US1840451A - Golf club - Google Patents

Description

Jan. 12, 1932. y c. G. JANSKY GOLF CLUB Filed Dec. 28, 1929 Patented Jan. 12, 1932 CHARLES G. TANSKIL OF BERWYN, ILLINOIS, ASSIGNOR TO WILSON-WESTERN SPORTING GOODS COMPANY, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS, A CORPORATION OF DELAWARE GOLF CLUB Application led December 28, 1929. Serial No. 417,110.

The present invention relates to golf clubs, and is particularly concerned with golf clubs having a head of wood or similar material.

The faces of the wooden golf club heads of the prior art have been providedwith inserts of different material to adapt the face of the club to withstand the impact of the face with the ball, but the inserts of the prior art have not been secured to the head in such manner as to give the best service, and after a period of use the prior inserts tend to become loose.

The prior inserts are also generally secured in place by fastening devices, such as screws, the heads of which appear at the surface of the face, and when the face of the club head has been subjected to sufficient use, the insert may become depressed about the screw heads, so that the metal securing devices project slightly from the face of the iiisert, forming projections which have an undesirable eect upon the accuracy of the drive.

The presence of hard metal .at certain vpoints on the face, also changes the resiliency andimpact characteristics of the face at these points, and prevents the club from having a uniform effect upon the ball, making the effect dependent upon the exact point of inipact, whereas it is desirable that the face of the club hea-d have uniform characteristics at least over the entire area of the insert.

One of the objects of the present invention is the provision of an improved golf club head having an insert of homogeneous material at the face of the head, in order to give uniform wear and impact characteristics to the face of the club hea-d. i

Another object is the provision of an improved golf club having a head with an insert more securely and permanently fastened to the head, and without any exposed metal at the face of the head.

Another object is the provision of an improved method of constructing golf club heads.Y n Other objects and advantages of the invention will be apparent from the following description, and from the accompanying drawings, in which similar characters of reference indicate similar parts throughout the several views.

Referring to the single sheet of drawings;

Fig. 1 is a view in perspective of a wooden golf club constructed according to the present invention;

Fig. 2 is a view in club insert;

Fig. 8 is a transverse, sectional view taken on the plane of the line 3-3 of Fig. l, looking in the direction of the arrows, at the first stage in the construction of the club;

Fig. 4 is a similar view taken at the second stage in the construction of the club; and

Fig. 5 is a similar view of the finished club, shown in Fig. 1.

Referring to Fig. 1, 10 indicates the golf club in its entirety, and although the club which has been chosen to illustrate the invention is a wooden club, it should be understood that the present insert may be used on the heads of clubs of different material whenever it is desirable to provide such heads with a facing'constructed according to the present invention.

The club 10 includes a shaft 1l and a head l2 of any desired shape, the shape illustrated being exemplary of one form of club which is provided with a flat face 13. The facing of the present invention may be applied uniformly over the entire face 13, or the face 13 may be provided with a recess 14 for receiving an insert 15. The exact shape or outline of the insert does not affect the qualities upon perspective of the golf which the present invention is based, andthe insert may be made of any shape. In the present embodiment, it comprises a substan tially trapezoidal piece of pyroxylin, tapering in width from the bottom toward the top, and having a substantially uniform thickness which is equal tothe depth of the recess 14.

The face 16 of the insert 15 is'provided with a plurality of recesses or sockets 17 which may take any ornamental shape, but which are preferably made circular in outline, since such recesses may be formed by the use of an ordinary bit, and the recesses 17 are preferably arranged to forni a predetermined pattern upon the face 16.

If desired, certain of the recesses 17 may be undercut as at 18, the balance of the recesses being provided with axially located bores 19 adapted to receive wood screws 2O for securing the insert to the head 12. The insert 15 may then be secured in the recess 14 of the club head 12 by sliding the trapezoidal insert 15 upward into the recess 14 to secure a close fit at the lateral edges 21 between the pyroxylin and wood, of which the head is made. The insert may be secured in place by a plurality of wood screws 2O passing through the bores 19 into the head 12, vand the heads 22 of the screws 20 are preferably so formed as to leave'an an-nular recess V23 around the underside of the head 22, in the recess or socket 17. The club head at this stage of its manufacture is illustrated in Fig. 3.

