187

Getting Strait

In Troy, New York Thomas Strait set out to accomplish two things in his

corkscrew design - to make a simple,

inexpensive cork extractor combined

with a wire or cord cutter. He designed

a conical bell with internal threads to

ride on a threaded shank. He described

his wire cutter as a

―

peculiar

construction.

‖

Strait tapered the inner surface of the

cone to form his cutter. In use, the

cutter encircles the bottle neck and as

he says

―

the rim forms an inner-cutting

edge to break the sealing wax and sever

the wire.

‖

In use, he inserts the worm

into the cork and as he screws it in, the

sealing wax is broken and the retaining

wire is cut and continuing to turn the handle will extract the cork. Strait

contended that using other corkscrews requires the wire to be cut first then the

worm inserted into the cork

―

necessitating considerable loss of time.

‖

Obviously,

Strait was a very busy man who wanted to waste no time uncorking his bottles.

Strait boasted that his invention

―

is simple, durable, and inexpensive, and works

with admirable efficiency, besides possessing other advantages too numerous to

mention.

‖

On June 12, 1883, Strait was assigned United States Patent Number 279,203.

The patent date mark can be found on the side of the cone.