The press stands 60" high, its primary member being a wooden post 8" square braced at the base by a plank which is 100" long, 15" wide, and 3" thick. Resting on a wood block, the tube, which is 12" high and 5" in diameter, contains a piston made of leather disks with a steel disk on top, all with a hole in their centres, then a cylindrical piece of wood about three inches in diameter with a metal piece on the bottom and a vertical pin to penetrate the holes of the disks and, at its other end, a wood crosspiece. Resting on this crosspiece and inserted in a slot of the 8" square post is a lever arm of wood which is 4" x 3.5" and 107" long. Above it are wedges which are added as the contents of the tube are squeezed.37
The wedges referred to are step-like wooden blocks so that pressure could be exerted onto the piston step by step. When the dough was of the right consistency, it was put into the metal tube of the press until it was almost filled. Then the piston was inserted into the tube and pressure applied by a person standing on the lever arm. Such forces squeezed the incense paste through the two holes at the bottom of the metal tube, forming incense strings.
In the 1940s, a new machine was adopted in the joss stick industry to make incense coils, rendering the production of incense coils the only half-mechanized process of the joss stick industry. The procedure of squeezing, though remaining unchanged, was done much faster by mechanical power and production increased. In the 1960s, electric churns and electric presses were introduced, making the production of incense coils neater and much more agreeable for the workers.
Packing
After the incense products are dried, they are ready for packaging which is done in the same shed as the manufacturing processes. The most common type of packaging is by wrapping in transparent plastic. Sometimes, some joss sticks are put into plastics bags, paper bags or paper boxes. Joss sticks which are exported are packed into cardboard boxes.
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The press stands 60" high, its primary member being a wooden post
8" square
braced at the base by a plank which is 100′′ long, 15" wide, and 3" thick. Resting on a wood block, the tube, which is 12" high and 5" in diameter, contains a piston made of leather disks with a steel disk on top, all with a hole in their centres, then a cylindrical piece of wood about three inches in diameter with a metal piece on the bottom and a vertical pin to penetrate the holes of the disks and, at its other end, a wood crosspiece. Resting on this crosspiece and inserted in a slot of the 8" square post is a lever arm of wood which is 4" x 3.5" and 107" long. Above it are wedges which are added as the contents of the tube are squeezed.37
The wedges referred to are step-like wooden blocks so that pressure could be exerted onto the piston step by step. When the dough was of the right consistency, it was put into the metal tube of the press until it was almost filled. Then the piston was inserted into the tube and pressure applied by a person standing on the lever arm. Such forces squeezed the incense paste through the two holes at the bottom of the metal tube, forming incense strings.
In the 1940s, a new machine was adopted in the joss stick industry to make incense coils, rendering the production of incense coils the only half-mechanized process of the joss stick industry. The procedure of squeezing, though remaining unchanged, was done much faster by mechanical power and production increased. In the 1960s, electric churns and electric presses were introduced, making the production of incense coils neater and much more agreeable for the workers.
Packing
After the incense products are dried, they are ready for packaging which is done in the same shed as the manufacturing processes. The most common type of packaging is by wrapping in transparent plastic. Sometimes, some joss sticks are put into plastics bags, paper bags or paper boxes. Joss sticks which are exported are packed into cardboard boxes.
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