US2829376A - Shako - Google Patents

Description

April 8, 1958 R. E. OSTWALD SHAKO 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed May 3, 1955 INVENTOR Foals/P7 ERA/4557* 0.5774074 i MBQ ATTORNEY April. 8, 1958 R. E. OSTWALD 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 SHAKO Filed May 3, 1955 6 a r E M E H E w R BY m ATTORNEY This invention relates to a shake, and more particu larly to a novel military headdress which possesses many,

unusual advantagesover such headdress used heretofore.

A shako is a military dresshead gear.- The shako is used extensively by bands, drum and bugle corps, and other musical organizations wherever an ornate costume or uniform is prescribed. Shakos are usually ornamented with metal or embroidered emblems and are decorated with cord trims, metal chin straps, plumes and pompous. These accessory items or decorations are fastened to the shako body in' a rigid manner. I

Heretofore, shakos have beenconstructed in one of two ways. In one type of shako the body is formed by draping several layers of a pliableytextile fabric, such as gossamer or cheese cloth over'a male shako body form. The pieces of the material'are combinedjlayer by layer by use of an appropriateadhesive. Subsequently, the outside of the shako body is lacquered or shellacked. By constructingshako bodies in the above manner, it is possible to produce shakos'having tapering sidewalls orit is possible to construct the sidewalls with a slight curvature.

, Another type of shako is constructed of twopieces of I buckram material in which one piece consists of a straight.

outer wall cylindrically shaped and the other piece is a separate tongue which is sewn to the sidewalls. It is not possible with the two piece construction to provide tapering or curved sidewalls. It is also necessary to reinforce the top by providing a wire or steel band sewn into the top section of the shako.

Many difliculties have been encountered when using either of the aforementioned shako bodies. It has been found exceedingly diflicult to construct the shako bodies with sufficient strength so that they will not be easily broken and still retain a headdress which is light enough for comfortable wear. Furthermore, by using materials such as those previously mentioned, it has been found that the shako tends to shrink and wilt when wet. This problem is of unusual significance if the shako body is exposed to rain since it will warp and the sidewalls will collapse. It is not possible to subsequently reshape the shako.

In the construction of prior art shakos, it has been the practice to stitch the visor to the body. The visor is necessarily of a stiffer material and, of course, it is necessary that the visor be curved and slanted in relation to the shako body. This tends to exert a certain outward pull on the oval or round shape of the shako body and consequently, causes the shako to lose its original shape.

It is, therefore, clear that there has been a definite need in the art for a shako which is both durable and light. The material used should be capable of being sewn and yet possess sufiicient rigidity as to permit the mounting of decorative and ornamental accessory items.

According to the present invention the top, sidewalls, and visor of the shako are integrally formed with each of the parts possessing the requisite strength character istics and yet the shako body is comparatively light in '2 weight. from plastic material by a forming process so that any. shape or style can be produced without seams and with the proper stiffness. It is possible according to the present invention to provide a relativelythin top and compara tively thick sidewall and visor sections so that the strength and rigidity are provided where necessary. By integrally forming the visor, the stresses present in prior art shakos;

are removed. Furthermore, the bulky seams required previously to stitch the visor to the shako body are unnecessary, 1

The front emblem and plume are secured to the shako body in a novel manner by means of a sleeve assembly which permits a ready insertion and removal of the plume or pompon. v

Two forms of covering are shown in connection with the integrally formed shako body- It is possible to provide a cloth covering for the top and sidewalls and stitch,

this covering to the internal periphery of the sidewall. It is also possible to provide adhesive on the outer surface of. the shako and spray flocking material thereon to give the desired effect. A leather sweat band and textile bag headrest may be applied interiorly of the shako in the usual manner.

