IMPROVE- MENTS IN BREECH-LOADING ARMS AND CARTRIDGES
Year: 1870

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Thomas Restell, of Birmingham, in the County
of Warwick, Mechanical Engineer, for the Invention of "IMPROVE-
MENTS IN BREECH-LOADING ARMS AND CARTRIDGES."
Sealed the 8th July 1870, and dated the 13th January 1870.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Thomas Restell at the
Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the
13th January 1870.
I, THOMAS RESTELL, of Birmingham, in the County of Warwick,
Mechanical Engineer, do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention
for "IMPROVEMENTS IN BREECH-LOADING ARMS AND CARTRIDGES," to be as
follows:-
My improvements in fire-arms relate to those breech-loading arms
in which a movable block or closer for containing the striking mechanism
is employed, and are applicable to both military and sporting guns; in
the latter case the whole mechanism is fixed to the guard, which does
the work of the needle. In the block I fit a striker pin or needle, which

page_text: has at its rear end a projection or tongue which passes through a slot in
the block and terminates in two wings or lugs, which lie close to and upon
the block, and which act as thumb and finger pieces for drawing the
striker back to set it in position for firing. The stem of the striker is:
provided with two notches or what are commonly known as half and
full bents in ordinary percussion guns, in either one of which the point
or claw of a spring takes. The spring is fitted into the under side of the
block; it has a claw on its upper face which takes into the full or half
bents of the striker stem, in whatever position the striker may be
placed. The fore end of the spring holds the trigger until the latter
is acted upon by the finger. I fit the trigger just in advance of the
centre or axle of the block and carry it down to below the stock, where
it terminates in a hook as is usual. As the block moves either in a
horizontal or a vertical direction the trigger moves with it in a slot
provided for it in the stock and barrel. The striker is encircled and acted
upon by a coiled spring in the usual manner. A projection on the
trigger takes into a recess in the barrel, and the block is thereby held
secure at the time of the explosion. In some cases I employ the full
bent only and fit a spring, knob, or bolt to take against the trigger to
act a half bent..
Sometimes I employ extractors to both the military and sporting guns
like those described in my Patent No. 2038%, or in licu thereof, I affix
the extractors to the block itself, in which case they are made to have
a jutting incline which strike a stud screwed into the barrels of sporting
guns (or at any convenient part of the sight in military weapons).
This screw or stud which is fixed at the lower surface or bottom of the
barrels, catches the end of the extractor when the blocks are moved.
In descending blocks I sometimes have the trigger a fixture, and the
block held by two side pins. The trigger is fixed in the tail piece of
the arm instead of in the block, in this case the trigger is made with
a curve coincident with the centre of the two pins; thus the trigger
has a curved end in a curve with the interior of the holes drilled to
receive the pins, has no motion in itself while the block is moving. The
slots or bents in the needle in this case upon the curves, the slots being
made longitudinally and right through the metal.
In some cases should I desire to employ the usual lock in which the
half and full bents are placed, I am therefore enabled to dispense with
the employment of the half and full. bents in the needle. I fit a small
.

page_text: piece of metal, preferably steel, into the nose of the hammer. The face of
the piece is recessed to pass over the nipple to fit the square of the same
and prevent the block blowing up should a defective cartridge be
employed in an equally efficient manner as the lever and bolt now used
in the Snider and other weapons.
My improvements in cartridges consist in slitting or cutting away the
fore end of the cartridge case. After loading with the powder and the
wad I reduce it to the size of the bullett. When the explosion takes
place the case at once reopens and liberates the wad, which is large:
than the bore of the weapon, and which it cleans as it passes through.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent,
filed by the said Thomas Restell in the Great Seal Patent Office
on the 13th July 1870.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, THOMAS -
RESTELL, of Birmingham, in the County of Warwick, Mechanical
Engineer, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her
Letters Patent, bearing date the Thirteenth day of January, in the
year of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and seventy, in the
thirty-third year of Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors,
give and grant unto me, the said Thomas Restell, Her special licence,
that I, the said Thomas Restell, my executors, administrators, and assigns,
or such others as I, the said Thomas Restell, my exccutors, adminis-
trators, 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 ARMS
AND CARTRIDGES," upon the condition (amongst others) that I, the said
Thomas Restell, 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

page_text: 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 Restell, do hereby declare
the nature of my 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, reference being had to the Drawings.
hereunto annexed, that is to say:
-
My improvements in fire-arms relate to those breech-loading arms
in which a movable block or closer for containing the striking
mechanism is employed, and are applicable to both military and sporting
guns in the latter case the whole mechanism is fixed to the guard
which does the work of the lever. In the block I fit a striker pin or
needle, which has at one end a projection or tongue which passes
through a slot in the block, and terminates in two wings or lugs which
lie close to and upon the block, and which act as thumb or finger
pieces for drawing the striker back to set it in position for firing. The
stem of the striker is provided with two notches, or what are commonly
known as half and full bents in ordinary percussion guns, in either one
of which the point or claw of a spring takes. The trigger is fitted
into the under side of the block; it has a claw on its upper face which
takes into the full or half bents of the striker stem in whatever position
the striker may be placed. The fore end of the spring holds the
trigger until the latter is acted upon by the finger. I fit the trigger
just in advance of the centre or axle of the block, and carry it down to
below the stock, where it terminates in a hook as is usual. As the block
moves either in a horizontal or in a vertical direction the trigger moves
with it in a slot provided for it in the stock and barrel. The striker is
encircled and acted upon by a coiled spring in the usual manner. A
projection on the trigger takes into a recess in the barrel, and the
block is thereby held secure at the time of the explosion. In some
cases I employ the full bent only and fit a spring, knob, or bolt to take
against the trigger to act as a half bent.
Sometimes I employ extractors to both the military and sporting
guns like those described in my Patent No. 2038, or in lieu thereof
I affix the extractors to the block itself, in which case they are made to
have a jutting incline which strikes a stud screwed into the barrels of
sporting guns (or at any convenient part of the site in military

