IN REVOLVING FIRE ARMS
Year: 1881

page_text: PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said William Stringfellow at the
Office of the Commissioners of Patents on the 20th December 1881.
WILLIAM STRINGFELLOW of Mistley in the County of Essex.
IN REVOLVING FIRE ARMS."
"IMPROVEMENTS
The object of my Invention is to produce a revolving fire arın that can discharge
shot, smooth or rifled balls, shell or other projectiles from the same set of revolving
chambers, and with great rapidity. With this object I make a disc of metal
containing ten or more or less chambers in the periphery thereof; which chambers
are shaped to receive the cartridges required. The mouths of these chambers also
project a little way beyond the periphery of the disc. This disc is mounted
horizontally on the fire arin in such a manner that it can revolve with its
periphery near the end of the barrel of the fire arm, and also that it is capable of a
forward motion when required to allow the projecting mouths of the chambers in
turn to enter the barrel. The disc is enclosed in a suitable casing made of whatever
material I prefer, and in the rear of the casing I may make an aperture, capable
of being closed, through which I can load the different chambers; or the loading
thereof may be performed in any other convenient way. The firearm is discharged
by an action that first forces the mouth of one of the chambers into the barrel,
then gives the percussion or other force that discharges the cartridge in the said
chamber, and then allows the disc to fall back, freeing the mouth of the chamber
from the barrel and allowing the disc to revolve and present another chamber to
the barrel ready for firing. Any suitable catches may be employed to lock either
the action or the disc or both if required.

page_text: SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent filed
by the said William Stringfellow in the Great Seal Patent Office on the
19th June 1882.
WILLIAM STRING FELLOW of Mistley in the County of Essex.
IN REVOLVING FIRE ARMS."
"IMPROVEMENTS
My Invention provides for the rapid discharge of the successive charges and
reduces the weight of the fire arm having regard to the number of charges that
can be contained therein at one and the same time, while simplifying the various
actions. In order that my Invention may be clearly explained and understood I
refer to the accompanying Drawing which shews the application of my Invention
to a rifle or shot gun. Figure 1 is a plan of the upper surface of a rifle or shot
gun. Figure 2 is an elevation of a rifle or shot gun. Figure 3 is a vertical section
of the breech of the same on an enlarged scale. Figure 4 is a horizontal section of
the casing taken at a b in Figure 3. Figure 5 is an elevation of the front of the
disc shewing the chambers therein, the front side of the casing being removed. It
is taken at c d in Figure 3. Figure 6 is a plan of the bottom of the casing
shewing the revolving mechanism. The letters are the same in all the Figures.
Y is the stock, and Z the barrel of the rifle or shot gun. X is the casing in
which the revolving chambers are placed. The disc A is mounted horizontally in
the breech of the fire arm and in this disc are the chambers B B B for the
cartridges. These chambers are arranged radially in the disc A, and any
convenient number may be formed therein. I prefer to make these chambers B B B
of a tapering shape towards the centre of the disc as shewn in the Drawing so
that I can get a greater number of chambers into the disc A, and in this case I
should cut a slot B 1 in the lower side of this tapering part of each chamber in
which a corresponding projection on the cartridge case would fit; in which
projection I should place the firing pin or other contrivance for exploding the
cartridge. But I do not limit myself to this tapering shape of the chambers, for
they can be made of the usual shape with parallel sides, if desired. The upper
surface of the disc A may be made in any convenient form in conformity with
the shape of the chambers in the disc, the great object being to reduce the quantity
of metal required to form the disc, and thereby reduce the weight of the same
consistently with affording the necessary strength. When the chambers are
tapered as shewn in the Drawing I prefer to make the upper part of the disc as
shewn in Figures 3 and 5. The lower part of the disc is to be formed as herein-
after described. This disc A revolves on the pin A 1 which is secured vertically in
the sliding frame C. This frame C slides to and fro in the casing X, and the
forward end thereof surrounds the end of the barrel Z, as shewn at C1 and slides
along the same. The rear end of the frame C is secured to the upright C 2 which
is actuated as hereinafter described. To prevent any danger of the cartridges
after they have been placed in the chambers getting loose or starting out from
their bases, a light shield plate W is fitted round the disc A at such a distance
therefrom that the extremities of the mouths of the cartridge cases. hereinafter
described are in close proximity to the shield. This shield W is secured to the
frame C, and an aperture W 1 is formed therein similar to the aperture C1 in the
frame C for the reception of the end of the barrel Z when the frame C is pushed
forward as hereinafter described. For convenience of loading the fire arm, a
suitable aperture is formed in the side of the casing X, shewn at X 2 which can be
closed when desired in any convenient manner, and a corresponding aperture
would be formed in the shield W, shewn at W 2. But I do not limit myself to
this method of loading, for any other convenient method may be used.
ຕ

