IMPROVE- MENTS IN BREECH-LOADING SMALL-ARMS, AND IN CARTRIDGES FOR BREECH- LOADING SMALL-ARMS
Year: 1872

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Westley Richards, of Birmingham, in the County
of Warwick, Gun Manufacturer, for the Invention of "IMPROVE-
MENTS IN BREECH-LOADING SMALL-ARMS, AND IN CARTRIDGES FOR BREECH-
LOADING SMALL-ARMS."
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Westley Richards at
the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on
the 28th October 1872.
I, WESTLEY RICHARDS, of Birmingham, in the County of Warwick,
Gun Manufacturer, do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention
for "IMPROVEMENTS IN BREECH-LOADING SMALL-ARMS, AND IN CARTRIDGES FOR
BREECH-LOADING SMALL-ARMS," to be as follows:-
My Invention consists of the improvements, herein-after described,.
in breech-loading small-arms, the said improvements being mainly
applicable to Chassepot rifles and other bolt guns, and having for their
principal object to adapt the said Chassepot rifles to the use of metallic
cartridges.

page_text: My Invention also consists of the improvements, herein-after
described, in cartridges to be used with rifles constructed according to
my Invention, and with other rifles.
My improvements in Chassepot rifles are as follows:-I remove the
ordinary nose piece at the fore end of the sliding bolt of the rifle and
reduce the diameter of the said end; I place upon the said reduced end
a cap or nose piece carrying an ordinary spring extractor, and having
on its side a stud engaging in a slot in the breech shoe. The said stud
and slot prevent the rotation of the nose piece and extractor while the
bolt is being operated to open and close the breech.
The nose piece is secured in its place on the end of the bolt, and its
motion thereon at the same time permitted by means of a portion of a
collar or shoulder at its rear end engaging in a groove in the under side
of the rib or bar of the handle of the bolt.
In place of the ordinary safety slots in the bolt I make an incline at
the rear end of the bolt, and I add a corresponding incline on the under
side of the head of the striker rod; or I make an incline on the side of
the shoe and at the rear end thereof. When the bolt is pushed forward
to close the breech of the gun the striker head is retained by the sear
engaging in the full cock bent, and by turning down the handle of the
bolt so as to lock the said bolt the base of the handle traverses the
incline described, and the locking and cocking of the gun are effected
with little resistance from the main spring.
In order to eject from the shoe the case of the exploded cartridge after
it has been extracted from the barrel, I fix a spring between the trigger
spring and the shoe, the head of which spring projects through a hole in
the lower side of the shoe.
In order to prevent the accidental discharge of the cartridge on
pushing the bolt home to close the breech I make that part of the front
of the opening in the shoe which is situated on the top of the barrel of
a curved figure instead of the ordinary rectangular figure; and I also
give a corresponding curved figure to the fore end of the rib of the
handle of the bolt.
I
cup or hollow the face of the bolt in order to make the rifle suitable
for cartridges of small size and to keep the cartridge engaged with the
extractor.

page_text: As a safety or half-cock apparatus I employ a pin filed or cut away at
one side. This pin works in a hole partly made in the side of the shoe
and partly in the rib or bar of the handle of the bolt. By means of a
lever this pin may be turned so as to be in part engaged with the said
rib or bar, when the gun cannot be discharged by pulling the trigger.
By turning the said pin so as to bring its cut-away part opposite the said
rib or bar the bolt is at liberty to move and the rifle may be discharged.
In breech-loading small-arms in which the breech is opened and
closed by the rising and falling of a block sliding vertically I employ the
cocking and discharging mechanism described and represented in the
Specification of Letters Patent granted to me, bearing date the 14th day
of June, 1871, No. 1572. I connect the sliding block to the land lever,
working either on the side of the gun or on the under side of the gun, by
means of a connecting link, and I make the said sliding block hollow
for the hammer to enter, and I make a hole in the face of said block
for the nose or striking pin of the hammer to pass through and discharge
the cartridge. The trigger guard is made hollow or of a box form, and
carries the whole of the cocking and discharging mechanism of the gun.
My improvements in cartridges are in part improvements on an
Invention described and represented in the Specification of Letters
Patent granted to me, dated the 6th day of March, 1866, No. 688.
The cartridges described in the said Specification consist essentially of
a solid metal head with a thin tubular metallic body fixed thereto by
expanding a shoulder at the centre of the head in a hole in the con-
tracted end of the tubular body.
According to my present Invention I make the solid head by raising
tools worked in a press, and I make the said head much shorter than in
the cartridge described in the Specification of the Patent before referred
to. I also make the said head without a shoulder to enclose the body of
the case.
I make a notch or depression in that part of the head with
which the tubular body engages, which notch on the expansion of the
head engages so firmly with the body that the said body will not rotate
upon the said head.
In the head of the priming cap I make a depression or concavity, by
which the action of the striking pin in discharging the gun is facilitated.

