UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

ETHAN ALLEN, OF WORCESTER, MASSACHUSETTS.

IMPROVED MACHINE FOR MANUFACTURE OF METALLIC CARTRIDGES.

Specification forming part of Letters Patent No. 31,695, dated March 19, 1861.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, ETHAN ALLEN, of Worcester, in the county of Worcester, in the State of Massachusetts, have invented a new and Improved Machine for the Manufacture of Metallic Cartridges; and I do hereby declare that the following is a full and exact description of the same, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, and to the letters marked thereon, which make a part of this specification, in which—

Figure 1 is a vertical longitudinal section through the center of the machine, and Fig. 2 is a top view or elevation, and Fig. 3 is a face view of the plate that holds the rollers and cutters; and Fig. 4 is an end view of the head or clamp which holds the cartridge while being operated upon.

The nature of my invention consists in so arranging a set of rollers, cutters, and a holder for cartridges operating automatically that the copper may be rolled into the bullet sufficiently to hold it secure, and crease the ball for the reception of a lubricating material.

To enable others skilled in the art to make and use my invention, I will proceed to describe its construction and operation.

A is a base-plate.
B is a head-stock.
C is a tail-stock.

D is a hollow shaft, in which is coiled a spiral spring, a, and works in suitable bearings, b b.

E is a spindle, which is intended to slide back and forth within the shaft D, and is secured to it by means of the screw o, which works in slot p of shaft E. One end of shaft or spindle E is enlarged, and has a face-plate, F, in which slide in suitable grooves two pieces, f f, which hold each a corrugated roll, h h, and two similar pieces, g g, which slide in grooves and hold the knives k k. There are four levers, i i i i, (one of which is not seen in the drawings,) which are hung in spindle E at l l l l, and connected at one end with pieces f f and g g, while the other is beveled in order to slide on the inclined surface m m of shaft D.

G is a short spindle within spindle E, which operates as a dead-center when the cartridge is pressed against it to be operated upon.

H is a shaft, which slides back and forth in suitable bearings, q q, within which there is a small spindle, L, which is intended to slide back and forth within shaft H, and is kept in position by the spiral spring r, one end of which bears against the inside shoulder of the outer shaft, H, and the other against the collar s of spindle L. On one end of shaft H there is an oblong head, M, in which slides in grooves a jaw or clamp, N. There is also a lever, P, which is hung to the head M at t t, and to the sliding jaw N at n n.

R is a wheel, which is hung in the rear end of lever P by a pivot or shank, u, which slides up and down through the end of lever P, and is regulated by spring v, which rests upon the top of shank u, and is connected to lever P by means of screw z. The jaw N is closed by means of wheel R rising on the inclined plane 4, and kept firmly closed by running on the level plane 5 when the head M is moved forward for that purpose. There is attached to the rear end of shaft H an oblong block, T, with a regulating-screw, 6, in its upper part, while at its lower or under side is attached a long lever, W, which is attached to the base-plate A by means of arm y, connected to a standard at 7.

Z is an arm or bracket, firmly secured to tail-stock C by means of screw 8, and its use is to slide spindle L forward through shaft H when said shaft H is moved far enough back to have the head of screw 9 strike the projection 10 on arm Z, and thereby throw the cartridge out of the jaws after it has been operated upon.

The operation is as follows: Power is applied to shaft D, and through that to spindle E, which gives spindle E and face-plate F a rotary motion. The operator now stands with his right hand on the handle of lever W and puts the cartridge into the jaws at 12 with his left. The lever W is now drawn toward the center of the machine, which closes the jaws and holds the cartridge firmly, by means of the inclined plane 4 and lever P. Shaft H is now moved forward and the bullet end of the cartridge is received into the end of center G.

The head F and spindle E, being forced back toward the head-block B, closes the rolls h h and knives k k in upon the cartridge by means of levers i i i i and inclines m m, which rolls h h, being corrugated, close the metal into the ball and form the required creases, while the knives k k are so adjusted as to pare off the metal which is raised by the rolling process.

The lever W is now carried backward until the rear end of spindle L comes in contact with the projection 10 on arm Z, which carries said spindle L through the jaws at 12 and throws the finished cartridge out. The spindle L is carried back to its place by means of spring r as soon as it is released from the pressure at the end against projection 10, and the operation is repeated as before.

What I claim as my invention, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is—

The combination of rollers h h, knives k k, levers i i i i, inclines m m m m, with jaw N, inclined plane 4, spindle L, and arm Z, substantially as specified, and for the purpose set forth.

ETHAN ALLEN.

Witnesses:
HENRY C. WADSWORTH,
GEORGE W. FAIRFIELD.