US766339A - Stringed musical instrument. - Google Patents

Description

No. 766,339. PATENTED AUG. 2, 1904. G. M. FUNK.

STRINGED MUSICAL INSTRUMENT.

APPLICATION FILED JAN. 2, 1904.

N0 MODEL.

' oZ mva n foz Patented August 2, 1904.

PATENT OFFICE.

CHARLES M. FUNK, OF SEDALIA, MISSOURI.

STRINGED MUSICAL INSTRUMENT.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 766,339, dated August 2, 1904.

Application filed January 2, 1904.

To all whom it may concern:

Be itknown that I, CHARLES M. FUNK, a citizen of the United States, residing at Sedalia, in the county of Pettis and State of Missouri, have invented new and useful Improvements in Stringed Musical Instruments, of which the following is a specification.

My invention pertains to harp-guitars 2'. e. guitars having a supplemental neck and bass strings thereon; and it has for its object to provide means through the medium of which a performer may quickly and easily render any of the bass strings sharp, and thereby avoid the necessity of retuning the bass strings when it is desired to play in a key other than the natural key of C.

With the foregoing in mind the invention will be fully understood from the following description and claim when taken in connection with the accompanying drawings, forming part of this specification, in which- Figure 1 is a front elevation of a harp-guitar equipped with my novel sharping devices. Fig. 2 is a detail view, partly in elevation and partly in vertical section and on an enlarged scale, illustrating one of the bass strings on the supplemental neck and the sharping device complementary thereto, the said sharping device being shown in its normal position. Fig. 3 is a view similar to Fig. 2, illustrating the sharping device as adjusted to render the strings sharp. Fig. 4 is a detail rear elevation illustrating a portion of the supplemental neck and the sharping devices thereon; and Fig. 5 is a detail view, partly in elevation and partly in vertical section, illustrating a modified sharping device.

Referring by letter to the said drawings, and more particularly to Figs. 1 to 4 thereof, A is the body of a harp-guitar. B is the neck thereof; C, the supplemental neck; D, treble strings on the neck B, and E bass strings on the supplemental neck C. These parts may be and preferably are of the ordinary construction, with the exception that the neck C is provided with a fret F and carries my novel sharping devices.

G Gr are the sharping devices,of which there is one employed in connection with each bass string. These sharping devices are identical Serial No. 187,535. (No model.)

in construction, and therefore a detailed de-' scription of the one shown in Figs. 2 and 3 will suffice to impart a definite understanding of all. In the present and preferred embodimentof my invention the said device Gis made up of an endwise-movable pin a, which extends through the neck 0 from the front to the back thereof and has a lateral arm 5 at its forward end arranged to engage one of the strings E, a hook or loop 0 at its rear end, and a shoulder (Z at an intermediate point of its length; a coiled spring a, surrounding the reduced rear portion of the pin a and interposed between the shoulder cl thereof and a shoulder f in the neck; aframe g, connected to the rear side of the neck C and having a vertical slot it in its rear wall, and a slide c, disposed in and adapted to be guided by the frame g and having a finger-piece j movable in the slot it and also having an upper tapered end In extending through and adapted to move in the hook or loop 0 at the rear end of the pin a. The pin a is disposed immediately above the fret F, and hence it will be observed that when the slide 2 is moved through the medium of its finger-piece from the position shown in Fig. 2 to that shown in Fig. 3 itstaper end engaging the hook or loop of the pin a will move the pin rearwardly, so as to carry the arm Z) thereon against the string complementary to the device, with the result that the said string will be made sharp after the manner shown in Fig. 3. It will also be observed that when it is desired to restore the natural tone of the string the performer has but to move the slide 2' down into the position shown in Fig. 2, when the spring 0, acting against the should er of the pin a, will force the pin into the position shown in Fig. 2 and out of engagement with the string.

Any suitable number of bass strings may be employed on the supplemental neck C, and, as before stated, one of my novel sharping devices is used in connection with each string. From this it follows that a performer is enabled to play in a key the signature of which is one or more sharps or flats without stopping to retune the bass strings. For instance, if he desires to play in the key of B- flat the performer has but to secure the pins a complementary to the A string and the D string in the position shown in Fig. 3. When he desires to again play in the natural key of C, the performer has but to restore the pins a to the position shown in Fig. 2.

Inasmuch as the several sharping devices are located at the rear side of the supplemental neck C and adjacent to the upper end thereof, the performer on the instrument is enabled to expeditiously and conveniently move the slides a with his left hand, either to place the pins 60 in the position shown in Fig. 3 or to restore said pins to the position shown in Fig. 2.

Notwithstanding the practical advantages of my novel sharping devices as pointed out in the foregoing, it will be noticed that the same are simple and inexpensive in construction, and therefore do not add materially to the cost of the instrument; also, that the said devices are calculated to enhance rather than detract from the finished appearance of the instrument.

The modified construction (shown in Fig. 5) is made up of a pin 04, disposed in the supplemental neck C and having a lateral branch 5 at its forward end arranged to engage a string E and also having a lateral projection d at an intermediate point of its length; a spring-strip 0, connected to the face of the neck and arranged to engage the projection or shoulder (Z of the pin, so as to return the pin to and normally hold it in the position shown in Fig. 5; a keeper 2 disposed at the rear side of the neck C, and a resilient strip 9, connected to and extending rearwardly from the pin a and having a heady" at its rear end and a beveled shoulder 7t" at an intermediate point of its length. As before stated, the spring-strip 0 serves to normally hold the pin a in the position shown in order to leave the string natural. hen, however, the performer desires to sharp the string, he has but to grasp the handle or finger-piece draw the pin a rearwardly, and place the shoulder is in engagement with the keeper With this done the pin will be retained in its rear position and the string rendered sharp, while when the shoulder it" is sprung out of engagement with the keeper the lateral branch of the pin will be moved out of engagement with the string and the string thereby restored to its natural state.

I have entered into a detailed description of the construction and relative arrangement of the parts embraced in both embodiments of my invention in order to impart a full, clear, and exact. understanding of the same. I do not desire, however, to be understood as confining myself to such specific construction and relative arrangement of parts, as such changes or modifications, may be made in practice as fairly fall within the scope of my invention as claimed.

Having described my invention, What I claim, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, 1s

bination with a string and the part of the instrument over which the string extends; of a sharping device comprising an endwise-movable pin extending through the part from the front'to the rear thereof, and having a lateral portion at its forward end arranged to engage the string, and a hook or loop at its rear end, a spring tending to normally press the pin forwardly, a guide-frame at the rear of the part, and a slide movable in the guideframe and having a taper end disposed in the hook or loop of the pin.

In testimony whereof I have hereunto set my hand in presence of two subscribing Witnesses.

CHARLES M. FUNK.

In a stringed musical instrument, the com

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