Folding stock for a pistol

A folding stock is provided for a pistol. The stock is particularly suited for automatic pistols which may employ extended magazines. The stock includes a first end which mates with the hollow located in the rear portion of the grip of the pistol. A first stock element is attached to the first end. A second stock element is pivotally attached to the first stock element. The attachment includes a spring mounted push-button element. The push-button element, when depressed, permits rotation of the stock from a folded to an unfolded position and visa versa. The pivotal attachment is securable in a folded first position and an unfolded second position. The folded position brings the first stock element into a substantially parallel and proximal arrangement with the second stock element. The securing mechanism is engaged and disengaged by the push-button located on the right side of the intersection of the first stock element and the second stock element. The push-button may be a pin member which is urged into a secured position by a pair of resilient springs. The push-button, when depressed, pushes the springs into their nest. When the push-button is fully depressed, the first and second stock member may rotate between the folded position and the unfolded position. When the push-button is released, the spring force urges the pin member (push-button) back to the neutral position, thus securing the first and second stock member in a folded or unfolded relation. The second stock element includes an U-shaped bend about midway down its length which would permit simple loading of extended length clips when the stock is in its folded position. The second stock element is attached to a shoulder interface. When the stock is extended, the shoulder interface would rest against one's shoulder, when folded the shoulder interface rests against the trigger guard.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
1. Field of the Invention 
The present invention relates generally to folding stocks for pistols. More 
particularly, the present invention is drawn to a folding stock for a 
pistol especially adapted to be utilized by an automatic pistol which 
employs an extended magazine. 
2. Description of the Prior Art 
Modern pistols now commonly employ extended magazines which hold 17 or even 
33 rounds. It is technically feasible to provide pistol magazines to hold 
even a greater number of rounds. Though utilization of such extended 
magazines the enthusiast may fire a greater number of bullets without 
reload. Pistol aim may be significantly improved by employing a stock 
which may rest against a shoulder. By using such a stock one may have 
greater control over the recoil one finds when firing the weapon on 
full-automatic or semi-automatic. Part of the enjoyment of such a pastime 
comes from the accurate delivery of a large number of shots to a given 
target in a short time period. Rapid reload is important to the enjoyment 
of the sport. A folding pistol stock which may be utilized with extended 
magazines in both the folded or unfolded position, and which may be folded 
while an extended magazine is being employed is desirable. 
Folding stocks for pistols are known in the art. An example of such a 
device is U.S. Pat. No. 4,271,623 issued to Beretta. The Beretta device 
includes a stock which does fold, and includes means to secure the stock 
in an unfolded position. The means to secure the stock in an unfolded 
position includes a pair of spring biased actuating tabs, one on the right 
side of the stock and one on the left side of the stock. These actuating 
tabs must be simultaneously moved by the user toward the pistol to permit 
the folding stock to return to a folded position. This is difficult to 
accomplish, especially with one hand. The folding stock element is 
straight and does not permit the use of the pistol when in a folded 
position. 
Thus, while the foregoing body of prior art indicates it to be well known 
to employ the use of a folding stock with an automatic pistol, the use of 
a folding stock which does not interfere with the firing of the pistol 
when in a folded position has not been contemplated. The provision of a 
folding pistol stock which permits the use of extended magazine elements 
has not been taught as well. The prior are does not teach a device which 
may fire the pistol while in either the folded or unfolded state. The 
foregoing disadvantages are overcome by the unique structural features of 
the present invention as will be made apparent from the following 
description thereof. Other advantages of the folding stock of the present 
invention over the prior art also will be rendered evident. 
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
To achieve the foregoing and other advantages, the present invention, 
briefly described, provides a folding stock for a pistol. The invention is 
particularly suited for automatic pistols which may employ extended length 
magazines. The stock includes a first end which mates with the hollow 
located in the rear portion of the pistol grip. A first stock element is 
attached to the first end. A second stock element is pivotally attached to 
the first stock element. The first stock element may rotate with respect 
to the second stock element. The attachment includes a spring mounted 
push-button element. The push-button element, when depressed, permits 
rotation of the stock from a folded to an unfolded position and visa 
versa. The folded position brings the first stock element into a 
substantially parallel and proximal arrangement with the second stock 
element. The pivotal attachment is securable in a folded first position 
and an unfolded second position. The securing mechanism is engaged and 
disengaged by the push-button located on the right side of the 
intersection of the first stock element to the second stock element. The 
push-button is essentially a pin member which is urged into a secured 
position by a pair of resilient springs. The push-button, when depressed, 
pushes the springs into their nest. When the push-button is fully 
depressed, the first and second stock member may rotate between the folded 
position and the unfolded position. When the push-button is released, the 
spring force urges the pin member (push-button) back to the neutral 
position, thus securing the first and second stock member in a folded or 
unfolded relation. The second stock element includes an U-shaped bend 
about midway down its length which would permit simple loading of extended 
length clips when the stock is in its folded position. The second stock 
element is attached to a shoulder interface. When the stock is extended, 
the shoulder interface would rest against one's shoulder, when folded the 
shoulder interface rests against the trigger guard. The preferred 
embodiment is drawn to a folding stock which may be utilized with a 
Glock-17 or Glock-18 pistol. It is to be understood that the instant 
invention may be employed with many other varieties of automatic pistols. 
