US697420A - Golf-ball. - Google Patents

Description

No. 697,420. Patented Apr. 8-, 190

E. KEMPSHALL.

GOLF BALL.

(Application filed Oct. 19, 1901.1

("0 Model.)

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UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

KEMPSHALL MANUFACTURING COMPANY,

JERSEY.

A CORPORATION OF NEW GOLF-BALL.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 697,420, dated April 8, 1902.

Application filed October 19, 1901. Serial No. 79,211. (No model.)

To all whom, it may concern.-

Be it known that I, ELEAZER KEMPSHALL, a citizen of the United States, residing in Boston, in the county of Suffolk and State of Massachusetts, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Golf-Balls, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to balls such as used in golf and certain other games; and its objects are to improve the quality, efficiency, and stanchness of the balls.

, In my pending application, filed September 27, 1901, Serial No. 76,814, is illustrated a ball constructed with a relatively hard or stiff but springy shell, which is filled with an elastic substance that is held under compression by the shell, whereby the latter is supported against distortion produced by a blow,

the constant elastic outward pressure of the core tending to maintain the shell in spherical shape and cooperating with the natural 'springiness of the shell to enhance the effi- 'ciency of the ball. The material of the core is preferably gutta-percha and that of the shell preferably celluloid, and in manufac- 'turing such balls I preferably make the core oversize, compress the shell-segments thereover, and cause the latter to adhere to each other, all as set forth in said application. In my other pending application, filed September 30, 1901, Serial No. 76,951, the relatively soft material of the core is first provided with a jacket,preferably by winding twine layer 'over layer around the same, the ball thus preliminarily formed being preferably over size, the shell-segments being then placed over such ball and the whole subjected to compression under the action of heat, so as to enable the shell to more readily contract to its finished size. The jacket prevents the soft material of the core from flowing out through the crevice between the edges of the shell as they approach each other.

The object of the present invention is to provide an improved jacket for the inner ball, so as to improve the resiliency and other qualities of the finished ball.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 is aview, partly broken away, of the ball made according to my present improvements; and

Fig. 2 illustrates the preferred method of j oining the shell to the core.

Similar characters of reference designate like parts in both figures.

The shell (designated as 1) consists of a relatively hard but springy material, such as celluloid or hard rubber,while the filling comprises a relatively soft substance 2, which is elastic in all directions. For this filling I employ any suitable material, such as rubber of suitable consistency, but preferably guttapercha or one of its substitutes. I first inclose the filling in a more or less tough jacket or coat, which consists of one or more layers of rope fiber, which may be hemp, sisal, or analogous fiber, preferably hemp. In this instance I make said jacket by winding the rope fiber 3 repeatedly around the filling, so as to form a ball,the windings passing over and over and forming a closely compacted coat, al-

though the filling may be otherwise provided with a jacket of this material. In its original shape the nucleus is substantially round, al-

thoughit may depart from the spherical form within the scope of the invention but I prefer that its bulk shall be a little too large for the final capacity of the shell.

The shell I preferably form in two semispherical segments 4:, Fig. 2, between which the nucleus ball is placed. The parts thus assembled are placed between forming-diesas, for instance, 5 and 6Whereupon the latter are pressed together by means of suitable mechanism, thus forcing the shellstogether, so as to bring their edges into intimate contact. To said edges cement is previously applied, so that when they are forced together they adhere, although the invention is not limited to this particular method of effecting adhesion. When required, the dies may be heated by steam or otherwise for bringing the material of the shell-segments into suitable condition and consistency, both for uniting them and also for facilitating the compressing and shaping action of the dies. When celluloid is employed, the heating of the dies effects a softening of the shell, so that it may be more readily pressed from its original to its finished or final size, and the dies may be then allowed to cool before the balls are taken out, so as to give the shells an opportunity to reharden,whereby they are enabled to retain their shape when removed. The abutting edges of the original segments at 4? may be made somewhat full, thereby to furnish material for properly forming the joint between them as they are subjected to the final compression.

It will be understood that the material of the shell is compressed between the dies and the resisting mass of the ball contained therein, and since said inner ball is first prepared somewhat oversize the resistance thereof while under such compression furnishes a substantial support for sustaining the relatively thin shell against the pressure of the forming-dies. Byproperlyproportioningthe size of the inner ball the shells when being finished may be sustained against any necessary degree of pressure of the dies. In case other material, such as hard rubber, is employed for the shells the method of manufacture may be varied within the limits of the invention.

My present improvements in constriction and method are applicable not only to golfballs, but also to balls for use in playing billiards and analogous games, and it will be understood that the thickness of the shell and also the firmness and relative size of the center pieces may be varied in accordance with the requirements of any particular game or use for which the balls may be employed.

