antique Fairbanks cattle platform scale

[Don P]

We are trying to bring a scale and scalehouse back into operation. It failed inspection last year and we're hoping to get it back up to snuff. I'd guess the scale is from roughly the turn of the century. I know the scale and building were moved to their present location about 90 years ago. The operator end of the scale is in a wooden box about chest high with a beam inside with circular slotted weights that can be slid along the graduated beam until the beam balances. The left end of the beam has rods that drop through the floor and are connected to 2 iron inverted T shaped bars the run to the far side diagonal corners of the floating platform which is about 8x16'. Attached from the inboard corners are 2 more diagonal inverted T iron bars that run to the main bars and are strapped to them. The platform is floating from the 4 corners on the bars. Can someone explain to me how this thing works? Is it measuring the "spring" in those bars?

[Don_Papenburg]

The bars are levers that exert pressure via the rods that run up to the balance beam that the weights slide on .  The balance beam has a lot of mechanical advantage over the beams on the platform  so you can weigh very heavy things . That is the simple explaining of it .  

[Don P]

Thanks Don, I'll go back and look at it with that in mind. That is good, levers are pretty much timeless, I was worried it was somehow sprung. I now suspect it probably just needs a good cleaning and recalibrating. And a new floor.