The instant device may be employed in both the folded and unfolded 
configuration to fire the pistol. The pistol may be loaded and unloaded 
while the stock is folded or unfolded and may be unfolded or folded with a 
magazine in the chamber, regardless of the size of the magazine. 
It is proposed that the folding gun stock be manufactured from any of a 
variety of materials which possess the appropriate mechanical properties 
of strength and resistance to failure by fatigue. Such materials include 
metals such as aluminum or steel compositions, or composite materials such 
as graphite. Any material with the desired properties may be employed. The 
folding gun stock may be machined, stamped or manufactured by any of a 
variety of well known manufacturing processess. 
The above brief description sets forth rather broadly the more important 
features of the present invention in order that the detailed description 
thereof that follows may be better understood, and in order that the 
present contributions to the art may be better appreciated. There are, of 
course, additional features of the invention that will be described 
hereinafter and which will form the subject matter of the claims appended 
hereto. 
In this respect, before explaining the invention in detail, it is to be 
understood that the invention is not limited in its application to the 
details of the construction and to the arrangements of the components set 
forth in the following description or illustrated in the drawings. The 
invention is capable of other embodiments and of being practiced and 
carried out in various ways. Also, it is to be understood, that the 
phraseology and terminology employed herein are for the purpose of 
description and should not be regarded as limiting. 
As such, those skilled in the art will appreciate that the conception, upon 
which this disclosure is based, may readily be utilized as a basis for 
designing other structures, methods, and systems for carrying out the 
several purposes of the present invention. It is important, therefore, 
that the claims be regarded as including such equivalent constructions 
insofar as they do not depart from the spirit and scope of the present 
invention. 
It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide a folding 
pistol stock which may be easily placed in a folded or unfolded position 
by actuation of a push-button. 
It is an object of the present invention to provide a folding pistol stock 
which may be locked in a folded or unfolded position. 
It is an object of the present invention to provide a folding pistol stock 
which would permit firing of the pistol when in the folded position. 
It is an object of the present invention to provide a folding pistol stock 
which may be folded while the pistol has an extended magazine placed 
therein. 
It is an object of the present invention to provide a folding pistol stock 
which, when affixed to the pistol and in the folded configuration, may 
discharge and receive a magazine of any size. 
It is another object of the present invention to provide a folding pistol 
stock which may be easily and efficiently manufactured and marketed. 
It is a further objective of the present invention to provide a folding 
pistol stock which is of durable and reliable construction. 
An even further object of the present invention is to provide a folding 
pistol stock which is susceptible of a low cost of manufacture with regard 
to both materials and labor, and which accordingly is then susceptible of 
low prices of sale to the consuming public, thereby making such a folding 
pistol stock available to the buying public. 
These together with still other objects of the invention, along with the 
various features of novelty which characterize the invention, are pointed 
out with particularity in the claims annexed to and forming a part of this 
disclosure. For a better understanding of the invention, its operating 
advantages and the specific objects attained by its uses, reference should 
be had to the accompanying drawings and descriptive matter in which there 
are illustrated preferred embodiments of the invention.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT 
With reference now to the drawings, a folding pistol stock embodying the 
principles and concepts of the present invention will be described. 
Turning initially to FIGS. 1 & 2, the folding pistol stock 10 is shown. A 
first end 20 is shown which is inserted in a hollow located proximal the 
rear portion of the pistol grip 8. Locking means 19 includes a spring 
biased plate 21 with several pin portions (22, 23). The pin portion 22 
will engage mating structure located on the pistol. The locking means 19 
will securely affix the folding stock 10 to the pistol in such a fashion 
to prevent the pistol from accidental detachment, while insuring 
simplicity of intentional removal. When mated, the pin portion 23 resides 
outside the hollow of the pistol grip. When pin portion 23 is depressed, 
the spring biased plate is pushed inwardly, releasing pin portion 22 from 
the mating structure located on the pistol, permitting removal of the 
first end 20. Other specific means of attachment may be employed to permit 
the instant invention to be utilized with pistols with different pistol 
grip and folding stock configurations. 
