IMPROVEMENTS IN FIRE-ARMS
Year: 1877

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to William Robert Lake, of the Firm of Haseltine, Lake,
& Co., Patent Agents, Southampton Buildings, London, for the Invention of
16 IMPROVEMENTS IN FIRE-ARMS." A communication from abroad by Daniel
Baird Wesson, of Springfield, Massachusetts, United States of America,
Manufacturer.
Sealed the 15th February 1878, and dated the 19th December 1877.
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION filed by the said William Robert Lake at the
Office of the Commissioners of Patents on the 19th December 1877.
WILLIAM ROBERT LAKE, of the Firm of Haseltine, Lake, and Co., Patent Agents,
Southampton Buildings, London. " IMPROVEMENTS IN FIRE-ARMS." A communication
from abroad by Daniel Baird Wesson, of Springfield, Massachusetts, United States
of America, Manufacturer.
The object of the said Invention is to cause the hammer of a fire-arm to rebound
after having struck the firing pin or the shell to explode a cartridge.
And the said Invention comprises a stirrup suspended from the mainspring, and
pivotted to the tumbler in such a manner that it may have a bearing against the
said tumbler in a direction coincident with the line of its movement, either above
or below the pivot, or a horizontal plane at the axis of the pivot, whereby when the
hammer in its forward movement reaches the point to which it is to rebound, the
stirrup becomes rigid with the tumbler, and moves with and causes the hammer to
rebound and remain out of contact with the firing pin or shell.
In the accompanying Drawing,
Figure 1 is a side view of a revolving fire-arm made according to my Invention,
and with the lock plate removed, showing the arrangement of the hammer stirrup
and mainspring.
Figure 2 is a vertical section through the hammer and stirrup on the plane of the
axis of the barrel.
Figure 3 is a horizontal section of the hammer, showing a recess in the rear part
of the tumblox in which the said stirrun is nivotted.

page_text: A represents the barrel; B, the frame; E, the cylinder; and D, the tumbler of a
revolving fire-arm, whose hammer is made in one solid piece with the tumbler; the
latter is provided with the shoulders b and i, ordinarily called the half-cock and full-
cock notches, against which the point or nose of the trigger engages in the operation
of discharging the arm, the half-cock notch or shoulder serving as a safety notch
to lock the hammer and tumbler in the position to which it rebounds.
For the sake of compactness I make a recess m in the rear side of the tumbler,
and in this recess I secure the stirrup c by means of a pin or pivot fin such a
manner that the stirrup may have a movement upon its pivot independently of the
movement of the tumbler D, and the upper end of the stirrup may be made of the
ordinary form, and may be suspended in the loop e in the forward end of the main-
spring C in the usual manner.
The rear edge of the tumbler at n, in front of the stirrup, may be of any desired
form in its profile, whether curved or straight, but it is so arranged with reference
to the stirrup that when the hammer in its forward movement reaches the point to
which it is to rebound, the rear edge of the tumbler in front of the stirrup will
strike the front edge of the stirrup at some point below the pivot f. This rear edge
of the tumbler in front of the stirrup is represented at n; it is evident that the
stirrup may be pivotted on the side of the tumbler with a shoulder made upon the
latter in front of the stirrup, and corresponding to the said rear edge of the tumbler,
and this might be the most convenient construction in certain kinds of fire-arins.
The operation of this Invention is as follows:-When the hammer is cocked and
the point of the trigger is in the full-cock notch or against the shoulder i of the
tumbler, if the trigger is pulled as in the act of discharging the arm, the hammer
is quickly thrown forward by the force exerted upward upon the rear part of the
tumbler by the mainspring C and stirrup c, and then flies forward to explode the
cartridge, and into a position with the shoulder b, just at the rear of the extreme
point or nose of the trigger, the said shoulder moving back slightly past the point of
the said trigger. After striking the firing pin or the cartridge the hammer instantly
rebounds to a position with the shoulder b, just in front of the trigger point; this
rebounding movement of the hammer being accomplished by the drawing back of
the upper end of the stirrup (and of the hammer which is then rigid with the
stirrup) by the mainspring, so that if the trigger should be released from the finger
pressure, its point will move inward slightly from the outer end of the shoulder b.
It will be seen from the above description that if the trigger is pulled when the
hammer is cocked, as the hammer flies forward the stirrup c, as it moves upward, has
also an independent rotary movement upon its pivot f in the tumbler; but when
the hammer in its forward movement reaches the point to which it is to rebound, or
a position with the point of the trigger in the same plane with the shoulder b, the
front edge of the stirrup comes into contact with and bears against the rear edge n
of the tumbler at a point below the point f, its bearing against the tumbler being
in the same direction as the line of its movement. The stirrup is thereby kept from
rotating upon its pivot f, and during the remaining forward movement of the
hammer the stirrup becomes rigid with and is substantially a solid part of the
tumbler, and moves with it, losing its own independent movement; the upper end of
the said stirrup rides forward and upward slightly out of the loop e, at the forward
end of the mainspring, until the cartridge is struck and exploded, when the elastic
force of the mainspring draws the stirrup back again until its hook at the upper
end has a firm bearing in the loop, the hammer being also drawn back with the
stirrup as above described.
Thus constructed the fire-arm is absolutely free from all liability to accidental or
premature discharge by careless handling, as it can in no case be discharged without
pulling the trigger for that purpose when the hammer is cocked.
It is evident that if the stirrup should be pivotted at its lower end to the
tumbler, and a shoulder made upon the latter, just behind the stirrup, and above its
pivot f, with which shoulder the stirrup would come in contact, and against which
it would have a bearing, the stirrup and tumbler would operate in precisely the

page_text: same manner without any change of construction in the parts, the only alteration
being a change of location of the pivot fand point of contact of the edge of the
stirrup with ledge of the tumbler.
It is obvious that this construction of a tumbler and stirrup is applicable to any
description of fire-arm by adapting the same to the position of the parts of the lock
as may be required.
Having thus fully described the said Invention as communicated to me by my
foreign correspondent, and the manner of performing the same, I wish it under-
stood that I claim in a fire-arm the stirrup suspended on the free end of the main-
spring, and so pivotted to the rear part of the tumbler as to have a bearing against
the said tumbler in a direction coincident with the line of its movement, as above
set forth and for the purpose specified.
In witness whereof, I, the said William Robert Lake, have hereunto set my
hand and seal, this Nineteenth day of December, in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and seventy-seven.
W. ROB. LAKE. (L.S.)