MA Y, 1951
VOL. 4, NO.4
TWENTY CENTS
Anotherpagefor [_mlmmr~
How to keep a roll neck
from becoming a bottleneck
Bearings in a billet mill have to be rugged to carry
the tremendous separating forces in the rolling of
steel. To insure continuous production and long,
trou ble-free performance, en gineers specify T imken~
roll neck bearings. That's because Timken balanced
proportion roll neck bearings permit higher roll-
ing speeds, minimize roll neck wear, and have
maximum capacity.
---------------------------------------------------------
TIMKEN@bearings
keep costs low
Tonnage records indicate that Timken bearings
help keep cost per ton of steel rolled to a minimum.
In many mills Timken roll neck bearings are still
going strong after more than two decades of service.
Because of balanced proportion design, they give
greater mill rigidity, permit larger diameter roll necks
than ever before. Roll neck strength is increased
50 to 60%. Load ratings are increased up to 40% .
.--------------------------------------------------------
Learn more
about bearings
..
Some of the englneenng pro bl ems you '11face
f after
'd
graduation will involve bearing problems ..I y~u
. to learn more about t h'IS P h ase 0 f engmeenng,
lIke .
we'll be glad to help. For add'lUona. I' 10formatIOn
about Timken beanngs . an d h ow eng ineers use. g
them write today to The T.1mk en R 0 ller Beann
,
Company, Canton 6, Ohio. An d d on 't forget to
clip this page for future reference.
NOT JUST A BALL 0 NOT JUST A ROLLER a:::J THE TIMKEN TAPERED ROLLER
DNJ.
G'LASS <18SE7rVA1?tJN WIN04:fWS T1t'R()tI6/1 Wit/It;/(
7t::>vH/STJ CAN U'cw ~HOt;1~S OF
AlAC./fINACS "'""'AttIC/oS L..oVL? hN1
I)ISm-ycc O~ /00 Yas. Al/n)Alo8lUT$ TO
;ev ......dN B6TTdM oFdTteA/r-3 • .3c/R~OVIV~/JW;
tWlTE~ W""SHES~c-AV7l1. NOMINA/...,
FEE ~n? 7N"/S .seRy/.cE HELPS ~y
<9/NK/-YC:; rVND CJ.IARGES o~ kEYEIVUTH£RN r£R~/NVS ~ ~
~
/'., AT ",rwO()p TO AlI'% ~
I / r,R/lI"'F/C COIVG£.,TTO .... 3. ... BONOS 7"0 BE CARR/cO
/ / BY MICHIGAN T;lJX,PAY£"R.1.
..
DAliL
~ .
SIT'E,EL
.,.'t -::.......
P'R>DDIU'C'T.S~OI.
v~....,._ ...._~_' __ '" "l'Itr4.."""""''''''_,..... _ ,- - ... '••.
INCORPORATED 1913
y
:-'- .~. 'T -. ._."' • _ ... ~::.:.:.~"':=..:=.:=.:.:::.'..
MIo"' ...
~ .:..r:, ~. ,.._..- _
H.~'_'",,~,
-:=:'_ .",., ,..,_:..:.:f<' .....:..~
_ "'" 'r_ ."f.O' "'a~"""""-"'"
.. _:
' ... ~
.'
... ' C, ...!!f,t#:A''),.&"I .,,'
." ::
...
~~ of METAL STAN,P/NGS
AND ASSEMBLY WDRA"
LANSING 1. MICHIGAN
34
SPARTAN ENGINEER
Why can't this be an
ALUMINUM DIE CASTING?
This challenge was thrown at us by a leading With the auto maker we modified designs. Die
automobile maker. castings were made. We repeated the laboratory
"It's possible," we agreed. But ... the clutch tests while the auto maker made road tests. The
housing also supports half the engine's weight, it :firststressed automotive die casting was a success.
is highly stressed, must absorb vibration. Could 25% stronger in shear, 10% stronger in bending,
a die casting economically be made that strong? 100% better in fatigue life than the original
An Alcoa Development Program was started. clutch housing. Only 74 as much weight as
With the auto maker we drew up designs. We the original cast-iron housing. And 15% lower
selected our strongest die casting alloy; poured in cost.
sand castings from it; machined it to the dimen- This case is typical of the engineering problems
sions of the die casting design. Alcoa men undertake and solve. Throughout the
Shear static loads and bending stresses were Alcoa organization similar challenging jobs are in
measured. Brittle lacquer and strain gauges show progress now and others are waiting for the men
us stress concentrations. Castings, engine and with the imagineering ability to tackle them.
transmission were assembled, then run with an ALUl\fINUl\1 COlllPANY OF MIERICA, Gulf Bldg.,
unbalanced shaft to measure dynamic stresses. Pittsburgh 19, Pennsylvania.
