IMPROVE- MENTS IN BREECH-LOADING FIRE-ARMS.
Year: 1864

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Ernesto Petito, No. 6, Grange Terrace, Brompton,
in the County of Middlesex, Gentleman, for the Invention of "IMPROVE-
MENTS IN BREECH-LOADING FIRE-ARMS.'
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Ernesto Petito at the
Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the 1st
September 1864.
I, ERNESTO PETITO, of 6, Grange Terrace, Brompton, in the County of
Middlesex, Gentleman, do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention for
"IMPROVEMENTS IN BREECH-LOADING FIRE-ARMS," to be as follows:-
The barrel of the fire-arm is in two parts, of which the forward or muzzle
part is fixed in the stock, while the chamber or rear part to receive the charge
is moveable by a leaver in such a manner that the chamber is raised to present
its upper forward end for loading by the action of the lever that raises the
hammer to full cock; for this purpose the chamber piece turns upon a hori-
zontal axis, through a steel bushed hole in rear of its breech end. This axis
is a screw, and when the lever (fixed to the chamber) turns the fore end of the
chamber upwards through an angle of about forty-five degrees the correspond.
ing motion of the chamber horizontally along the screw immediately frees the
surfaces of the chamber and barrel, before then in contact. These surfaces
are so made convex and concave by proper tools in the lathe as to pass each
other and to close firmly when the two are brought to coincide for firing.

page_text: At the rear end of the chamber piece is a feather inclined to the vertical at
an angle corresponding with that of the screw axis, and taking into a groove
protected by a spring piece so as to exclude dust from above, and thus at each
motion of the lever each part of the chamber piece has the same amount of
horizontal motion, and when the weapon is ready to be fired the rear of the
chamber piece abuts on the grooved piece already mentioned fixed in the stock;
but adjustable for wear by a wedge and screws, so as always to press the two
pieces of the barrel together. The screw axis has a small horizontal play for-
wards to admit of this adjustment for tightening. The pillar or nipple may
be placed at any distance from the breech end of the chamber piece, and the
hole through which the percussion fire passes to the charge may be bored in a
plane perpendicular to the axis of the piece. The upper end of the pillar
presses against the hammer so as to raise it to full cock, and the axis of the
chamber is so placed in relation to the axis of the hammer as to effect the
above purpose with the least possible rubbing or grinding motion between the
surfaces of the pillar, the exploded cap, and the hammer.
For needle guns the screw axis is so modified as to allow the needle to play
forward by a longitudinal aperture in. the needle flattened and expanded at
that part, and the needle bolt has a button on the rear end which travels along
a properly curved guide when the lever is lowered so. as to withdraw the needle
to its proper position for charging. The lever before mentioned may carry
both the trigger guard and the trigger itself, so that the hammer cannot be
freed by the trigger except when the lever is in its proper place ready for the
piece to be fired. The action when applied to double-barrelled fire-arms is
the same, but the position of each lever has to be slightly modified, or one
lever may work both chambers.
2
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, filed
by the said Ernesto Petito in the Great Seal Patent Office on the
27th February 1865.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, ERNESTO :30
PETITO, of No. 6, Grange Terrace, Brompton, in the County of Middlesex,
Gentleman, send greeting."
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters:
Patent, bearing date the First day of September, in the year. of our Lord:
One thousand eight hundred and sixty-four, in the twenty-eighth year of Her:35
reign, did, for Herself, Her, heirs and successors, give and grant unto me, the

