326 



REAPING MACHINE. 



Reaping 

 Machine. 



D are the two roller wheels on which the machine 

 moves. z z is the cutter ring, as shown by Fig. 5. z y 

 and z y are two of the pillars, similar to Fig. E, which 

 connect the upper frame part of yy, Fig. 6, to the cutter 

 ring Fig. 5. d d d d is a drum made of thin rolled 

 plate iron, supported by six arms, two of them, r and 

 .v, only appear in the section, each of these arms have 

 T, ends, for the better fixing of the drum, and it was 

 strengthened by hoops of iron at both ends, this drum 

 carries twenty-four collectors, similar to Fig. 1, that 

 play in eyed studs, see Fig. 12. 



On the inside of the roller wheel C is fixed a ring 

 level wheel u u of forty-eight teeth, which turns the 

 level wheel 1, of twenty- (bur teeth; on the same axis 

 with the wheel I, are two wheels fixed on a hollow 

 axis, but which play freely on the axis of the wheel 1, 

 the uppermost of these two wheels, marked 2, has 

 twenty-five teeth that act in the teeth of the wheel 3, of 

 twenty teeth ; the small wheel 4, of ten teeth, turns 

 the wheel 5 of thirty teeth ; on the top of the axis of 

 the wheel 5 are fixed the arms that carry the drum ; 

 on the top of the hollow axis of the wheel 3, is fixed a 

 flange that is firmly bolted to the upper part of the 

 frame of the cutter ring. The under end of the axis 

 of the wheels 1, 2, and 4, plays in a brass socket in the 

 great axis, and the upper end in a bushed hole o, in 

 one of the arms of Fig. 2, and ef Fig. 4. 



The hollow axis of the wheel 3 of 20 teeth, plays in 

 a deep brass bush fixed into the centre of the upper 

 frame ring Fig. 2, and ef Fig. 4, and the under end of 

 the axis of the wheels 3 and 5 plays in a bushed socket 

 in the great axis, and can be adjusted by the screw 9, 

 Fig 4. 



There are two stubs on the under side of the wheel 

 1, and other two on the upper side of the wheel 2; 

 the stubs of the wheels 1 and 2 can be brought into 

 contact or disengaged at pleasure, by means of the le- 

 ver L, Fig. 3, that pushes in or draws out a kind of 

 slit wedge on an inclined part in the great axis, im- 

 mediately below the wheel 4, having its inclination 

 contrary to that of the wedge ; when the lever L is 

 put into the notch m, the roller wheel C will put the 

 machinery in motion, and when it is put into the notch 

 h, the machine may be moved forward and the ma- 

 chinery remain at rest. 



In the section Fig. 4, one of the front prongs is 

 shown, which could not otherwise be represented with 

 regard to the position of the roller wheels : on each 

 of the front prongs is fixed a piece of hard wood, to 

 which are screwed two thin iron prongs k, placed at 

 the best angle for pressing the root end of the cut corn 

 into the collectors, as also out of the way of the corn to 

 be cut. 



Fig. 3. is a plan of the machine, where C and D re- 

 present the roller wheels ; u u the ring level wheel that 

 is fixed to the inside of the roller C ; the circles 1, 2, 4, 

 3, and 5, represent the wheel work as shown in the sec- 

 tion Fig. 4 : ef the upper ring that is supported by 

 the under frame part : y y the ring that carries the 

 cutter circle ; t u v tv, a deep ring of hoop iron that 

 serves to work the collector hooks out and in, through 

 holes cut for each collecting hook in the thin plate iron 

 drum d d d d ; each collector axis has two tails, one of 

 them hinged, and the other fixed, the hinged or joint- 

 ed tail, is represented at x Fig. 7, and the mortice for 

 the fixed tail at 2. The ring I v w has two long slits,' 

 the one from v by u to /, which the tails x x x, &c. pass 

 through when on that part of the ring, the other slit is 



cut from v by w to I, which the tails z z z, &c. pass Reaping 

 through, when moving round that part of the ring. Machine. 

 At that part of the circular hoop where the tails x x x, * "V ' 

 c. pass through, a groove commences formed on the 

 outside of the hoop by means of two rods of iron ri- 

 vetted at a little distance from each other on the out. 

 side of it for the tails zzz, &c. to travel along, while the 

 tails xxx, &c. are through their slit , and where the 

 tails z z , &c. pass through the hoop, a similar groove 

 commences on the outside of the hoop for the tails xxx, 

 &c. to travel in, while those of z z z, &c. are travelling 

 through their slit. When the tails x x x, &c. pas's 

 through their slit in the hoop, the tails zzz, &c. travel 

 in their groove, by which the hooks of the collectors 

 are thrown out so as to collect the cut corn ; and when 

 the tails xxx, &c. travel in their groove, the hooks of 

 the collectors are thrown in, and the cut corn allowed to 

 fall to the left hand in a continued swath. The curved 

 piece v guides the tails z z z, &c. into their groove, and 

 in like manner the curved piece t conducts the tails 

 xxx, &c. into their groove. 



Two semicircles were cut out of strong rolled plate 

 iron, one with prongs exactly cut to correspond with 

 the front prongs of Fig. 1. These semicircles were 

 made truly flat by hammering, and then joined, so that 

 the circular parts formed one circle ; it was then placed 

 upon the bottom frame with its prongs corresponding 

 to those of the frame ; the prongs of the plate iron and 

 those of the frame were then rivetted together with ri- 

 vets, as appears by the dots on the prongs Fig. 3 ; by 

 this means the fore part of the plate-iron circle was 

 kept at a proper height, for the cutters on the cutter 

 circle to pass through between the bottom frame prongs 

 and those of the plate iron ; the hind part of this circle 

 was supported by several kneed pieces similar to Fig. 8, 

 the short legs being rivetted against the under side of 

 the bottom frame, and the long legs made to support 

 the plate iron circle, leaving space sufficient for the 

 cutters to pass. This plate-iron circle was made of a 

 breadth to reach into the circle t u v tv, Fig. 3, that 

 work the collectors ; and this ring is supported by 

 kneed pieces rivetted to it and the circular .plate simi- 

 lar to Fig. 9. and they are so formed as to give strength 

 to the parts of the hoop luv tv, where the slits are, and 

 at the same time permit the tails of the collectors to 

 pass through. The dotted circle, Fig. 5, shows the in- 

 side of the rolled plate-iron circle, but is only there re- 

 presented as covering the front prongs. 



There was fixed on the long right-hand prong P, 

 Fig. 3, a sheet of thin plate iron, kneed to the same acute 

 angle with the prong, and of the same height with the 

 drum, for the purpose of dividing the standin- corn 

 from that to be cut. And there was also an inclined 

 piece of sheet iron, &c. so placed on the left hand side 

 of the machine as to prevent its progressive motion 

 from carrying the root end of the corn too far forward 

 after being cut. 



G H, Fig. 3, and Fig. 10, form the draught bar by 

 which the horse draws the machine with traces on the 

 stubble side of the field. 



Fig. 11. represents another kind of a cutter circle, p IATE 

 which probably might have been found on trial pre- ccccj/xxtx. 

 ferable to the one that was introduced into the machine 

 the cutting part of it was to have been made in segl 

 ments of iron faced with steel of a shape that would 

 have admitted the whole length of their faces being 

 struck or cut with teeth, at a proper angle, similar to 

 those of a coarse struck reaping hook ; the form of 



