IMPROVEMENTS IN BREECH- LOADING FIRE-ARMS
Year: 1879

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to James Lang, of Cockspur Street, in the County of Mid-
dlesex, Gun Manufacturer, for the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN BREECH-
LOADING FIRE-ARMS."
Sealed the 27th June 1879, and dated the 11th January 1879.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said James Lang at the Office of
the Commissioners of Patents on the 11th January 1879.
JAMES LANG, of Cockspur Street, in the County of Middlesex, Gun Manufac-
"IMPROVEMENTS IN BREECH-LOADING FIRE ARMS."
turer.
My Invention relates to breech loading fire arms of the description known as
drop down guns, and has especial reference to the arrangement described in the
Specification to Letters Patent granted to me, dated the 9th February 1878,
No. 545.
One part of my Invention relates to the cocking lever described in the Specification
to my said former Letters Patent, and consists in the employment in combination
with the said cocking lever of a sliding bolt worked automatically by the underneath
lump of the barrel or barrels when the latter are operated for the purpose of opening
and closing the breech. On opening the breech the sliding bolt is pressed by the
barrels underneath the cocking lever, thereby locking the latter in position, and
on the breech being closed the bolt is removed out of the range of the cocking
lever.
Another part of my Invention relates to the provision of means for preventing
the accidental discharge of the gun, and it consists in the employment in breech
loading fire arms having internal hammers, of a combination bolt, that is to say, a
bolt which bolts conjointly and simultaneously both triggers and main springs, or
sears and mainsprings, or triggers and tumblers, or scars and tumblers, or any two
or more of the above parts in conjunction.
In carrying out this part of my Invention the apparatus may be arranged in the
following manner, vis. A flat piece of metal is caused to move automatically
underneath the strap of the break off, or in any other convenient position by the
lever which opens the gun, or from an external thumb piece, or otherwise. This
flat piece of metal is provided with two arms or projecting pieces, one over the

page_text: tumbler, the other over the trigger or over the sear and mainspring respectively, or
over the trigger and mainspring respectively, the one engages with the trigger and
the other with the main spring, or otherwise, as before mentioned. The one when
over the trigger or sear prevents the sear being removed from the bent of the
tumbler, but should the tumbler or sear break, the other projection of the said bolt
engages with the mainspring or tumbler, and the weight or power of the mainspring
prevents the bolt from being externally removed, and also prevents the mainspring
from causing an accidental discharge of the gun.
The details of the arrangement may be varied, the conjoint and simultaneous
action before referred to being retained.

page_text: SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent filed
by the said James Lang in the Great Seal Patent Office on the 11th July
1879.
JAMES LANG, of Cockspur Street, in the County of Middlesex, Gun Manufac-
turer. "IMPROVEMENTS IN BREECH LOADING FIRE ARMS."
My said Invention relates to breech loading fire arms of the description known
as drop down guns, and has special reference to the arrangement described in the
Specification to Letters Patent granted to me, dated the Ninth February, One
thousand eight hundred and seventy eight, No. 545.
One part of my present Invention relates to the cocking lever described in the
Specification to iny said former Letters Patent, and consists in the employment in
combination with the said cocking lever of a sliding bolt worked automatically by
the underneath lump of the barrel or barrels when the latter are operated for the
purpose of opening and closing the breech. On opening the breech the sliding bolt
is forced by the barrels underneath the cocking lever, thereby locking the latter in
position, and on the breech being closed the bolt is removed out of the range of the
cocking lever.
Another part of my present Invention relates to the provision of means for
preventing the accidental discharge of the gun, and it is applicable to the gun
described in my said former Specification, and to other descriptions of breech loading
fire arms.
This part of my Invention consists in the employment in breech loading fire arms
having internal hammers of a combination safety bolt, that is to say, a bolt which
locks conjointly and simultaneously both triggers and main springs, or seers and
mainsprings, or triggers and tumblers, or seers and tumblers, or any two or more of
the above parts in conjunction.
In carrying out this part of my Invention the apparatus may be arranged in the
following manner, videlicet :-
A bar is fitted underneath the strap of the break-off, or in any other convenient
position, so as to be capable of sliding to and fro, motion being imparted to the said
bar either automatically by the cocking lever or the lever which opens the gun, or
by hand by means of an external thumb piece or otherwise.
This bar is provided with two arms or projections which when the bar is in one
of two positions which it is capable of assuming are situate, the ono projection over
the trigger and the other over the mainspring, or over the seer and mainspring
respectively, or over the trigger and tumbler respectively, or over the seer and
tumbler respectively, the one arm engages with the trigger and the other with the
mainspring, or otherwise, as before mentioned. The one arm of the bolt when over
the trigger or seer prevents the seer from being removed from the bent of the
tumbler, but should the tumbler or seer break, the other arm of the bolt engages
with the main spring or tumbler, and the weight or power of the mainspring
prevents the bolts from being externally removed, and also prevents the mainspring
from causing an accidental discharge of the gun.
The details of the arrangement may be varied, the conjoint and simultaneous
action before referred to being retained.
And in order that my said Invention may be fully understood I shall now proceed
more particularly to describe the same, and for that purpose shall refer to the
several Figures on the annexed Sheet of Drawings, the same letters of reference
indicating corresponding parts in all the Figures.
Figure 1 of the accompanying Drawings represents a sectional elevation of a
portion of a drop down gun constructed according to my said former Letters Patent,
with the improvements forming the subject of the first part of my present Invention
applied thereto; Figure 2 represents detail views of the cocking lever described in
the Specification to my said former Letters Patent; and Figure 3 represents detail

