US734120A - Stencil and process of making same. - Google Patents

Description

PATENTED JULY 21, 1903.

' H. c. J. DEEKS. STENCIL AND PROCESS or MAKING SAME.

APPLICATION FILED FEB. 27, 1903.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 1..

no MODEL.

IZVVENTOR fir WITNESSES:

41/4 lymbsfi 04 TTORNE Y.

PATENTED JULY 21, 1903.

H, C. J. DBEKS. STENCIL AND PROCESS OF MAKING SAME.

APPLICATION FILED FEB. 2'7. 1903.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 2 N0 MODEL.

INVENTOR BY W oe roRNEi WITNESSES:

UNITED STATES Patented July 21, 1903.

. PATENT. OFFICE.

STENCIL AND PROCESS OF MAKING SAME;

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 734,120, dated July 21, 1903. Application filed February 27, 1903- Serial No. 145,348. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, HIRAM O. J. DEEKS, a citizen of the UnitedStates, and a resident of Paterson, in the county of Passaic and State of New Jersey, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Stencils and- Processes of Making Same, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to the art'of transferring to fabrics, paper, walls, or similar surfaces designs which have been produced on stencils.

This application is confined to the stencil designed for the above purposes and the process by which the same is produced.

My invention consists, therefore, in an improved process for making stencils and also in the article of manufacture which the stencil embodies.

Referring to the accompanying drawings, wherein corresponding numerals of reference indicate like parts, Figure 1 is a plan view of my improved stencil. Fig. 2 is a plan view of the absorbent background, showing the design. Fig. 3 is a similar View after the wax has been removed from the stencil and deposited on the background. Fig. 4 is a plan view of the stencil after the wax coating has been applied, but before the frame has been distended for the supplemental stretching. Fig. 5 is a sectional view on the line 5 5 of Fig. 1, the thickness of the several layers of the sheet being very much exaggerated. Fig. 6 is a plan View of a piece of the silk gauze. Fig. 7 is an enlarged plan view showing a piece of the coated gauze, the wax having been removed in accordance with a design.

Referring to the drawings, in which like numerals relate to corresponding parts, 1 is the frame of the stencil, preferablymade of woods At the diagonally opposite corners 2 of the frame the joint is made secure by glue.

or any fastening means. The other two corners 3 are mortised, as shown, but not glued. In the finished stencil the corners 3 are nailed.

4 is the surface of the stencil, on which appears the design 5.

The completed stencil has the five layers best shown in Fig. 5, where 6 is the gauze, 7

the layers of wax inclosing the gauze thoroughly, and 8 the layers of varnish.

9, Fig. 6, is the silk gauze.

10 is the absorbent background, showing the design 11, and 12 is the design after the wax has been absorbed from the stencil.

The threads of the gauze are numbered 13.

In carrying out the objects of my invention I take a piece of very fine reticulated material, preferably silk gauze, Fig. 6, which is fine not only in texture but in respect of the size of its mesh and of sufficient strength to stand the wear incident to its use, as hereinafter explained. I stretch this gauze upon a frame 1 and secure it on all sides to the surface of the frame by glue or paste, so that the sheet of gauze is smooth and tight like a drum; but at the corners 3 I omit the glue or paste for a short distance either way from the corners. I then dip the'frame covered by the silk gauze into melted wax or other suitable plastic material, which when it has cooled will be preferably somewhat transparent and which will adhere to the gauze in very thin and even layers 8 when the frame is removed from the liquid wax. After the wax 8 has cooled and solidified in a layer upon the gauze, upon both sides thereof, I subject the framed sheet again to heat and turn it so that the melted wax will cover the gauze 6 still more uniformly with a thin coating, filling all its interstices or meshes. I-then lay the frame with its wax-coated sheet aside for several hours. After a time the sheet expands and loosens from its smooth drum-like appearance, becoming slightly wrinkled, Fig. 4. I thenextend the frame from its shape shown in Fig. 4 to that shown in Fig. 1, so that the two halves of the frame separate, though retaining the shape of a parallelogram. The gauze 8, not having been glued or pasted to the frame 1 in the immediate neighborhood of corners 3, where the two parts of the frame are to be separated, the gauze is not ordinarily torn by the distention of the frame; but a slight injury to the texture of the gauze at the corners 3, should it occur, is unobjectionable, as the design is not to be transferred through the corners of the sheet, but only through its central portions. The distention of the frame is easily accomplished by inserting a tool like a screw-driver at the joint of the mortise. A gradual twisting of the tool will separate the parts of the frame at the two corners 3. When the frame is thus distended, as indicated in Fig. 1, so thatthe coated sheet is again smooth and tight like a drum, a nail or tack is driven through the corners 3 to secure and hold the parts in position. I next lay the frame upon a sheet of blotting-paper 10 or similar absorbent material upon which adesign, usually by tracing, has been drawn. As the gauze and its coating of wax are transparent, the design upon the background of blotting-paper will appear through the gauze. The frame should be held or fastened tightly against the blotting-paper, so that the surface of the wax contacts uniformly with the design on the blotting-paper or background. I then employ a hot sharp implement like a darning-needle, which has been heated by a flame or by an electric current, and follow with this implement upon the upper face of the coated gauze the design which is on the background beneath. The implement will melt and displace the wax from the gauze and cause it to be transferred to, deposited upon, and absorbed by the background of blotting-paper. I prefer to use blue rather than white blotting-paper, for the deposit of wax on the blue ground appears black, as indicated at 12, Fig. 3, and assists the operator in following the design with the implement. On a white background the wax is yellow in appearance and less distinct. When the design has been completely traced upon the stencil, that part of the gauze which has been traversed by the needle will be free from wax. An important feature consists of the clear clean edges left where the hot implement has traveled. These edges do not follow the texture of the gauze, but stand out distinct across its meshes, as indicated in Fig. 7. The hot implement melts the wax immediately,so that slight pressure only is required, and the gauze is not torn or injured. I next apply with a brush or any suitable means a coating of varnish to one surface of the sheet. As the brush traverses the open portions of the sheet from which the wax has been removed I follow its course immediately with a wad of cotton-wool or other absorbent material applied on the opposite side from the varnish. As the cotton-wool traverses the open portions of the sheet across which the brush of varnish has just been drawn the varnish is cleanly removed from the silk gauze 6 and absorbed by the cotton-wool. Naturally a minute quantity of the varnish is retained by the silk-gauze, serving to protect the same; but so slight is the amount that there is no appreciable effect on the open reticulated appearance and structure of the gauze. I then allow the coat of Varnish 8 to dry completely and then apply another coat 8 to the reverse surface of the sheet, again employing cotton-wool to absorb the varnish from the open portions of the stencil. When the second coat of varnish is dry, the stencil is ready for use.