The primary object of the present invention is to provide a military headdress which is sturdy and light in vide a military headdress in which the sidewalls are relatively thick and the top is comparatively thin so that the. body has the necessary rigidityand yet. is light in Other objects and many of the attendantadvantages. of the present invention will become apparent upon con sideration of the accompanying drawings wherein:

Fig. 1 is a perspective view of a shako body made in accordance with the present invention,

Fig. 2 is a sectional view in elevation of a shako body,

Fig. 3 is a sectional view similar to Fig. 2 showing one form of covering,

Fig. 4 is a sectional view along the lines 44 of Fig. 3,

Fig. 5 is a partial sectional view showing another form of covering,

Fig. 6 is a detail view of the covering shown in Fig. 5, and

Fig. 7 is a perspective view of an accessory used with the present invention.

Referring now specifically to the drawings wherein like numerals indicate like parts throughout the several views there is shown in Fig. 1 a shako body 1 which is an integral plastic body comprising a top 2, cylindrical tapered sidewall 3, and visor portion 4. The shako body is moldedfrom plastic material preferably by a process wherein the heated plastic material is formed against the die. In this manner the walls may be made of varying thicknesses and as clearly shown in Fig. 2, the top 2 is relatively thin, whereas the sidewall 3 and visor 4 are thicker for giving the requisite strength to the shako.

The outer edge of the visor may be provided with a reinforcing groove or ledge 5 as shown in Fig. 2 to give added strength to the visor. Vent holes 6 are provided in the sidewall of the shako for purposes of ventilation and apertures 7, 8 and 9 are provided in the molded shako body for purposes to become more fully apparent hereinafter.

Referring now to Fig. 3, it can be seen that a cloth covering 11 is provided to give a finished appearance P n d-Apr- 8,3

The shako of the present invention ism (Sided v Mala w c.

to theshako. This cloth covering may be of any suitable material and color and is folded: under thelower edge of the shako body and is stitched as at 12 to the shako. A suitable outer band 13 may be provided around the bottomedgeofthe-headdress. Adjacent the visor portion of the shako, the cloth covering 11 is folded as at" 14 and stitched on the outer side of the shako, I

Suitableaccessories may be mounted on the shako, if desired. Thereisshown at 15 an emblem, the rear face of which is provided with a bolt 16 which extends through aperture 8 in the-shako body; A plume supporting device 17, which is more clearly shown in Fig. 7, comprises asleeve portion 18 and a flat securing portion 19. Ad-' top of the shako by meansof nut 23 which is fastened on bolt 16. It can beseen that both the plume support 17 and the front emblem 15 are secured on'the'shako by means of nut 23.

' Referring now to Figs. and 6, there is shown another type of covering which may be applied to the shako body. The shako-body is coated with an adhesive 24, Fig. 6, and a flocking material 25 is then sprayed on the adhesive. This flocking material may be of any desired color and, in fact, bands of various colors of flocking material may be applied to the shake body.

It is apparent that apertures 9 provided on each side of the shako body adjacent the end of the visor portion are provided for the purpose of securing a front strap by means of ornamental buttons. It is also apparent that the usual sweat band and inside headrest may be stitched to the shako body in the usual manner.

By molding the shako body as an integral plastic body, the sidewalls may be tapered as desired and the various walls may be made of suitable thickness for both comfort and strength. The visor retains its shape without placing the sidewalls of the headdress under any stress, as was present in prior art shakos. novel manner in which the accessories are attached to the shako permits the ready variation of both the front emblem and the plume. By making the plume detachable, compactness is assured.

'7 new and desired to be secured by Letters Patent is:

1. A, shako comprising, in Combination, a substantially cylindrically shaped sidewall having a visor integrally formed therewith, a top integrally formed with said sidewall, said top being thin relative to the thickness of said sidewall and visor, and a fabric covering for the sidewall and top, said fabric covering having an overlapping bottom, a portion of said overlapping bottom extending over the edge of the sidewall across the sides and the back thereof and the other portion of said overlapping bottom folded upon itself across the front thereof Furthermore, the i between the ends of the visor, said fabric covering being stitched to the sidewall around the overlapping bottom adjacent the free edge of the overlapping bottom.

"2. Ashako according to claim 1 and further including a plume holder extending through an aperture in said top, and an emblem disposed on the sidewall and having a' boltextending through the sidewall and engaging the plume holder.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS

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