burst vertical and ontal joints in the furnace shell. To over- » this difficulty at Pulaski the shell was made idrical in form and provided with two ver- expansion joints along the entire height of shell and 180 deg. apart. \nother source of annoyance due to the pres- of zine in the furnace charge has been a clog- and stoppage of the gas passage, resulting THE IRON AGE 773 from the deposit of a peculiar form of zine oxide. The pres- 6x6x%4. ence of zinc oxide in the re- ducing furnace gases has been explained by the fact that zinc has a greater affinity for 1 f-... the oxygen in CO. than the . CO gas has for the additional atom of oxygen hese fine- %" She ly divided portions of zine we Plate oxide build up in a stalactite formation on the comparative lv cooler surfaces of the AA down-comer and dust-catcher, { yed) so that periodical shut-downs are necessary to remove the ints of the furt deposits. Certail inusual down-comer construction is used to facilitate this removal, as will hereafter be noted. Furnace materials are received under ordinary conditions at Pulaski with a fair degree of regu larity and are discharged directly from railroad cars into stock bins. Only a comparatively small ton nage of materials is stored, and elaborate handling equipment is not necessary. Two stock trestles are provided and the materials are handled by clam- shell buckets and locomotive cranes. One of the trestles is a single-track ore-crusher trestle 238 ft. 6 in. long, the other a bin and storage trestle 678 ft. long. Both trestles have reinforced concrete bents, steel track stringers and 80-lb. rails, and are Platforms and stairways provide for reaching the man- holes for cleaning out the down-comers a, i 774 provided with suitable walks, hand rails and stair- ways. Heavy angles at the corner of the bents pro- tect the concrete from the damaging action of the clam-shell bucket. The track stringers transfer their load to the concrete beni through heavy bear- ing plates and a top frame of heavy angles securely bolted down and grouted to prevent spalling or wear of the concrete due to impact or abrasion. Longi- tudinal bracing is obtained by two methods; struc- tural cross bracing is used in the tower sections of storage trestle and a solid longitudinal concrete wall is used for bracing between the bin columns. The ore-crusher trestle provides for considerable storage of materials, and is arranged so that certain coarse native ores may be dumped directly from cars into a track hopper and fed into a single-roll motor-driven crusher, which discharges through a chute into a standard-gage railroad car at yard level. The bin storage trestle is made up of 228 ft. of approach trestle to the bins, 54 ft. of coke bin, 196 ft. of ore and stone bins and 200 ft. of tail trestle. A double track at 14 ft. centers extends its entire length. The approach trestle has a 2.19 per cent grade, easing off to 4% per cent grade over bins and tail trestle. The coke bin is of all steel construction, 33 ft. wide by 54 ft. long with 45 deg. sloping bottom and double discharge openings at the bottom directly over the center line of the skip cars. The mechan- ically operated fork type of coke gate is arranged to be operated from the control shed at the side of the skip pit. In this connection, it may be noted that the control operator cherges the coke as well as operating both the skip hoist and the furnace bells. The coke is discharged from the bin in thin layers over cast-iron finger-bar coke screens patented by Arthur G. McKee. These are about 3 ft. in width and 8 ft. long and of a design shown in one of the accompanying drawings. They deliver directly into skip cars and the coke breeze passing through the finger-bar screen is caught in a steel pocket. This discharges into the boot of the continuously ope- hia ia - = . T ‘he steel suspension bins are fastened to long steel loops THE IRON imbedded in the concrete girders forming the upper part of the bins AGE March 29, 1917 The Scale Car and Line of Bin Gates rated 12-in. bucket elevator, which lifts the breeze into a railroad car at yard level. Each of the fourteen Baker suspension type ore and stone bins has 150 tons of ore capacity. These bins are of steel and are suspended from heavil) reinforced inclinee concrete girders. The partitions are so located that the hand-operated discharge gates form a continuous line. The steep sides and con- tinuous discharge gates insure that a bin may be emptied without poking. The considerable use of concrete in the construction of the ore bins and trestles is in part a commentary on the difficulty ot securing steel. Previously the Baker bins have been of all-steel construction, but in this case only the hoppers are of steel. The bins discharge into a motor-driven scale car of 5 tons capacity, which is of all-steel construction, of the side-platform type It has hand-operated doors, which discharge through chutes into the skip cars. A double track through 7 _ type skip bridge has built. The skip cars, of 100 cu. ft. capacity, are hoisted by | a 12x 14-in. Otis steam ele- + | vator hoist. The upper end i , | of this bridge is supported from the furnace shell by pin connected struts. The skip cars at the top of the furnace discharge through a station- ary guide hopper into the motor-driven hopper of the McKee revolving stock dis tributer. The bell-operating mech- anism is entirely clear of the furnace platform and is sup- ported by a platform on top 0! the skip bridge directly above the furnace platform. The bell cylinders are steam driven and controlled by the operator at the skip pit. Both cylin- ders are horizontally dispose¢, as indicated he