US2254417A - Tack button - Google Patents

Description

TACK BUTTON Filed Nov. l2, 1940' A Lonamzfz. ewig,

Patented Sept. 2, 1941 UNITED STATES PATENT 'OFFICE TACK BUTTON Leonard R. Carley, Watertown, Conn., assignor to The Patent Button Company, Waterbury, Conn., a corporation of Connecticut Application November 12, 1940, Serial No. 365,371

1 Claim.

My invention relates to new and useful improvements .in tack buttons for use on overalls, Work clothes, etc., and has for an object to provide a relatively inexpensive button to manufacture.

One of the objects of the present invention is to provide a button with the standard or conventional metal back or shell, a cap on which will be stamped the insignia, together with a slug or illler of pre-molded Bakelite or other similar forms of plastic.

A further object of the invention is to provide a relatively inexpensive button utilizing a standard form of cap and shell together with a novel slug or insert which is relatively light in weight and wh-ich is formed to tightly grip or clench the prong of the metal fastener when driven up in the bore of said slug.

Still another object of the invention is to provide a button which does away with the conventional form of metal vise or anvil and instead has a plastic ller with a straight central bore to receive the prong of a tack fastener, which iiller will also well support the cap and thus prevent the same from being bent or damaged when passed through a wringer.

Still another object of the invention is to provide a relatively inexpensive button with a premolded insert, which insert is lighter in weight than the conventional vises and anvils used in tack buttons, so that each button will Weigh approximately two-thirds of what the ordinary button weighs that is provided with a steel vise or anchor.

With these and other objects in View, the invention consists in certain new and novel arrangements and combination of parts, as will be hereinafter more full'yV described and pointed out in the claim.

Referring now to the drawing showing a preferred embodiment, I

Fig. l is a top plan view of the button on a greatly enlarged scale;

Fig. 2 is a sectional view taken on the line 2-2 of Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 is similar to Fig. 2 but showing the button as attached to a garment;

Fig. 4 is a transverse section of the Bakelite slug or filler;

Fig. 5 is a top plan view of the same; and

Fig. 6 is a bottom plan view of the slug or filler.

Referring now to the drawing, and for the moment to Fig. 2. there is shown a conventional button back or metal shell I having the integral hub 2 and the upwardly and outwardly extending flange 3. The bottom of the hub is provided with the opening l to receive the prong of a tack fastener, as will be later mentioned.

As also may be seen in Figs. 2 and 3, thereis tightly fitted within the shell I the Bakelite slug or filler 5, which likewise has an integral hub 6 and the head or body portion 1. 'I'he upper surface 8 is slightly arcuate and the periphery is beveled on its under surface, as at 9. In other words, the outline of the slug conforms generally to the outline of the shell, the diameter of the head, however, being slightly less than the diameter of the shell across the flange. as may be seen in Figs. 2 and 3. The hub 6 is provided with the central bor-e I0 to receive a prong of a tack fastener, as will be shortly mentioned.

Fitted over the shell and slug in the usual manner is the cap II with its stamped insignia I2, and in the present instance, I have shown the letters P P Co, although, of course, the insignia or design may be as desired. The cap II is provided with a peripheral flange I2', which is secured in the usual manner about the ange 8 of the shell.

It will be noticed that the pre-molded slug or iiller of Bakelite tightly ts within the shell and down within the hub, while the height of the slug is such that it will well support the cap 3 when the button is in its assembled condition.

The .button calls for a. special form of tack fastener, that is, one wherein the prong of the tack is not to be deformed but is to expand the walls about the opening, so that the walls will tightly grip the prong of the fastener and thus hold the button head to its cloth.

In Fig. 3, I have shown a fastener I3 with its shank I4, which is iluted, as at I5, and has the pointed end I6 to pierce the cloth Il during the attaching operation. The diameter of the prong Il is greater than the diameter of the bore I0 and the fastener, of course, has to be driven through the cloth and through this opening of the shell and into the bore of the Bakelite slug with a relatively great pressure. This will cause the walls about the bore to tightly grip the uted prong and hold the button securely to its cloth.

I have found in actual practice that a button formed in this manner, when once attached, will withstand the hard usage to which it is to be put and will prevent the button from ever becoming accidentally disengaged from its cloth. By utilizing the metal shell which surrounds the hub. the danger of fracturing the slug in the attaching 'operation is greatly lessened, and even 'Bakelite is nearly six times less than that of steel, it will be seen that the button is a relatively light one, which is an importantlfactor in the freight or express charges for buttons shipped in quantities.

Finally. it will be understood'that the slug is to be Vpre-molded and then forced within the shell.

and as the contour of the slug follows that of the shell, it is a simple matter from an assembling point of view to drop' or fit the slug in the shell in a rotary dial press.

From the foregoing, it will be seen that I have provided a button which consists of but three partsa shell and a cap together with a slug or ller which may be readily assembled within the shell and thus doing away with the necessity of further vises or anvils, the weight of which is much greater than the present filler.

It will be understood, ofcourse, that although Y I have shown a button having a dome-shaped surface, this is only illustrative, and the button may have a flat top or a concave top. Also, it will be understood that I have'shown the slug l vas being bevelled onsits under surface but a curved surface might be just as serviceable.

Furthermore, the button isV nearly vas strong and rigid as a solid button, and after once attached cannot be removed except by destroying the button or the garment to' which it is attached.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

A ltack .button including' a metal body shell having a hub. the said shell provided with a peripheral upstanding rim along its upper edge, a pre-molded plastic slug also having a hub and said plastic slug tightly fitted within and filling said shell, the bottom of the shell being perforated and the plastic slug having a bore centrally thereof in registry with said perforation in the bottom of the hub of the shell, the specific gravity of said slug being substantially six times less than that of a steel slug to thereby provide a relatively light button, a metal cap provided with a downwardly extending peripheral rim gripped about the aforementioned peripheral rim of the body shell to thereby hold the slug tightly within the shell, the said cap also supported on its under surface by the upper surface of said slug, the bore in the slug terminating short of the top surface of said slug and the said bore adapted to receive vthe prong of a fastener slightly larger in diameter than the diameter of the bore ofsaid slugvto thereby tightly hold the button in its attached position when the prong of a tack fastener is driven into said bore.

LEONARD R. CARLEY.,

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