IMPROVEMENTS IN THE CONSTRUCTION OF BREECH-LOADING FIRE-ARMS
Year: 1861

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to George Sturrock, of Woolwich, in the County of
Kent, Serjeant-Major, Royal Engineers, for the Invention of "IMPROVE-
Sealed the 24th January 1862, and dated the 29th July 1861.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said George Sturrock at the
Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the
29th July 1861.
I, GEORGE STURROCK, of Woolwich, in the County of Kent, Serjeant-Major,
Royal Engineers, do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention for
"IMPROVEMENTS IN THE CONSTRUCTION OF BREECH-LOADING FIRE-ARMS," to be as
follows:-
The chamber which receives the charge is made to open out clear of the
barrel by a lever, which when pressed upwards by the hand, raises a slotted
wedge plate from between the face of the false breech and the back end of the
chamber, and allows the chamber to slide backwards upon a longitudinal bolt
hinge lying parallel with the axis of the barrel. This motion clears the fore
end of the chamber (which is cylindrical, and slightly coned) from the back
end of the barrel, and allows the chamber to be folded out to receive the
charge.

page_text: The gun can be constructed so as to receive the ammunition at the fore end
of the chamber, or to receive the pasteboard cartridge (known as the
Lefaulcheux) at the back end; in which latter case the chamber is hollow
throughout, the back end being closed by a plate of metal, capable of being
opened and closed by a hinge joint when the chamber is opened out clear of
the barrel. The same lever is used for the whole of the movements required.
In the accompanying sketches so much of the breech end of a gun is shown
as will explain the Invention.
Fig. 1 represents a top view looking slantways down upon a double-barrelled
gun from towards the butt end, both chambers being opened out ready to
receive the charge. The lower side is drawn to show the chamber made to
receive the ordinary ammunition, and the chamber upon the upper side of the
Figure made to receive the Lefauleheux cartridge. Both principles are shown
in one gun to avoid repeating the Drawing. Fig. 2, a side elevation, with
the chamber drawn back and opened out as before; Fig. 3, a top view with
the chambers closed, and the levers pushed down ready for firing; Fig. 4, a
similar view, with one chamber closed, but with the lever pushed up ready for
drawing back the chamber, and the opposite chamber drawn back, clear of the
barrel previous to folding the chamber outwards; Fig. 5, a separate sketch of
the lever detached; and Fig. 6, the lever and wedge plate connected with the
back end of the chamber; Fig. 7, a sketch showing connection of the fore end
with the stock.
b
The mode of operation is as follows:-The lever a (only the top of which is
seen in Fig. 3) is pushed up into the position shown upon the lower side of
Fig. 4, and at Fig. 6 the chamber A pulled back so as to clear the fore part
of it, b, from the barrel c; the chamber A is then opened out, as seen at
Fig. 1; the charge inserted at the fore end d, the chamber folded up, pushed
forward, and the lever turned down, as seen at Fig. 3. The chamber when
folded in is held up in position by the fore part 6 of the chamber entering the
barrel, and by a projecting lip at the fore part of the chamber, fitting into a
corresponding recess a, Fig. 2, at the back end of the barrel, also by the
hooked butte attached to the chamber, hooking into the slot f in the false
breech B, and by the lower part of the slotted wedge plate n being forced
down by the lever a into a recess in the false breech. The chamber is held
up to its work by the thicker part n' of the wedge plate being forced down by
and in connection with the lever between the face of the false breech and tlie
back end of the chamber. The upper part of the face of the false breech is
cut away at q, to allow the thick part n' of the wedge plate when raised by
the lever to slide over 9 as the chamber is forced back. The action of the

page_text: lever will be seen by reference to Figs. 5 and 6. The flat part a¹ of the
lever a is pivoted securely at p to the back end of the chamber. o, n, n', form
the wedge plate, which is secured to the chamber by the edge of the metal z,
taking into a corresponding vertical groove in the chamber, and by the guide
screws working in the slot s'. The wedge plate can thus slide up and down
against the end of the chamber. The flat part a' of the lever a lies between
the back end of the chamber and the face of that part marked o of the wedge
plate, which face lies at right angles to n. The screw attached to the lever
works in the slot in the wedge plate. From this it will be understood that
when the lever is pressed downwards from the position shown at Fig. 6, the
screw describes a curve downwards, causing the wedge plate to slide
vertically downwards, guided by the edge z and the slots and screws described,
the reverse action of the lever causing the wedge plate to slide upwards. The
whole of the false breech is made in one piece. The barrel c is attached to the
false breech by the hutts g and h, hooking into the false breech, as shown in
Fig. 2, the larger hutt g being securely held by the bolt i passing transversely
through the fore end of it and through the false breech. The fore part of the
false breech is attached to the stock by a bolt passing through the wood and
through an eye attached to the barrel in the usual way, but I also attach the
stock securely to the false breech by the back end of the stock t being cut
away to fit along both sides of the fore part of the false breech; I also cut
away the lower side of the fore part of the false breech, so that the wood.
overlaps it at u, through which a strong screw v passes into the metal of the
false breech, see Figs. 2 and 7. The opposite chamber, upon the Lefaulcheux
principle, is constructed precisely the same in every respect, except that the
back end of the chamber C folds downwards upon the hinge 1, so as to allow
the Lefaulcheux cartridge (which contains its own percussion) to be placed in.
the chamber at the back end m. The back plate k is then shut up, when the
remaining motions are just the same as described with the opposite chamber,
which is solid at its back end. The Lefaulcheux cartridge would be acted
upon by the hammer in the usual way with such cartridges.
·
The Drawing shows the chambers folding flatly against each other, but I
prefer a metal plate to separate them, so as to prevent the possibility of the
explosion of the powder in the one chamber igniting that in the other.
. The Invention is applicable to either single or double-barrelled fire-
arms.

