The Knotten—The germ of the binding-harvester upon which all other parts are a growth, is the knotter, one type of which is seen performing its successive movement in tying the knot, in Figs. I to 0 inclusive. The completed knot, with a segment of the band, is seen in Fig. 7.
The beveled pinion, seen in Figs. 8 and 9, which represents the complete appliance in ' two positions, rotates the knotter one revo lution, amid the loop thus formed in the doubled twine is then q weld). stripped off from the knotter by mechanical means, leaving a bow still pinched in the knot ter, and which has been passed seenrelythrough the tightly drawn loops. This bow of the kimt is finally pulled from the grip of the knotter by the strain of the bound sheaf as the latter is expelled from the binder-table by suitable dis charging-prongs. At the instant of tying, the twine has been severed by a small blade be tween the knotter and a retaining device to hold the end of the twine which communicates with the source of supply carried in a box on the ma chine. The simplified diagram from the McCormick Co. (Fig. 10) will serve to show the usual plan of lead ing the twine necessary for a band up around the gavel to be bound, and presenting it upon the knotter and to the action of the retainer be yond, so that the latter may in due time, when releasing the end last held, seize the new end at the instant of severance, holding it upon the knotter parallel with the held end already there, while the knotter, with a rapid whirl, forms the next knot. The bowl-like knob seen in Fig. 1 at the heel of the jaw of the knotter serves to open and close the jaw for the reception and release of the two branches of the twine which are to form a knot of the free ends, and derives motion from a stationary cam-track, which it encounters during its rotation with the knotter. In this class of bin der the grain delivered from the reaper-apron is propelled by a pair of alternating doub le-fluked packers protruding upward through the slotted table (Figs. 11, 12). The tip of the twine-needle is seen at the top of the middle slot (Fig. 12). When a sufficient bulk of grain has been packed against the upright double compressor-post, seen at bot tom of Fig. 12, to overcome the adjusted resistance of the post. the latter automatically trips the shifter for starting the needle-arm shaft and knot ting mechanism, producing the following series of move ments: The needle rises and completes the encircling of the gavel with twine ; the knot is tied ; both branches of the twine are severed just beyond the knot ; a new end of twine is retained ; a pair of discharging-arms applied behind the sheaf ejects it from the table; the drop-boards seen on either side of the double compressor-post (Fig. 12) are lowered on their
hinges to make way for the out passing sheaf ; the drop-boards are returned ; the needle is low ered to its position of rest ; the trip is automatically relocked ; and the packing of grain for an other sheaf is resumed.
All these movements, though serial, are performed so quickly as to appear simultaneous, but the nice timing of them for a virtually perfect result has been achieved. notwithstanding the di fficulties arising from the rough jolting of harvest-work and the necessity of cheapness of con struction. Figs. 13 and 14 show in some detail, from two direc tions, the mechanism that is above the table, and that is associated with the binding function.
Mechanism.—Fig. 15 shows the relation of the binder portion to the reaper por tion of the machine. At the rear of the binder-table is a spring wind-hoard, restraining the heads of the moving grain. At the front is a hinged wind-board, adjustable by hand for con trolling the butts of the grain, but this is often superseded by a small endless apron (Fig. 16), driven on rollers supported on a flat frame placed on edge, hinged at the upper end and ad justable to different backward slants, by hand, in the same way, to suit varying lengths of grain (Fig. 17). Further, the whole binder combination is by a hand-lever, easily slid back ward or forward, on rails fixed to the reaper-frame, to insure proper location for the band on the sheaf in grain of extreme variations as to length of straw. Chain-gear, arranged by McCormick (as in Fig. 18) is commonly used to convey power from a chain-wheel turned by a spline on the main binder-shaft under the binder. This chain drives all the binder mechanism. The driven chain-wheel at the top is fixed on the knotter shaft and makes one revolution for each sheaf. It oper ates the knotter, ejector, twine-retainer, and cutter, and. by means of the connecting-rod shown, simultaneously rocks the needle-shaft below, to advance and withdraw the needle at the proper juncture to encircle the packed gavel with twine, present the twine to the knotter, and then open the way for the reception of more grain from the packers. The packers of this class of twine-binder run continuously, but the rear projection on the needle prevents them from taking hold of grain while the needle is np. At the end of each such revolution the entire bin der mechanism, except the packers, is stopped automatically by a spring-shifter, one style of which (McCormick's) is seen in Fig. 19, and pauses, inoperative, until again tripped by pressure of incoming grain to repeat the single revolu tion necessary to bind and eject.