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Britishtools
Senior Member
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Ever wondered who devised the strange thread patterns on some of the British sized fasteners that make up many of your vehicles. I thought some of you may find this interesting:
In the 19th Century every British factory which needed to bolt something to something else devised their own fasteners to do it. Clearly, this caused all sorts of compatibility problems. So, along came Mr. Whitworth who invented a standardized system of coarse threads (with 55-degree thread angle and rounded roots and crests). This standardization was a Good Thing. Along with his threads came heads for the bolts that were based on the length along: the side of one flat, rather than across the flats. Hence, there is no simple fractional number for the length across the flats, which is why your imperial spanners don't fit. The fractional number on your spanners refers to the diameter of the bolt which is 1/4", 3/8" etc. not the distance across the flats (which ends up being various weird dimensions). Some years later the British decided they needed a finer pitch for some applications, so another thread series was introduced (same 55 degree angle). They also decided that the heads were too big for the bolts, so for most applications they switched to using the next size smaller heads. Because of this, and to add one more bit of confusion to life, one manufacturer will mark a particular spanner "3/8BS," while a different manufacturer will mark the same sized spanner "7/16W." They fit the same diameter bolt. The first thing any fledgling British car restorer learns is that his (or her) car has "Whitworth bolts." They think this is interesting, buy a set of "Whitworth spanners," discover these spanners fit their bolts, and believe they now know everything they need to know about British fasteners. Unfortunately, at this point they know only enough to make themselves dangerous. Instead, what they should have said to themselves is "Oh my God, what other weird and incomprehensible things have they done to the fasteners on my machine?" The answer to this question is: British Standard Whitworth
Joseph Whitworth 1804-1887
Joseph Whitworth, English Engineer and inventor, was born in Stockport near Manchester in 1804.
His first job was as an apprentice mechanic in his uncle's cotton mill at Ambergate, Derbyshire, followed by training in Manchester and London, where he worked hard to improve his knowledge and aquire the skills he would use later.
Despite derision from many manufacturers, he was determined to improve on the shoddy technology of the day. 'You tell me it can't be done' he told them, But i give you these 3 words, 'Let us try', which became his motto.
After years of painstaking work he built his first absolutely flat piece of steel plate which he called a 'surface plate'. From this he built more precision instruments. His first was a lathe with which he could turn out accurate spindles and shafts for the machines. Next he designed delicately measured bearings for the new drive shaft to rest in.
His big breakthrough was the famous Whitworth thread. He invented mass produced taps and dies which were exported over the globe to cut the first ever standardised nuts and bolts. Machinery made in one country could now be repaired in another. This was followed by the micrometer which could measure down to one thousandth part of an inch.
Whitworth's factories expanded producing everything from nuts and bolts to guns. When he died in 1887 at the age of 83 he left a sprawling factory complex in Manchester and an estate worth £150 million by today's standard. His empire was sold to his greatest rival Armstrong and was renamed Armstrong Whitworth.
In his will he bequeathed most of his fortune to provide educational and community facilities. The Whitworth scholarship for mechanical engineers has produced many leading men in the field.
Whitworth was married twice, first to Frances Ankes in 1825, then Lady Mary Louisa, 25 years his younger, who played a central part in the lives of the people of Darley Dale, where in 1855, he bought the 400 acre estate and it's Elizabethan Hall.
Whitworth is buried in the churchyard of St Helen's in Darley Dale.
The Whitworth Institute was built and opened in 1890, 3 years after his death, mainly through the efforts of his wife. It contained Britains's first heated indoor swimming pool, an assembly Hall, library, various reading and committee rooms, a museum of natural history, and a landscaped park complete with recreational areas and a conservatory. It remained in use until the 1930's when it was taken over by the armed forces. It was reopened in the 1950's but the lake had been drained and the building neglected. In 1997 the charitable trust runing the institute recieved an £8million lottery grant to restore the centre and it's grounds.
Lady Louisa, was also the driving force behind the Whitworth Hospital. She died in 1896 and is also buried in St Helen's church, next to her husband.
