US2822801A - Branding iron furnace - Google Patents

Description

Feb. 11, 1958 B. o. BISSELL.

BRANDING IRON FURNACE Filed Nov. 23. 1953 /7 VEA/.045

United States P tc io BRANDING IRON FURNACE Bennieville O. Bissell, Troutdale, Greg. Application November 23, 1953, Serial No. 393,696 1 Claim. (Cl. 126-229) This invention relates to improvements in branding iron furnaces, and more particularly to furnaces which are readily portable and which are economically and rapidly heated.

The branding of cattle is generally performed on the range or at other places away from modern facilities for heating branding irons. Irons used for branding are generally heated in an open fire. In open fire heating it is difiicult to heat the irons to a uniform and proper temperatura for successive branding operations because of the Variance in temperature of the fire during the branding operations. Another disadvantage of open fire heating is that the kind of fuel required to produce a hot fire is not always available in sufiicient quantity to heat the irons to the required temperature and to maintain the heat, thus slowing up the branding operation. Furthermore, open firesrequire constant attentionandalso are hazardous and may cause serious damage if allowed to spread or if sparks escape therefrom and ignite other combustible material.

Advantages attending the use of a branding iron furnace embodying the invention are to be found in the fact that a high B. t. u. type of fuel is always instantly available; that the flame is enclosed and is concentrated at a place where the branding irons are most readily supported; that the heat produced may effectively be directed upon the irons and is not dissipated by wind; that the degree of heat produced is uniform and is not affected by humidity or availability of native fuel; and that the furnace is easily carried from place to place, as from one stock chute to another, or from one part of the open range to another, and renders unnecessary the usual loss of time While waiting for the kindling of a fire and the generation of sufficient heat with native fuel to heat the irons. Moreover, use of the furnace enables careful control of the degree of heat generated so that branding irons are uniformly heated to a proper degree for the application of any number of successive brands.

It is, therefore, a primary object of the present invention to provide a branding iron furnace which is light in Weight so as to be readily portable, in which the degree of heat generated is subject to manual control, which provides for rapid and economical heating of the branding irons, and which confines the flame so as to be safe for use in areas selected for branding.

Another object is to provide a branding iron furnace which utilizes a pair of burners extending through the walls of a fire box at an angle to direct the flames in a direction for most efficiently heating branding irons.

Another object is to provide a double bail arrangement on the furnace for convenience in supporting branding irons being heated and for carrying the furnace.

Another object is to provide a portable furnace for heating branding irons which has an upper flat wall portion to be used as a warming area for cooking utensils;

Other objects are to be found in the details of construction of the various parts of the device, in their relationship, and in the mode of operation of the device as will hereinafter befully described.

The illustrated embodiment of the inventioncomprises an open-ended fire box composed of a highly refractory material and protected by a metal covering. The fire box comprises an. end wall, side walls, a floor anda roof, and is mounted on a tank such as customarily used to contain a. gaseous fuel. The tank is mounted ona base 'which supports the entire unit in an upright positon'. Conduits lead from the tank to burners in the fire box, a burner being mountedin the fire box at the junction of each side wall and the floor. The burners are mounted in alignment transversely of the fire box and at an angle to direct the flame onto the branding irons. The furnace is equipped with a pair of bails, oneof the bails being used for supporting thereon the extended handles of branding irons during the heating operation, the other bail, which is shorter in length, being used for carrying the furnace..- .A portion of the' roof of the fire box is fiattened andmay be used as a warming surface for cooking utensilsand the like.

The invention will be better understood and additional advantages will become apparent from the following description, taken. in .connection with the accompanyin'g ,drawings which illustrate the preferred form of the device. .It is to be understood however, that the invention may take other forms, and that all such modifications and variations. withinthe :Scope of the appended claim which will occur to persons skilled'in the art areincluded in the invention.

In the drawings:

Figure V1. is a perspective view of the branding furnace showing branding irons supported in positon to be heated in the fire box; and

Figure 2 is a front elevation view of the fire box showing in particular the positions of the burners in the fire box and of the control for the flow of fuel from the tank.

Referring to the drawings, a fire box 10 is mounted on a fuel tank or cylinder 11. The fuel used in the tank 11 is an infiammable gas such as propane gas. The tank 11 has a flat base member 12for supporting the entire unit in an upright positon. The fire box 10 is mounted on the tank 11 by means of a semicircular bracket 15, and having an aperture 16 in each side wall. The bracket preferably has means whereby the fire box and tank may be separated so as to facilitate refilling the tank with fuel or exchanging an empty tank for a full tank of fuel.