page_text: SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, filed
by the said George Sturrock in the Great Seal Patent Office on
the 29th January 1862.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, GEORGE
STURROCK, of Woolwich, in the County of Kent, Serjeant-Major, Royal
Engineers, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen-Victoria, by-Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the Twenty-ninth day of July, in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and sixty-one, in the twenty-fifth year of
Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto
me, the said George Sturrock, Her special license that I, the said George
Sturrock, my executors, administrators, and assigns, or such others as I, the
said George Sturrock, 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 said term therein expressed, should and lawfully might
make, use, exercise, and vend, within the United Kingdom of Great Bri-
tain and Ireland, the Channel Islands, and Isle of Man, an Invention
for "IMPROVEMENTS IN THE CONSTRUCTION OF BREECH-LOADING FIRE-ARMS," upon
the condition (amongst others) that I, the said George Sturrock, by an
instrument in writing under my hand and seal, 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 George Sturrock, 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 (that is to say):-
The construction of breech-loading fire-arms, whereby the chamber which
receives the charge is made to open out clear of the barrel by a lever, which,
when pressed upwards by the hand, raises a slotted wedge plate from between
the face of the fore end or false breech and the back end of the chamber, and
allows the chamber to slide backwards upon a longitudinal bolt hinge lying
parallel with the axis of the gun. This motion clears the fore end of the
chamber (which is cylindrical and slightly coned) from the back end of the
barrel (which is recessed and correspondingly coned), and thus admits of the
chamber being folded out to receive the charge.
The gun can be constructed so as to receive the ammunition at the fore end

page_text: of the chamber, or to receive the cartridge (known as the Lefaulcheux) at its
back end, in which latter case the chamber is hollow throughout, the back
end being closed for firing by a plate of metal hinged upon the back end of
the chamber. When the chamber is opened out clear of the barrel this plate
is folded back to enable the Lefaulcheux cartridge to be introduced at the rear
or back end of the chamber. One lever is used for the whole of the move-
ments required in loading, and with the ordinary cartridge the gun may be
loading at the muzzle if desired.
In the accompanying Sheet of Drawings, Fig. 1 represents a top view
looking slantways down upon a double-barreled gun from the butt towards the
muzzle, the upper or left-hand chamber being closed, and the lower or right-
hand chamber opened out ready to receive the charge; Fig. 2, a top or plan
view with both chambers closed; Fig. 3, a side elevation with the chambers
closed; Fig. 4, a top or plan view with the lower or right-hand chamber shown
with the lever raised ready for drawing back the chamber clear of the barrel.
The upper or left-hand chamber is shown drawn back to clear the coned end
from the barrel ready for folding the chamber out, which final position is
already shewn in Fig. 1; Fig. 5 represents a sketch of the lever detached;
Fig. 6, a sketch of the lever and slotted wedge plate attached to the chamber;
Fig. 7, a longitudinal section showing the method of attaching the barrel to the
fore end or false breech and stock; Fig. 8, a section showing the longitudinal
bolt upon which the chamber is binged to the fore end or false breech of the
gun; Fig. 9, a top or plan view of the fore end or false breech detached from
the barrels; Fig. 10 represents one half plan view of a double-barreled gun
with the chamber constructed to receive the Lefaulcheux cartridge, the
chamber being folded out and its back end opened.
It will be seen by reference to Fig. 6 that the chamber C which receives the
charge, is bored through its lower side longitudinally to receive the bolt
hinge p, Fig. 8, which secures the chamber to the fore end or false breech B.
The hole in the false breech B, in which the bolt p is placed, is continued
along the fore part of the false breech and stock at pl, to allow the bolt p to be
drawn forward by the pin u when it is required to remove the chamber from
the gun. This pin u projects upwards through the slot u', Fig. 9, to render it
accessible when the barrels are removed.
The method of securing the fore end or false breech B to the barrels is
shown at Figs. 7 and 9, Fig. 7 being a section with the barrels in position,
and Fig. 9, a plan view of the fore end with the barrels removed, but with the
key and loop bolts placed in the slots. A strong hutt g is forged upon the lower
side of the barrels to hook into a correspondingly curved recess g¹ in the fore

