12 MISC. PUBLICATION 7 5, TJ. S. DEPT. OP AGRICULTURE 



act of 1916 prescribes the outside dimensions for these baskets. TV 

 facilitate tests of these containers the department uses wooden 

 frames^ the inside dimensions of which correspond to the outside 

 dimensions as provided by the law. (Fig. 9.) The height of these 

 frames is a little less than the height of the baskets, that they may 

 not interfere with striking off. The baskets are forced into the 

 frames, any excess in length being forced into the corners of the^^j 

 frames. Some such arrangement for bringing the size of these bas-^ 

 kets into the width they will have when handles are attached is 

 necessary in order that the test may be fair. Unless this is done 

 the spread of the basket along the sides will tend to show an excess 

 capacity. 



GENERAL CONSIDERATIONS 



Emphasis should be placed on the necessity of using clean rape- 

 seed. After the seed has been used for some time it dries; many 

 of the seeds break open and the lot becomes more or less filled with 

 chaff. This chaff seems to absorb considerable moisture from the 

 air during damp weather. In testing large containers the swelling 

 resulting from this absorbtion may be sufficient to make the test 



Figure 9. — Frames used in making tests of Climax baskets 



valueless. However, rapeseed can be used for quite a while before 

 this trouble will arise. 



In testing a small lot of baskets (three to six) it is sufficient to test 

 the seed in the standard measure and glass graduate before and 

 on completion of the test. If a large number of baskets are to be 

 tested it is best to check back at intervals during the test. 



The basic idea of the bulk-for-bulk method of testing a basket 

 is that the capacity of the basket shall be compared with the capacity 

 of standard measures of a known volume. Since this comparison 

 is made by filling the basket with seed which has been measured 

 in vessels of standard capacity, it is essential that the conditions 

 under which the basket is filled be as nearly as possible like those 

 under which the standard vessels or measures were filled. Two im- 

 portant factors to be kept uniform are the rate of flow of the seed 

 and the distance the seed falls. The former is controlled by the size 

 of the gate at the bottom of the hopper and the latter by adjusting 

 the height of the hopper. If the seed is permitted to fall a different 

 distance into the basket than it fell into the measure the closeness 

 with which it packs varies and the accuracy of the test is impaired. 

 Furthermore, all tests of containers of a given type and capacity 

 should be made under the same conditions in order to insure that 



