The Loop-Measure Glove Stretcher: A Measuring Loop Kept in the Handle

"A is the jaw of an ordinary glove-stretcher, which is chambered out to receive the measure B and spring a. C is a guide, which is attached to the free end of the spring a, and also to the inner end of the measure B." "An index, b, is attached to the guide C, and slides in a slot, c, in the handle of the stretcher. A scale, d, representing the different sizes of gloves, is laid off on each side of the slot c."

**Handle.** Cut 25 cm of 10 mm aluminium tube. Saw a slot 12 cm long down one side with the hacksaw and file it smooth. **Spring and guide.** Hook an extension spring to a pin through the tube's closed end. Hook the spring's free end to a short dowel that slides inside the tube as the guide, and screw a small screw through the slot into the guide as the index. **Loop.** Cut a strip of leather 1 cm wide and 30 cm long, fix one end to the guide, and bring it out through the tube's open end as a loop with its other end fixed to the tube's outside. **Scale.** Wrap the tape measure round a series of dowels and jars of known circumference, put the loop round each and mark where the index stands. Draw the scale beside the slot. **Test.** Measure round five people's knuckles with the loop and with the tape measure, and measure each hand's width and thickness with the caliper. Compare with the notebook.

**Moses Greensfelder** of Harrisburg, Dauphin County, Pennsylvania, filed US 181,671 on 12 June 1876; it is dated 29 August 1876. His loop was of leather or other pliable material, the stretcher could be of wood, horn, rubber, ivory or metal, and the scale could go on the loop instead of the handle. Eight years later Augustus Traver chose a rigid measure over this flexible loop. **Honest limits.** An aluminium tube, an extension spring and a leather strip stand in for his chambered jaw, spring and loop, and no historical glove-size scale is given: the scale is marked by test. The notebook treats the hand as an ellipse; its sizes are examples. Your measurements are the result.