[AT] PTO-driven table saw - NOW shifter forks (LONG)

[Greg Hass]

Little late getting back in, but here goes...

First of all, we are not talking about shifter forks in a tractor 
transmission, but those used to shift flat belts from one pulley to 
another.  For many years, at an auction sale I would see old drill presses 
or power hacksaws that were flat-belt driven by what would appear to be two 
pulleys.  One pulley would run the machine and the other would just 
"free-wheel" on the shaft.  However, no one could explain to me why they 
were this way.

About 25 years ago I visited Greenfield Village in Dearborn, Michigan (a 
suburb of Detroit) for the first time.  It is about a 2-1/2 to 3 hour drive 
for us.  For those of you not familiar with it, Greenfield Village was 
established by Henry Ford and covers more than 90 acres.  It includes a 
working steam locomotive which pulls a tour train around the grounds.  It 
also includes Thomas Edison's Meno Park, NJ laboratory, Edison's workshop, 
the Wright Brothers' bicycle shop, Noah Webster's home, Stephen Foster's 
house, several different types of machine shops, and many other historical 
and interesting exhibits.  These are the actual buildings which were 
disassembled at the original locations, moved to the Village and 
reassembled.  They are the actual buildings.

My favorite was the machine shop (approximately 100 ft. long) with 4 rows 
of machines run by 2 jackshafts which ran the length of the building.  Both 
shafts were run by a steam engine located at one end of the building.  The 
jackshafts were running all day, and during the tours they would start many 
of the machines for half a minute or so.  (You don't have to take a tour. 
You can just pay your entry fee and wander around all day as you 
want.  There is even a picnic area.)  This is where I finally learned what 
the two pulleys were for.

As you walked through, all of the flatbelts were running on the pulley that 
was just "free-wheeling".  When the one doing the demonstration wanted to 
start the machine, he would use a shifter fork to do it.  Basically it was 
just a 1-1/2 inch piece of hardwood on each side of the belt fastened 
together at one end and it had a wooden handle on it.  I don't remember 
exactly where it pivoted, but the operator would reach up about shoulder 
high and move the lever sideways.  The flatbelt, being between the forks, 
would be forced over to the other pulley, thus starting the machine.  To 
stop the machine the process was reversed, forcing the belt back over to 
the "free-wheeling" pulley and the belt would just spin on it.  I can 
remember thinking to myself at the time how functional yet simple this 
system was and how ingenious our forefathers were.

We were also told that if any equipment used in the demonstrations in the 
village broke, they use the equipment in this machine to repair or make new 
parts because, as old as it was, it was the type of equipment that was 
originally used to make the other machines in the Village so it was an 
authentic way of doing things.  Most of the people actually running the 
steam engines and the other machines were in their 80s, as they had 
originally run this type of equipment for a living.  My next paragraph is 
NOT political, just plain facts.

Unfortunately, about 15 years ago, for some unknown reason, one of these 
80-something men broke a cardinal rule and wore a longer length 
bandana.  It got caught in one of the belts and he was killed.  MIOSHA came 
in and mandated that any running equipment had to be shielded.  Village 
officials tried to get an exemption as a special because these were 
antiques as shielding would destroy the purpose and function of the 
displays, which was to show this antique equipment, how it was used, and 
how it functioned.  Unfortunately, there was no talking with the 
bureaucrats, and when I was last there about 8 years ago they were no 
longer running the steam engine or the jackshafts.  The two machines they 
did demonstrate were so heavily enclosed in plexiglas and shielding that it 
took the fun out of watching them.  To the mechanical person like me, it 
was obvious that the machines were now being run by electric motors hidden 
up in the rafters of the building.  Every machine there that runs, 
including a couple of old printing presses for their sample newspapers, are 
also so heavily enclosed that it's really no fun to watch them 
operate.  BTW, the public was always blocked from being close enough to be 
endangered and the operators were trained.  However, if one makes a choice 
to break the rules you really can't protect everyone against everything.

I am just happy I was able to see everything when it was running as it was 
mean to be run and feel sorry for the millions of people who will never be 
able to see things as they originally were.  However, if any of you 
trractor people are ever in the Detroit, the Village and the Henry Ford 
Museum next door all include many agriculturally related items and are well 
worth seeing.  Be forewarned... it takes a day for each to see and explore 
everything.  The Museum is open year-round seven days a week 9:30 AM - 5:00 
PM, but the Village is open only April 15 - Oct. 31 seven days a week from 
9:30 AM - 5:00 PM, and Nov. 1 - Dec. 31 Fri-Sat. only.  (They are closed on 
Thanksgiving and Christmas days.)  The Village is also open late (until 9 
PM) on Saturdays from July 9-Aug 20.  The website for info 
is:  www.greenfieldvillage.org


Greg  Hass