I usually make the exterior surface of golfballs pebbled or corrugated to any design or configuration which may be preferred by the player. In this instance the ball is represented as finished with relatively slight elevations of a spherical conformation; but in billiard balls of course the outer surface should usually beasmooth and true spherical surface.

For a golf-ball the shell is preferably made of celluloid, which is stiff and springy, and hence well adapted for use in this game, while the interior is preferably made of guttapercha. The object of such a combination is to produce a twofold springiness in the ball, or, in other words, to enable the elasticity of the filling to cooperate with the springiness of the shell, so as to instantly restore the latter to its normal shape after distortion by a blow, and thus to enhance the resiliency of the ball as a whole. The elasticity of the filling, and hence its promptness in recovering from the blow, is greatly enhanced by having it constantly under compression, since the outward pressure thereof in all directions tends constantly to assume and maintain a spherical shape, or, in other words, an outward pressure, such as caused bycompression, is of material assistance in enabling the ball to spring instantly back to its original shape, and hence to rebound when thrown against an object, as well as to fly with greater speed and to cover a greater distance when struck by an implement. It will be seen that one of the importaut features of the ball resides in causing the springiness of the shell and elasticity of the filling to cooperate in producing a ball of greatly-increased efficiency.

It will be understood that the jacket covering the soft nucleus is of importance in manufacture in cases where the shell is compressed over the nucleus, whether ornot the parts are heated at the pressing operation, since even if the parts are cold the tendency of the nucleus when subject to pressure is to flow out between the approaching edges of the shell, which tendency is entirely overcome by the confining action of the relatively tough jacket, and in cases where heat is employed, and hence where the nucleus is rendered still softer and more liable to flow, the jacket becomes of still greater importance.

From the foregoing it will be seen that the finished ball comprises a relatively soft elastic nucleus, a relatively hard springy shell, and an intermediate layer of material which is both tough and resilient as a mass. This layer forms a reinforcement for the shell itself and is of great value, since when the ball is given a knock the force thereof is diffused, and hence the ball is generally altered from its true spherical shape, whereby the elasticity of the nucleus acts over a large area with greatly-increased effectiveness, so that the end of an implement the normal tendency of I the shell, especially when the latter is made of celluloid and has thin walls, as illustrated in the drawings, is to dent in sharply, thus affecting only the part of the nucleus which is right behind the area of impact and compacting only a small portion of the nucleus without tending generally to alter the entire conformation thereof, so that only this small portion of the nucleus would be materially eifective in returning the shell to its original shape, whereas by placing a tough springy jacket over the nucleus and behind the shell the sharp indentation of the latter is prevented, since if the jacket is pushed inwardly anywhere a large area thereof is necessarily affected and dragged inwardly to a slight extent, so that instead of a deep indentation being produced in the nucleus over a small area the latter is slightly flattened over a large area, and thereby the entire shape of the nucleus, as well as the shell, is a little distorted, and in consequence the whole energy of the imprisoned mass, added to the natural resiliency of the fiber jacket, is called upon and the ball is restored instantly to its normal position. Moreover, by employing said intermediate coating or backing for the shell the liability of cracking of the latteris practically eliminated, particularly since the presence of such packing prevents undue indentation of the shell, as just explained. Both the shell and the reinforcement may be made of varying thickness. Preferably the fiber is passed over and over thenucleus to form a closely-compacted coat of material thickness, so as to more readily transmit and spread the force of the blow and distribute said force over a large area of the compressible elastic center piece, and so as also to form a resilient mass per so. The rope fiber of which the jacket is composed is very firm, tough, and

resisting when dealt with as a single strand, thus efifectually preventing unduly sharp indentation of the ball by an implement,while when these strands are compactly overwound or assembled in any suitable manner they have a very high degree of mass elasticity, thus increasing the liveliness of the ball.

Having described my invention, I claim 1. A playing-ball consisting of a solid nucleus of springy material which is overwound with rope fiber, and a shell. of plastic material holding said nucleus under compression.

2. A playing-ball comprising a core of guttapercha overwound with rope fiber'and a shell of plastic material holding said core under compression.

3. A playing-ball comprising a yielding core, rope fiber wound thereon, and a cellu-- loid shell compressed upon said layer.

4. The combination of a core consisting largely of gutta-percha, rope fiber covering said core, and a casin g of celluloid compressed thereon.

5. A playing-ball having a core which consists largely of gutta-percha, rope fiber Wound upon said core, and a celluloid shell compressed upon said fibrous material.

6. A playing-ball having a yielding core.

8. A playing-ball comprising a shell which consists of hemispherical segments of celluloidwelded together at their edges, anda spherical filling of gutta-percha covered with rope fiber'and held under compression by said shell.

9. A ball consisting of a solid sphere of gutta-percha wound compactly with several layers of rope fiber and held under compression by a relatively thin celluloid shell.

ELEAZER KEMPSHALL. Witnesses:

FREDDJ. DOLE, B. O. STICKNEY.

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