page_text: said Ernesto Petito, Her special licence that I, the said Ernesto. Petito, my
executors, administrators, and assigns, or such others as I, the said Ernesto.
Petito, my executors, administrators, and assigns, should-at any time agree
with, and no others, from time to time and at all times thereafter during ther
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 upon the condition (amongst others) that I, the said Ernesto,
Petito, my executors or administrators, by an instrument in writing under
my, or their, or one of their hands and seals, should particularly describe and.
áscertain 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 Ernesto Petito, do hereby declare
the nature of my 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, reference being bad to the Drawings hereunto annexed, that is:
to say:
**The object of my Invention is to facilitate the employment of breech-loading
fire-arms, both those fired by percussion caps and those fired with "self-
igniting cartridges exploded by the needle or similar means. The general
nature of the means I employ is described in the Provisional Specification:
filed with my application for the Letters Patent, which was to the: effecti
following:-
The barrel of the fire-arm is in two parts, of which the forward or muzzle
part is fixed in the stock, while the chamber or rear part to receive the charge;
is moveable by a lever in such a manner that the chamber is raised to present.
its upper forward end for loading by the action of the lever that raises. the
hammer to full cock; for this purpose the chamber piece turns upon á hori-
zontal axis through a steel bushed hole in-rear of its breech end. This axis iś:
a screw, and when the lever (fixed to the chamber) turns the fore end of the
chamber upwards through an angle of about 45° the corresponding motion of
the chamber horizontally along the screw immediately frees the surfaces of the
chamber and barrel, before then in contact. These surfaces are so made con-
vex and concave by proper tools in the lathe as to pass each other and to close
firmly when the two are brought to coincide for firing. At the rear end of the
chamber, piece is a feather inclined to the vertical at an angle corresponding
with that of the screw axis, and taking into a groove protected by a spring

page_text: piece so as to 'exclude dust from: above, and thus, at each motion of the lever.
each part of the chamber piece has the same amount of horizontal motion,
and when the weapon is ready to be fired the rear of the chamber piece abuts
on the grooved piece already mentioned fixed in the stock, but adjustable for
wear by a wedge and screws, so as always to press the two pieces of the barrel
together. The screw-axis has a small--horizontal play forwards to admit of
this adjustment for tightening. The pillar or nipple may be placed at any
distance from the breech end of the chamber piece, and the hole through
which the percussion fire passes to the charge may be bored in a plane per-
pendicular to the axis of the piece. The upper end of the pillar presses against
the hammer so as to raise it to full cock, and the axis of the chamber is so
placed in relation to the axis of the hammer as to effect the above purpose
with the least possible rubbing or grinding-motion-between the surfaces of the
pillar, the exploded cap, and the hammer.
For needle guns the screw axis is so modified as to allow the needle to play
forward by a longitudinal aperture in the needle flattened and expanded at
that part, and the needle bolt has a button on the rear end which, travels along
a properly curved guide when the lever is lowered so as to withdraw the
needle to its proper position for charging. The lever before mentioned may
carry both the trigger guard and the trigger itself, so that the hammer cannot
be freed by the trigger except when the lever is in its proper place ready for
the piece to be. fired. The action when applied to double-barrelled fire-arms
is the same, but the position of each lever has to be slightly modified, or one
lever may work both chambers..
I now proceed to describe my Invention more in detail.
"My Invention applied to fire-arms is represented in the Drawings accom-
panying this Specification, wherein the same letters refer to similar parts.
throughout.
Figure 1 is a side view of that part of the fire-arm necessary to shew the
Invention and with the chamber open for loading; Figure 2 is the same with
the chamber still closed after it has been fired; Figure 3 is a section of the
chief part of Figure 1; Figure 4 is part of this section with the chamber
removed; Figure 5 is. a, section at right angles to Figure 4; Figure 6
shews two wedges; Figure 7 is a horizontal section through the centre of the
chamber of a needle fire-arm, and Figures 8 and 9 are parts to be described;
Figure 10 is a vertical section of the chamber of the fire-arm in Figure 7;
Figure 11 is a horizontal section of the chamber. in Figure 3, at right angles
to that in Figure 3.
:
A, the small of the stock; B, the fixed part of the barrel; C, C, the

