B

SAWYER SPINDLE.

The fact that the distance from the top of the bolster bearing to the top of the bobbin remained the same as before, prevented a great increase in speed, as an unbalanced load, such as is common in spinning, caused undue vibration of the bobbin, especially at its upper end.

Hundreds of thousands of spindles of this form went into use, but they have all or nearly all been replaced by later forms. In the number of Pearl spindles above referred to, I include what are known as the Birkenhead, which embraced the Pearl principle in part, and also the Sawyer principle, which I am about to decribe, in part.

In 1871 an invention in spindles was patented by Mr. Jacob H. Sawyer, then agent of the Appleton Mills, at Lowell, which entirely revolutionized spinning, and was one of the most important inventions of the time.

He conceived the idea of chambering out the bottom of the bobbin, and carrying the bolster up inside, thus supporting the load which the spindle had to carry near its centre.

The idea of an elevated bolster was not a new one on flyer frames, where the bobbin was loosely fitted on the spindle, and moved independently of it; but it was new in connection with ring frames, where the bobbin and spindle moved together. This change in support of the spindle enabled it to be greatly reduced both in weight and diameter of bearings, and the saving in power was enormous. The steadiness of running was also materially increased by the location of the upper bearing, and this enabled the speed of rotation to be increased also.

As the speed which the spindle would bear was at this time the limit of the production of the frame, an increase in capacity for speed in the spindle meant a corresponding increase in the production of the machine.

While with the common ring spindle the speed was limited to about five thousand five hundred turns a minute, with the Sawyer spindle it was raised to seven thousand five hundred turns per minute. At the same time a horsepower would drive about one hundred and twenty-five Sawyer spindles at the higher speed, while it would drive. only about one hundred common spindles at the lower speed.

This increase in production and saving in power, together with many other incidental advantages, caused the very rapid introduction of these machines. Over three million were sold in the ten years succeeding their invention, when this spindle was superseded by one of even greater capacity.

During these ten years the Sawyer spindle underwent considerable modification and improvement. The first ones made required the removal of the bobbin to oil the bolster bearing. An ingenious invention of the late George Draper overcame this difficulty.

The first of these spindles were also made too light, and their bearings were imperfect in construction. Mr. George Draper, and others connected with him, corrected the faults one by one, until the Sawyer spindle in the latter years of its extensive sale seemed to have reached mechanical perfec

tion. It was far better calculated for rapid revolution than any other spinning structure ever made, having rigid bearings.

RABBETH-SAWYER.

Soon after the introduction of the Sawyer spindle, Mr. George Draper and Mr. F. J. Rabbeth, before mentioned, about the same time, but independently, applied the Saw yer

principle to the Rabbeth form of spindle, thus greatly improving it.

Messrs. Fales & Jenks, together with Mr. Rabbeth, who was then engaged with them, commenced the manufacture of this spindle, and sold exceeding a quarter of a million of them in this country. Doubtless they would have sold more of them, but for the litigation between them and the owners of the Sawyer spindle, which was decided in favor of the Sawyer Spindle Co. This spindle was introduced in England to a greater extent than the Sawyer spindle, and millions of them have been put in use there and on the continent. The spindle was christened, by Mr. Rabbeth or Fales & Jenks, the "Rabbeth new model" spindle, and has since been called the " Rabbeth-Sawyer" spindle.

The sleeve whirl of the original Rabbeth was in the new spindle made so small that the bobbin could extend down over it and take its bearing on it, while the bolster was carried up within both sleeve and bobbin, thus supporting the load near its centre, as in the Sawyer spindle.

The bolster and step bearings were in the same tube, and oiling was required only about four times a year. This spindle would bear substantially the same speed as the Sawyer, but was found, in Geo. Draper & Sons' experiments, to require somewhat more power.

After the court decision against the Rabbeth-Sawyer spindle, Mr. Rabbeth turned his attention to experiments in a new direction, namely, the running of spindles in loose or yielding bearings. This was not new in itself, as experiments had been tried in that direction before, but without practical success.

The Excelsior spindle of Messrs. Jencks & Garsed of Philadelphia was the most successful of these experiments. Many thousands of Excelsior spindles were put into use, but they have been largely if not entirely replaced since. For some reason, loose or cushioned bearings do not seem to be practical in structures where the spindle bearings are held in separate rails.

In applying the principle of the loose bearings, however, to the Rabbeth sleeve whirl spindle, a great stride was made in advance, greater even than in the invention of the Sawyer spindle.

In the year 1878, after long experimenting, Mr. Rabbeth

placed on trial his so-called "top" spindle in the shop of Messrs. Fales & Jenks of Pawtucket, R. I.

The name "top spindle" was afterwards. changed to "self-centring" spindle. Spindles of this type have since come to be known simply as "Rabbeth" spindles, although every spindle with a sleeve whirl, before the minute differentiation of modern types, was known as a "Rabbeth" spindle both in this country and abroad.

The particular features of this so-called "top" spindle were: First, the abovementioned sleeve whirl; second, the loose bolster, supported in a tube which held both bolster and step bearings, and formed an oil reservoir to lubricate them; third, the elastic packing ordinarily composed of woollen yarn which surrounded this bolster shown in the cut at D; fourth, the flat top step, on, rather than in, which the rounded bottom of the spindle moved with the bolster; fifth, the snout oil chamber, which insures a better supply of oil, and keeps the reserve at a higher

RABBETH TOP SPINDLE.

level, than any other form yet tested. This feature had been before embodied in the Rabbeth-Sawyer spindle.

The spindle was called the "top" or "self-centring"