page_text: In sporting cartridges I place in the priming chamber of the head of
the cartridge a small hollow metallic cone which covers the central hole
by which the waste priming cap is removed from the exploded cartridge
before recharging it. The said hollow cone constitutes an anvil against
which the priming is struck, and both by its conical form and from its
covering the central hole promotes certainty of discharge.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent,
filed by the said Westley Richards in the Great Seal Patent Office
on the 28th April 1873.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, WESTLEY
RICHARDS, of Birmingham, in the County of Warwick, Gun Manu-
facturer, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her
Letters Patent, bearing date the Twenty-eighth day of October, in the
year of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and seventy-two, in the
thirty-sixth year of Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors,
give and grant unto me, the said Westley Richards, Her special license
that I the said Westley Richards, my executors, administrators, and
assigns, or such others as I, the said Westley Richards, 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 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 SMALL-ARMS, AND IN CARTRIDGES FOR BREECH-LOADING SMALL-
ARMS," upon the condition (amongst others) that I, the said Westley
Richards, 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 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 Westley Richards, do hereby declare
the nature of the said Invention, and in what manner the same is to

page_text: be performed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and by
the following statement thereof, that is to say:-
My Invention consists of the improvements herein-after described in
breech-loading small-arms; some of the said improvements are applicable
to Chassepot rifles and other bolt guns, and have for their principal
object to adapt the said Chassepot rifles to the use of metallic cartridges;
they are also in part applicable as herein-after described to other breech-
loading guns.
My Invention also consists of the improvements herein-after described
in cartridges to be used with rifles constructed according to my
Invention, and with other rifles.
My improvements in Chassepot rifles are as follows:-I remove the
ordinary nose piece at the fore end of the sliding bolt of the rifle and
reduce the diameter of the said end, and place upon the said reduced end
a cap or nose piece carrying an ordinary spring extractor, and having on
its side a stud engaging in a slot in the breech shoe. The said stud
and slot prevent the rotation of the nose piece and extractor while the
bolt is being operated to open and close the breech.
The nose piece is secured in its place on the end of the bolt by means
of a projection at its rear end, which engages in a groove in the under
side of the rib or bar of the handle of the bolt, the bolt being free to
rotate in the nose piece.
In place of the ordinary safety slots in the bolt I make an incline at
the rear end of the bolt, and I add a corresponding incline on the under
side of the head of the striker rod. I make an incline on the side of
the shoe and at the rear end thereof. When the bolt is pushed forward
to close the breech of the gun the striker head is retained by the sear
engaging in the full cock bent, and by turning down the handle of the
bolt so as to lock the said bolt the base of the handle traverses the incline
described, and the locking and cocking of the gun are effected with
little resistance from the main spring.
In order to eject from the shoe the case of the exploded cartridge
after it has been extracted from the barrel in the manner herein-after
described, I fix a spring between the trigger spring and the shoe, the
head of such spring projecting through a hole in the lower side of the
shoe.

