Compound, Ratcheted Tobacco Press

[deluxestogie]

This press, from Killebrew's 1884 edition of Report on the Culture and Curing of Tobacco in the United States, US Govt Printing Office (available for free on www.archive.org) was designed for prizing tobacco into a hogshead.

My reason for posting it here is it's possible inspiration for a Perique press. The force of a single arm lever press is limited by the length of the lever arm, and the amount of weight that someone is capable of lifting or applying to the end of that lever. In this design, one lever is used to depress the second lever. The effective weight of the outer lever is applied to the source weight of the inner lever, thereby multiplying the two leverages.

In the image, ignore arm D for a moment. The multiple holes in E and F allow for a pin or bolt to be inserted at various positions to ratchet and lock the primary beam C. So far as I can guess, a pin in arm D may be used to prevent the secondary beam G (which here would be on the order of 12' long) from dropping to the ground when the ratchet pin is removed from arm F.

The concept, though, would allow, say, a 36' beam to be replaced by two 6' beams, more or less. Or to lessen the real weight that must be attached to a 12' beam from 600# (for the historical Perique press) to 50#, by using two 12' beams.

The strength of the primary beam C, as well as the pivot post A, and the base plate H, would need to be sufficient to endure the final weight, but the secondary beam G could be much lighter.

Bob

 

[FmGrowit]

I'll modify my press to this configuration. So "D" would be free floating during the lever action with its pin position above "C". As "C' is lowered, the pin in "D" would be adjusted down. Pin position in "E" would be above the lever to act as a hold down (?). If there were mechanical spring loaded ratchets in "F" and "D", one would slip when the other is loaded.

Very interesting and practical ancient technology.

 

[deluxestogie]

I think that's all correct. Also, on further thought, since in this version, C must be a huge thing, maybe 12" x 12", D could be used to lift it away from the prizing barrel, and hold it there, with easy pressure on G. Maybe with a balsa wood model of it, other functions would reveal themselves.

I think A keyed into the baseplate H prevents A from being wrenched from the ground. I guess this would make a handy fence post puller (or tree stump puller), if you extend C beyond A.

Bob

 

[BigBonner]

Post D is the lock . Pin should go on top above rail C this locks the press in place . The holes in E and F are for adjusting for the amount of tobacco in the hogshead as the hogshead is filled with tobacco .Without the adjusting holes G would hit the ground before the hogshead was full .

Looks like G & F can be raised after locking D to C . It a jack type system D and C catches the load while G and F are re adjusted for another bite .

This is a good picture . Keep them comming

 

[Gmac]

I used a simple lever to put 20 pounds of dry leaf in a five gallon bucket last year. 10 ft two x four handle. Learned about it in science class in 9th grade about 50 odd years ago. I am putting 200 pound trusses on a building right now using the same princple.

Gmac

 

[GStone]

Try one of these bad boys. It's based on a design for a press used to turn random biomass into burnable fuel bricks. The mechanical advantage is really impressive. I use it as a cheese press but reading here, I know I'm going to have to build another, with proportions suited for a small barrel of tobacco.