US2748539A

US2748539A - Sickle sharpener

Info

Publication number: US2748539A
Application number: US307991A
Authority: US
Inventors: Murray Lester
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 1952-09-05
Filing date: 1952-09-05
Publication date: 1956-06-05
Anticipated expiration: 1973-06-05

Description

L. MURRAY SICKLE SHARPENER June 5, 1956 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed Sept. 5, 1952 [ll] Mal b n m N m M NW, v\\ NN N u bw WW Q b .Q SQ Q g 2: I o o N! .W s Jr W 0 o O o 00 nu uoooo uooeeoonoowoo00O INVENTOR. ESTER fill/717A) ATTORNEY June 5, 1956 L. MURRAY 2,748,539

SICKLE SHARPENER Filed Sept. 5, 1952 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTOR. 45575;? MURRAY ya/9M A-rroawsr United States Patent SICKLE SHARPENER Lester Murray, Dallas, Tex.

Application September 5, 1952, Serial N 0. 307,991

2 Claims. (Cl. 51-92) This invention relates to a sickle sharpener and has for its primary object to sharpen the cutting blades of a conventional sickle of the type employed on a mowingmachine.

Another object is to yielding hold adjacent cutting teeth of the cutting blade of a sickle against a rotating abrasive wheel to efiect a grinding of the cutting edges of the teeth.

A further object is to lock the sickle against advance toward the grinding wheel during such periods as the machine is at rest, for instance during the time that a sharpened blade is being removed from the sickle blade support, or during the period of time that a dull blade is being placed in position to be sharpened.

The above and other objects may be attained by employing this invention which embodies among its features an abrasive wheel mounted to rotate about a horizontal axis, a carriage mounted to move in a rectilinear path parallel with said horizontal axis, spaced arms carried by the carriage for movement about a common axis toward and away from the horizontal axis, and a sickle support carried by the arms for rocking movement in an arcuate path about an axis which lies parallel with but remote from the common axis.

Other features include a stop carried by the sickle support in parallel relation to the horizontal axis, clamps carried by the sickle support and engaging a sickle to clamp it against the stop, a spring carried by the carriage and connected to the sickle support for rocking the sickle support away from the horizontal axis and a spring connected to the carriage and to the sickle support for yieldingly urging the sickle support downwardly in an armate path toward the horizontal axis.

Other features include a hook carried below the trackway for detachable connection with the sickle support to hold it against movement under the influence of the springs.

In the drawings:

Figure l is a front view in elevation of a sickle sharpening machine embodying the features of this invention and showing a sickle mounted thereon,

Figure 2 is a sectional view of the device shown in Figure 1,

Figure 3 is a horizontal sectional view taken substantially on the line 5 of Figure 2,

Figure 4 is a vertical sectional view of the device shown in Figure 1, and

Figure 5 is a fragmentary perspective view of the carriage and sickle support.

Referring to the drawings in detail a table of substantially rectangular plan is provided adjacent one side edge with an elongated angle iron 12 having an upstanding flange 14 forming a trackway which extends horizontally as will be readily understood upon reference to the drawings. Mounted on the table for rotation about a horizontal axis which lies in spaced parallel relation to the trackway 14 is an abrasive wheel 16 which is 2,748,539 Patented June 5, 1956 driven in a conventional manner through an endless belt 18 which is operatively connected to a prime mover 20 mounted on the table 10 adjacent the edge thereof and remote from the trackway 14.

Mounted for movement longitudinally of the trackway in a rectilinear path which lies parallel to the horizontal axis is a carriage designated generally 22 which comprises an angle bar 24 having an upstanding flange 26 which lies against the upstanding flange 14 of the angle bar 12 which forms the trackway. Mounted on the base flange of the angle bar 24 for rotation about longitudinally spaced axes which lie parallel to the upwardly extending flange 26 are rollers 28 which project through openings 30 formed in the upstanding flange 26 to peripherally engage the trackway 14 and have rolling contact therewith. Peripherally grooved carriage supporting rollers 32 are carried by the upstanding flange 26 adjacent the ends thereof for rotation about longitudinally spaced horizontal axes, and these rollers 32 ride on the upper edge of the trackway 14 as will be readily understood upon reference to the drawings. A hold down roller 34 is carried by a depending arm 36 carried by the carriage 22 adjacent one end thereof and this hold down roller engages the underside of the horizontal leg of the angle bar 12 adjacent the trackway 14. It will thus be seen that the carriage is held against movement relative to the trackway except longitudinally thereon in a rectilinear path.

