The Story Of
Forge Mill Needle Museum
Needle Making
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Pointers would put 50-100 flips between their palms and hold them against the pointing stone. The stone would rotate at around 2,000 r.p.m. The flips would be pointed at both ends in less than 30 seconds, this meant that as many as 10,000 pointed needles could be produced. After pointing, the eyes had to be put into the needles, this was done by using two machines-the “kick stamp” and the “fly press”. Both machines were brought into use in the early part of the 19th century.The now pointed “double” was laid on a die with the shapes of needle eyes on it. The kick stamper put his foot into a stirrup, lifted the hammer and released it quickly. The doubles were then left with the impression of the needle eyes on it. Now it had been stamped it was placed under a fly press which had a double punch to pierce the eyes.A Kick Stamper could stamp up to 5’000 doubles per hour, a Fly Press operator could punch up to 4’000 per hour. When the job of eyeing was done by hand only 500 an hour could be produced. In 1830 hand workers, thinking they were in danger of losing their jobs, tried to break up the new stamps and presses. The machines remained and 8 men were sent to prison for up to 18 months for their actions. |