page_text: "
In order to prevent the accidental discharge of the cartridge on
pushing the bolt home to close the breech that part of the front
of the opening in the shoe which is situated on the top of the barrel
is made of a curved figure instead of the ordinary rectangular figure,
and a corresponding curved figure is given to the fore end of the rib of
the handle of the bolt.
In some cases I cup or hollow the face of the bolt in order to make
the rifle suitable for cartridges of small size and to keep the cartridge
engaged with the extractor, which may be either a spring extractor or
be constructed and worked as herein-after described and shown in
Figures 4, 4, and 4°, (Sheet 1^).
As a safety or half-cock apparatus I employ a pin filed or cut away
at one side, which works in a hole partly made in the side of the shoe
and partly in the head of the striker rod. By means of a lever this
pin may be turned so as to be in part engaged with the striker head
when the gun cannot be discharged by pulling the trigger. By
turning the said pin so as to bring its cut-away part opposite the
striker head, the striker head is at liberty to move, and the rifle may
be discharged.
In breech-loading small-arms in which the breech is opened and
closed by the rising and falling of a block sliding vertically, I employ
the cocking and discharging mechanism described and represented in
the Specification of Letters Patent granted to me, bearing date the 14th
day of June 1871, No. 1572; and I connect the sliding block to the
hand lever working either on the side of the gun or on the under side
of the gun by means of a connecting link, and I make the said sliding
block hollow for the hammer to enter, and I make a hole in the face of
the said block for the nose or striking pin of the hammer to pass
through and discharge the cartridge. The trigger guard is made hollow
or of a box form, and carries the whole of the cocking and discharging
mechanism of the gun.
.
My improvements in cartridges are in part improvements on an
Invention described and represented in the Specification of Letters
Patent granted to me, dated the 6th day of March 1866, No. 688. The
cartridges described in the said Specification consist essentially of a
solid metal head with a thin tubular metallic body fixed thereto by

page_text: expanding a shoulder at the centre of the head in a hole at the con-
tracted end of the tubular body.
According to my present Invention I make the solid head by raising
tools worked in a press, and I make the said head much shorter and
without a shoulder to enclose the body of the case. In the head of the
priming cap I make a depression or concavity by which the action of
the striking pin in discharging the gun is facilitated.
In sporting and military cartridges I place in the cap chamber of the
head of the cartridge a small hollow metallic cone, which covers the
central hole by which the waste priming cap is removed from the
exploded cartridge before recharging it. The said hollow cone constitutes
an anvil, against which the priming is struck, and both by its conical
form and from its covering the central hole promotes certainty of
discharge.
Having explained the nature of my Invention I will proceed to
describe with reference to the accompanying Drawings the manner in
which the same is to be performed.
Figure 1 represents in longitudinal section partly in elevation, and
Figure 2 in side elevation the breech end of a Chassepot rifle con-
taining some of my improvements, the sliding bolt being withdrawn
and the breech open for the introduction of the cartridge into the barrel;
Figure 3 represents a plan of the same after the bolt has been pushed
home and fastened for closing the breech, and the rifle cocked for firing;
Figure 4 represents a longitudinal section of the rifle, the parts being in
the positions which the respectively occupy when the handle of the
bolt is about to be turned down for completely closing the breech,
cocking the rifle, and fastening the bolt.
Figures 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, and 13 represents parts of my In-
vention, as herein-after explained.
a is the breech shoe; bis the closing bolt sliding and partly rotating
in the said shoe a, the said bolt being guided and regulated in its
motions by a pin c working in slots in the cylindrical surface of the bolt.
The bolt 6 (without the nose piece) is represented in plan of upper side.
in Figure 5. The bolt 6 is operated to open and close the breech of the
hande d, the rib d² of which on withdrawing and advancing the bolt
traverses the usual slot in the top of the breech shoe; e is the striking

