a blade lip or slot 33 which is positioned in closely spaced adjacency or even non pressure contact with the inner side of looped forming wire 20 more than one such lip or slot 33 may be used a headbox 34 is positioned to direct an aqueous slurry of stock fibers into the throat 24 depending on operating parameters such as machine speed stock consistency and possibly the type of forming wires used the headbox slice nozzle may be directed slightly toward one or the other of the forming wires beneath the top ply former which is the designation for the apparatus just described is a base ply forming wire 36 on which a base ply web w b has been formed upstream of the top ply former by other means a pivoted guide roll 38 wraps the base ply forming wire 36 around a portion of the periphery of the turning roll 14 beginning at a point over the trailing seal 30 the top ply web w t is thus brought into co running engagement with the base ply web w b and ply bonding occurs between the webs during this period of contact transfer of the composite multi ply paper sheet so formed to the base ply wire 36 is assured by the application of vacuum pressure in transfer box 40 a source of sub atmospheric air pressure 42 is optionally linked to the foil box 16 to provide vacuum pressure to.