Any color of pyroxylin plugs or filling 24 may be used for the recesses 17 in the insert 15, but since some slight joint between the filling and the body of the insert is generally visible, and since it is desirable to provide the insert with predetermined ornamental patterns, the plugs 24 are preferably made of pyroxylin including different coloring matter from the body of the insert. For instance, in Fig. 4, the body of the insert 15 may be of white pyroxylin, the plugs 24 of red pyroxylin, and the central plug 25 of green pyroxylin, and it will be evident that a great many .ornamental effects may be produced by utilizing plugs of different shape, color and arrangement, and the exact arrangement of the plugs shown in the present embodiment is to be regarded as exemplary of one of the many forms of the invention.

The next stage in the manufacture of the club head is the immersion of colored plugs of pyroxylin in a pyroxylin solvent of any kind, and one example of the composition of such a pyroxylin solvent is acetone, 25% ethyl acetate and 25% butyl acetate by volume.

The plugs of pyroxylin absorb the solvent and become relatively soft, so that they may then be forced into the recesses 17 and beneath the heads 22 in the annular recesses 23 by clamping devices, which clamp the plugs 24, 25 in the position of Fig. 4 under pressure. Sufficient excess pyroxylin is provided so that the pyroxylin may be forced into any portion of the socket and into intimate contact with the walls of the socket in the pyroxylin insert, and the excess solvent carried by the outside of the plug'and in the porous plug is also forced by pressure into the adjoining walls of the socket, tending to dissolve the adjacent parts of the socket, so that the plug and insert become joined to form a substantially homogeneous and integral piece of pyroxylin.

The club is then allowed to season for several days, so that the solvent may evaporate from the pyroxylin and the pyroxylin may become uniformly dry and hard, after which the face 16 of the insert and the face 13 of the club are finished off smooth by the use of files or other tools which do not produce excessive friction and heat, which would damage the pyroxylin insert.

A section of the finished club is illustrated in Fig. 5, and it will be observed that the inserts constructed according to the foregoing method are secured to the club head by securing devices which have anchoring formations such as screw threads embedded in the wood, and anchoring formations such as the screw head 22 embedded in the pyroxylin.

The metal securing devices are thus completely embedded and concealed, in such manner as to prevent corrosion and to prevent impact between the ball and a part of the metal. The screw heads 22 being provided with the usual kerf 26 andsurrounded by the pyroxylin plugs 24, 25, the screws are positively prevented from turning, and the plugs are firmly anchored about the screws. The plugs also become substantially integral parts of the insert body 15, so that the face of the club head 12 is provided with a homogeneous impact member of pyroxylin, all parts of which have equal qualities of resiliency and resistance to wear.

The present golf club is capable of the most severe use without the loosening of the insert, and there is no possibility of the formation of any undesirable projections or depressions in the face of the club head, so that the accuracy of the club as a driving instrument is maintained throughout its entire life.

While I have illustrated a preferred embodiment of my invention, many modificar" tions may be made without departing from Ythe spirit of the invention, and I do not wish to be limited to the precise details of construction set forth, but desire to avail myself of all changes within the scope of the apr pended claims.

Having thus described my invention, what l claim is new and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the United States, is:

1. In a golf club, the' combination of a golf club head having a recess formed in the face of said head for an insert, with a facing insert of pyroxylin, said insert beingrprovided with apertures and counterbores in the face of said insert, communicating with said apertures, a plurality of screws for securing said insert in said recess, said screws being formed with heads spaced from the bottom of said counterbores when said screws are driven home through said insert into'said club head, and plugs of initially plastic pyroxylin pressed into said counterbores beneath said heads and substantially filling said counterbores, said plugs being 'anchored in said counterbores by said heads.

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2. In a golf club, the combination of al golf club head having a recess formed in the face of said head for an insert, with a, facing insert of pyroXylin, said insert being provided with apertures and counterbores in the face of said insert, communicating with said apertures, a plurality of screws for securing said insert in said recess, said screws being formed with heads spaced from the bottoni of said counterbores when said screws are driven home through said insert into said club head, and plugs of initially plastic pyroxylin pressed into said counterbores beneath said heads and substantially filling said counterbores, said plugs being anchored in said counterbores by said heads, said screw heads being formed with kerfs and interlocking formations on said pyroxylin plugs extending into said kerfs, and said plugs being integrally joined with the pyroxylin of said insert to prevent turning of said screws.

In witness whereof, I hereunto subscribe iny naine this 19th day of December, 1929.

CHARLES G. JANSKY.

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