US2626092A

US2626092A - Ice pick sheath

Info

Publication number: US2626092A
Application number: US185456A
Authority: US
Inventors: Joseph R Rose
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 1950-09-18
Filing date: 1950-09-18
Publication date: 1953-01-20
Anticipated expiration: 1970-01-20

Description

J. R. ROSE ICE PICK SHEATH Jan. 20, 1953 Filed Sept. 18, 1950 a E a M M O r. 2 m% V m 7 R a a H W R w n. W m m w 0 J 4 a 0.. R l fi mwiii"" w Patented Jan. 20, 1953 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE ICE PICK SHEATH Joseph R. Rose, Denver, Colo.

Application September 18, 1950, Serial No. 185,456

3 Claims. 1

This invention relates to improvements in ice pick sheaths, and more particularly to improvements in a sheath of the character described in Patent No. 1,933,171 issued to J. L. Hart on October 31, 1933.

Objects of this invention are to provide, in an ice pick sheath of the type disclosed in the abovementioned patent, improved drainage and ventilating means to permit the pointed shank of ice pick to dry quickly after it has been inserted into the sheath;'protection of the lower portion of the sheath against wetting and swelling of the leather forming the sheath, and the accomplishment of said ventilation and protection with a saving of some leather and without complicating -'011t the pick.

Figure 3 is a section as taken on the indicated line 3-3 at Fig. 1, but on an enlarged scale, and without the pick.

v Figure 4 is a section as taken on the indicated line 4--4 at Fig. 2, but on an enlarged scale.

Figure 5 is a section as taken on the indicated line 5-5 at Fig. 1, but on an enlarged scale, and without the pick.

Figure 6 is a section as taken on the indicated line 66 at Fig. 1, but on an enlarged scale and without the pick.

Figure 7 is identical with Fig. 3, but showing in full lines the position of the lower end of the shaft of an ice pick, fully inserted thereinto.

Referring to the sheath illustrated in Patent 1,933,171, it is to be noted that a passage, there numbered 22, is provided at the bottom of the sheath, which provides drainage for any water which may be upon the ice pick shaft at the time it is inserted in the sheath in position. However, in the actual use of this structure, the leather from which it is formed comes in close contact with the shaft and has a. tendency to soak up or absorb water from the shaft of the pick before it can drain off. This moisture causes the leather to swell out of shape, to grip the blade very tightly or prevent its entering the sheath at all. Moreover, the retained moisture in the leather tends to cause rusting of the blade; continual wetting of the sheath followed by subsequent drying, as when the pick is in use, causes distortion and deterioration of the sheath in a manner characteristic of leather. While such disadvantages might be obviated by the use of materials other than leather, it has been found that leather is nevertheless the only suitable material for the manufacture of ice pick sheaths of the character herein considered. Therefore, to avoid the abovementioned undesirable results while retaining the advantages of the sheath illustrated in said patent, I have improved said structure by providing more effective ventilation and drainage, protection of the leather from wetting and from the undesirable results thereof and have combined the features with a reduction in the amount of leather required to form the sheath.

In the present invention, the sheath is formed upon a base Ill which is constructed of a single piece of leather of a width and length to conform with the size of an :ice pick, or similar tool carried therein. The base In is provided with means, as belt clip H, at its rear upper portion, which is fastened to the base as by a rivet 12, or the sheet may be slotted at the top or arranged in any other suitable manner for engagement with a belt in conventional style. The sheath is formed by securing to the base It! a pocket [3 which is preferably a single piece of leather tooled to the general configuration of an ice pick l4,

shown as inserted in position, in broken lines at Fig. 1, the pocket having its side marginal edges 15 attached to the backing sheet I!) as by stitching I6 or by rivets I! at the terminal corners thereof, or in any other suitable manner. The pocket in its entirety may of course vary in size and cross sectional contour to conform with the shape of the tool it is adapted to receive, although it is contemplated that it will be formed with an upper enlarged portion 18 and will be tapered to a narrower portion 19, the enlarged portion 18 being adapted to receive part of the handle of the ice pick l4 and the narrow portion [9 to receive the shaft of the pick. A reinforcing plate 20 is placed against the base 10 end extends a substantial distance above the pocket entrance and a substantial distance downwardly into the pocket, to a point adjacent the narrow portion, this reinforcing plate 20 being held in position at the top by a rivet 2| and at the lower portion by the confining action of the adjacent stitching H5. The function of this plate 2|] is not only to reinforce and rigidify the sheath longitudinally, but also to prevent the point of the pick from contacting and scraping the leather of the base 10, as when a pick is inserted into the sheath at an angle.