The first end 20 is connected to a first stock element 30 proximal element 
24. First stock element 30 is a generally elongated rod like structure 
which may have a circular, rectangular, square or other geometric 
cross-section. Portions of the first stock element 30 may be hollowed out 
for weight reduction. A second stock element 40 is pivotably attached to 
first stock element 30 at pivotal attachment 25. Second stock element 40 
is a generally elongated rod like structure which may have a circular, 
rectangular, square or other geometric cross-section. 
The pivotal attachment 25 permits the second stock element 40 to rotate 
with respect to the first stock element 30 as indicated by arrow 26. 
Push-button 28 is mated with a stock locking means. The stock locking 
means secures the stock in the folded as well as unfolded position. When 
the stock is in the unfolded position, it is securely locked in that 
position by the stock locking means. When the stock is in the folded 
position it is securely locked in that position by the stock locking 
means. The stock locking means is disengaged during the rotation of the 
first stock element 30 with respect to the second stock element 40. The 
stock locking means may be disengaged through the depression of the 
push-button 28. When the push-button 28 is depressed the second stock 
element 40 is free to rotate with respect to the first stock element 30. 
Specific details of the stock locking means will be detailed in the 
discussion of FIGS. 4, 4A, & 4B. 
The second stock element 40 includes a U-shaped portion 42. The utility of 
the U-shaped portion 42 will best be seen in subsequent figures showing 
the stock in the folded configuration. The U-shaped portion 42 will permit 
the second stock element 40 to be placed in the folded configuration when 
the pistol has an extended length magazine located therein. Once the stock 
is placed in the folded position, the U-shaped portion 42 permits a 
magazine to be changed, as well as permits the use of extended length 
magazines. 
Second stock element 40 is attached to shoulder rest 45 proximal element 
44. Brace 46 is affixed to both shoulder rest 45 and second stock element 
40 and prevents failure of the attachment at element 44 due to the 
stresses of firing and general use. The brace 46 is secured to the 
shoulder rest 45 and the second stock element 40 by any of a variety of 
well known attachment means including, but not limited to, mechanical 
fasteners, welding or adhesives. The shoulder rest 45 includes a plurality 
of ridges 43 which create a non-smooth surface for retaining the shoulder 
rest 45 in position against the users shoulder. At the distal end of the 
shoulder rest 45 is a generally U-shaped element 48 which is shown in FIG. 
3A. The U-shaped portion 48 will engage the trigger guard 9 of the pistol 
5 when the stock 10 is in a folded configuration. 
FIG. 1A shows the U-shaped portion 42 located on the second stock element 
40. The U-shaped element 42 will permit use of the stock while in the 
folded state. The U-shaped element 42 allows magazines of any size to be 
changed while the folding stock is folded. 
FIG. 2 shows the folding stock 10 of the present invention in the unfolded 
position with a pistol 5 attached thereto. The pistol 5 may be an 
automatic pistol manufactured by Glock. The Glock pistol has appropriate 
mating surfaces located in the rear portion of the pistol grip 8 for use 
with the folding stock 10. The folding stock 10 may include modifications 
to permit its use with other pistols. Appropriate mating surfaces may be 
simply machined into existing pistols to permit their use with the folding 
stock 10. The pistol 5 has a trigger guard 9 which will interface with 
U-shaped portion 48 of the shoulder rest 45. 
FIG. 3 shows the folding stock 10 in the folded position with a pistol 5 
attached. An extended magazine 6 is shown fully inserted into the magazine 
well. The first end 20 is shown inserted into the hollow located in the 
hollow located near the rear portion of the pistol grip 8. Locking means 
19 includes a first pin portion 22 and a second pin portion 23. Both the 
first pin portion 22 and the second pin portion 23 reside atop a spring 
biased plate 21. The first pin portion 22 will mate with structure located 
on the rear of the pistol grip 8. This structure includes an aperture 
which is found on certain brands of pistols, including the Glock pistols. 
The locking means 19 will securely affix the folding stock 10 to the 
pistol 5 in such a fashion as to prevent accidental detachment. When the 
first end 20 is inserted into the hollow, the second pin portion 23 
resides outside the hollow of the pistol grip. When the second pin portion 
23 is depressed, the spring biased plate 21 is urged inwardly, releasing 
pin portion 22 from the mating structure located on the pistol 5, 
permitting removal of the first end 20. As noted previously, other 
arrangements of the attachment means may be provided to permit the instant 
invention to mate with different pistols. 
The first end 20 is connected to the first stock element 30 proximal 
element 24. The first stock element 30 may be affixed to the first end 20 
by any variety of mechanical fasteners, welding, or adhesive. The first 
stock element 30 is pivotably attached to the second stock element 40 at 
pivotable attachment 25. The second stock element 40 is shown as being 
rotated and secured under the first stock element 30. 
