AN IMPROVEMENT OR IMPROVEMENTS IN BREECH-LOADING FIRE-ARMS
Year: 1855

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Westley Richards, of Birmingham, in the County
of Warwick, Manufacturer, and Joseph Rock Cooper, of Birmingham
aforesaid, Manufacturer, for tho Invention of "AN IMPROVEMENT OR IM-
Sealed the 25th January 1856, and dated the 3rd December 1855.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Westley Richards and
Joseph Rock Cooper at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents,
with their Petition, on the 3rd December 1855.
We, WESTLEY RICHARDS, of Birmingham, in the County of Warwick,
Manufacturer, and JOSEPH ROCK COOPER, of Birmingham aforesaid, Manu-
facturer, do hereby declare the nature of the Invention for "AN IMPROVEMENT
OR IMPROVEMENTS IN BREECH-LOADING FIRE-ARMS " to be as follows:-
Our Invention relates to breech-loading fire-arms, and consists in the method
or methods herein-after explained of closing the breech end of the said fire-
arms. The moveable part of the barrel has a sliding motion in a direction
parallel to its axis, and the breech end of the said moveable barrel has a
conical figure, and is made accurately to fit the conical bed on the fixed part
of the barrel, against which it is made to bear while being discharged. Tho
said moveable barrel is capable of turning on the axis on which it slides, so
that when the breech end is raised from its conical bed the said barrel may be
turned aside, so as no longer to be in a line with the fixed part of the barrel.
While in this position the charge may be introduced at the breech end. The
moveable barrel is then restored to its position by turning upon the axis which
carries it, and by afterwards sliding upon the said axis, the open end is closed

page_text: by being pressed against its bed or seat on the fixed barrel. The sliding
motion last described is effected in the following manner :-On either side of
the moveable barrel, and near the breech. end, is a stud or pin. An arm or
lever turns upon a joint on each side of the fixed portion of the barrel; the
said arms or levers have motion in a vertical plane, and are joined together
underneath the barrel, so as to move simultaneously. When the said arms or
levers are raised they present curved slots on their inner sides to the before-
mentioned pins or studs on the moveable part of the barrel, and the said pins
or studs engage in the said slots. The said slots are excentric to the point
about which the arms or levers turn, the ends of the said slots first-presented
to the pins or studs being of the longest radius. During the rising motion of
the said arms or levers, the moveable barrel is drawn up to the fixed barrel,
and made to engage against the same with great force. The arms or levers
when raised are maintained in their place by a spring catch fastening. We
sometimes modify our Invention by the use of the incline in ways different
from that in which it is applied in the curved slots, herein-before described;
but we do not limit ourselves to details, the essence of our Invention consisting
in closing the breech end of breech-loading fire-arms by the use of the incline,
whether the said incline be situated in a plane or curved, as in a screw.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, filed
by the said Westley Richards and Joseph Rock Cooper in the Great Seal
Patent Office on the 31st May 1856.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, we, WESTLEY
RICHARDS, of Birmingham, in the County of Warwick, Manufacturer, and
JOSEPH ROCK COOPER, of Birmingham aforesaid, Manufacturer, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the Third day of December, in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and fifty-five, in the nineteenth year of Her
reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto us, tho
said Westley Richards and Joseph Rock Cooper, Her special, licence that
we, the said Westley Richards, and Joseph Rock Cooper, our executors, admi-
nistrators, and assigns, or such others as we, the said Westley Richards and
Joseph Rock Cooper, our executors, administrators, and assigns, should at
any time agree with, and no others, from time to time and at all times there-
after during the term therein expressed, should and lawfully might make,
use, exercise, and vend, within the United Kingdom of Great Britain and

page_text: Ireland, the Channel Islands, and Isle of Man, an Invention for AN IM-.
PROVEMENT OR IMPROVEMENTS IN BREECH-LOADING FIRE-ARMS," upon the con-
dition (amongst others) that we, the said Westley Richards and Joseph
Rock Cooper, our executors or administrators, by an instrument in writing
under our or their hands and seals, or under the hand and seal of one of us or
them, should particularly describe and ascertain the nature of tho said In-
vention, 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 Joseph Rock Cooper, do hereby declaro
the nature of the said Invention, and in what manner the same is to be
performed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and by the following.
statement thereof:-
Our Invention relates to breech-loading fire-arms, and consists of tho
methods herein-after explained, and illustrated in the accompanying Drawings,
of opening the breech ends of the said fire-arms, for the purpose of permitting
of the introduction of the charge, and of afterwards closing the said breech
ends preparatory to firing.
Figure 1 represents, in side elevation, and Figure 2, in plan, a musket
constructed according to our Invention; the several parts being represented
in the positions which they occupy when the breech end is open for the
introduction of the charge. The moveable part a of the barrel turns upon the
axis 6, and is also capable of a sliding motion upon the said axis. The end of
the barrel a is made of a conical figure, as represented at c, and the said
conical end c of the barrel is made accurately to fit against the fixed conical
bed d, indicated at dotted lines, against which it is made to bear while being
discharged. The barrel a, by the motion of which it is susceptible upon the
axis b, may be turned aside out of the line of the stock, as shown in Figure 2,
and while in this position the charge is introduced into the fixed part or breech-
end of the barrel. The said barrel a is restored to the position in which it.
is represented in Figure 1 of the Drawing, and is made to slide upon the axis
6 by the method herein-after explained, until the conical end c bears against
the conical bed d. A helical spring, situated around the axis 6 at e, lifts tho
barrel a from the bed d, when the said barrel is not held against the said bed.
The sliding motion by which the end c of the barrel a is made to bear against
the bed d is effected in the following manner :-On either side of the barrel a
and near the breech end is a stud or pin f; an arm or lever g turns upon a
joint on the breech end or fixed portion of the barrel. The said arms or levers.
have motion in a vertical plane, and are joined together by the prolonged
I

