Method for the manufacture of washers and the like

A method for the manufacture of washers and the like from a strip of sheet material having one straight edge, said method comprising:

• positioning said straight edge along a guide means;
• notching said sheet by die cutting a pair of opposing V notches through the thickness of said sheet material in such a manner that the legs of one such V notch extend from its vertex to one edge of said sheet material and the legs of the other V notch extend from its vertex to the opposite edge of said sheet material;
• simultaneously with said notching step, trimming said sheet material to a predetermined width;
• said trimming being carried out by die cutting material from the edge opposite said straight edge to produce a sheet of desired width having parallel edges;
• advancing said sheet material in a direction parallel to said straight edge, and
• shearing said sheet material at a line joining the vertices of each pair of V notches.