Machine For Mortising Timber, &c. - United States Patent 685

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

Ira Mclaughlin, Of Sunderland, Vermont. Machine For Mortising
Timber, &c.

Specification of Letters Patent No. 685, dated April 7, 1838.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, Ira Mclaughlin, of Sunderland, in the county
of Bennington and State of Vermont, have invented a new and
Improved Mortising-Machine; and I do hereby declare that the
following is a full and exact description.

The nature of my invention consists of a frame work, slides,
jaws, chisel, treadle, and other fixtures, all of which I will
more particularly describe, so as to enable others skilled in the
art to build and use my invention. The frame may be made of any
convenient height and width according to the wish of the maker
and here I will describe a frame together with the appendages
which I judge to be of the best proportions.

I make two posts marked B B on the drawings four feet high and
three inches square and the insides are six inches apart. The top
ends of the posts are secured by a cap A, which cap is one foot
and three inches long, three inches wide and two inches thick.

The posts B B are set up in a vertical position and connected by
a girth six inches long, which girth is inserted between the
posts B B about one foot and six inches below the cap A. Feet are
made to the posts of timber one inch thick and one foot and six
inches long. The top side of the feet E E are cut in a convex or
semicircular shape and are secured to the posts B B by wood
screws or bolts. These feet serve to keep the frame in a vertical
position and they also support a roller which is placed near the
back ends of the feet. The roller supports the back end of the
treadle I. This treadle is one foot and six inches long and three
inches wide. I make a mortise in the treadle to receive the lower
end of the connecting rod H and secure the same by an iron pin. A
timber C four feet long and three and one half inches wide and
three inches deep at the center and made tapering at each end is
bolted onto the front sides of the posts B B, and the posts have
mortises about ten inches long through which the bolts pass which
fasten the part C at any desired height according to the
thickness of the article to be mortised.

A piece of wood F eight inches long one and one half inches wide
and three-fourths of an inch thick is secured to the plate A by
screws. This piece serves to keep the article to be mortised from
raising up.

Two iron guides, Fig. 1, are inserted one on each of the inside
of the two upright posts near the top ends of the same. These
guides are about six inches long and one fourth of an inch thick
and serve to support the top end of the casting G.

A casting marked G two feet long one and one half inches wide and
one inch thick with a flange or brace on the back side and cross
arms near the top end is fixed between the posts B B and
supported at the ends of the cross arms by the guides before
mentioned. On the top end of this casting is another casting
marked K, Fig. 2, which is six inches long and one and one half
inches square with a jaw to support the chisel. A slot is made
through the casting and two ,.. bolts pass through the same end,
fasten it to the casting G, and by means of this slot and the
bolts Q Q. The parts K in which the chisel is secured may be set
at any distance desired from the front part of the casting G. The
lower end of the casting G is steadied by passing through an
indenture made in the cross girth 2, Fig. 1, that connects the
posts. Two iron screws 3, Fig. 1, are inserted in this last named
cross piece to support the springs D D.

Two springs D D of wood or steel about three feet long and
fastened together at the ends and the upper one resting on the
iron screws before mentioned and the lower one put beneath a pin
4 in the casting G serve to keep the said casting and the chisel
raised up.

An iron connecting rod is secured to the lower end of the casting
G by a joint and pin, and at the lower end of the connecting rod
H is the treadle I with a mortise and pin which serves to unite
the connecting rod to the treadle. A nut with a crank N, Fig. 2,
serves to screw up the jaw O and causes it to bear on the side of
the chisel.

A jaw of cast iron marked O, Fig. 2, three inches long and one
and one half inches wide and about one half inch thick is secured
to the casting K by a bolt or screw with a crank N.

The chisel P is about five inches long and should be made of the
width of the mortise intended to be made. The top end of the
chisel where it is fixed between the jaws is indented on each
side with indentures E, Fig. 2, about one eighth of an inch deep
and about three eighths of an inch long, in "which indenture the
back jaw is made to fit so that the chisel may be set to face
either way. On the casting K next to the chisel is an arm about
two and one fourth inches long and one and one half inches wide
which serves as a back jaw to the vise in which the chisel is
fixed. In the front side of the casting K is an indenture s, Fig.
2, three eighths of an inch wide and about one eighth of an inch
deep. In this indenture one side of the chisel is placed and made
to fit and this serves to keep the chisel in a vertical position.
Near the top of the indenture on the back jaws before mentioned
is a protuberance T which fits in the notch in to the side of the
chisel and keeps the chisel from sliding up or down in the
indenture.

The mode of operating is thus: Take the article that is to be
mortised and place the same on the top side of the cross piece C,
raise up the cross piece C until the top side of the article to
be mortised touches the end of the timber F and then screw the
cross piece C to the posts B B and as the chisel acts on the
article move it to the right or left until the mortise is
finished at one end then face the chisel the other way and move
the article until the other end of the mortise is finished. At
the same time act on the treadle I with the foot to give the
chisel motion. Motion may be also given to the chisel with water,
steam or animal power. Mortises may be made at any desired
distance from the face of the article by setting the casting K to
which the chisel is attached backward or forward by means of the
slot and securing the same firmly by the screws Q Q.

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

The method of securing the chisel by which means it can be
readily reversed and the method of moving the chisel backward and
forward all as above described.

Ira Mclaughlin.

Witnesses: G. B. Bacon, C.