ALUMINUM COMPANY OF AMERICA
May, 1951 35
TECHNICAL WRITING
L Beginning Its Continued from Page 17
37th Year
A of Su~~essfDI
for someone who knows what words
use and how to put them together.
Anyone Can Learn Technical Writing
to
N Stamping
Granting, then, that some knowledge
of how to write is of real value to
the engineer, the question is what can
S Servi~e be done to develop it. The people who
say that writing ability is a special gift
from heaven take a too gloomy view of
I the situation. Some special gift may be
needed to become a Shakespeare
Mark Twain, but none is required for
or a
N engineers'
magazines.
reports, papers for engineer-
ing societie s and article s for te chnical
Any informed person can
G write them acceptably
proper procedure
Whether
if he learns the
and follows it.
or not our engineering
schools should devote more time to in-
struction in technical writing is a sub-
S ject too complex for discussion
Much could be said in favor of it. At
the same time there are some very real
here.
T difficulties in the way.
there are thousands
already graduated
In any event
of young engineers
who could benefit by
A a serious attempt to develop their writ-
ing ability. So let us consider what can
be done independently of the college
M curriculum.
Contrary
development
to a prevalent
of technical
idea, the
writing
Serving
Manufacturers of
P ability is not a difficult matter.
ienced
instances
editors and publishers
by the hundreds
Exper-
can cite
where young
AUTOMOBILES
AGRICUL TURAL
I men without any unusual gifts have be-
come good technical
ing themselves
writers
conscientiously
by apply-
to the
EQUIPMENT
INDUSTRIAL
N job. If they have done this, others can
do it.
Learning the proper procedure and
EQUIPMENT
DOMESTIC G acquiring facility at it are a good deal
like learning to play golf. You can buy a
book or take a correspondence course
on the subject. We have all seen adver-
EQUIPMENT
c
tisements of these kinds of instruction.
LAWNMOWERS No doubt you can learn something that
way, but it's hard to work up much en-
1159 Pennsylvania
a
thusiasm through such impersonal
Avenue exercise. You can take personal lessons
from a professional. That is more fun,
Lansing, Michigan but involves following a rather rigid
schedule which is not always convenient.
Or you can learn casually by getting a
36 SPARTAN ENGINEER
little advice here or there, and practic-
ing by yourself. That easy procedure
for acquiring writing ability will serve
very satisfactorily to meet the needs of
the average engineer. It doesn't take
much effort -- but it does take some.
Doing what comes naturally is not quite
enough to accomplish the purpose.
probably the most important step in
the development of technical writ-
ing ability is to cultivate the habit of
putting yourself in the position of the
reader of what you write. Try to build
up a picture of that reader - - who he is,
what his interests are, what he already PROBLEM - You're working out the application of a.
knows about the subject you intend to hydraulic speed selector system to a turret lathe. The
discuss, and what more he wants to system's oil pump is to be driven by a belt take-off
know. Then, as you write, ask yourself from the main belt drive. Your problem now Is to
what questions will arise in the mind of provide a means for transmitting power from the pump
the reader and whether you are answer- drive pulley to the pump that will permit the adjustment
ing them. When you can honestly say of the pulley to regulate belt tension. How would
that you have visualized the reader, have
you do it?
put yourself in his place, and replied to
all the reasonable questions you think THE SIMPLE ANSWER - Use an S.S.Whlte flexible shaft
he will want answered, you will have between the pulley shaft and the pump shaft. As you
assembled the basic material for a good see below, that's how the Gisholt Machine Co., did it.
paper or technical article. An S.S.White flexible shaft is the logical answer for a
Two Ways of Organizing Material wide range of drives where one or both of the con-
nected members must be adjustable in position.