been in one of th drawings, and operate the bell rods through counterweighted bell cranks and a straight-line motion. The cylinders and bell cranks are arranged so that they may be shifted in 40) horizontal direction. The 0 inclined farch 29, 1917 THE IRO ‘t is to keep the bell rods vertical and both bells <actly on the center line of the furnace at all times, en though the relative position of the furnace and e skip bridge may be somewhat changed by forces ie to unequal expansion. This arrangement of heaves and bell-operating mechanism leaves the irnace platform entirely clear so that in the case of anging a big bell there is room for disposing of e gas seal and revolving distributer. A trolley eam capable of handling all parts of the furnace » is so placed that the big bell may be hoisted from e yard level and lowered into place, or vice versa, th the minimum of time and labor. N AGE 775 bleeders are 36 in. in inside diameter and the down comers 4 ft. 9 in. in inside diameter. Both are lined with 4% in. of firebrick. At the point above the 12-ft. dust catcher where the two down-comer branches are joined together, there is a steel casting to form the Y portion of the down-comer. This casting has no firebrick lining and thus avoids the difficulty usually experienced in holding firebrick in this portion of the gas system. Provisions for re moving zine deposits form the down-comer and dust catcher consist of a series of manholes made easily accessible by means of stairs and platforms of ample proportions. It may be further noted that the down - To? ~< « 3 _ 3-7 > { tft ‘ rey “4 .* * 3° : 3x3 x5 LE er oo ROK ORO RO RO ROKOR wh ee ye or ee) Or arere 72 » Pent ae et bs pe bh pb ~ 2 2 $ | Lp ba fabs pt ft ft oat sf : mb ft ad ft es fet Ft on fs ; we 5 | s alelelelelaleleleieiie 3 i 2} 5) S| S| S53 3) 5) 3) 5) |e) S 5 } yuuu suP A boeurenarubenresurereie i } es 7 ¥ : 3 1 eee . = ™~ : } . ; : - -} r 2 J Z -—+—__- - - <.. eee aa Q $ z | be bee bebe be be bs * a. : S d Pontes a a wv t , RARER . 4 rniiith tT i } DOOR ee . 5 Rititit ——J ; ™ at tt — oe, f . 4 + ee “i & oe g fa ja Z be ——i_ 4-4 . fh et f > SS k | 3xe Ll } \ 1% ie ; ‘ A ' j : {5 v : \ " Es /ote \ 4 a a4 \ \ = 3 = \ . I 5 “ IN ~ A \ ~ . \ > \ os OG ,\ 6 \ ‘% 5 ‘ . * \ ~ ‘ % . 6 Q | over which the coke passes to the skip car is made up of ist-iron fingé Tr} the skip pit. The breeze falling into the small bin show s delivered to t I lhe furnace lining is 13 ft. in diameter at the irth, 18 ft. 1% in. in diameter at the bosh and ft. in diameter at the stock line. The big bell is ft. 6 in. in diameter with a 50-deg. slope. The h angle is 77 deg. while the inwall slope is 86 deg. min. from the horizontal. The furnace has ten t-iron columns and ten tuyeres. The bustle pipe >} ft. 9 in. in inside diameter and is lined with 4 of non-pareil insulating brick and 41% in. of ebrick. The hearth jacket is 1% in. in thick- ss, 9 ft. in height by 20 ft. 10 in. in diameter, and cooled by cast-iron plates 3 ft. in thickness and ' ft. high. The tuyere jacket is % in. in thickness i ft. 7% in. high and 17 ft. 6 in. in diameter, is heavily reinforced by angles and steel cast- ngs. There are five bosh bands 1 x 12 in. in cross- tion; seven rows of copper cooling plates, six of -h are above the center line of tuyeres. Above mantle, the furnace is cooled by ten rows of ist-iron cooling plates. There are two gas outlets, from each of which re is a down-comer and bleeder connection. The comers are unusually steep, so that the zine deposits may be pried loose and allowed to fall into the dust catcher. The furnace shell is 24 ft. 5 in. in inside diam eter and made up of *4-in. plate in rings about 8 ft high. All rings are in four pieces and the vertical seams are not staggered. The shell is made in two halves and tied together on opposite sides at points 1914 in. apart by 2%4-in. bolts, 64% ft. long. All other joints of the plate work except those vertical seams forming the expansion joint, are made with butt straps and %-in. rivets flattened to % in. high on the inside of the shell. As the force exerted by the expanding brick work is practically irresistible, it was thought advisable to design a joint which would hold under ordinary strain, but which would fail at a known point in case of excessive stress. The 214-in. bolts are proportioned so that they should fail before the furnace shell is strained to a dan gerous point. Suitable galleries and stairs around the circumference of the shell at several elevations serve to insure easy inspection and prompt repair. ae 776 THE IRON AGE March 29, 1517 New General Electric Four-stage Centrifugal Air Compressor Provisions for overcoming the disastrous effects of vertical expansion in the firebrick lining consist of a series of manhole openings in the top ring of the furnace shell arranged so that inspection and removal of the top courses of firebrick is easily effected while the furnace is in operation. The new power house installation includes the following units: An Ingersoll-Rand turbine-driven centrifugal air compressor, with a capacity of 33,000 cu. ft. per min. when working against a gage pres- sure of 14 lb. The steam turbine is of the multi- stage impulse type with velocity stages; the air end consists of four rotors in four water-cooled stages. A General Electric four-stage centrifugal air com- pressor, driven by a two-stage Curtis steam turbine. The free-air capacity of this machine is 30,000 cu. ft. against 14-lb. gage pressure. The condensing equipment includes a Westinghouse-LeBlanc baro- metric condenser with tail pipe served by a West- inghouse LeBlanc centrifugal air pump, direct-con- nected to a Westinghous