page_text: The firing action is situated below the casing X, and is enclosed in a suitable
casing D. The firing action is shewn in Figure 3. The lever firing handle or
trigger E is pivotted on the standard El secured on the underside of the breech of
the fire arm. The forward end of this trigger E3 presses upon a tumbler H
pivotted between two lugs G 1 projecting downwards from the hammer G, which is
hinged on the underside of the fore part of the breech of the fire arm, and the rear
end of the trigger E 4 is connected by the link F with the upright C 2. As the
handle E 4 is lifted the link F forces the frame C forwards and at the same time
the hammer G is depressed by the forward end of the trigger E 3, until the tail H 1
of the tumbler H comes in contact with the bottom of the casing D. At this time
the frame C and the disc A which it carries are as far forward as they can go, and
the mouth of the cartridge case I, which projects beyond the periphery of the disc
and is bevelled to fit the end of the barrel, has entered and closed the end of the
barrel Z. The projection on the link F has also entered the recess F1 in the
breech of the fire arm, thereby locking the frame C and taking the shock of the
recoil when the fire arm is discharged. The tail H1 then throws the tumbler H
free of the forward end of the trigger E 3 and the spring G 2 forces the hammer G
up and strikes it against the striker K, which is secured in a suitable chamber K 1
in the lower part of the disc A. This striker K then strikes the pin L in the
cartridge case which fires the explosive contained therein. There is a small
chamber K 1 formed in the revolving disc A to each of the chambers B for the
cartridges and which communicates therewith. In each of these chambers K 1
there is a striker K. I may however make a modification of this aforesaid arrange-
ment in dispensing with the striker K and making the hammer G long enough to
reach and strike the pin L in the cartridge case. In this case a deep groove
would be formed in the underside of the disc A in form of a ring, concentric with
the disc A, to allow the said disc to revolve over the end of the hammer G. When
the fire arm has been discharged as aforesaid the spring E2 is allowed to depress
the rear end of the firing handle E 4, and the frame C is retired, freeing the mouth
of the cartridge case I from the end of the barrel Z. The forward end of the
trigger E 3 at the same time passes up past the tumbler H, and is in position to
depress it again. A spring H 2 is arranged to force the tumbler H out again when
the end of the trigger E 3 has passed above it.
The revolving action, which is placed between the disc A and the bottom X1 of
the casing X, is shewn chiefly in Figure 6 but parts are also shewn in Figures 3, 4
and 5. A pushing lever M is pivotted at M 1 on the bottom X1 of the casing X.
The rear end of this lever M is held between the upright C 2 and a projection C 3
on the bottom of the lower part of the sliding frame C. The forward end of the
lever M engages the revolving lever N, which is pivotted on the bottom X1
immediately under the centre of the disc A when in the retired position as shewn
in the Drawing. At the end of this lever N is a box containing a spring, which
presses upwards the pin N 1 against the lower surface of the disc A, as shewn in
Figure 5. On a tail piece of the lever N is a stud N 3 which works in a slot in
the end of the stopping lever O. A locking and releasing lever P is pivotted on the
bottom X1 at P 1, and the stopping lever O is pivotted on the end of the lever P
at O1. In the tail of the lever P is a slot, and a diverging slot R is formed in the
bottom X1 of the casing X through both of which slots passes the pin S which is
so formed as to be capable of being moved along these slots. On the lower part of
the disc A below the cartridge chambers B are formed two series of inclined
The one
projections terminating in stops, in form like elongated ratchet teeth.
series is vertical, and is shewn at T T T in Figure 5, and the other series is hori-
zontal, and is shewn at V V V in Figure 4. Both series are also shewn in dotted
lines in Figure 6.
The revolving action then is as follows. While the frame C is in the retired
position as shewn in the Drawing, the disc A is prevented from revolving by the
end of the lever O pressing against one of the stops of the horizontal series of
projections V, and by the pin N 1 held upwards by its spring against one of the

