Rensselaer Republican, Volume 19, Number 32, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 14 April 1887 — MECHANICAL. [ARTICLE]

MECHANICAL.

The long iron bridge at Bismarck, Dak., contracts and expanda eleven inches by the heat and cold. Sawdust thrown on a circular saw table will render the hauling of heavy planks quite easy. The grains act as Bniall rollers and reduce friction. Prof. Johnson, of the Franklin institute, was the first person to successfully use anthracite for heating purposes, having built a coal-burning furnace in liis residence in 1842. Williamson & Painter are credited with having\ been the first to construct cooking stoves to burn anthracite; and the first coal that was taken to Philadelphia, after it waa discovered that the article could be used for domestic purposes, was sold for s2l per ton. The Williamson & Painter cook stove was simply a castiron box about twenty inches long, ten inches wide and six inches deep, with a grate on the bottom, was on wheels, and cost $9. Paper pipes, as manufactured in Germany, are made of liemp paper (not rough felt paper) and asphalt, as follows: The hot paper mass is w ound around a roller by machinery, and when the desired thickness lias been attained, it is pressed until it gradually cools and hardens. The durability of these paper pipes is said to have been established beyond reach of doubt, while to cut the asphalted paper stuff is like cutting hard wood. The pipes are of a larva-like black, and at the first glance they look like asphalt, being smooth within and rough without. For water, gas, subterranean telegraph w'ires, telephone conductors, etc., the pipes are reported to serve admirably. The best material for cogs, where it can be obtained, is w ell-seasoned second growth hickory; but maple and birch are extensively used for this purpose. If cogged wheels are well taken care of they will last for years without recogging. Oil should never be used on them, as it softens the grain and renders them spongy, and the particles of wood crush away instead of wearing. The best preparation, in my opinion, that can be used to lubricate them is five pounds of tallow, one poumlof beeswax, and w hen melted together about one pound of pure plumbago should be well mixed with it. This preparation should be melted and applied with a soft brush in the same manner as paint. Gears treated in this wav once a week will Aveur smooth and be free from abrasion. I know of one pair of gears that has been treated in this way that run over fifteen years constantly, and although the cogs are considerably worn they are liable to last several years longer. The core wheel has seventy-five cogs, 2-inch pitch and 6-ineli face; the pinion that drives it has twenty-six teeth, same face and pitch, and rufis 320 revolutions per minute, and drives a work that requires a 35-horse power. Wood Worker.