Carried by the base flange of the angle bar 24 adjacent opposite ends thereof are upstanding ears 38, and pivotally connected as at 40 to the cars 38 for movement about a' common axis which lies parallel of the axis of the abrasive r elongated rock arms 46. These arms are connected intermediate their ends to the pivots 44, and carried by the arms 46 and extending therebetween adjacent the ends thereof adjacent the horizontal axis is an angle bar 48 forming the supporting element of the sickle to be sharpened. Carried by and extending between the rock arms 46 adjacent the ends thereof remote from the sickle support 4-8 is a tie bar 50. Sickle stops 52 are carried by the sickle support 48 at each end thereof and the support 48 has aflixed thereto a pair of barrels 54 through each of which the shank 56 of a sickle clamping hook 58 extends. As shown each shank 56 is provided adjacent the end thereof remote from its respective book 58 with external screw threads 60 and threaded on the threaded end of each shank 56 is a thumb nut 62 which is adapted to bear against its adjacent barrel S4 and when turned to move the hook 58 into or out of clamping position with a sickle S. Carried by the arms 42 intermediate the ends thereof and extending between said arms is a bridge plate 64 and connected to the bridge plate 64 intermediate opposite ends thereof is one end of a retractile coil spring 66, the opposite end of which is connected to the sickle support 48. A similar retractile coil spring 68 is connected at one end to the bridge plate 64 and at its opposite end to the tie bar 50 as will be readily understood upon reference to Figure 4. The downward pull of the spring 66 tends to yieldingly move the sickle support 48 toward a horizontal plane in an arcuate path which intersects the horizontal axis of the grinding wheel 16 while the effort of the spring 68 tends to hold the arms 42 away from the horizontal axis of the grinding wheel 16. Since the spring 66 is slightly stronger than the spring 68, little manual effort is required to advance a sickle into engagement with the grinding wheel 16.

A hook 78 is carried by the table 10 on the side thereof adjacent track rail 14 and this hook is adapted to be engaged with the tie bar 50 as illustrated in Figure 2 to hold the arms 42 and the rock arms 46 tilted as illustrated in Figure 2 against the effort of the springs 66 and 68 dur- 3 ing the positioning on or removal from the sickle support 48 of a sickle S.

In use with the prime mover 20 energized, the grinding wheel 16 will be rotated and upon loosening the hooks 58, a sickle S may be positioned on the sickle support 48 against the stops 52 and clamped in place by turning the nuts 62 to move the hooks 58 into engagement with the sickle S. With the sickle S firmly clamped in place, pressure is applied to the finger piece 72 carried by a lever 74 which is pivoted as at 78 intermediate its ends to one of the rock arms 46. This lever is connected at its end remote from the finger piece 72 with a link 80 which in turn is connected to an arm 42 on the side of the pivot 44 thereof remote from the common horizontal axis. Down- Ward pressure on the finger piece 72 will rock the lever 74 to exert pull on the arm 42 and move the entire superstructure about the common axis a distance suflicient to cause the hook 70 to disengage from the tie bar 50 and permit the entire assembly on the carriage to move toward the horizontal axis under the influence of the spring 66. Of course, if desired, the hook 70 may be disengaged from the bar 50 by pressing downwardly on the latter. The tension of the springs 66 and 68 is so adjusted as to cause the sickle to bear very lightly upon the abrasive wheel 16 and by tilting the rock arms 46, the teeth of the sickle S may be successively ground by shifting the carriage in its rectilinear path along the track 14.

Having described the invention what I claim is:

1. In a sickle sharpener, a platform, an abrasive wheel mounted on said platform to rotate about a horizontal axis, a trackway mounted on said platform in spaced parallel relation to the horizontal axis, a carriage mounted on said platform to rotate about a horizontal parallel to the horizontal axis, guide rollers carried by the carriage and engaging the trackway for holding the carriage in place thereon, upwardly extending spaced arms carried by the carriage for movement toward and away from the horizontal axis of the wheel about a common axis which lies parallel with the horizontal axis of the wheel, a bridge plate interconnecting said spaced arms, spaced elongated rock arms carried intermediate their ends by the arms remote from the common axis of the upwardly extending arms to rock about an axis which lies parallel to the common axis of the upwardly extending arms, a sickle support carried by the rock arms adjacent the ends thereof nearest the horizontal axis of the wheel, a tie bar interconnecting the rock arms adjacent the ends thereof remote from the sickle support, a spring interconnecting the sickle support and the bridge plate to yieldingly advance the sickle support toward the horiz0ntal axis of the Wheel, and a hook carried by the track way and adapted to engage the tie bar to hold the sickle support against movement under the influence of the spring.

2. A device as defined in claim 1 wherein there is provided manually operable release means for said hook.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 192,427 Frost June 26, 1877 756,828 Burkhardt Apr. 12, 1904 937,939 Hudson Oct. 26, 1909 1,107,033 Clark Aug. 11, 1914 1,162,304 Neuens Nov. 30, 1915 1,903,369 Brown et a1. Apr. 4, 1933 2,166,855 Benda July 18, 1939 2,298,394 Littlefield Oct. 13, 1942 FOREIGN PATENTS 274,314 Switzerland Mar. 31, 1951 527,512 Germany June 24, 1931