IMPROVEMENTS IN BREECH-LOADING FIRE-ARMS, AND APPARATUS FOR CLOSING AND REPRIMING CARTRIDGE CASES FOR THE SAME
Year: 1867

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Thomas Horsley, of 10, Coney Street, York, for the
Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN BREECH-LOADING FIRE-ARMS, AND
APPARATUS FOR CLOSING AND REPRIMING CARTRIDGE CASES FOR THE SAME."
IN
Sealed the 8th October 1867, and dated the 17th April 1867.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Thomas Horsley at the
Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the 17th April
1867.
I, THOMAS HORSLEY, of 10, Coney Street, York, do hereby declare the nature
of the said Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN BREECH-LOADING FIRE-ARMS, AND IN
APPARATUS FOR CLOSING AND REPRIMING CARTRIDGE CASES FOR THE SAME," to be as
follows:-
This Invention has for its object improvements in breech-loading fire-arms
and in apparatus for closing and repriming cartridge cases for the same.
In constructing breech-loading fire-arms I arrange the pistons or strikers for
exploding the caps of central-fire cartridges to move in the direction of the
axis of the barrel, and to be exploded by an outside hammer as heretofore, and
according to this Invention I arrange the said pistons or strikers to be brought
back when the hammer is raised by means of a small lever jointed to the
breech plate or body, one end of this lever enters a ring groove in the piston
or striker, and the other is acted on by an incline on the neck of the hammer.

page_text: In order to close cartridge cases I employ a tube or barrel of a size .to
receive the cartridge case, and there is a suitable screw clamp at the side of
this tube or barrel by which it can be clamped to a table. The cartridge to
be closed is introduced into the tube or barrel from its lower end, which is then
closed by a cover turning on a centre, and at the same time that the tube or
barrel is thus closed a plunger comes forward and presses on the side of the
metal head of the cartridge, and holds it so as to prevent it turning; this
plunger is set forward by a spring, and it is drawn back when the lower end
of the tube or barrel is opened by a projection upon it entering a curved slot
in the cover.
In the upper end of the tube or barrel is a piston with a
conical hollow and tooth on its under side, such as has heretofore been used
for closing cartridge cases. The piston rod at its upper end receives a crank
handle by which it is turned round whilst it is pressed down on to the top of
the cartridge case. In order to give the downward pressure to the closing
piston a lever is employed turning on a centre, on the casting of which the
tube or barrel forms part, and this lever by a link is connected with a collar
on the piston rod. The collar has a stem fixed in it on one side, and this
stem enters a passage bored for it in the casting, and in this way the collar is
guided truly up and down, and it serves to steady the piston. In order to
cause the wad to rest firmly on the shot during the closing operation there
is within the piston rod a stem which projects through the centre of the piston
and presses on the wad; it is furnished with a spiral spring, which allows
it to yield as the piston comes down on to the top of the case to close it.
In order to prime cartridge cases after they have been once used I employ
an instrument consisting of a base with two blocks upon it of a size to receive
the cartridge cases upon them. Between the blocks there is a standard
carrying at its upper end a hand lever. The cartridge case from which the
old cap is first to be forced is placed on one of the blocks, which has a pin
projecting from its top, and this pin passes through the perforation in the
"hat cap" of the cartridge case and rests upon the "anvil;" the hand lever. is
then turned down so as to bring a lump jointed to it to press on the head of
the cartridge case, and a slight force being applied on the lever the old cap
is driven out into a hollow in the lump. To reprime the case it is placed on
the other block, and the new cap with the anvil within being placed over the
hollow in the "hat cap," the lever is turned over and pressed down, and the
Jump upon it presses the cap into its place..