page_text: views of the sliding bolt before referred to, and hereinafter fully described, for
locking the said cocking lever. Figure 4 represents a sectional elevation of a
portion of a drop down gun constructed according to my said former Letters Patent,
with the improvement forming the subject of the second part of my present Inven-
tion applied thereto. Figure 5 is a sectional elevation illustrating the application
of this part of my Invention to a drop down gun of different construction. Figures
6 and 7 represent detail views of the cocking lever and safety bolt respectively, the
former corresponding to the arrangement shewn in Figure 4, and the latter
corresponding to both arrangements. Figures 8 to 15 illustrate other modifications
in the application of the safety bolt. Figures 8, 12, and 13 being sectional cleva-
tions of three several modifications; Figures 9, 10, and 11 details referring to the
modification shown in Figure 8; and Figures 14 and 15 details of the modification
shewn in Figure 13.
Referring to Figures 1, 2, and 3, A is the cocking lever described in my said
former Specification, and which is loose on the axis a of the tumbler B, and is
formed at one end with projections a', a', to act upon the said tumbler, and at its
other end engages with a suitable recess in the lump 6 of the barrel or barrels C in
such a manner that when the gun is opened by turning the barrel or barrels down
upon the hinge c, the tumbler, and consequently the hammer, is turned upon its
axis, and the gun is cocked ready for firing, all substantially as described in my said
former Specification.
It has been found however in practice that when the barrel or barrels are entirely
removed from the gun, as, for example, for the purpose of cleaning, a difficulty is
experienced in effecting the reengagement of the cocking lover with the barrel lump.
Now according to my present Invention this difficulty is obviated by the employ-
ment of a sliding bolt D operated automatically by the act of opening and closing
the gun in such a manner that when the gun is opened the bolt will be brought
beneath the cocking lever, so as to lock or support the same in its elevated position,
and that as the gun is closed the bolt will be withdrawn, leaving the cocking lever
free to descend simultaneously with the closing of the breech. In order to produco
the required motions and actions the bolt is provided at one end with projections
d, d, which are capable of being brought beneath the two projections a', a', of the
lever A, and the bolt is further provided at its opposite end with a projection E so
shaped that on the gun
being opened the part of the lump will be caused to act
upon the portion f of the projection E, and thus move the bolt forward, bringing
its projections d, d, beneath the projections a¹, a', of the lever, and thereby locking
the same, and that on the gun being closed the part g of the lump will be caused to
act upon the portion g' of the projection E, and thus rotract the bolt, removing its
projections d, d, clear of the projections a', a', of the lever, and thereby unlocking
the same. The full lines in Figure 1 indicate the gun in its open position, with the
lever A locked by the sliding bolt D, and the dotted lines in that Figure denote the
position into which the sliding bolt will be brought when the gun is closed, tho
lever A being then unlocked.
The second part of my Invention which is illustrated in Figures 4 to 15 of the
Drawings, relates to the bolting or locking of two or more of the moving parts of
the lock or percussion mechanism conjointly or simultaneously. Figures 4 to 7
illustrate the application of this part of my Invention to the locking of the trigger
and tumbler simultaneously. Figure 4 representing a gun of the construction
described in my former Specification, and Figure 5 representing a gun constructed
so as to be cocked by hand by means of an external lever A1, whilst the details
Figures 6 and 7 refer, the former to the arrangement Figure 4, and the latter
indifferently to either arrangement.
F is a sliding safety bolt having two projecting arms h, h', and which is capable
of being moved, so that these arius shall be brought the one over the main spring
G, and the other over the trigger H, as shewn in Figure 4, thus securely locking &
the percussion mechanism until the gun is ready to be discharged, when the bolt is
removed into the position shewn in Figure 5, and the percussion mechanism thereby

