[TheForge] Re: Chain & Treadle Video

Wed May 5 08:46:01 2004

This is an oliver and is foot powered.  One of the members in our club has a
chain making anvil with oliver that looks exactly like this.

In his right hand, the smith is only holding his hammer as balance and in
anticipation of the next step.  His left hand moves the link along the
bottom swedge which is on the horn.  If I remember correctly, this was a
fixed size and part of the horn - not changeable.

-----Original Message-----
From: Don Sinclaire <[email protected]>
To: [email protected] <[email protected]>
Date: Monday, May 03, 2004 11:54 PM
Subject: [TheForge] Re: Chain & Treadle Video

>I looked at the chain making video about 200 times, repeating the same few
>frames over and over.  I don't think this is just a treadle hammer.  I am
>convinced there is power involved.  At first I thought it was foot powered,
>then I began to think he was operating a clutch with his right hand, but
>that was not right either.
>
>The helve hammer has a yoke and a vertical rod extending up out of the
>picture, probably to a return spring to lift the hammer.  The helve also
has
>horizontal arm extending towards the camera. There is a vertical link,
about
>a foot long extending down from the end of that arm to what is probably a
>C-shaped piece which in turn continues down to the treadle via a slightly
>curved rod.
>
>The helve is normally up and out of the way until he steps on the treadle
>which pulls the hammer down to the working position.
>
>The C-shaped link hooks onto a rotating (powered) excentric.  His weight on
>the treadle keeps the link following the excentric, operating the helve and
>shakes his leg up-and-down.  What I thought was the clutch handle is
>actually his hand hammer handle--  He uses the hammer to keep the cam
>follower on the excentric.  Near the end you can see him raise the handle
>and start hand hammering the chain link with that hand hammer.
>
>Most of this is my own interpretation of what I can make out of the video.
>Any other insights to this?
>
>
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