Back Band Buckle. (open access)

Back Band Buckle.

Patent for a new and improved back band buckle. This design "consists in the construction and novel arrangement of the middle bar having an outwardly-projecting stud, the upper bar parallel to the middle bar and having an under offset recess, and a depending lug-hook and spring-snap" (lines 19-26).
Date: April 18, 1882
Creator: Lowe, Joseph Alfred
System: The Portal to Texas History
Device for Cutting Boiler Tubes. (open access)

Device for Cutting Boiler Tubes.

Patent for a new device for cutting boiler-tubes. This design "is to be adjusted a distance from the head sufficiently in excess of the thickness of the tube sheet to prevent injury to the latter. The device is then inserted into the end of the tube, with the head abutting against the outside of the tube-sheet. By turning the screw the wedges may then be drawn toward each other, thus forcing the block carrying the cutter outward. The device is now to be turned by the shank alternately with feeding the cutter outward until the tube has been cut through, after which it may be readily removed" (lines 75-88).
Date: April 18, 1882
Creator: Franklin, James Johnson
System: The Portal to Texas History