page_text: weapons). This screw or stud, which is fixed at the lower surface or
bottom of the barrels, catches the end of the extractor when the blocks
are moved.
The Invention will be well understood by referring to the accompany-.
ing Drawings, and to the following detailed description :-
Figure 1 represents as much of a gun as is required to show how my
Invention is carried into effect. a is the striker pin or needle, to the
stem of which a projection or tongue 6 is secured, the projection passes
up through a slot in the block c, and terminates in two wings or lugs
d, d, for the fingers of the firer to act upon to draw back the needle.
The stem of the striker is encircled by a coiled spring e, which forces
the needle forward when the claw f of the trigger g is released from
the bents of the needle, by the pull-back action of the trigger in the
usual manner. The block c has the trigger fitted in a recess formed in
it, where it is pinned to the block by a transverse pin h, as shown, and in
line with or near to the axis of the needle. The trigger and the claw
are composed of one piece of metal, and the claw is kept in position by
a spring i fixed to its under side. The block c is held in the shoe or
breech piecej by a vertical bolt or pin k, which acts as a pivot to enable
the block to be moved to one side when the arm has to be loaded. The
bolt k is secured in its place by a tongue 7 through which a screw m
passes, as shown. The rear end of the barrel n has a cap hole fastened
on it. The cap has a recess in it for the reception of the fore end of the
sliding piece p, which serves to hold the block firmly while the arm is
being discharged; there is also a pin on the under side of the claw
which takes into a hole in the shoe to assist in holding the block.
Figure 2 is a plan view of the arm with the block shown in dotted
lines, to indicate the position it takes when it is open for the reception
of a fresh cartridge.
Figure 3 represents an elevation of the breech and a part of the barrel,
and Figure 4 a transverse section of the shoe and barrel, while Figure 5
shows the end view of the sliding plate p, and wings or lugs d, d. The
cap o has a projection q at one side for carrying the extractor » and
its lever s; the lever stands out from the projection so that it can be
struck by the block as it is pushed or thrown to one side. By this
means the extractor is brought into action to withdraw the empty
cartridge casc from the chamber. The bottom of the block has a
curved slot in it for a pint on the levers to ride in, so that the fore end
1

page_text: of the block moves clear of the ball before the extractor is actuated.
There is a hole in the bottom of the lever for a conical pin on the end
of a spring u, Fig. 6, to take into, and when the extractor is shot out
by the block to remove the empty case the conical form of the pin
returns the extractor to its place in the rear of the barrel. Figure 7 is
a detached view of the extractor and its lever.
In the foregoing Figures I have shewn the needle's stem as having a
full and a half bent for the claw to take into, but in many cases a full
bent only need be employed, and to enable this to be understood I have
in Figures 8 and 9 shown detached views of a portion of an arm made
in the manner described. I fit a small cylinder behind the trigger; the
cylinder is held in position by a spring on a pin. The cylinder has a
projection which when the arm is cocked or "set" comes against the
trigger and prevents its being acted upon by the finger. There is a small
pin on the top of the cylinder which takes into one or other of two holes
in the shoe or trigger plate to retain it in either position whether the
arm has to be fired or not; the pin is perferably of a conical shape.
In some cases, should I desire to employ the usual lock in which the
half and full bents are placed, I can dispense with the half and full bents
in the needle; this is done by fitting a small piece of metal, preferably
steel, into the nose of the hammer, the face of the piece is recessed to
pass over the nipple to fit the square of the same and prevent the
block blowing up should a defective cartridge be employed in as equally
an efficient manner as the lever and bolt now used in the Snider and.
other weapons. This is clearly shewn in Figure 10.
My improvements in cartridges consist in slitting or cutting away the
fore end of the cartridge case. After loading with the powder and the
wad I reduce it to the size of the bullet. When the explosion takes
place the case at once reopens and liberates the wad, which is larger
than the bore of the weapon, and which it cleans as it passes through.
This is shown in Figure 11. The cartridge case is of the same diameter
from one end to the other, and the slits are formed by cutting pieces
out or otherwise removing pieces from it for about one-third its length.
The powder is then placed in the case and then a wad, after which the
bullet is inserted, and a die, Fig. 12, brought down over the bullet to
contract the split portion of the case and bring it down to the diameter
of the bullet, which is smaller than the part of the case which contains
the powder. By this means a bottle necked cartridge is formed. It

page_text: "
will be understood that the wad is contained in the larger diameter
and is forced out of the barrel with the bullet, cleaning the barrel in
its progress through it.
And having now described the nature of my said Invention, and in
what manner the same is to be performed, I desire to claim as new,-
Firstly. The employment of a trigger fixed in a block working hori-
zontally and not fixed to any part of the shoe or barrel as heretofore.
Secondly. The method shown and described of dispensing with the
secondary lever spring bolt now applied to the Snider weapon for the
purpose of rendering them safe should a defective cartridge be used,
making the hammer itself effect this object without employing any
additional agent.
Thirdly. The method of locking the trigger of full bent weapons, as
licrein-before described and shewn..
And, fourthly. I claim the construction of cartridges, as shewn and
described.
In witness whereof, I, the said Thomas Restell, have hereunto set
my hand and seal, this Twelfth day of July One thousand eight
hundred and seventy.
THOMAS RESTELL. (L.S.)