page_text: SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, filed
by the said Thomas Ilorsley in the Great Seal Patent Office on the
17th October 1867.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, 1, THOMAS
HORSLEY, of 10, Coney Street, York, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the Seventeenth day of April, in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and sixty-seven, in the thirtieth year of Her
reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto me,
the said Thomas Horsley Her special licence, that I, the said Thomas Horsley,
iny executors, administrators, and assigns, or such others as I,.the said Thomas
Horsley, my executors, administrators, and assigns, should at any time agree
with, and no others, from time to time and at all times thereafter during the
term therein expressed, should and lawfully might make, use, exercise, and
vend, within the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, the Channel
Islands, and Isle of Man, an Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN BREECH-LOADING
FIRE-ARMS, AND IN APPARATUS FOR CLOSING AND REPRIMING CARTRIDGE CASES.
FOR THE SAME," upon the condition (amongst others) that I, the said Thomas
Horsley, my executors or administrators, by an instrument in writing under
my, or their, or one of their hands and seals, should particularly describe and
ascertain the nature of the said Invention, and in what manner the same was
to be performed, and cause the same to be filed in the Great Seal Patent
Office within six calendar months next and immediately after the date of, the
said Letters Patent.
NOW KNOW YE, that I, the said Thomas. Horsley, do hereby declare the
nature of the said Invention, and in what manner. the same is to be. per-
formed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and by the following
statement thereof, that is to say:
This Invention has for its object improvements in breech-loading fire-arms,.
and in apparatus for closing and repriming cartridge. cases for the same..
In constructing breech-loading fire-arms Larrange the pistons. or strikers for.
exploding the caps of central-fire cartridges to move by preference in the
direction of the axis of the barrel, and to be exploded by an outside hammer.
as heretofore, and according to this Invention I arrange the said pistons or
strikers to be brought back when the hammer is raised by means of a small,
lever jointed to the breech plate or body; one end of this lever euters, a ring

page_text: groove in the piston or striker, and the other is acted on by an incline on the
neck of the hammer.
On the Sheet of Drawings hereunto annexed is shewn so much of a breech-
loading double-barrel gun as is necessary for illustrating this part of my
Invention.
Figure 1 is a plan view, and Figure 2, a side view of the gun; in each
Figure one hammer is down, and the other at "full cock." a, a, are the pistons
or strikers; b, b, the small levers by which they are brought back when the
hammer is raised. Each lever turns on a pin c screwed into the body or
breech plate, and one of its ends enters a recess (by preference a ring groove)
in the striker, and the other end when the hammer is raised is acted on by an
incline d' on the neck of the hammer d, so as to turn the lever on its pin and
draw back the piston or striker as shown.
Separate views of one of the pistons or strikers and of the small levers b
are shewn at Figures 3 and Figures 4. In the arrangement shewn the
pistons or strikers move (as I prefer that they should) in the direction of the
axes of the barrels; small levers acted on by inclines on the necks of the
hammers may however be similarly employed in combination with oblique
strikers for the purpose of bringing them back when the hammers are raised.
In order to close cartridges cases I employ a tube or barrel of a size to receive
the cartridge case, and there is a suitable screw clamp at the side of this
tube or barrel by which it can be clamped to a table. The cartridge to be
closed is introduced into the tube or barrel from its lower end, which is then
closed by a cover turning on a centre, at the same time that the tube or
barrel is thus closed a plunger comes forward and presses on the side of the
metal bead of the cartridge, and holds it so as to prevent it turning. This
plunger is set forward by a spring, and it is drawn back when the lower end
of the tube or barrel is opened by a projection upon it entering a curved slot
in the cover. In the upper end of the tube or barrel is a piston with a
conical hollow and tooth on its under side, such as has heretofore been used
for closing cartridge cases. The piston rod at its upper end receives a crank
bandle by which it is turned round whilst it is pressed down on to the top of
the cartridge case. In order to give the downward pressure to the closing
piston a lever is employed turning on a centre, on the casting of which the
tube or barrel forms part, and this lever by a link is connected with a collar
on the piston rod. The collar bas a stem fixed in it on one side, and this
stem enters a passage bored for it in the casting, and in this way the collar
is guided truly up and down, and it serves to steady the piston. In order to

