254 



THE INDIA RUBBER WORLD 



I February 1, 1915. 



McRenna Home 

 Bottler. 



stamp. Before they are affixed the stamps must be cancelled as 

 prescribed by the law by means of a datum cancelling rubber 

 stamp, this being the method adopted bj Uncle Sam to collect his 

 he brewers' protits. When it is stated that the receipt 

 from this source amounted in 1913 t" $<>o.Jo(>, l, N9 ,t will he realized 

 that this is a by no means unimportant part of the process. 



Having duly complied with the Internal 

 Revenue laws the keys are ready i<>r dis- vaggg^t 

 trihution to the dispensers. For this pur- 

 pose trucks without end are called into 

 e, no small propi irtion "i the brew - 

 ipital being invested in' this means 

 of transportation. Of late, in almost every 

 brewery, the horse-drawn truck has been 

 replaced by the automobile, some of the 

 largest concerns, whose teams were a 

 of pardonable pride, having re- 

 placed them entirely with motors, the sav- 

 ui'-; thereby in property space — for stables, 

 wagon space, yard accommodations, etc., 

 being more than considerable. Brewers 

 consequently are among the heaviest pur- 

 chasers of rubber tires, nearly all of the 

 solid kind, and in many instances the 

 "block" tin, which is preferred as better 

 suited tor work in crowded city thorough- 

 fares, and their cost is an item of great magnitude in the brewers' 

 expense account. In the lighter delivery wagons, especially those 

 for the distribution of bottled heers. a heavy pneumatic tire is 

 often used. 



Forming part of nearly every modern brewery is a bottling 

 department, which, if not operated by the brewery itself — the 

 case in most instances — is managed by a subsidiary concern in 

 which the brewery is heavily interested. Here again we en- 

 counter rubber in many subordinate hut none the less interesting 

 fi mils 



hirst, as to the bottles themselves. Most of us are familiar 

 with the old-time lever stopper, used as a closure for ben bottles 

 and dependent, for the indispensable tightness of its seal, on a 

 little disc or washer of ruhlicr The modern cork-lined tin seal 

 or "crown" has largely superseded these stoppers, but many, es- 

 pecially provincial brewers and bottlers, find it inexpedient to 

 make so drastic a* change in their plant and equipment as the 

 i ion of the crown-seal involves, and adhere to the old-time 

 -topper. The rubber seal for this must lie most carefully made. 

 The material, which should contain not less than about 60 per 

 in ii in v. should be so compounded as to preserve in- 

 definitely its form and elasticity without becoming soft or sticky 

 under the solvent influence of the beer or 

 ^gfi "^S^ ow ' n S t0 changes in temperature. The steam- 



_«^*i ing process, known as "Pasteurizing," which 

 involves the exposure of bottle and contents 

 to a temperature of 140 to 150 degrees for the 

 purpose of killing any ferments present, and 

 to which a large proportion of the beer bottled 

 is subjected, must not affect the "rubbers." as 

 they are termed, nor must they suffer from 

 exposure to soda water and other alkaline 

 fluids used for cleaning purposes. 



The bottles received in the bottling bouse, 

 whether new or old, are invariably treated to a 

 thorough washing. First they are fed into the 

 "soaker," a huge wheel-like contrivance, in 

 which the bottles held in receivers^ which in 

 some machines are padded with rubber, are 

 submerged as the wheel slowly revolves in a great tank of hot 

 water. Their inverted position as they emerge allows the water 

 to drain out of them and they then pass to the washing machine. 

 Here they are inverted over an upright nozzle that distributes 



Sealing Pi n; 



for Home 



Bottler. 



water in a line spray all over the interior, while a peculiar little 

 brush or wiper of rubber entering from below and making some 

 2,000 revolutions per minute thoroughly washes or rather scrubs 

 every part of its interior surface. These rubber brushes are of 

 pliable hut durable material and so formed that under the in- 

 fluence of centrifugal force as they are whirled around they 

 reach and scrub every part of the interior of the bottle, even 

 the cleaning of the inside of the neck being provided for by 

 special ribs or fins. At the same time tin outside brush of bristles 

 senilis the exterior, while a powerful spray .if rinsing water com- 

 pletes the operation. The washed bottles are grasped by a hand- 

 like device which places them, mouth downwards, in steel drain- 

 ing cups lined with rubber or some other non-absorbent resilient 

 material, a number of these cups being attached to a moving belt 

 on which they travel in endless procession to a point at which 

 they are removed and set aside for refilling. Two of these ma- 

 chines with three men to tend them and the accompanying soaker 

 will perfectly cleanse 35,000 to 40,000 bottles in a day of ten 

 hours. The inconspicuous little rubber brush is an important fac- 

 tor in this operation and has been brought to great perfection. 

 It must be of the most flexible elasticity, resistant to wear, so 

 as not to cause delay by need of constant replacement, non- 

 absorbent and reasonable in cost. 



The cleansed bottles go next to the filling machine, which per- 

 forms its operations very much after the manner of the keg-filler, 

 filling the bottle with solid beer and shutting off the supply 

 automatically when this has been effected. 



For bottling beer in the home or even in small breweries where 

 the demand is not constant and machinery would not prove profit- 

 able, the McKenna Home 

 Bottler, illustrated herewith, 

 is extensively employed. It 

 is intended for use with the 

 old-time lever or "Lightning" 

 bottle stopper, with the rub- 

 ber disc seal. It fills the 

 bottle with solid beer, the 

 foam being returned to the 

 package. Both filling and 

 return tube are of rubber and 



a small tapered rubber plug, supplied with the device, forms a 

 tight seal between the filling tube and the mouth of the bottle 

 and prevents any escape of gas. The bottler shown is made for 

 filling two bottles simultaneously. They are also made for filling 

 one bottle at a time. 



It may be in order to refer to a recent change in brewery ar- 

 rangements that tends to augment the demand for beer-hose. 

 Until a short time ago, in fulfilment of the Internal Revenue re- 

 quirements, all beer removed from the brewery premises had to 

 be put up in the regular shipping packages and stamped. This 

 had to be done if it was only taken from the brewery next door 

 to the bottling department and entailed much unnecessary labor. 

 This has been changed. A gaged tank is provided in many 

 breweries which is filled, under the supervision of an Internal 

 Revenue official, with beer to be bottled. He assesses the tax in 

 bulk on the number of barrels the tank holds, the necessary 

 stamps are cancelled and the brewer pipes the beer into his 

 1 "ill mil; works and goes ahead. In many breweries the plant thus 

 described is permanent and copper pipes with flanged rubber- 

 gasketted joints carry the beer from one building to another. In 

 quite a number the transfer is effected by means of a hose. 



The filling machine — after the filling tube has been introduced 

 into the bottle — by raising the base on which the bottle stands 

 forces it up against a rubber plug or cap, thus sealing it tight 

 during the filling process and preventing any escape of gas. 



Into the cl ising or capping machine rubber does not enter, but 

 the labeling machine has .rubber wipers of the "squeegee" order, 

 by which, the gummed tickets are pressed smoothly, in place on 

 the bottle. 



Rinc Packing. 