T he next
material.
step is to organize
Some authors like to pre-
the
Photos courtesy of
pare a comprehensive organization plan Gisho/t Mach. Co.
Madison. Wis.
before starting to write. Others find it
easier to put down on paper all that they
have to say and then shuffle the elements
around into the most logical order. For
most purposes the latter method is
somewhat easier . The biggest hurdle in
writing a technical article is getting
down on paper, and it's not a bad idea to
get over the biggest hurdle right at the
start.
Writing without a detailed plan
leads to ajob of rearrangement after the
writer has made up his mind what his This is jusl one of hundreds of power drive ond rem ole conlrol problems
to which S.S.WHITE flEXIBLE SliAFTS are Ihe simple answer. That's why
plan ought to be. But you can hardly engineers will find il helpful 10 be familiar with Ihe range and scope of
avoid rearrangement no matter how you these "METAL MUSCLES'" for mechanical bodies.
tackle the problem, unless you have had °T,ad, Mar~ Reg. U.S. Pal. Off.
a great deal of experience. Any compre- and elsewhere
SEND FOR BULLETIN 5008
hensive plan drawn up in advance of It gives basic information and engi-
writing is likely to prove unsatisfactory
neering data about flexible shafts and
as the job progresses and to require
their many uses. We'll gladly send you
modification later. So rearrangement is
a free copy on request.
inevitable at some point in the proceed-
ings, and there are many advantages in
dire ct action - - getting e s s entials down
on paper first. 1:~~~~....
From then on the job is one of THE~~ INDUSTRIAL DIYISION
polishing. That sounds easier than it ~NTAL MFG. CO. 8-Dept. Cr 10East40th St._
really is. Polishing is just as important . I NEW YORK 16, N. Y.
May, 1951 37
in writing a technical article as it is in This kind of confusion is avoided
making a roller bearing. A smooth if the author keeps always in mind the
finish is' essential for the frictionless character of the reader. Then he can
functioning of the machinerY'. You don't determine in advance whether or not the
want creaking of the machinery in a reader will correctly grasp the special-
manufacturing process or in a technical ized meaning of the word he intends to
discussion. use. If there is any doubt about it, the
On the other hand, you don't need author had better substitute another
to carry the polishing process to a silly word. It is a good plan to be on the safe
extreme. A split infinitive, or a prepo- side and to avoid specialized meanings,
sition at the end of a sentence, is not wherever possible. There is almost
necessarily the awful sin the purists always a way to say what you want in
would have us believe. -When a critic of perfectly plain words whose meaning no
this kind attempted to Correct Winston one can misunderstand.
Churchill for using a preposition at the
end of a sentence, the latter scribbled Short Words and Short Sentences
boldly over the suggested change. Are Best
"This is nonsense up with which I will
not put! " Plain
the
words - -and short words - -make
best reading anyway. It has
been pointed out in a recent government
Extensive Vocabulary Not Required pamphlet based on studies by Dr. Rudolph
Flesch at the Readability !.iaboratory of
Inbe apolished
written paper the first thing to
is the wording. An ex-
Columbia University that a simple rule-
of-thumb way to measure the simplicity
tremely extensive vocabulary is not
of any piece of writing is to count the
needed, but the author must be sure he
total number of syllables per 100 words.
knows the exact meaning of all the words
If the number of syllables runs much
he uses. The need for that is so obvious
over 150 per 100 words, th~re is oppor-
as to deserve no mention. Actually a
tunity to improve the writing by using
good many authors use words that do not
shorte r words.
mean quite what they intend to say. Take
Perhaps you think that rule may be
for example the word "unique." This
all right when you are writing for chil-
has the very simple meaning of having
dren, but that it won't work for grown-
no counterpart, yet many writers use it
ups. Try it and see. For example,
as though it had no more significance
count the number of syllables in the
than "unusual." Misuse of a single word
first 100 words of this article, which
may not confuse the reader seriously,
was written without any conscious effort
but the greater the number of words that
to economize syllables, and you will
are carelessly used, the more hazy is
find the total is 159. Or, count the
the general impression created in the
mind of the reader. syllables in one of your own business
letters. You will find, unless you are
Of importance equal to that of the particularly prone to use long words,
author's understanding of the meaning that your natural style averages only
of his words is the readers' understand- about three syllables to two words. The
ing. This is something that engineers trouble is that natural style is too often
are prone to neglect. The trouble is not thrown overboard in technical writing,
so much their use of obscure words, and in its place miraculously appears
though there is some tendency in that an unnatural, ponderous style that dis-
direction, but in the use of an ordinary courages the reader.