page_text: chamber turning on the horizontal axis at D by the lever E, fixed to the
chamber C by the parts F, F, and carrying on it the trigger and its guard
G; the hammer H is raised in Figure 1 and at its lowest point in Figure 2.
The chamber C (Figure 3) consists of a part to hold the charge, and in the
rear of the breech it is narrowed (Figures 7 and 11) and pierced with a steel
bushed hole K to receive a horizontal axis, Figure 9, similarly tapped, the two
ends of which being smaller and squared pass into the slit or hole D in each
side of the frame by the wider openings at J (Figures 3 and 4); one of these
openings is larger than the other, that the screw axis may be introduced
there when the chamber is in its place (Figure 5, where the upper hole is the
larger). When the chamber is turned on this axis the screw causes it also to
move to one side horizontally and immediately frees the corresponding surfaces
of the fore end of the chamber and the rear of the barrel, which surfaces are
parts of the inside and outside of a cone (the inclination of which is described
hereafter). These surfaces have to be cut so as to fit accurately at all points
alike, which can readily be done by a conical cutter adjusted in a lathe or simi-
lar machine, wherein the chamber surface is shaped as it is made to rotate on an
axis through K. The barrel surface may be likewise shaped when stationary
by a tool caused to rotate and travel like the chamber. The chamber is moved
up for loading into the position, Figure 1, and is brought back to that of
Figure 2 by the lever fixed to it by the parts F, F, one of which works
through the aperture L (Figures 3, 4, 5). When the chamber is closed the
lever is kept in position (Figure 2,) by a spring catch at M on the end of the
lever, which is so shaped as to be conveniently accessible to the band, acting
either on a projecting knob or on the end of the lever in an opening through
the wood, as shewn in Figure 1. The trigger is thus brought into the proper
position to act on the lock when the hammer has been full cocked. At the rear
end of the chamber is a feather or projecting piece N (Figures 7 and 11)
taking into a groove in the piece O, seen in Figures 3 and 4 inside view, and
in Figures 5 and 6 in horizontal section, and as this end N of the chamber has
a lateral as well as an angular motion the feather and the groove must have
an inclined direction to correspond. The bearing surfaces on each side of the
feather and of the groove are conical in like manner as those of the chamber
and barrel, to allow of the shifting of the rear end of the chamber laterally, so
as partially to free it from the solid piece O. The chamber is thus steadied
by its pressure on this feather and groove, and also when closed by the
pressure
of its fore end against the barrel. The piece O bears the recoil of the breech
because the holes D supporting the axis ends are prolonged and allow of some
forward and backward play; and to enable the piece O to be kept always well

page_text: forward and to be tightened when required there is behind it a wedge P, shewn
in vertical section in Figures 3, 6, and in horizontal section in Figures 5, 8.
One side of the wedge P'abuts against the solid frame in the rear and the other
moves along the bevelled face of the piece O, so that by pressure of the screw Q
(Figure 3) the wedge P can be forced down and the piece O forced horizontally
forward. An adjustment laterally of the chamber so as to coincide with the barrel
may be partially effected by turning the screw, Figure 9, before placing it finally
in the hole for it at D, where it is not allowed to turn on account of its squared
end. Moreover, each of the pieces P and O have corresponding grooves (Figure 8)
locking into each other, so that when P is withdrawn or loosened it draws back O,
and the two pieces thus always inove together. The angle or ratio of the length
of axis to the radius of the cone of the surfaces of the chamber and barrel
ought to be such as to enable the separation of the surfaces to free them
speedily; while on the other hand this angle or ratio must not be so great as
to cause one side of the chamber to be considerably shorter than the other,
and thereby to throw too unequal a pressure on the parts when the charge is
exploded. In practice and for ordinary fire-arms I have found that a cone
whose radius of base is to height of axis as one to 32 answers well, but this
ratio should be reduced for bored fire-arms. The cut or opening L (Figures
4,5,) allows dust and other things to fall through, which if confined might
interfere with the action. To prevent the introduction of these behind the
axis when the chamber is opened there is a plate S (Figures. 1, 2, 4,) either
rigid' or with a slight spring fitting against the chamber it its opene position.
The frame to support the mechanism is fitted into the stock and is shewn at
T (Figures 1, 2). In double-barrelled fire-arms the frame may be made
of the width of the stock and of one piece of metal. For special or light
fire-arms the rear end of the frame may be placed lower than in Figure 1,
and the end of the chamber to abut against it lowered down accordingly.
When the Invention is applied to fire-arms by converting the barrels and
stocks as now used so as to contain it, the lever E is fixed at such a distance
from the chamber as to enable it to work without entering so far into the
material of the small of the stock as to weaken it, but where stocks are spe-
cially constructed for the purpose the lever may be closer to the chamber.
When the chamber is to be made for a barrel already furnished with a screwed
breech piece the chamber may be in two parts, and the front end of the rear
part may have a screw tapped and thus screwed into the breech and fixed.
Another part of my Invention consists in causing the motion of the lever
which opens the chamber to lift the hammer (or in needle fire-arms set the
needle) at the same time. It may be thus lifted either to half. cock (to be