page_text: pin working in the hollow of the bolt, and urged forward by the coiled
spring in the usual manner. The striking pin e is affixed to the head e³,
having only a sliding motion in the rear end of the breech shoe, a pin or
stud e* on the rib e³ of the said head on the discharge of the gun working
in the slot g in the rear end of the bolt ; his the sear for engaging
with the front of the notch at es in the head e² of the striking pin e, and
holding the said striking pin at full cock.
in
In applying my improvements to an ordinary Chassepot rifle the
ordinary nose piece at the fore end of the bolt is removed, and the
diameter of the said end reduced, and a cap or nose piece i, shewn
separately in Figure 7, is placed on the reduced fore end. The said
cap or nose piece is shown in the Drawing with an ordinary spring
extractor k, and the said cap has on its side a stud l², which engages
a longitudinal slot m in the inner side of the breech shoe. The said
stud ³ is made from the portion of a collar or projection / on the cap or
nose piece i, but the said stud 12 may be made on the cylindrical surface
of the said cap or nose piece. The said stud 12 and slot m prevent the
rotation of the nose piece i and extractor k while the bolt b is being
operated to open and close the breech. The nose piece i is secured in its
place on the end of the bolt b, and the rotary motion of the said bolt at
the same time permitted by means of the collar or shoulder / on the rear
end of the said nose piece engaging in a groove or recess at n (see
Figure 3) on the under side of the rib or bar d² of the handle of the
bolt b. When the bolt 6 is moved longitudinally in the shoe to open and
close the breech the stud 12 on the nose piece i traverses the slot m in the
shoe, and when the bolt is partly rotated to fasten or unfasten it the
slot n in the rib d works over the collar or projection / on the said
nose piece, as will be understood by an examination of Figures 3 and 4.
Instead of the arrangement last described for connecting the nose
piece i to the end of the bolt the connection may be effected by means
of a short pin screwed into the side of the nose piece taking into an
annular groove near the end of the bolt; this modification is represented
in Figure 10 where the annular groove in the bolt 6 is marked b³,
and the pin on the nose piece taking into the said groove b² is
marked b³.

page_text: Figure 4, and transverse section in Figure 4³, Sheet 14; Figure 4º,
Sheet 1*, represents in perspective the extractor and part thereof
detached from the gun; in Figures 4 and 4 the head of the striker rod.
is represented in its discharged position, and the hooked end of the
extractor pressed down to engage with the rim of the cartridge case.
is the extractor connected with the nose piece i of the bolt a by means
of a joint k on which it turns. Connected with the head e' of the
striker pin, by the stud or projection ³, is a bar n working in the
slot m in the side of the breech shoe a, the said bar n partaking of the
motion of the said head e². On the inner end of the bar n is a lateral
projection n³. When the parts are in position for discharge the lateral
projection n of the bar n is not under the rear end of the extractor k,
but when the gun has been discharged, as illustrated in Figure 44, and
the head of the striker pin has been advanced, the lateral pro-
jection n of the bar n is thereby brought under the rear end of the
extractor k, and the other, or hooked end of the extractor is pressed
firmly on the rim of the cartridge case.
On withdrawing the bolt after discharge the parts remain, as last
described, but on closing the breech by the advance of the bolt for
another discharge, the head e² of the striker pin being left in a cocked
position the extractor is carried so far in advance that its rear end
escapes from the lateral projection n² of the bar n, and the extractor has
play for the purpose of permitting its hooked end to engage with the
rim of the cartridge. This extractor is applicable to all kinds of bolt guns.
In addition to the ordinary safety slots in the bolt I make at the
rear end of the said bolt a rounded part p, and I also round the fore end
of the stud e* (see Figure 6) on the head of the striking pin e. When
the handle d is raised into a vertical position to unfasten the bolt pre-
paratory to the recharging of the rifle, the bolt b is partly rotated, and
the part p bearing against the rounded end of the stud et on the head e
of the striking pin e pushes the said head back and thereby withdraws
the projecting fore part of the striking pin into the nose of the bolt b;
the said stud e* passing successively as the bolt is turned into the shallow
depressions at q, q, see Figure 5). The striking pin e is thereby held in a
safe position during the sliding motion of the bolt to open and close
the breech. When the bolt 6 has been pushed home to close the breech,
and partly rotated to fasten the bolt, the stud e is brought opposite the
slot g in the bolt, into which its end enters on the discharge of the rifle,