This stencil and my process for producing the same have several advantages. The stencil is very thin, so that in transferring designs therewith the marking will be clear and sharp. The stencil is transparent, so that the position to which the design is to be transferred may be accurately gaged. The frame serves to keep the coated surface smooth and tight and enables the frail material to be employed and transported without injury and without losing its shape. The stencil is durable and will stand any climate. It is easy to wash after use to make ready for further use. The wax surface without a coat of varnish would be apt to stretch when wet. The steps of my process for producing the stencil are simple and inexpensive. The frame is preferably made of wood, like the frame of an ordinary school-slate. The thin gauze is readily applied to the slate and secured by inexpensive paste or glue. My process does not involve chemical action. The transfer of the design by tracing in one step which opens up the design at once is advantageous, as the operator can watch his work closely. It is not essential that the design be first produced on the background, which is to absorb the wax when free from the gauze. The design may be applied free hand.

A process of producing designs on fabrics in which stencils like that herein described may be used is embodied in another application filed by me February 27, 1903, Serial No. 145,349. I do not abandon features herein set forth but not claimed. They are claimed in the application referred to.

What I claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is

1. The method of producing stencils, which consists in first stretching a sheet of reticulated material upon a frame and securing the sheet thereto so that the surface is tight and smooth; second, coating the sheet with a film of transparent plastic material, permanent at ordinary temperatures, which is readily melted by heat; third, placing the frame with the coated sheet upon a background displaying a design, which is adapted to receive and retain the plastic material when deposited thereon; and fourth, tracing the design upon the surface of the coated sheet by a hot implement to melt the wax in accordance with the desired design and deposit it upon and in the background, substantially as and for the purposes set forth.

2. The method of producing stencils which consists in coating a sheet of reticulated fabric with plastic material which is solid at ordinary temperatures; second, placing the coated sheet against an absorbent background adapted to receive and retain the plastic material when melted, and third, tracing the design with a hot implement to remove ICC IIO

the wax and deposit it upon and into the background.

3. The method of producing stencils, which consists in first stretching a sheet of reticulated material tight upon a frame; second, coating said sheet with melted plastic material; third, allowing the coated sheet to cool and expand; fourth, subjecting said sheet to a supplemental stretching upon said frame which is then fastened to secure the sheet permanently tight and drum-like; fifth, placing said sheet upon an absorbent backgrou nd and sixth, tracing a design with a hot implement upon said sheet to melt the plastic material and deposit selected portions thereof upon and into said absorbentbackground.

4. The method of producing stencils which consists of first stretching a sheet of reticu-v lated material tight upon a frame; second, coating said sheet with plastic material; third,placing said sheet against a background of absorbent material; fourth, tracing a design with a hot implement upon said sheet to melt the plastic material and deposit selected portions thereof upon and into said absorbent material; fifth, coating said sheet on one or both sides with protective material like varnish; and sixth, removing said varnish, while still liquid, from the open portions of said sheet by absorption into material drawn over such open portions.

5. The method of producing stencils, which consists in coating a sheet of reticulated material with a plastic coating; next, removing selected portions of said coating in accordance with a design by means of a tool and depositing such portion of the plastic coating upon a background; next, coating said sheet with varnish or other protective material; and next, removing said varnish from the open portions of said sheet by absorption in suitable material.

6. The method of producing stencils, which consists in stretching a sheet of reticulated material upon a frame adapted to a supplemental distention; next, coating said sheet With plastic material; next, distending said frame for a supplemental stretching of said sheet; next, removing selected portions of said plastic material from said sheet in accordance with a design; and next, coating said sheet with protective material like varnish, which is removed from the open portions of said sheet while still in liquid state.

7. As an article of manufacture, a stencil consisting of a frame; a sheet of reticulatedmaterial tightly stretched thereon; a coating of plastic material thoroughly inclosing said sheet upon both sides and entering its meshes, but cleanly removed from said sheet at selected portions, the demarcation of the coated portion being clear and with true edges; and a protective coating of varnish over said sheet, but so thin and minute at the open portions that the reticulated appearance and structure of the sheet is not appreciably disturbed. I

8. As an article of manufacture, a' stencil consisting of a frame; a sheet of flexible, reticulated material tightly stretched thereon; a coating of plastic material thoroughly inclosing said sheet upon both sides but removed therefrom at selected portions so that the coating presents at said portions clear, clean edges not conforming to the shape of the meshes of said reticulated sheet, but standing out distinct across the open spaces between the threads.

Signed at New York city, in the county of NewYork and State of New York, this 26th day of February, A. D. 1903.

HIRAM o. J. DEEKS.

Witnesses:

MINNIE 'KAUFFMAN, JOSEPH A. STETSON.

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