Budding, Clyburn, Ducie Chaff Cutter at Liverpool Meeting of RASE

The Royal Agricultural Society of England - meet at Liverpool - July 1841

The Earl of Ducie and Messrs. Clyburn and Budding introduced a patented chaff-cutter of their own invention, the principle of which appeared to the judges quite novel; upon trial this implement performed its work admirably. The cutters consist of two series of thin blades or knives, with serrated edges, coiled spirally round a horizontal rotating cylinder, and presenting their edges at an angle to it. The one series is coiled from left to right, and the other from right to left, meeting in the middle of the cylinder; an unbroken continuity of cutting action is thus attained. A pair of feed-rollers is driven from the spindle of the cut- ting cylinder, which again gives motion to an endless cloth, upon which the material to be cut is placed and by which the supply is maintained. The speed of the feeding-rollers is regulated by a highly ingenious and simple application of the worm and wheel. The wheel fixed on the roller is so constructed as to admit of being driven by worms, with threads varying from one to four: thus, by changing the worm on the axis of the cylinder (which is also accomplished in a dexterously mechanical manner) the hay or straw is cut into lengths of from of an inch to 1 inch. This machine may be worked by manual, animal, or steam power with equal convenience.