page_text: On the side of the shoe a is an incline 7, the object of the said incline
being to effect the cocking of the rifle, with little resistance from the
main spring, by which the striking rod e is urged forward to discharge
the rifle. When the bolt is pushed forward to close the breech the
striker head e² is retained by the sear h, as illustrated in Figure 4, and
by turning down the handle d of the bolt to lock the said bolt, the base
of the said handle d traverses the incline r, and advances the bolt to
complete the closing of the breech. By turning down the handled so
as to make it bear against the square shoulder at the bottom of the
incline the locking of the bolt is effected. As the bolt advances to close
the breech the striker rod e is brought into a cocked position by the
compression of the main spring f. The compression of the mainspring
f, for cocking the rifle, is thus effected by the gradual compound motion
of the bolt instead of by an abrupt motion, as has hitherto been usual.
Besides enabling the cocking of the rifle to be more easily effected this
arrangement prevents the accidental discharge of the cartridge, on
pushing the bolt home to close the breech.
The arrangement of parts represented in plan in Figure 13 shows
another mode in which the accidental discharge of the cartridge is
prevented, to which I make no claim as forming part of my Invention.
The front of the opening in the breech shoe a is curved at 5, and the
fore end of the rib d² of the handle of the bolt b is also curved. When
the bolt is pushed home, the curved end d³ of the rib bears against the
curved end 5 of the shoe, and on turning down the handle to lock the
bolt the fore end of the bolt is gradually advanced against the cartridge,
and its accidental discharge thereby prevented.
In order to hold the gun in a half cock or safety position, a catch s
situated on the side of the shoe and turning in a vertical plane is
employed. This safety catch is represented in side elevation and end
elevation detached from the rifle in Figure 8; it consists of a milled
head having on its face a projecting lip t, and provided with a stem or
axis u on which it turns. In the rib es of the striker head e³ is a recess
at w (see Figure 3). When the rifle has been cocked as represented in
Figure 3 the recess at w is brought opposite the lip t of the catch s, and
by turning the said catch inwards or towards the axis of the rifle the
said lip enters the recess and thereby holds the gun in a half cock
or safety position. By turning the catch s outwards its lip t is removed

page_text: from out the recess at w, and the striker head e' is now at liberty to
move, and the rifle may be discharged.
Figure 11 shows another form of safety or half cock apparatus in cross
section, it consists of a pin 1, shewn separately in Figure 12), filed or
cut away at one side. This pin 1 works in a hole partly made in the
side of the shoe a, and partly in the head e² of the striking rod. By
means of a handle 3 the pin 1 may be turned so as to be in part engaged
with the said head e² as represented in Figure 11, when the gun cannot
be discharged by pulling the trigger. By turning the said pin 1 so as to
bring its cut away part 4 opposite the recess in the head e² the said
head is at liberty to move and the rifle may be discharged.
The case of the exploded cartridge is ejected from the shoe a after it
has been extracted from the barrel by the extractor k by means of the
ejector marked x, y. The said ejector consists of a spring x, situated
between the sear spring and the shoe a, and a separate lead y projecting
through a hole in the lower side of the shoe. The parts of the ejector
are shewn detached in Figure 9, and the position of the ejector in the
rifle is shown in Figures 1 and 4. The head y of the ejector rests upon
the ridge of the free end of the spring a, and the said head is pre-
vented from being lifted through the hole in the shoe by the shoulder y³
at its bottom. On withdrawing the bolt to open the breech the
exploded case is extracted by the extractor %, and when the extractor
case is brought opposite the head y of the ejector which is no longer
pressed down by the bolt the said head rises, and by a jerking motion
ejects the said case from the shoe. The bottom of the bolt is flattened
to facilitate the action of the ejector. The front face of the bolt b is
cupped and made hollow to make the rifle suitable for cartridges of small
size and to keep the cartridge engaged with the extractor. The cupped
end of the bolt is marked b' in Figures 4 and 10.
I will now describe my improvements as applied to vertically sliding
block guns.
Figure 14 represents in side elevation, Figures 15 and 16 eleva-
tions taken at opposite ends of the body, Figure 17 in section, and
Figure 18 in plan a vertical sliding block gun containing my improve-
ments. Figure 19 represents in section, and Figure 20 in elevation the
trigger guard and cocking and discharging mechanism carried by it,
detached from the body of the gun; Figure 21 represents the hand
lever detached; Figure 22 represents the sliding block detached; and.