(www.derbyshireuk.net)
/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/england.gif
[image]www.derbyshireuk.net/whitworth.jpg[/image]
In the 19th Century every British factory which needed to bolt something to something else devised their own fasteners to do it. Clearly, this caused all sorts of compatibility problems. So, along came Mr. Whitworth who invented a standardized system of coarse threads (with 55-degree thread angle and rounded roots and crests). This standardization was a Good Thing. Along with his threads came heads for the bolts that were based on the length along: the side of one flat, rather than across the flats. Hence, there is no simple fractional number for the length across the flats, which is why your imperial spanners don't fit. The fractional number on your spanners refers to the diameter of the bolt which is 1/4", 3/8" etc. not the distance across the flats (which ends up being various weird dimensions). Some years later the British decided they needed a finer pitch for some applications, so another thread series was introduced (same 55 degree angle). They also decided that the heads were too big for the bolts, so for most applications they switched to using the next size smaller heads. Because of this, and to add one more bit of confusion to life, one manufacturer will mark a particular spanner "3/8BS," while a different manufacturer will mark the same sized spanner "7/16W." They fit the same diameter bolt. The first thing any fledgling British car restorer learns is that his (or her) car has "Whitworth bolts." They think this is interesting, buy a set of "Whitworth spanners," discover these spanners fit their bolts, and believe they now know everything they need to know about British fasteners. Unfortunately, at this point they know only enough to make themselves dangerous. Instead, what they should have said to themselves is "Oh my God, what other weird and incomprehensible things have they done to the fasteners on my machine?" The answer to this question is: British Standard Whitworth
Joseph Whitworth 1804-1887
Joseph Whitworth, English Engineer and inventor, was born in Stockport near Manchester in 1804.
His first job was as an apprentice mechanic in his uncle's cotton mill at Ambergate, Derbyshire, followed by training in Manchester and London, where he worked hard to improve his knowledge and aquire the skills he would use later.
Despite derision from many manufacturers, he was determined to improve on the shoddy technology of the day. 'You tell me it can't be done' he told them, But i give you these 3 words, 'Let us try', which became his motto.
After years of painstaking work he built his first absolutely flat piece of steel plate which he called a 'surface plate'. From this he built more precision instruments. His first was a lathe with which he could turn out accurate spindles and shafts for the machines. Next he designed delicately measured bearings for the new drive shaft to rest in.
His big breakthrough was the famous Whitworth thread. He invented mass produced taps and dies which were exported over the globe to cut the first ever standardised nuts and bolts. Machinery made in one country could now be repaired in another. This was followed by the micrometer which could measure down to one thousandth part of an inch.
Whitworth's factories expanded producing everything from nuts and bolts to guns. When he died in 1887 at the age of 83 he left a sprawling factory complex in Manchester and an estate worth £150 million by today's standard. His empire was sold to his greatest rival Armstrong and was renamed Armstrong Whitworth.
In his will he bequeathed most of his fortune to provide educational and community facilities. The Whitworth scholarship for mechanical engineers has produced many leading men in the field.
Whitworth was married twice, first to Frances Ankes in 1825, then Lady Mary Louisa, 25 years his younger, who played a central part in the lives of the people of Darley Dale, where in 1855, he bought the 400 acre estate and it's Elizabethan Hall.
Whitworth is buried in the churchyard of St Helen's in Darley Dale.
The Whitworth Institute was built and opened in 1890, 3 years after his death, mainly through the efforts of his wife. It contained Britains's first heated indoor swimming pool, an assembly Hall, library, various reading and committee rooms, a museum of natural history, and a landscaped park complete with recreational areas and a conservatory. It remained in use until the 1930's when it was taken over by the armed forces. It was reopened in the 1950's but the lake had been drained and the building neglected. In 1997 the charitable trust runing the institute recieved an £8million lottery grant to restore the centre and it's grounds.
Lady Louisa, was also the driving force behind the Whitworth Hospital. She died in 1896 and is also buried in St Helen's church, next to her husband.
(www.derbyshireuk.net)
/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/england.gif
[image]www.derbyshireuk.net/whitworth.jpg[/image]
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