page_text: end or false breech B; a bolt i is then passed through slots formed to receive
it in both the fore end or false breech and the hutt g. The fore part t of the
wood stock is attached to the metal by the countersunk head wood screws v, v,
passing through the metal into the wood, or the screws may be passed upwards
through the wood into the metal if preferred. Forward of the hutt g an eye h
is forged upon the barrels in the usual manner, which eye drops through a
slot h¹ in the fore end into a recess in the stock; a loop boltj passing through
the wood under the metal of the fore end, through the eye upon the barrel.
The chamber C which receives the charge is made of three distinct portions
(see Figs. 5 and 6), first, that portion in which the explosion takes place is
solid, with a cylindrical chamber bored in it sufficiently large to receive the
charge; this chamber opens out, as before explained, upon the longitudinal
bolt hinge p lying parallel with the axis of the barrel. The exterior of the
fore part of the chamber is cylindrical and slightly coned b, Fig. 4, and fits
accurately and concentrically with the bore of the barrel into the coned recess
c, Fig. 1, at the back end of the barrel.
The back or solid end of the chamber C, Fig. 6, has attached to it a slotted
wedge N. This plate is angular, one face n lying parallel with the inner flat
side of the chamber C, the other face o being parallel with the back end of the
chamber. It is attached to and slides vertically upon the chamber by the
dovetail wedge blocks (fixed to the chamber) and the slot s¹, also by the dove-
tail joint . The third portion of the chamber is shewn detached at Fig. 5,
the flat part a of the lever A is placed between the back end of the chamber C
and the side o of the slotted wedge plate; it is pivoted at r to the chamber;
the screw is passed through the slot and screwed into the lever. Its
action is best explained at Fig. 6, where the various parts composing the
chamber are combined and shown in the positions they would respectively
occupy if the chamber were opened out to receive the charge. If the lever A
be pushed down, being pivoted at 1, the screw r¹ describes an arc of a circle,
and sliding along the slot forces down the slotted wedge plate N. When
the lever A is down and the chamber closed, the lever is held in position by
the bell-crank spring catch d hooking into a recess formed in the under side
of the fore end or false breech.
The action of the gun is as follows:-In seizing the lever A the finger
pressing upon one arm of the bell-crank spring catch & relieves the catch; the
lever is then forced up from the position shewn at Figs. 2 and 3 into the
position shown at the lower side of Fig. 4. The raising of the lever having,
plate, the thick part n, Fig. 6, of
as before explained, raised the slotted wedge
the plate is free to slide back over the recessed part y, Fig. 8, of the false

page_text: breech, thus allowing the coned fore part 6 of the chamber to clear the back
end of the barrel, as seen at the upper part of Fig. 4, when the chamber
can be opened out upon its hinge into the position shewn at the lower side
of Fig. 1.
b
The charge is placed in the chamber and the chamber closed by the reverse
movements of those just described. When closed the chamber is held in
position by the coned part 6 entering the barrel by a hooked butt e upon the
chamber, entering the recess f, Figs. 1 and 9, in the false breech, and by the
lower part of the slotted wedge plate N, Fig. 6, being forced down by the
lever into a recess f¹, Fig. 9, in the false breech. The lower side of the fore
part of the chamber may also have a projecting lip, if desired, to fit into a
corresponding recess æ, Fig. 8, in the back end of the barrel.
The chamber is held firmly up to the barrel so as to prevent any escape of
gas by the thick parts n and o, Fig. 6 of the slotted wedge plate N, being
forced down by the lever between the back end of the chamber and the face
of the false breech at y and y', Figs. 8 and 7.
In double-barreled guns a plate of metal 9 entirely separates and cuts off
all chance of communication between the two chambers.
Fig. 10 represents the modifications of the chamber necessary for loading
with the Lefaulcheux cartridge. It is constructed precisely the same in every
respect as that already described, except that the chamber is bored throughout
as seen at m, and a plate k attached to the slotted wedge plate N is hinged to
the chamber at l. The Lefaulcheux cartridge (which contains its own percussion)
is inserted at the back end m, and the plate k folded up flat against, so as to
close the end of the chamber when the remaining motions are just the same as
described with the other Figures, where the back end of the chamber is solid.
The Lefaulcheux cartridge would be acted upon by the hammer in the usual
way with such cartridges, but the hammer is made with a projection on the
inner side of the mouth or bell to enable it to strike the pins of those
cartridges, the said pins coinciding with the axis of the barrels, which the
ordinary nipples do not. The same hammers are thus available for each
description of chamber.
I claim as new and of my Invention,-
First, the use of the lever and slotted wedge plate in connection with the
chamber which receives the charge.
Secondly, the arrangement by which the longitudinal hinge bolt of the
chamber is moved forward to allow of the removal of the chamber from the
fore end.

page_text: Thirdly, the mode of attaching the fore end or false breech to the barrel or
barrels, as described.
Fourthly, the method described of making the same hammers available for
both the ordinary cartridge and the Lefaulcheux cartridge, and for both
descriptions of chamber.
Fifthly, the construction of the chambers and the general arrangement of
breech-loading fire-arms, as described.
In witness whereof, I, the said George Sturrock, have hereunto set my
hand and seal, this Twenty-ninth day of January, in the year of our
Lord One thousand eight hundred and sixty-two.
Witness,
EDWARD J. POWELL.
GEORGE STURROCK. (L.S.)