Engineers and Mechanics Encyclopedia 1839: Railways: William Losh

Some improvements in the construction of wheels for railway carriages were patented on the 31st of August, 1830, by William Losh, of Bentom House, in Northumberland, a gentleman whose experience and knowledge in matters of this kind entitles his suggestions to the attention of the public.

The nature of this invention will be at once understood from inspection of Figs. 1 and 2, where a-a-a-a represent the tire and flags of a wrought-iron railway wheel; b-b-b-b spokes which are to be made dove-tailed at one end, and cast into the nave e, as shown in section at c-c, Fig. 2. The other end of the spoke has a right angular crank bend, as shown at f-f-f, Fig. 1; being carried round the circle to the next spoke; and thus each spoke and its adjoining felloe are made of one piece of iron.

By means of the crank bend at the end of the spokes, one felloe is permitted to pass over the end of another, and at this double part they are securely fixed together by strong screws, as shown by dotted lines. The tire, which is formed in passing finally through the rollers at the iron works, with a recess for the felloe, and a ledge to keep the carriage on the railroad, as represented at a-a; and it is to be heated and fitted on the wheel in the usual manner, that it may contract and firmly grasp the wheel when it contracts in cooling.

The ends of the spokes, too, must be made hot before the nave is cast upon them, that the junction of the two metals may be the more perfect. It is stated that it may be sometimes found more convenient to weld several pieces of iron together than to bend one piece twice at right angles. It is likewise stated that the spoke may be sometimes with advantage welded on the middle of a piece extending along a ring constituting the felloes in both directions.

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