The fire box 10 has a bottom wall or floor 18, side walls 19 and 20, and a top wall or roof 21, the construction of the fire box preferably comprising an outer metallic shell and a lner of fireproof material, such as fire brick or similar highly refractory material. The top wall 21 has a horizontal portion 22 which serves as a warming surface for a Coffee pot or other cooking utensls. An Opening 23 in the top wall 21 toward the rear of the heating chamber provides for venting the chamber so that Smoke and gases may escape therethrough instead of rolling forward to find escape through the open end. Secured to each of the side walls 19 and 20 is a pair of lugs 24 and 25. A pair of bails 27 and 28 is pivotally mounted at 29 on the side walls of the fire box, the lugs 24 supporting the bail 27 n a front horizontal positon and the lugs 25 supporting the bail 28 in a rear horizontal positon.

The bail 27, When rotated to a horizontal positon so as to engage the lugs 24, comprises a support for one or more branding irons 30a When the furnace is in use as shown in Figure 1. The bail 28 is shorter than the bail 27, and is used as a handle for carrying the assembled furnace from place to place. The bail 28, being shorter in length than bail 27, efiects easy handling and manual pick-up of the furnace by providing a grippng surface low enough so that the furnace can be carried manually with a straight arm. The bail 27 is long enough to support the branding irons in the furnace so that the center of gravity of the irons is toward the furnace. As seen in Figure 1, When the furnace is in use the shorter bail or handle 28 is rotated to a horizontal position to the rear of the fire box and laid on the lugs 25 to be out of the way. r

A T-fitting 30 is mounted on the tank 11, and a pair of conduits 31 and 32 lead from the fitting 30 to a pair of burners 33 and 34 having nozzles 35 and 36, respectively. A Valve 37 is provided in the fitting to control the flow of fuel to the burners. The nozzles are preferably mounted at an angle between 20 degrees and 45 degrees so that the flame therefrom is directed upwardly more efiectively to heat the branding irons.

As best seen in Figure 2, the burners are Secured to the fire box by brackets 38, and the nozzles 35 and 36 extend through the walls 19 and 20, respectively, and emerge inwardly of the fire box at the junction of the side walls and bottom wall thereof. Branding irons to be heated are placed in the fire box with the handles thereof resting on the bail 27 and the ends of the irons used for branding are placed between the nozzle outlets to heat the irons rapidly and to a uniform, proper temperature.

The present invention may, of Course, be used for heating soldering irons or other things such as horseshoes, rods, rivets, castings, and the like. Furthermore, the furnace can readily be transported and used on the range or in buildings without danger of Setting fire to adjacent combustible material. Livestock can be branded as fast as they are moved into a branding chute and dentical brands are produced because of uniform and fast heating of the irons.

Having now described my invention and in what manner the same may be used, what I clam as new and desire to protect by Letters Patent is:

A furnace adapted for mounting on the top of a portable fuel tank for heating branding irons and the like comprising a fire boxhaving bottom wall, a pair of opposite side walls and a top wall, a portion of said top wall forming an exterior heating surface, said firebox having an open end, a pair of burner nozzles mounted angularly in opposed relation in said opposite side walls and protruding interiorly of said boX at the junctions of said bottom Wall and said side walls, a fuel valve adapted for mounting in the top of the fuel tank, a T fitting on said Valve connected with both of said burner nozzles, a downwardly projecting bracket on said bottom wall having substantially semi-cylindrical leg ortions spaced on opposite sides of said Valve and adapted for mounting on said top of the fuel tank at a distance from said valve, a horizontal supporting bail in front of said open end to support branding irons n the furnace, lugs on said firebox to support said bail, a second bail pivotally mounted on said side walls and rotatable between an upright carrying position and an out-of-the-way position at the rear of the firebox, and lugs on said firebox to support said second bail in said out-of-the-way position.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 500,239 Loeble June 27, 1893 851,865 Conant Apr. 30, 1907 1,374,587 Lambert Apr. 12, 1921 l,497,l04 Lamb June 10, 1924 l,760,868 Blaskewitz June 3, 1930 1,786,065 L Heirnberger Dec. 23, 1930 1,802,146 MacDonald Apr. 21, 1931

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