page_text: cause the wad to rest firmly on the shot during the closing operation there
is within the piston rod a stem which projects through the centre of tho
piston and presses on the wad; it is furnished with a spiral spring which allows
it to yield as the piston comes down on to the top of the case to close it.
Figure 5 shows a longitudinal section, Figure 6 a plan, and Figure 7 a
front view of an apparatus thus constructed. a is the tube into which the
cartridge case to be closed is inserted; this tube bas cast on it at its back
projecting lugs a to form a clamp, by which it can be clamped to the edge of
a table; the cartridge case is introduced into the tube a, from its lower end.
b is the cover for closing this end of the tube after a cartridge case has been
placed in it; this cover turns on the pin b. c is the plunger which when the
cover is closed is forced forward by a spiral spring behind it, and pressed
against the metal head of the cartridge case; the cartridge case is thus pre-
vented from turning in the tube. c is a pin projecting downwards from the
plunger c and entering a curved slot in the cover 6; this slot is so made
that when the cover b is turned round in a direction to uncover the end of the
tube a the pin c' is pressed back, and the plunger c so caused to release its hold
of the head of the cartridge case. d is the piston entering the upper end of the
tube a,
the lower end of this piston is formed with a conical hollow and tooth as
is usual, and its upper end is provided with a crank handle d by which it can
be turned; is the lever for pressing down the closing piston d; this lever
turns on a pin e¹, and is connected as shown by a link to the collar g,
through which the piston d passes. g¹ is a stem projecting downwards from
the collar g and entering a corresponding passage bored for it in the casting.
The collar g is thus steadily supported, at the same time that it can by means
of the lever e be raised or lowered, carrying with it the piston d which may
at the same time be caused to rotate by turning its crank handle d¹. d² is a
plunger within the lower end of the piston d, and pressed downwards by a
spiral spring d, as shown at Figure 5. The lower end of the plunger projects
below the piston, and when the piston is moved downwards the plunger
presses on the wad which is at the top of the cartridge case and causes it to
rest firmly on the shot during the closing operation, the spiral spring by giving
way allows the lower end of the piston to act on the top of the cartridge case
to close it over. In front of the closing apparatus above described is fixed an
apparatus marked A, such as is ordinarily employed when filling cartridge
cases to press the wads into the case.
In order to prime cartridge cases after they have been once used I employ
an instrument consisting of a base with two blocks upon it of a size to receive

page_text: the cartridge cases upon them. Between the blocks there is a standard
carrying at its upper end a band lever. The cartridge case from which the
old cap is first to be forced is placed on one of the blocks which has a pin
projecting from its top, and this pin passes through the perforation in the "hat
cap" of the cartridge case and rests upon the "anvil;" the hand lever is then
turned down so as to bring a lump jointed to it to press on the head of the
cartridge case, and a slight force being applied on the lever the old cap is
driven out into a hollow in the lump. To reprime the case it is placed on
the other block, and the new cap with the anvil within being placed over the
hollow in the "hat cap," the lever is turned over and pressed down, and the
lump upon it presses the cap into its place.
Figure 8 shows a side view, partly in section, of an apparatus thus con-
structed. a, b, are the two blocks to receive and hold the cartridge cases;
between these blocks is a standard c which has jointed to its upper end the
hand lever d carrying a lump d'. The block marked a has projecting up from
its top a pin a', which is to pass through the perforation in the "hat cap" of the
cartridge case, and bear against the lower end of the anvil. When an empty
case which is to have the old cap removed from it has been placed on the
block a, the lever d is turned down so as to bring one end of the lump d¹ to
press on the head of the cartridge case; this end of the lump is hollowed out
as shown, so that as the cartridge case is forced downwards by the block
pressing on it the cap and anvil which are prevented from moving down with
it by the pin a' are received into the hollow in the block. When a cartridge
case which has had the old cap removed from it is to be reprimed the case is
placed over the block b, and a new cap with an anvil within it is placed over
the hollow in the hat cap; the lever d is then turned down so that the rounded
end of the lump d' shall press the cap into its place.
In witness whereof, I, the said Thomas Horsley, have hereunto set my
hand and seal, this Sixteenth day of October, in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and sixty-seven.
THOMAS HORSLEY. (L.S.)