US52060A - Improvement in horse hay-forks - Google Patents

Description

UNITED STATES PATENT OEEICE.

RICHARD LISOOMB, OF SMITHFIELD, PENNSYLVANIA.

IMPROVEMENT IN HORSE HAY-FORKS.

Specification forming part of Letters Patent No. 52,060, dated January 16, 1866.

To all whom 'it may concern:

Be it known that I, RICHARD W. LIscoMB, of Smithlield, in the county of Bradford and State of Pennsylvania, have invented a new and Improved Horse Hay-Fork g and I do hereby declare that the following is a full, clear, and exact description thereof, which will enable others skilled in the art to make and use the same, reference being had to the accompanying; drawings, forming part of this speciiication, in which- Figure l is a side view ot' my invention; Fig. 2, a plan or top view of the same.

Similar letters of reference indicate like parts.

This invention relates to a new and improved horse hay-fork for elevating hay and storing it in mows in barns, and is applicable to that class of forks which have their heads connected by a hinge orjointto a long arm or handle. These forks are very simple, and are capable of being operated or manipulated with the greatest facility, so as to clear beams or other obstructions which may be in the path ot' their movement; but they have hitherto required the operator to hold the arm or handle with the guide-rope, in order to prevent them from tilting and casually discharging their load under the gravity o-t' the same.

The object of this improvement is to avoid that difficulty, and to this end I employ a brace connected with the arm or handle ot' the fork and the hoisting-rope thereof in such a manner that the fork will be retained in the position necessary to hold its load, and without 1n, the least interfering with the discharge of the latter from the fork at the proper time.

A represen ts the fork, constructed of a. series of tines, a, fitted at right angles in a head, b, any proper number of tines being used. This head b is connected by a hinge or joint, c, with an arm or handle, B, of considerable length, the hinge or joint admitting of the fork dropping or tilting` downward when its load is to be discharged. The fork is retained or held in a position in line with the arm or handle B by means ot' a catch, O, in the arm or handle, titting over a plate, d, attached to the fork-head b, and the lower end of this catch C has the trip-rope D lattached to it, by pulling which at any time the fork may be released and allowed to tilt and discharge its load.

The parts above described compose the ordinary long arm or handle fork now in ordinary use, and when the fork is being hoisted with its load it will be seen that the gravity ot the latter will have a tendency to bear or tilt the fork downward, and that contingency is only prevented by the operator keeping` the guide-rope E attached to the end ot the arm or handle B. My improvement obviates this manipulation. I attach a brace, F, at one end to the arm or handle B by means ot' a joint, j', and the opposite end ot' said brace I attach to the hoisting-rope G, which is attached to the tork-head b. This -brace et'tectually prevents the tilting down ot' the fork, for the greater the weight of the load on the fork the more taut the hoisting-rope G will be, so that the brace will have an eflcient bearing against said rope in order to hold' the fork properly in position.

This brace may be applied to the fork at a tritiing cost, and will prove a great acquisition to it. The usual hoisting-tackle is applied to the fork.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is-

The brace F, applied to the arm or handle B and to the hoisting-rope G, to operate in the manner substantially as and for the purpose herein set forth.

The above specitication ot' my invention signed by me this 9th day of November, 1865. RICHARD W. LISOOMB.

Vitnesses:

M. M. LIVINGSTON, G. L. TOPLIEF.

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