page_text: unlocked ready for the action of the trigger. Motion may be imparted to the
safety bolt in various ways. In the examples illustrated in Figures 4 and 5, it is
brought into the locking position automatically in the act of opening the gun by
means of an arm I which is made in one with the cocking lever (see detail, Figure 6)
mounted loose upon the tumbler axis a, the said arm being caused to act upon an
attachment to the projection h, and thus transmit the required motion. The
unlocking is effected (according to the examples Figures 4 and 5) by hand, by
means of a lever I' carrying an eccentric stud h² so arranged, that by the act of
moving the lever, the stud will propel the bolt forwards, this appliance may also be
used for bringing the bolt into locking position by hand when required, and a thumb
piece or other convenient device may be substituted for it if desired. The spring
catch t is provided in order to retain the bolt in its locked position.
The attachment to the projection h upon which the arm I acts consists of a
screw which passes through the projection, in the centre of which a slot k¹ is
formed, as shewn clearly in the detail view, Figure 7, so that when the screw is
removed, the safety bolt will be thrown out of action, and the gun may be used
independently of the bolt.
Figures 8 to 15 illustrate the application of the safety bolt in connection with
the trigger and tumbler.
In the modification shewn in Figure 8, the arm h¹ of the safety bolt, when the
latter is in the locking position is brought over the trigger and the arm (see detail
Figure 9) which is made horizontal, is brought beneath a projection on the tumbler
as shown by the full lines in the Drawing, thereby locking both the trigger and the
tumbler. The safety bolt is moved into this position automatically by means of a
double armed lever k (Figure 10) pivotted to the trigger box K', and which as the
gun is cocked, is acted upon at its end m by the arm I of the cocking lever (Figure
11), and thus caused to act by its other end m¹ upon a projection ³ of the arm h.
When it is desired to discharge the gun, the safety bolt is drawn back by hand into
the position indicated by dotted lines in Figure 8 by the aid of a thumb piece I as
shewn, or by means of a lever with an eccentric stud as hereinbefore described
with reference to the arrangement illustrated in Figures 4 to 7.
According to the modification illustrated in Figure 12, the projection of the
safety bolt F when in its locking position, is caused to enter or engage in a notch
in the hammer, the projection being arranged in relation to the trigger, as in the
modification illustrated in Figures 8 to 11. When the modification, Figure 12, is
adopted, the safety bolt may be operated in both directions either by hand, as in
the example illustrated, or in one direction by hand, and the other direction auto-
matically, as in the arrangements previously described.
According to the modification illustrated in Figures 13, 14, and 15, an arm I on
the cocking lever A' is caused to act upon the projection of the safety bolt F in
order to bring such bolt into locking position, but additional connected arms K*
(Figure 14) are provided arranged in relation to the bolt for the purpose of locking
the two hammers in a manner which is clearly indicated by the full lines in Figure
13, the projections are binged to the breech piece F¹, and recessed so as to form
a flat surface at i (sce detail Figure 14) adapted to the extremity i' of the bolt
which constitutes a spring in such a manner, that by the act of moving the bolt by
hand into the position indicated by dotted lines in Figure 13, the projections h² will
be turned upon their centre into the position also denoted by dotted lines in that
figure, so as to clear the hammers which may then be discharged by the act of
pulling the triggers as in the ordinary manner. When however the gun is again
cocked, the arm I of the cocking lever A' by acting upon the projection h of the
bolt F, moves the said bolt back, and the arms are caused to return into the
position indicated by full lines in the Drawing, Figure 13, thus intercepting the
hammers until the bolt is again moved forward by hand in the manner before
explained.
It will be obvious that any other combination of two or more of the moving
parts of the lock or percussion mechanism may be fitted with a safety bolt arranged

page_text: according to one of the methods hereinbefore described, or in any other similar
manner.
By the employment of these improvements which form the subject of the second
part of my Invention, much greater security is afforded, the safety bolt being so
arranged that in the event of the failure of one moving part of the lock or percussion
mechanism in relation to which the bolt is placed, another contingent moving part
shall be still locked so as to prevent the accidental discharge of the gun.
Having now described and particularly ascertained the nature of my said Inven-
tion, and the manner in which the same is or may be used or carried into effect, I
would observe in conclusion that what I consider to be novel and original, and
therefore claim as the Invention secured to me by the hereinbefore in part recited
Letters Patent is,―
First. The employment in combination with an internal cocking lever, of a
sliding bolt operated automatically by the act of opening and closing the breech for
the purpose of locking and unlocking the said cocking lever, substantially as
herein before described.
Secondly. The employment of a safety bolt for locking or securing two or more
of the moving parts of the lock or percussion mechanism, conjointly and simulta-
neously, substantially as and for the purposes hereinbefore described.
In witness whereof, I, the said James Lang, have to this my Specification set
my hand and seal, the Tenth day of July, One thousand eight hundred and
seventy nine.