page_text: full cocked afterwards by hand,) or to full cock at once. This is effected for
ordinary fire-arms by the pillar pushing up the hammer when the chamber is
raised, and it will be seen that if the axis of the hammer and that of the
chamber (on which axis the lever turns) be made coincident there will be no
forward and backward friction between the pillar and hammer. But as it is
sometimes inconvenient so to arrange the lock as to, obtain this advantage, I
then adjust the parts so as to make the interval of travelling with friction as
short as possible by placing the axis D of the lever, the axis Y (Figures 1, 2,)
of the hammer, so that a line drawn through them shall bisect the axis travelled
over by the two last-mentioned surfaces when in contact. If it be specially
desired to have, the friction reduced the axis D of the chamber may be lowered
below the axis of the barrel, so as to approach that of the hammer, but then
it is evident that one effect of the explosion will be to tend to raise the fore end.
of the chamber and thus to throw a strain on the catch at M; on the other
hand, by raising the axis D of the chamber above that of the barrel the ex-:
plosion tends to close the fore end of the chamber downwards, which is an.
advantage with respect to the strain to be resisted, but increases the friction.
between the pillar and hammer. When the charge is to be exploded by a
cap the pillar may be either above or at one side and in any required position.
with respect to the breech. If the block of the pillar is at the side it may.
be undercut so as to allow the edge of the frame to enter it partly and thus
preserve the strength of the frame, as seen in Figure 11, where Z is in section
the overhanging part of the block. When the charge is to be fired by a
needle in the rear the percussion blow may be given to it in various ways by
adapting the needle motion now in use or in the manner represented in
Figure 7, which is a horizontal section, and in Figure 10, which is a vertical
section of the chamber when fitted for that purpose. In these it will be seen
that the rear end of the chamber is hollowed to admit of the mechanism for
the needle inside, and this hollow part is closed by two plates R fixed on
by screws and with holes for the axis D, which fits into the screw at K
(Figure 7), carried on a piece attached to that shewn there at the upper
plate in the Figure, and projecting through a hole in the lower plate, while
the piece is of a thickness shewn by the distance between the outer and inner
circles around D in Figure 10. The piece U (Figure 10) attached to the
5 needle has a stud W at one corner, which projects on each side (Figure 7)
and takes into a properly curved guide X, Figure 4, on each side of the frame,
and thus when the chamber is opened for loading the piece U with the needle
on it is withdrawn until the catch of a trigger V (Figure 10), and retains it
in the position ready to be fired, and at the same time presses against a spring

page_text: of sufficient power to force the needle forward when released by the trigger.
When this arrangement for firing the needle is used the piece U may be
pushed back by the studs and grooves either to full cock at once or to half
cock when it is desired to full cock by hand, in which case the last motion may
be given to U by a stud projecting so as to be acted on by a lever or false
hammer worked by hand. When the charge is fired from the rear the axis
on which the chamber turns need not be horizontal, but may be in any
direction
of sufficient power to force the needle forward when released by the trigger.
When this arrangement for firing the needle is used the piece U may be
pushed back by the studs and grooves either to full cock at once or to half
cock when it is desired to full cock by hand, in which case the last motion may
be given to U by a stud projecting so as to be acted on by a lever or false
hammer worked by hand. When the charge is fired from the rear the axis
on which the chamber turns need not be horizontal, but may be in any
direction
I claim as my Invention,-
First, the whole combination of parts as above described.
Second, the chamber of breech-loading fire-arms opened and closed by
giving to it an angular motion about an axis, and at the same time a lateral
motion along the same.
Third, the hammer or similar part for percussion of a breech-loading fire-
arm moved towards full cock or reset by the direct action upon it of the pillar
when a cap is used, or the corresponding part when another form of percussion
substance intervenes.
Fourth, in needle fire-arms and those similarly fired the means above.
described for withdrawing the needle or corresponding part so to reset it for
convenient firing.
In witness whereof, I, the said Ernesto Petito, have hereunto set my
hand and seal, this Twenty-seventh day of February, One thousand
eight hundred and sixty-five.