page_text: Figure 23 represents the sear detached. The same letters indicate the
same parts in Figures 15 to 23.
a is the body of the gun in an opening or mortice, in which the
vertical sliding block 6 works, the raising of the said block into the
position represented closing the breech, and the depressing of the said
block opening the said breech for loading. The said block b is hollow,
and the hammer d strikes through the hole 62 in front of the block to
ignite the cartridge; c is the hand lever situated under the trigger guard
for actuating the sliding block 6 for cocking the hammer d, and for
operating the extractor e. The head of the hand lever d is forked
at c², c³, and between the forked part a shoulder d³ on the tumbler d² of
the hammer d works; d' is the axis on which the hammer. d and hand
lever turn. By means of a strong spring a fixed on the trigger
guard the hand lever c is maintained in its raised and depressed
positions. The main spring fis connected to the tumbler of the ham-
mer d by a swivel, as represented; g is the sear engaging with the full
cock bent in the tumbler d of the hammer d; his the trigger, and i is
the sear and trigger spring. The sear is fitted to the trigger by means
of a rib thereon passing through a slot in the sear, the sear and trigger
being connected together by the pin or axis on which they turn. The
hammer d is cocked on the depression of the hand lever to open the
breech by means of the shoulder c on the forked head of the hand
lever c bearing against the shoulder d³ on the tumbler d. The hand
lever c is connected to the vertical sliding block by means of the link k
jointed to the horizontal arm c³ of the said hand lever. The block b
with its connecting link is represented in Figure 22. The extractor e,
which turns on the centre e³, is provided at back with a nearly horizontal
arm e, against which on the depressing of the hand lever c the pro-
jecting part or branch c³ of the forked head of the said hand lever strikes,
and thereby gives a forward motion to the said extractor (see Figures 16
and 17). The hammer d is furnished with a moveable nose de screwed
into the head of the hammer. The hand lever c and its spring d³ and
the hammer d with its mainspring, sear, and trigger are carried by the
trigger guard 1, which is made hollow or of a box form to receive the
said parts, so that the removal of the trigger guard from the body of the
gun also removes the cocking, discharging, and actuating mechanism of
the gun, as represented in Figures 19 and 20 of the Drawings.
The action of the gun is as follows:-The several parts being in the

page_text: contact with the shoulder c' on
In order to load the gun the
pressed from the trigger guard;
positions represented in Figures 14, 15, 16, 17, and 18, the breech is
closed, the hammer cocked, and the gun is ready for discharge. On
pulling the trigger h to discharge the gun the sear g is liberated from
the bent in the tumbler d² of the hammer d, and the said hammer is
raised in the hollow block 6 by the action of the main spring f, and its
nose do striking through the hole 62 in the said block b ignites the
cartridge and discharges the gun. When the gun has been discharged
the shoulder d³ on the tumbler d² is in
the forked head of the hand lever c.
thumb plate end of the hand lever c is
the vertical sliding block is thereby depressed in the body a' and the
breech opened, the forked head of the hand lever at the same time
cocking the hammer d by the action of the shoulders c, d³, the said
hammer being held in its cocked position by the sear g taking into the
bent in the tumbler of the said hammer. As soon as the block b has
been fully depressed to open the breech the branch c³ of the forked head
of the hand lever operates upon the arm e³ of the extractor e which is
thereby urged forward, and by its motion extracts the exploded cartridge
case from the barrel. After the introduction of a fresh cartridge into
the barrel the hand lever c is raised and fixed in its raised position under
the trigger guard by the spring d; the block b is thereby raised in the
body a and the breech closed, leaving the hammer d cocked ready for
discharge, the several parts occupying the respective positions represented
in the Drawings.
In order to lock the hand lever c in its raised position under the
trigger guard I use the locking bolt p, p. The said locking bolt
consists of a cranked lever turning on the centre p³, the cranked end p²
working under the body a of the gun. On the extreme end of the
horizontal arm c of the hand lever c is a lip c under which the cranked
arm p³ of the locking bolt may be turned. When the locking bolt p, p²,
is turned into the position represented in Figures 14, 15, and 16, its
cranked arm p* is engaged under the lip of the arm c³, and the hand.
lever c is thereby locked in its raised position, and the accidental.
opening of the gun prevented. By moving the locking bolt in the
3 direction indicated by the arrow in Figure 14 by pressure on the head p*.
the cranked p² of the bolt is removed from under the lip of the
arm c³. The hand lever c is thereby released, and may be depressed to
open the gun.

