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AM. PHOTO-LtTHO. CO. N.Y. (OSBORNE'S PROCESS.)

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

G G BELCHER, OF WORCESTER, MASSACHUSETTS, ASSIGNOR TO HIMSELF AND JOS. S. HILL, OF SAME PLACE.

PBUNING-KNIFE.

Specification of Letters Patent No. 23,975, elated May 10, 1859.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, G. G. Belcher, of Worcester, in the county of Worcester and State of Massachusetts, have invented a new 5 and Improved Pruning Knife; and I do hereby declare that the following is a full, clear, and exact description of the same, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, making part of this specification, in 10 which—

Figure 1 represents an elevation of a knife constructed according to my invention, when open. Fig. 2 is a similar elevation of the same when closed down. Fig. 3 is a lon15 gitudinal vertical section of ditto.

Similar letters of reference in the three views indicate corresponding parts.

The object of this invention is to make the blade of the knife perfectly rigid with 20 the handle when the knife is. opened, while the same is so arranged that it can be opened and closed quite easily, and without danger of cutting the fingers, and the invention consists -in connecting the blade with the 25 handle in such a manner that by taking hold of the lower half of the blade, and by turning the upper half, the blade is opened or closed and the two parts of the handle are secured together by means of a slide which 30 is attached to one part and which catches into an eye in the other part of the handle, so that the knife can only be opened or closed after this slide has been withdrawn.

To enable those skilled in the art to make 35 and use my invention I will proceed to describe its construction and operation.

The handle of the knife is constructed of two parts A and A' in the usual manner, and each part consists of a plate a or a' of 40 sheet metal, which are united by a pivot &amp;, which is firmly secured in the plate a, but which turns easily in the plate a', and between the two plates a d and fastened to the pivot &amp; is the blade B, and the two 45 plates a a' are kept apart by a piece c, which is secured to the end of the plate a , as clearly represented in Fig. 3, and an eye d which projects from the piece c extends through an opening e in the plate a, and a 50 slide C which slides on the top of the plate a, catches into the eye d and by these means the two parts are secured together. Each of the plates a a' is covered with wood or horn or any suitable substance in the usual manner and these covers e e' are consider- 55 able shorter than the plates, and the cover e of the plate a is provided with, a groove f which forms the guide for the slide C. The slide C is attached to, and operated, by. a metal head g, and a similar head g' is rig- 60 idly attached to the plate a’ close to the cover e', so that, when the slide is down both sides of the knife have exactly the same appearance.

Each of the plates a a' is provided with a 65 half circular slot h, both described from the center of the pivot &amp;, and one exactly above the other, and two pins i i' are fastened in the blade B on opposite sides of the blade and equally distant from the pivot δ,.οηβ 70 below and the other one above this pivot, and the pin i works in the slot h of the upper plate a while the pin V works in the corresponding slot of the plate a' and by referring to Fig. 1 in the drawing it will be no- 75 ticed that the pin i opposes the turning of the blade B in the direction of arrow 1, and the pin T the turning of the same in the direction of arrow 2, and when the knife is closed as represented in Fig. 2 the pin / op- 80 poses the turning of the blade in the direction of arrow 3, and the pin V the turning of the same in the direction of arrow 4, so that in both cases the blade is perfectly rigid m its position. ⁸⁵

The operation is as follows:—In order to open the knife the slide C is drawn up until it clears the eye d, and the upper part A of the handle is sprung up sufficiently so that the opening e clears the eye d, and the part 90 A of the handle is turned in the direction of arrow 3, and as the lower end of the slot h in the plate a strikes against the pin i the blade B is turned out and by the time the part A of the handle has been turned all the 95 way round, the blade B is opened and in a position represented in Fig. 1, and after the part A has been sprung over the eye d, and the slide C depressed the blade is perfectly rigid in its position as above described. . In 100 order to close the knife the slide C is withdrawn and the upper part A of the handle is turned in the direction of arrow 5 (Fig. 1) and the blade will.be turned down again by the action of the slot h against the pin i. It 105 I is obvious that the opening and closing of

23,975 the knife is accelerated by moving both parts of the handle in opposite directions.