USRE1588E - Improved india-rubber sole for boots and shoes - Google Patents

Description

UNITED STA-TES PATENT OFFICE.,

CHARLES MCBURNEY, OF ROXBURY, MASSACHUSETTS.

IMPROVED INDIA-RUBBER SOLE FOR BOOTS AND SHOES.

Specification forming part of Letters Patent No. 23,479, dated April 5, M59; Reissue No. 1,588, dated December S, 1863.

DrvisIoN A.

To all c7/.0m it may concern:

13e it known that l, CHARLns MCBURNEY, .1

of Roxbury, in the county of Norfolk and State of Massachusetts, have invented a new i and useful Sole for Boots and Shoes, of which the following` is a full, clear, and exact de scription, reference heilig had to the accom- )an 'infr drawings making )art of this s ieoil .i n n s a iication, in which- Figure l is a view of the sole, seen from beneath; Fig. 2, a longitudinal section through i the same; Fig. 3, a view of the two halves of the mold in which the sole is vulcanized.

My invention has for its object to make the soles of boots and shoes ot' india-rubber or other vulcanizable gums or the compounds thereof, these materials being particularly adapted to this purpose by their durability, elasticity', and iinperviousness to water.

The attempt has before been made to form complete soles of india-rubber, which were secured to the boot or shoe by nails or pegs in a manner similar to that adopted for the purpose of securing' the leather soles of ordinary pegged shoes. plied, was liable to the serious objection that the holes made for the pegs caused the edges of the sole to bulge out opposite to each peg.

rlhis gave to the sole an unsightlyr appears ance which it was not found practicable sub- Another difficulty atsequently to remove. tending the use of soles thus perforated subsequent to vuleanization is found in this, that the strength ot' the material is reduced just at the point where it should be the greatest. The strain upon the sole when in wear being atthe ,surface of the pegs, every motion ofthe foot, and also the distension caused by the dirt which enters between the pegs and the sole, tends to tear the rubber. The slightest cut or puncture, exposing' a fresh surface ot' rubber, extends rapidly; but in my improved soles every part is equally strong and durable, the rubber along the whole surface,

including the holes to receive the pegs, being of closer texture or condensed by contact with the mold during the process of heating or vulcanization, which, as is well known, produces a pellicle or thinstratum that is tougher than the inner portion of the material.

Such sole, however, when apg My present invention consists in the production, as a new article of manufacture, of vulcanized india-rubber soles, or sole made of any other vulcanizable gums, adapted for attachment to boots or shoes by means of pegs, nails, rivets, or sewingthat is to say, by means other than cementation or adhesion, as hertofore used-which attachment does not involve the necessity of previously piercing or cutting holes; and my said invention further consists in a new manufacture of boots and shoes produced by combining with the uppers thereof a molded sole made of vulcanized india-rubber or other vulcanizable gum, when the latter is attached to the former by nails, rivets, or other metallic clinching devices7 or threads applied in such a manner as will neither disiigure the shape nor require the piercing of the face or bottom of the sole after vulcanization.

In the accompanying drawings, the sole A and heel B are made ot' a single piece, and are manufactured ready to be applied to the boot. The upper surface, b, ofthe sole herein shown is formed to suit the shape of the foot, and this may be done much more perfectly' than can be effected in leather. Both the sole and the f heel are punctured through or nearly through with holes ffor the pegs or nails. rlhis is effected by pins la, attachedl to and makin g part of the mold, Fig. 3, in which the sole is i vulcanized, and when it is to be applied to the shoe it is simply necessary to insert the pegs or nails into the holes fand drive them ,the nails being slightly larger than the holes, that there may be sutticien t adhesion between them and theindia-rubbertoholdthe sole in place. I thus accomplish several very desirable ends: First, the workman employed is relieved of the labor of making the holesft'or the pegs, and the time required for the operation is saved; secondly, the edge ofthe sole is not disiigured i by the bulging of the material opposite toeach hole, as is the case where the sole is vulcanized solid and the holes are subsequently i punched; thirdly, the tearing or disintegra- I tion of the sole at or about the holes is preyentcd.

Either wooden pegs or metallic nails may i be employed to secure the sole to the shoe, or

the heles may be of a suitable size and depth t1 allow the sole to be attached by sewing.

Th-A holes may be made slightly conical, in conformity with the shape of nails or pegs generally used. In some cases, particularly for thick soles, I prefer to close the holes at the top of the sole by means of a sheet incorporated with the sole of such thinness or by making the holes of such depth as that the introduction of the peg or nail shall have no eii'ect on the shape of the sole, and prevent exposure of any cut or toi-u portion thereof.

In the manufacture of the above sole I prefer the following composition of materials: four to eight poundsindia-rubber, one to four pounds sulphur, and twenty-tive pounds scraps of cloth covered with vulcanized-rubber ccmpound. This compound, at'ter being suitably ground and mixed in the customary manner, is vulcanized by exposure to a temperature of 2050 to 2700 from one to four hours, or thereabout. These proportions may, however, be variously modified, and they form no part of my present invention. The sole may be made ot' various degrees of hardness by varying thf proportions of the. materials and the details of the vulcanizlfg process.

It is obvious that the sole and the heel may be made in one piece7 or they may be made.

in separate and distinct pieces, or either one of hem may be made of india-rubber and the other of leather or ofother material.

It will be also understood that instead of nails or pegs, rivets or other mechanical means may be used for holding the sole tothe vlace or bottom of the sole after vulcan uppers without departure from my said invention.

In conclusion, I would observe that this my invention .oes not relaxe to the mechanical means of attachment hrieinbetore referred to7 and that therefore I do not wish to be understood as claiming as my invention the mechanical means of attachment described or any mechanical means of attachment whatsoever; but- What I do claim is is follows:

1 .As anew manufacture, avulcanizedindia rubber sole, or sole made ot' an y other vulcanized gum, adapted for attachment to boots or shoes by means of pegs, nails, rivets, or sewing, or other equivalent means, the sole being,` made in such manner that said attachment does not require any previous preparation of the sole by piercing or cutting holes.

2. As a new manufacture, boots aud shoes produced by combining with the uppers thereof a molded sole made of vulcanized indiarubber or other vulcanizable gum, ==en the latter is attached to the former by nails, rivets, or other'metaiic clinching devices or threads applied in such manner :is will neither disigure the shape nor require vthe piercingr of the tion.

In testimony whereof I have signed this specification in presence of two witnesses.`

CHARLES MCBURNEY. Witnesses:

EDWARD UPHAM, J oHN G. TAPPAN.

Images