word in some specialized sense. Thus
Another handy rule-of-thumb pro-
an automotive engineer, when he speaks
posed by Dr. Flesch is to limit the
of a "job," means a vehicle, while the
average number of words per sentence
electrical engineer takes the word to
about seventeen. This is no magic in
mean the performance of a certain
that particular nUmber. It just happens
amount of work. On the other hand, the
to be a good average for easy reading.
electrical engineer says' 'jack" when he
Sixteen or eighteen would be perfectly
means a receptacle with connections to
acceptable. But if the average should
electric circuits, while the automotive
drop to ten, the writing would seem
engineer thinks of it as a device for
choppy, and if it should ri$e to twenty-
lifting a heavy weight.
five, the reader would htve to work
38
SPARTAN ENGINEER
appreciably harder to get the meaning. the present discussion. They are not
Short sentences also make the author's likely to be of primary concern to the
job easier by simplifying the punctuation average engineer, anyway. But the tech-
problem. You aren't likely to get into nique of good technical writing should
any serious punctuation difficulties when be of concern to him, and fortunately it
you have only seventeen words to handle. is one that can be easily acquired.
Revise and Re-Revise ALUMNI NEWS
Most impbrtant of all the things to be
done in the polishing process is to
Continued from Page 30
Edwin Crosby, '48, is doing grad-
revise, and revise, and re-revise. uate work in chemical engineering at
Sometimes an engineer feels that it is a the University of W.isconsin at Madison.
confession of inexperience to revise a
piece of technical writing. That is a Henry T. Darlington, '49, is a tire
mistaken idea. Actually, the reverse is research engineer for the U. S. Rubber
true. Scarcely anyone can write a thing Co. in Detroit.
the best way at the first attempt. A J. Stuart Falls, '49, is a metallur-
second attempt is almost sure to pro- gist for the Aluminum Company of
duce a better piece of writing, and a America in Detroit.
third attempt, a still better piece.
Willingness to revise, far from indi- Leroy R. Genaw, '49, is an engi-
cating a lack of experience, shows that neer for Electric Auto-lite in Hazelton,
the writer is approaching his task in a Pa.
spirit of craftsmanship, and that he Robert Gunderson, '49, is a civil
realizes that a first-class result comes engineer for the Department of Public
only from persistent effort. Works in Flint.
Along with willingness to revise Howard Keskitalo, '49, is a re-
should go a willingness to take sugges- search en gin e e r for the Creamery
tions from others. Here a middle-of- Package Manufacturing Co. in Fort
the - road policy is best. The author who Atkinson, Wisconsin.
seeks advice from a multitude of coun-
Melvin H. Nuechterlein, '49, after
selors is likely to end in a maze of con-
training in power electricity, he is now
flicting opinions. On the other hand, the
with the Public Service Electric and
most experienced authors often find
Gas Company of Newark, New Jersey.
suggestions extremely useful. Certainly,
therefore, an author of limited experi- Carlton agger, '49, is a metallurgy
ence should not feel himself above trainee at Buick in Flint.
taking suggestions.
Harold Robinson, '49, is a sales
engineer for the Westinghouse Air Brake
'n
Simple Rules for Technical Writing Co. in Chattanooga, Tennessee.
brief, therefore, the secret of John Herzog, '50, is in the over-
success In technical writing is seas training program of the National
short words and short sentences pre- Carbon Division Union, Carbide and
senting the author's thoughts in clear, Carbon Corp. of Cleveland, Ohio.
logical order -- plus painstaking
Leonard Klein, '50, is now in charge
revision. Much more might be added
of the Northern Illinois territory for the
about introductions, conclusions, illus-
Armco Co.
trations and other details, but those are
matters that can be considered after the
fundamentals have been acquired. Clerk: "Please, sir, lid like next
Writing for general magazines and week off if itls convenient?"