The pivotal attachment 25 permits the second stock element 40 to rotate 
with respect to the first stock element 30 and visa versa as indicated by 
arrow 26. Push-button 28, when actuated, disengages a stock locking means 
which permits the rotation of the first and second stock element as 
indicated by arrow 26. The folded position brings the first stock element 
30 into a substantially parallel and proximal arrangement with the second 
stock element 40. Specific details of the stock locking means will be 
described in the discussion of FIG. 4, 4A, & 4B. 
The second stock element 40 includes a U-shaped portion 42. As shown in 
FIG. 3, the U-shaped portion 42 permits the use of the folding stock 10 
with the extended magazine 6. The U-shaped portion 42 will permit 
magazines of any size to be placed within and removed from the magazine 
well, while the folding stock 10 is in the folded position. The U-shaped 
portion 42 is proportioned and toleranced in such a manner to permit the 
folding stock 10 to be unfolded and folded with an extended magazine 6 
residing within the pistol 5. 
The second stock element 40 is attached to the shoulder rest 45 proximal 
44. Brace 46 is affixed both to the shoulder rest 45 and the second stock 
element 40. The brace 46 prevents failure of the attachment of the 
shoulder rest 45 to the second stock element 40 which may occur to the 
stresses placed thereon by firing the pistol and through rough usage of 
the shoulder rest 45. The shoulder rest 45 includes a plurality of ridges 
43 which create a non-smooth surface for retaining the shoulder rest 45 in 
position against the shoulder of the marksman. U-shaped portion 48 will 
engage the trigger guard 9 of the pistol 5 when the folding stock 10 is in 
the folded configuration. 
FIG. 3A is a view taken along line 3A--3A of FIG. 3. It is a close up 
clearly showing the U-shaped portion 48 engaging the trigger guard 9. 
FIG. 4 is a cut away view detailing the push-button 28 and associated stock 
locking means. The push-button 28 has a generally upper cylindrical 
portion 50 integrally connected with a lower rectangular portion 52. The 
lower rectangular portion 52 has a pair of apertures 54 designed to 
receive a pair of springs 56. The springs 56 rest intermediate the back 
plate 58 which is a portion of the first stock element 30. Tongue 60 is 
attached to the second stock element 40 and resides in a cut-away portion 
of the first stock element 30 intermediate first side 62 and second side 
64. Tongue 60 includes a rectangular cut-away portion 65 which is 
toleranced to receive the lower rectangular portion 52 snugly. When 
push-button 28 is depressed, the lower rectangular portion 52 is urged out 
of the rectangular cut-away portion 65. At this point, tongue 60 may be 
rotated about 180 degrees, to a point where the rectangular cut-away 
portion 65 and the lower rectangular portion 52 once again align. At this 
point, the spring force generated by the springs 56, urges the lower 
rectangular portion 52 into the rectangular cut-away portion 65. This 
secures the first stock element 30 with respect to the second stock 
element 40 in a folded or unfolded relation. A stop may be provided to 
prevent rotation in the undesired direction. It is important to note that 
the first side 62 of first stock element 30 has a toleranced cylindrical 
opening 61, whereas the second side 64 of the first stock element 30 has a 
toleranced cylindrical opening superposed over a toleranced rectangular 
opening 63. 
FIG. 4A shows the tongue 60 attached to first stock element 30. The 
rectangular cut-away portion 65 is centrally disposed on the tongue 60. 
Central aperture 66 passes through the tongue 60 completely. The 
rectangular cut-away portion 65 is cut-away to a point about half the 
depth of the total depth (indicated by D in FIG. 4) of the tongue 60. 
FIG. 4B shows the push-button 28 showing the lower rectangular portion 52 
with the pair of apertures 54. The upper cylindrical portion 50 is also 
shown in relation to the lower rectangular portion 52. 
It is apparent from the above that the present invention accomplishes all 
of the objectives set forth by providing a new and improved folding stock 
for pistols, which may be simply and easily placed from a folded to an 
unfolded position, and permits firing of the pistol when in the folded 
position. 
With respect to the above description, it should be realized that the 
optimum dimensional relationships for the parts of the invention, to 
include variations in size, materials, shape, form, function and manner of 
operation, assembly and use, are deemed readily apparent and obvious to 
those skilled in the art, and therefore, all relationships equivalent to 
those illustrated in the drawings and described in the specification are 
intended to be encompassed only by the scope of appended claims. 
While the present invention has been shown in the drawings and fully 
described above with particularity and detail in connection with what is 
presently deemed to be the most practical and preferred embodiment of the 
invention, it will be apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art that 
many modifications thereof may be made without departing from the 
principles and concepts set forth herein. Hence, the proper scope of the 
present invention should be determined only by the broadest interpretation 
of the appended claims so as to encompass all such modifications and 
equivalents.