881,923. Hand-held ball-rolling toys. THOMPSON TOY MANUFACTURING CO. June 22, 1960 [June 22, 1959], No. 21930/60. Class 132(3) A ball-rolling toy comprises a pair of parallel rails 12 having top and bottom surfaces forming trackways.over which a ball 14 can run, curved sleeves 27, 27a being provided at the ends of the rails to guide the ball from one trackway to the other. In operation, the ball is placed on the rails and the toy is tilted downwardly whereupon the ball runs to one end of the rails where it is guided by the sleeve to the other trackway, the toy is then twisted through 180 degrees about its own axis and tilted upwardly whereupon the ball runs along its new trackway to the sleeve at the opposite end. By repeated twisting and tilting movements the ball can be kept moving continuously over the trackways. As shown in Fig. 6, the guide sleeves 27, 27a comprise convex guide portions 18 and 20 and concave portions 21, Fig. 4, which interiorly form continuations of the rails 12. The curved end parts of the guide sleeves comprise rounded portions 22 and 26, Fig. 3. The guide sleeves are slotted at 28, Fig. 6, the sleeve 27a having a spacing and bracing member 32 and the sleeve 27 having a handle 30, Fig. 3. Two balls 14, 14SP1/SP may be operated on the rails at the same time. The toy may be of metal, plastic or wood. Operation of the toy may be used to practice casting, the motion of the toy during play simulating that of a fishing rod during casting.
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