page_text: .
The locking bolt may also be employed to prevent the accidental
pulling of the trigger. For this purpose a pin or stud q is fixed on the
trigger h, opposite which the stud the extreme cut away end of the
cranked arm p² of the locking bolt is brought, when the said locking
bolt is turned into the position represented in Figures 14 and 15,
and the pulling of the trigger is thereby prevented.
Instead of working the sliding block and the moving parts of the gun
by means of a lever on the under side of the trigger guard as before
described, the same may be effected by means of a lever on the side
of the shoe or body. Figure 24 represents in side elevation, and
Figure 25 in end elevation this arrangement of my Invention. In this
arrangement the hand lever c is cranked, the cranked part being
marked c, the cranked part being situated at the back of the body.
The other parts of the gun are the same as in the arrangement first
described, and corresponding parts are marked with the same letters of
reference.
I will now describe my improvements in cartridges. My improve-
ments refer, firstly, to such cartridges as have solid heads made separate
from the tubular bodies, and the said improvements are illustrated in the
accompanying Drawings.
Figure 26 represents in section the solid head of a cartridge case made
according to my Invention by raising tools worked in a machine or
power press before the anvil is made therefrom. Figure 27 represents
the said head in elevation and the tubular body in section to be con-
nected to it, and Figure 28 represents the head connected to the body.
Figure 29 represents the solid head drawn to a large scale. a is the
solid head having the form represented; 6 is the cap chamber, from the
bottom of which the anvil h is made (see Figures 28 and 29); and c is
the flange or shoulder at the under side of the head, which is introduced
into a hole d in the contracted end of the thin metallic body or tube e,
and expanded under the said contracted end as represented in Figure 28;
the head is thereby connected to the tubular body. The hollow cone or
anvil formed out of the cap chamber is perforated with two holes on
opposite sides of the apex of the cone or anvil for the flash to pass
through for exploding the cartridge.
Figure 30 represents in section and plan, drawn to a large scale, a
priming cap made according to my Invention.
3

page_text: I have found that when caps or primers of the old construction are
used with large charges of powder and heavy projectiles the force of the
explosion drives back portions of the metal of the cap into the hole
through which the striker works. To obviate this difficulty I have made
my improved primer or cap of the form shown in Figure 30, in which
there is a proper thickness of metal so specially disposed as to enable
the force of the gases of explosion to be successfully resisted. In the
head of the priming cap is a projecting lump m, and in the centre of
the said lump is a depression or concavity n. The fulminate covers the
whole base of the cap in the usual way. When this priming cap is
placed upon the conical anvil of the cap chamber the apex of the said
anvil is situated immediately opposite the depression n, and when the
cap is struck by the striking pin the liability to miss fire is diminished
in consequence of the thinness of that part of the cap on which the
striking pin acts, while at the same time there is a sufficient thickness
of metal so disposed that no portion of the cap or primer is driven back
into the hole through which the striker works.
Figure 31 represents in section and plan, and Figure 32 in section, with
the priming cap applied thereto, a cartridge constructed according to my
Invention, in which the anvils are made of a loose hollow cone or cup
with the sides cut away, the said loose cup or cone being inserted in the
cap chamber, the bottom or base of which is made concave and has a
central hole.
Figure 33 represents the anvil separately. The said hollow cone or
anvil is marked p, and the shape of the said cone is best seen in Figures
31 and 33. It is placed in the cap chamber q so as to cover the central
hole in the base of the said chamber. The nearly flat edges of the cone
fit accurately the sides of the cap chamber. The priming cap is placed.
over the conical anvil p, as represented in Figure 32. On the detonation
of the priming cap the flash passes between the cut-away sides of the
anvil and the sides of the cap chamber to the central hole in the base of
the said chamber, and from thence to the gunpowder of the cartridge.
By constructing the anvils in this way great certainty of discharge is
secured.
Having now described the nature of my Invention, I claim with
respect to the improvements in Chassepot rifles and other bolt guns
herein-before described and illustrated in Sheets 1 and 1 of the accom-
panying Drawings,

page_text: described and shown detached in Figure 33, and fixed in its place in the
cartridge in Figure 32 of Sheet 3.
In witness wliereof, I, the said Westley Richards, have hereunto
set my hand and seal, this Twenty-sixth day of April, in the
year of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and seventy-three.
Witness,
H. H. MURDOCH,
7, Staple Inn,
London.
WESTLEY RICHARDS. (L.S.)