page_text: part k. When the part k and arms g are raised into a horizontal position, as
indicated in dotted lines in Figure 1, curved slots on the inner sides of the
arms g, indicated in dotted lines in Figure 1, are presented to the pins or studs f
on the barrel a. The said slots are excentric to the centre h, about which
the arms g turn, the ends of the said slots 1 first presented to the pins or studs
f being of the longest radius. During the rising motion of the arms or levers g,
the conical end c of the barrel a is made to bear with great force against the
fixed conical bed d, the diminishing radius of the slots 1 drawing the pins or
studs nearer to the centre h. The part is held in its horizontal position by
a spring catch fastening m engaging at n.
Figure 3 represents, in vertical section, and Figure 4, in side elevation, 'a
modification of our Invention. In this modification the anterior portion of the
barrel o is fixed, and the posterior portion p of the said barrel is moveable;
the said portion p being capable of rising in a vertical plane about the point q,
and being also capable of a sliding motion in the direction of the axis of the
barrel o. r is an arm or lever which has motion about the centre s; t is a'
wedge, which slides in a vertical plane, and is connected with the lever r by*
the link u. The vertical face of the wedge t bears against the fixed wedge t',
and the inclined face of the said wedge t bears against the back or closed end
of the moveable barrel p. The upper edge of the wedge t is of greater width
than the lower end; (see the front view of the wedge marked T.) On the
closed or breech end of the barrel p hooks w, w, are situated; (see the back
view of the breech end of the barrel marked P;) the hooks w, w, engage in
recesses in the under part of the upper end of the wedge t. Elliptical slots g
are formed on opposite sides of the barrel p, and pins on the body or frame of
P turns
the gun engage in the said slots 9. The breech end of the barrel
upon the pins, entering the slots 9 as a centre, and owing to the elliptical
figure of the said slots q the barrel p can slide horizontally upon the said pins.
When the lever r is depressed tho barrel p is raised into the position repre-
sented in Figure 3; when the lever r is raised to the stock, the barrel p is
brought first into a horizonal position, and then, by the action of the wedge t,
made to engage by a sliding motion with the conical end of the fixed portion
of the barrel o. The charge is introduced into the breech end of the barrel p
when the said barrel is in the position represented in Figure 8, and the
discharge is effected when the lever r has 'been raised and the several parts
brought into the positions represented at Figure 4; the lever r is held in its
horizontal position by a spring catch fastening a. By raising or lowering the
fixed wedge t' by means of the screw t", the 'breech end of the barrel
made to engage more or less tightly with the conical end of the barrel o.
P
is

page_text: Having now described the nature of our said Invention, and the manner of
carrying the same into effect, we wish it to be understood that we do not limit
ourselves to the precise details herein described, as the same may be varied
without departing from the nature of our said Invention; but we claim as our
Invention,
Firstly, the method herein described, and illustrated in Figures 1 and 2 of
the accompanying Drawings, of opening and closing the breech end of muskets
and other fire-arms, that is to say, by giving the barrel a sliding motion in the
direction of its axis, and making the open breech end of the said barrel bear
against a fixed conical bearing by which the said breech end is closed, the said
sliding motion being effected by arms or levers having curved slots excentric
to the centre of motion, which said slots engage with pins or studs on the sides
of the barrel, the said barrel being also capable of turning aside out of the
line of the lock and stock of the fire-arm, for the purpose of loading.
Secondly, the method herein described, and illustrated in Figures 3 and 4,
of the accompanying Drawings, of opening and closing the breech end of fire-
arms, that is to say, by dividing the barrel transversely into two parts, the
anterior part being fixed and the posterior part moveable, the posterior part
being made to turn on a centre, so as to have motion in a vertical plane, and
also capable of a sliding motion in the direction of the axis of the fixed portion
of the barrel, the said motion being effected and the moveable part of the
barrel made to engage with or bear against the fixed part of the barrel by
means of a wedge actuated by an arm or lever underneath the stock.
Thirdly, the adjusting wedge herein described, and marked t¹ in the accom-
panying Drawings, for accurately determining the bearing of the moveable
portion of the barrel against the fixed portion of the barrel.
In witness whereof, I, the said Joseph Rock Cooper, have hereunto
set my hand and seal, this Thirtieth day of May, in the year of
our Lord One thousand eight hundred and fifty-six.
Witness,
RICHARD SKERRETT,
Clerk to George Shaw.
JOSEPH ROCK COOPER. (L.S.)