Hi JD
Ok, I don't know where this info comes from but having my hands on a Dolge type screw press and having participated in operating it makes me question the numbers below as truly possible. Ok, maybe a mute point
At Dolge's factory, working with animal glue, about 1910 he estimated that two expert gluers working on a single machine were able to cover 240 sets in 10 hours. This was achieved, on his latest machines, but also on earlier machines by other makers in Europe by using removable cauls.
Ok, lets think this thru. First cutting felt strips and preparing them for gluing would take at least a couple days. Takes a skilled hand and an sharp knife. And 24 sets per hour for ten hours doesn't seem real to me. I have seen it done as well by an expert whos been doing it 48 years and it just isn't done this fast with out sacrificing quality.
I know Rays Dad at Ronsen in the 60s had several machines and large crew and they turned out 200ish in one day but that was a record
If Dolge's men (and no doubt others, using different machines) were able to press hammers at a rate of one set per three minutes without using heated cauls, I suggest that, as in so many other instances in our trade, a great deal of good sense and invention has simply been lost over the years.
No doubt but the numbers seem impossible without more hands in this operation. No what I mean?
Dale
I should emphasize that I am not referring to Dolge's earlier machines, which are very primitive and most definitely obsolete.
JD
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