page_text: stops of the vertical series of projections T, as shewn in Figure 6. When the
firing handle E4 is lifted, the upright C2 is pressed forwards as hereinbefore
described, and actuates the lever M which forces the lever N forwards until the
pin N 1 has passed under one of the inclined projections T and been lifted by the
action of the spring hereinbefore described into the next stop of the series. At
the same time the stud N 3 has moved the end of the lever O away from the stop
of the inclined projection V. The fire arm having been discharged, the firing
handle E 4 is depressed, retiring the frame C as herein before described. When the
mouth of the cartridge case I is clear of the barrel Z, the spring N2 which is
secured in a convenient position on the bottom X 1, forces the lever N back,
revolving with it the disc A through the action of the pin N1 on the stop of the
inclined projection T. The disc A therefore revolves until the lever O, which
comes back to its normal position as shewn in the Drawing with the lever N,
catches the next stop of the series of inclined projections V, when the disc A is
stopped and presents another chamber B ready to be moved forwards towards the
barrel.
The action of the locking and releasing lever P is as follows. When the pin S
is moved forwards in the two slots hereinbefore described, the diverging slot R
causes the lever P through the action of the pivot 01 to draw the lever O away
from and clear of the stops of the series of projections V V V and the disc A. is free
to be rotated for loading or other purposes. At the same time the elbow piece P 2
on the lever P locks the lever N, and through the lever M also locks the firing
action, so that the fire arm cannot be discharged until the pin S is moved back to
the position shewn in Figure G. When the pin S is so moved back, the fire arm is
again ready to be discharged, and the firing and revolving actions ready to be
actuated.
I make a modification of the revolving action hereinbefore described by
dispensing with the lever M, and instead thereof fitting a stud on the bottom of
the lower part of the frame C in a suitable position which stud may actuate the
lever N as herein before described. I also do not limit myself to the exact shapes
of the various levers and mechanism as shewn in the accompanying Drawing
though I consider these shapes as shewn to be the best for my Invention as applied
to a rifle or shot gun. But I may make these levers and mechanism of various
shapes without departing from my Invention, in accordance with the description of
fire-arm to which my Invention as herein before described is to be applied, so as
the actions for firing, revolving, stopping, releasing and locking do not vary from
those hereinbefore described. I also do not limit myself to the relative positions of
the various parts of my Invention as hereinbefore described, for the disc may be
placed below the various actions if necessary or adviseable, or may be placed
between the same so that while the firing action is below, the revolving and
locking and releasing actions may be above, and vice versa.
It is obvious that this disc with its firing revolving and other actions may be
applied to pistols, guns or fowling peices, rifles, field peices and every kind of fire
arm, with the small modifications of arrangement of the several parts that may be
desirable or suitable. This revolving fire arm can also discharge shot, smooth or
rifled balls, shell or other projectiles from the same disc or set of revolving chambers,
and with great rapidity.
Having thus particularly described and clearly explained my Invention, and in
what manner the same is to be performed, I claim as my Invention which is protected
by the hereinbefore in part recited Letters Patent,
1. The revolving fire arm herein before described.
2. In a revolving fire arm, the horizontally revolving disc containing the radial
chambers for the cartridges, the said disc being mounted on a sliding frame,
substantially as hereinbefore described and shewn.
3. In a revolving fire arm with a horizontally revolving disc, the firing action,
substantially as herein before described and shewn in Figure 3 of the accompanying
Drawing.

page_text: 4. In a revolving fire arm with a horizontally revolving disc, the revolving
action substantially as herein before described and shewn in Figures 3, 4, 5 and 6
of the accompanying Drawing.
5. In a revolving fire arm with a horizontally revolving disc, the locking and
releasing action substantially as hereinbefore described and shewn in Figure 6 of
the accompanying Drawing.
6. The application to every description of fire arm of this Invention consisting
of the combination of the horizontally revolving disc containing the radial chambers
for the cartridges, and mounted on a sliding frame with the firing, revolving,
locking and releasing actions substantially as herein before described and declared
and shewn in the accompanying Drawings.
In witness whereof I the said William Stringfellow have hereunto set my
hand and seal this Tenth day of June in the year of our Lord One
thousand eight hundred and eighty two.
WILLIAM STRINGFELLOW. (L.S.)