Method and apparatus for gathering rings or wire rods into coils

A method of gathering together rings of wire rod into a coil comprising:

• dropping continuously supplied rings of wire rod from the delivery end of a conveyor around a sail in a gathering tub positioned beneath the delivery end of the conveyor and having a lateral side open, the sail having a vertically extending main segment movable only up and down in said tub and a laterally movable vertically extending segment movable from an original position adjacent the main segment both up and down and laterally while maintaining its vertical orientation;
• and
• after a given quantity of rod rings has been gathered on the sail to form the coil, lowering the main segment while keeping it vertically oriented to a level where the top thereof is below the coil, moving the laterally movable segment laterally through the lateral open side of the tub while maintaining its vertical orientation to a down-ender positioned adjacent the sail, moving the main segment up while maintaining its vertical orientation to the initial position for immediately starting to gather the continuously supplied rod rings into the next coil, lowering the laterally movable segment in the down-ender for removing it from the formed coil, and while in the lower position, moving it laterally to a position beneath the original position and then raising the laterally movable segment to the original position to make up the complete sail again, all the while maintaining the laterally movable segment in its vertical orientation, and while continuing to gather falling rod rings into the next coil.