The above-described elements are generally disclosed in the said prior patent and the present invention lies in the improvement of the lower portion of the, sheath. The lower portion of the pocket lflf-i's tooled to taper to a narrowed section l9 which terminates a considerable distance short of the lower end of the base, as at 22, and likewise a considerable distance short of the point of the shaft when the pick is positioned within the sheath so that the point extends substantially below the pocket lower edge 22. The tapered por-- tion I9 is larger in cross sectionat point 22. than the cross section of the pick shaft so that the shaft is spaced from the surrounding leather as: clearly seen at Fig. 7.

A'substantially U shaped metallic: member 24 encases the lower portion of the'sheath, one leg overlapping theback of'the base and the other leg overlapping the front of the. pocket and the legs beingsecured to the base and pocket by rivets IT. This member has a longitudinal bulge 25; inv its frontal portion 26 to conform to-the exterior transverse contour of the narrowed section I 9 of the pocket. This bulge 25 extends-longitudinally to'the-bottom of" the sheath, tapering into the-flattened plane of the frontal portion 26 at" the bottom edge thereof. The portion 25 over:- laps the pocket I3 adjacent its lower edge 22 and is thereby spaced outwardly of the face of the base It), thus providing a substantial gap 2'! through which air'may pass toventilate the area between the portion 28 of the member and the base. as. clearly illustrated at Figs. 2 and. '7. This permits drying of the'shaft-in a minimum'of time and keeps the leather in this areadry.

While this improved bridged and open construction itself greatly improves thestructure of the ice pick. sheath, further improvement is attained by providing a groove 28 in the-base l belewthe loweredgeof the reinforcing plate 20, which is aligned with the position of an inserted 'ice' pick shaft when lodged therein, and to facilitate any flow of moisture from the sheath Which may be retained above the edge 22 into the open bridge space; and to further provide ventilation of that portion of the sheath above the lower edge22,

A further improvement which may be-incorporated in combination.- with the above-described features,, and. whichmay also be used-independently-thereof; is; a treatment of. the-leather formting the base I!) and pocket l3, with various compounds of a plastic type which permanently attach themselves to the surface of such elements, and which are of such a character as to form a water impervious surface to thereby prevent the absorption of water into the leather.

While I have described a preferred construction of my improved sheath, it is at once apparent that others skilled in the art can dev ise alternative and equivalent constructions and arrangements, all of which are withinthe scope and spirit of my invention, and hence I am not to be limited in my protection by the construction and arrangements herein described, but only by the proper scope of the appended claims.

I claim:-

1. I-nv combination, a sheath for ice picks and like articles, including a stiff leather base, a downwardly tapered, pick-conforming and gripping pocket secured at'it marginal edges to the base and a U-shaped metal memb'ersecured. on and around the. lower end of the sheath, said pocket having its lower terminus a substantial distance above. the bottom end of. the: base: and said U-shaped member having its back leg secured to the back of the base and its front leg overlying the front of the base and overlapping the lower end of the pocket whereby said front leg, below the lower end of the pocket, is spaced from the base by the thickness of. the material forming the. pocket and provides a substantial open space around the lower endof the shaft of a pick positioned in the pocket.

2. In a sheath as defined in claim 1, the interior of the lower end of the pocket having a cross.- section area larger than. that of the pick shaft, whereby a pick shaft when positioned in the pocket will be normally spaced from the walls of the pocket.

3. In a sheath. as defined in claim 1,,a. groove formedv in the front faceof the base andextendiing from the bottom of. the base to a point above the bottom of the pocket and parallel with the normal position of a pick shaft when the pick is seated in the pocket.

JOSEPH R. ROSE.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record. in the Kuemmerlirigj Oct. 3, 1950