newspapers, because of the different Boss: "Oh, you would, eh? What's
type of readers to whom it is addressed, up?"
requires techniques diff~rent from those
Clerk: "Well, !T1y girl's going on her
needed for ehgineering papers and arti-
cle s. Consideration of ways to acquire honeymoon, and lid kinda like to go
these techniques is beyond the scope of along with her. "
May, 1951 39
SIDE I
TRACKED
I
Protect the birds. The dove brings A city and 0 chorus girl A little boy had been climbing the
peace and the stork brings tax exemp- Are much alike 'tis true; tree in his bock yard. For the s&l:ond
tions. A city's built with outskirts, time, he came in with his trousers torn.
A chorus girl is too. "Go upstairs and mend them your-
self," ordered his mother.
She tenderly whispered: "Am I the Some time later she went up to see
First girl you ever kissed?" how he was progressing. The trousers
"Hey," cried Satan to a new arrival,
The engineering reply was: "As a were there, but no sign of the child.
"you act as if you owned this place I"
motter of toct, yes." P u z z led, she came downstairs and
"I do," come the reply. "My wife
......"u When twO lengths of elec- gave it to me before I come."
noticed that the cellar door, usually
closed, was open. She went to the
trical conduit are joined door and cried angrily, "Are you run-
There was the worm who met another
together, ordinarily the point of WOrm coming up out of the ground and ning around down there without any
After his fourteenth highball, Jackson
coupling becomes the weakest said, "You're pretty, l'd like to marry
staggered out of Clancy's bar, and
ponts on?"
"No mom," came the reply. 1I1'm
part of the run. For this reason you. "
crashed head-on into the corner lamp- reading the electric meter."
Whereupon the other worm replied,
the coupling is all-important. "Don't be silly, I'm your other end."
post. Rubbing his forehead sadly he
then tripped over the fire hydrant.
And for this reason a Sherardized Reeling across the sidewalk, he somer- An Italian was being examined for
coupling has special advantages saul ted down a fI ight of basement steps
naturalization as a United States citi-
Skidding is the action and landed in a heap at the bottom.
over other types. When the friction is a froction "T'hell with it," he said. "I might as
zen.
"Who is the president of the United
Of the vertical reaction. well stay here till the parade posses."
J
States?"
Thot does not result in traction.
~~h The foreigner answered corr~ctly.
-~~~ -~~'::".",.':::::",", :.~ "And the Vice-President? II
-... _.IW"'~~r...., Do you know Art? Again he answered correctly.
Absent Minded Professor: "Give me
Art who? "Could you be President?"
SHERARDUCT COUPLING wme prepared monaceticocidester of
Artesian. "No, no."
~>e
solycylic ocid."
Oh yes, I know Artesian well. "Why not?"
Druggist:
Professor:
"Do you mean aspirin?"
"That's right I I can never
• "Mister, you 'scuse me, please.
very busy -- I gotta de pushcart. "
think of that name."
A stranger looking for Western Mich-
igan College, took the wrong turn and
ended up in on insane asylum. I hear that one of the M. E. 's hos an
The barkeep of a downtown tavern
ORDINARY COUPLING As the guard re-directed him, the eccentric brother who goes to bed on
kept a pet porrot. One evening a
stranger quipped: "Well, I guess there the chandelier because he's Cil light
drunk spotted it, climbed atop a stpol,
isn't too much difference between the sleeper.
and tried to catch hold of it.
A Sherardized coupling is gal- "Scram, landlubber I" Cried the pol.
two places after a II. "
"That's what yau think," soid the
vanized ~1terthe threads are cut- "Whot's the big idea?"
guard. "Here you hove to show im-
The drunk looked surprised, tipped
every thread is zinc protected his hat, and mumbled, "Golly, I'm
provement to get out. "
First Pvt.: "I feel like telling the
sergeant where to get off again. 'I
against rust equally with the out- sorry mister, I thought you was a boidl" Second Pvt.: "What do you mean,
side surface. 'again'?"
