56 



THE INDIA RUBBER ^VORLD 



[November i, 1906. 



THE FRICTION TAPE INDUSTRY. 



Statistics from reliable siurces, though incomplete, 

 ^^ indicate great activity in the manufacture of that class 

 of rubber coated cottons which are designated as " friction " 

 tape. 



One well known house which makes a specialty of these 

 goods reports orders for 12,000 pounds in one morning's 

 mail, and an average monthlj' output of 50,000 pounds. One 

 consumer uses 1400 pounds daily and the largest electrical 

 manufacturing companies place contracts for 50 to 100 ton 

 lots, cut to size, special coated. 



Forty inch, 56 X 60, sheetings are commonly used for the 

 standard commercial grades. Each pound of sheeting re- 

 ceives from 2 to 4 pounds of rubber and other compounds. 

 These goods are formed into '< pound rolls of varj'ing 

 widths and sold in constantly increasing quantities to the 

 street railways, telephone companies, and electrical equip- 

 ment contractors for making insulating joints. The United 

 States government is a buyer in from 500 to 2000 pound lots 

 under specifications ofa most rigid character. 



Most of the large cable companies make their own tapes, 

 probably more from a desire to obtain a trustworthy product 

 than from motives of economy, and theirs is a very large 

 consumption of fine sheetings and drills. These are coated 

 with high grade rubber compounds of extra light specific 

 gravity, as the cable people estimate their cost by square 

 measure instead of weight. 



Probably 50 tons of tape is made up into very small par- 

 cels annually for the bicycle sundr}^ trade, sold at prices 

 ranging from 14 to 20 cents per pound, representing so large 

 an amount of labor as compared to material that it has lately 

 ceased to attract competition at the lower prices. 



A good deal of tape was formerU- exported to France, 

 Germany, and Austria, but our French and German friends 

 have imported American tape makers and the great bulk of 

 the tape there consumed is now made on that side of the 

 water with a protective duty against us averaging 10 cents 

 per pound. England is still a fair field for the American 

 tape maker, and good sales are continually made there. A 

 large portion of these latter go to the smaller European 

 countries, India, Africa, South America, and Australia, via 

 London and Liverpool. 



A conservative estimate of the dailj- output of the Ameri- 

 can tape factories (aside from that made and consumed by 

 the cable plants) is 10,000 pounds per day. 



buys for cash pays long in advance — something which is not 

 true in regard to any other raw material used in the industrj-. 

 Besides, the seller does not guarantee quality, and if the 

 buyer of first grade duck finds that "seconds" have been 

 substituted, he is without redress. 



Duck is held at too high a price, considering the price of 

 raw cotton. Six cents a jard is enough to cover manufac- 

 turing cost and profits. At this rate, with cotton at 10 cents 

 a pound, duck should not sell above 17 cents a yard. 



The trouble is that the cotton duck industry is practically 

 controlled bj* a trust. There is but one source of supply for the 

 American consumer. That source controls the distribution 

 of the product, and has the power to discriminate against 

 the small and in favor of the large consumer. If a new mill 

 starts in the South the trust is soon found to control the 

 agenc\' for the sale of its production. 



For all of which reasons, Mr. Editor. I am in favor of re- 

 ducing the duty on imported duck, to enable the rubber trade 

 to supply its wants in England or some other country until 

 the home cotton trade becomes more disposed to give us a 

 " square deal." an American. 



Pro\'idence, Rhode Island, October 15 1906. 



THE COTTON DUCK SITUATION. 



'npO THE Editor of The India Rubber World : There 

 ■*- are some features in connection with the cotton duck 

 situation, as it affects the rubber industry, which merits the 

 serious consideration of the manufacturers in this branch, 

 with a view to the possibility of bringing about some im- 

 provement. The price of cotton duck, on account of the 

 great amount consumed in rubber factories, is of practically 

 as much importance as the price of raw rubber, and this is 

 something to which everj- manufacturer gives constant 

 thought. 



The terms on which rubber men now buv cotton duck are 

 cash at ten days. But, if shipped from the South, it may 

 not arrive for 30 or even 60 days, so that the consumer who 



ELECTRIC DIEING-OUT MACHINE. 



'T^HE accompanying illustration relates to the new Par- 

 -^ sons electric dieing-out machine. The use of dieing- 

 out machines is very extensive in rubber factories, especiallj- 

 in the making of boots and shoes, and it is desirable that 

 the utmost facility be afforded for ease of operation, and eco- 

 nomical working. This machine is equipped with a travel- 



ing magnetic die holder, carr3'ing a die of any weight from 

 I to 100 pounds, over any part of the block, with the slight- 

 est pressure of the hand. It is alwaj-s ready to lift or let 

 go of the die by the simple movement of a switch. No dan- 

 ger to the operator is involved, as he does not handle the 

 die while it is in operation. [Henrj' Parsons & Son, Marl- 

 boro, Massachusetts.] 



The sport of roller skating has again become so general 

 that if all the skate rollers should be rubber tired — either 

 pneumatic or hard rubber — it would make an appreciable 

 increase in the demand for rubber. The elastic material is 

 also used, on some skates, in the shape of cushions between 

 the trucks and foot plate, to give greater comfort to the 

 skater. It is small things like this, the aggregate of which 

 is large, that cause the constant increase in the demand for 

 rubber. 