The doctor told his pretty, young First Pvt.: III felt like it yesterday,
The shoulder on Sherarduct One of the latest styles is Robert sox- patient she hod acute oppendicitis. too."
couplings is a further safeguard. they're a little longer than bobby sox. "Don't get fresh," she said, "I wont
It covers and protects the final to be examined, not admired."
threads so that no raw threads "Jiminy, Seth," screamed a hillbilly
The wife and daughter of lieutenant
Berry were ha Ited by a sentry on duty,
will be exposed to moisture and bride to her husband. "Yer beard is who had orders to ollow no one to
other corrosive weather condi- caught fire. " Nit: "Do you work in 0 shirt facto- enter by thot gate.
"I know it, I know it," he answered,
tions. "Cain't you see me prayin' for rain?"
ry?" "Sorry, but you wi "" have to go
Wit: "Yes." around to the front gate.
Sherarduct conduit threads are Nit: "Why aren't you working to- "Oh, but we're the Berrys." ,
so cut and couplings so tapped day?" "lady, I don't care if you're the cat.s
Old fashioned girls preserved fruit. Wit: "We're making nightshirts this meowl You can't go through thiS
causing conduit to butt, that to- Modern ones can their husbands. week." gote. "
gether they form a practically
continuous raceway through
which wires may be drawn with-
out difficulty or injury.
Here at the joint, unless perfect
continuous grounding is assured
as it is with Sherarduct, rust first
begins its resistance activity and
acts as a barrier.
,...--
EVERYTHINg,JN
WIR/~ POINTS TO
>
n~u~~'L~l~A~'-.~.
~THE STUDENT COUNCIL WILL HEAIl OF THIS II. "HAVEN'T YQU ANY OTHEIlINTIlESTSm"
40
SPARTAN ENGINEER
REVEALS NEW FACTS ABOUT METAL STRUCTURE. Electron DETERMINES COMPOSITION OF MATERIALS. The composition
micrography-up to X50,OOO with the electron microscope- of almost any material is shown in a flash through spectrog-
reveals new facts about metal structure, surface protection, raphy. It is a means of making frequent production line
and effect of processing procedures. analyses that keep a check on specifications.
£ngineenng · bas li
an alll
'1" in pbotOgrup \tI..
anal'lS\S
SHOWS STRESSES AND STRAINS VISUALLY. By photographing
the patterns developed by polarized light as it passes through
a plastic model of a part, the engineer can have visible evi-
dence of the points of stress within the part.
In the engineering laboratory-on the production line-
photography is today an important tool. It searches metal
structure through electron micrography, x-ray diffraction,
and micro-radiography. It makes swift mechanical motions
seeable by showing them at a snail's pace with high speed Send for this FREEBook
movies. Or it can halt an instant of an instrument's fleeting Jt tells how photography is used to:
trace and record it for study. Speed production . Cut engineer-
ing time . Assure quality main-
Eastman Kodak Company, Rochester 4, N. Y. tenance • Train more workers
faster • Bring new horizons
to research
College graduates in the physical sciences, engineering, and
business administration regularly find employment with Kodak.
Interested students should consult their placement office or
write direct to Business and Technical Personnel Department,
Eastman Kodak Company, 343 State Street, Rochester 4, N. Y.
PHYSICS PROGRAM offers BUSINESS TRAINING COURSE
studies and rotating assign- trains graduates for accounting
ments for physics majors. and administrative jobs.
CHEMICAL AND METALLURGICAL
PROGRAM is for chemists, chem-
ical and metallurgical engineers.
ON "TEST"—that's the popular name
for the Student Engineering Program, by
which most engineers enter the company.
Four broad avenues by which college graduates
begin careers with General Electric . . .
Both the individual and the company learn a lot when sales, manufacturing, etc.
a college graduate enrolls in one of these four basic On its part the company learns about the individual's
General Electric training programs. abilities and capacities. The training programs are a
The individual familiarizes himself with the com- major means of recognizing young people of talent and
pany's products, organization, and problems. By rotat- creative ability, of making sure that they move ahead
ing through a series of varied job assignments he to new and constantly more challenging assignments.
determines the kind of work that most appeals to him A very large percentage of General Electric's top
and to which he feels he can make the greatest con- scientists, specialists and managers of today began
tribution. Many students go on from these courses to their careers as student-workers in company-conducted
more specialized training in advanced engineering, training programs.
ou I con/mence ivi
GENERAL ELECTRIC