Improvements in Bullets.
Year: 1886

page_text: Date of Application, 9th July, 1886
Complete Left, 19th Jan., 1887.
Complete Accepted, 22nd Feb., 1887.
[Communicated from abroad by CHARLES ALGER, of Hudson, in the County o
Columbia and State of New York, United States of America, Gentleman.]
Improvements in Bullets.
I, ALEXANDER MELVILLE CLARK, of the firm of A. M. and Wm. Clark, of
53, Chancery Lane, in the County of Middlesex, Fellow of the Institute of Patent
Agents, do hereby declare the nature of this Invention to be as follows:-
This Invention relates to that class of projectiles designed for small-arms, and more
particularly those called "Minić bullets" and made of lead or other soft metals; and
the invention consists in a projectile of lead or other soft metal encased or sheathed
wholly or partly in a seamless shell of harder metal as hereafter described.
I form the seamless shell preferably of sheet copper by stamping up the same by
means of suitable punchers and dies. The shell being thereby brought to the intended
form of the bullet, the bullet is then completed by forcing into the shell a lead body
a triflo larger than the interior of the shell, whereby the two are made to fit accurately,
and the metal of the body is condensed so as to become very hard, which hardness is
increased by the power used to force the body into the shell; and it may be further
increased by forcing a conical plug into the end of the body, which will condense the
metal and make a recess in the base of the body.
The bullet is thus entirely covered from base to apex with a material that will not
appreciably foul the barrel, which will therefore seldom require cleaning, for the
tendency of the copper covering, when forced outward by the expansion of the gases
due to the explosion, will be to scrape the interior of the barrel and the rifle grooves
clean of the deposits caused by the smoke of previous discharges.
Independently of this advantage and of its more perfect shape when it leaves the
barrel, causing it to keep its point forward, and thus travel farther, the bullet will have
a greater penetrative power, because, the copper covering being made very hard by the
process of forming it, the bullet, on striking a hard substance, such as a bone, for

page_text: instance, or some of the metallic parts of a soldier's accoutrements will still retain its
shape, and hence pass through the bone or other obstruction and do execution, where
a bullet uncovered would be flattened and become comparatively harmless.
It is preferred to make the covering or casing thickest at the apex, as it makes it
stronger at this point, and it is thus less liable to be driven out of shape by the impact
on striking an obstacle, and will hence have more penetrative power, although it will
have a good effect if the covering is of the same thickness from apex to base.
Instead of entirely casing the bullet, a portion of the centre of the bullet may be
left bare, as the copper at each end will prevent the lead coming in contact with the
barrel.
The body of the projectile may be formed of other soft metal or of a composition of
which lead forms a part without departing from the spirit of the invention.
A. MELVILLE CLARK.
By A. M. & Wm. Clark,
53, Chancery Lane, London,
Patent Agents.

page_text: Improvements in Bullets.
I, ALEXANDER MELVILLE CLARK, of the firm of A. M. and Wm. Clark, of
53, Chancery Lane, in the County of Middlesex, Fellow of the Institute of Patent
Agents, do hereby declare the nature of this Invention (a communication to me from
abroad by Charles Alger, of Hudson, in the County of Columbia and State of New
York, United States of America, Gentleman), and in what manner the same is to be
performed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and by the following
statement:-
This invention relates to that class of projecticls designed for small arms, and more
particularly those called "Minié bullets" and made of lead or other soft metals; and
the invention consists in a projectile encased or sheathed in a seamless shell or casing
of harder metal in the manner hereinafter described.
In the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 represents a perspective view of the
covering of the bullet; Figure 2, a similar view of a covered bullet; Figure 3, a
longitudinal section thereof. Figure 4 is a modification, also in section; and Figure 5,
a section of the tools I prefer to employ in making the covering or casing.
To make the shell or sheathing for the bullet I employ a sheet of thin metal, pre-
ferably copper; but other metals or compositions of metals may be used; and in
making the same I employ two punches A, B, and a matrix or mold having a larger
recess, C, at the top, which is circular and about four times the diameter, and one
fourth the depth of the lower or finishing recess, C, the bottom of which recess is
conical. Into the larger or top portion, a disc of sheet metal, as d, forced by means
of the annular punch A, so as to form a cup thereof, as shown in dotted lines, and
immediately after and within it follows the other punch, B, which is conical at its
lower end, and of such size as to fit the lower recess C₁, less the thickness of the sheet
metal employed, which form forces this metal down the entire depth of the mold,
giving it the conical termination at its apex. This sheet metal shell is completed by
trimming off its ragged, upper and open end, forming the shell shown in Figure 1,
and the bullet is then completed by forcing into the shell a lead body a trifle larger
than the interior of the shell, whereby the two are made to fit accurately and the
metal of the body is condensed so as to become very hard, which hardness is increased
by the power used to force the body into the shell; and it may be further increased
by forcing a conical plug into the end of the body, which will condense the metal and
make a recess in the base of the body as shewn in Figures 2, 3 and 4.
The bullet is thus entirely covered from base to apex with a material that will not
appreciably foul the barrel, which will therefore seldom require cleaning, for the
tendency of the copper covering, when forced outward by the expansion of the gases
due to the explosion, will be to scrape the interior of the barrel and the rifle-grooves
clean of the deposits caused by the smoke of previous discharges. Independently of
this advantage and of its more perfect shape when it leaves the barrel, causing it to
keep its point forward, and thus travel farther, the bullet will have a greater penetrative

page_text: power, because, the copper covering being made very hard by the process of forming
it, the bullet, on striking a hard substance-such as a bone, for instance, or some of
the metallic parts of a soldier's accoutrements-will still retain its shape, and hence
pass through the bone or other obstruction and do execution, where a bullet uncovered
would be flattened and become comparatively harmless.
I prefer to make the covering or casing thickest at the apex, as it makes it stronger
at this point, and it is thus less liable to be driven out of shape by the impact on
striking an obstacle, and will hence have more penetrative power, although it will have
a good effect if the covering is of the same thickness from apex to base.
Instead of entirely casing the bullet a portion of the centre of the bullet may be
left bare, as shown in Figure 4, as the copper at each end will prevent the lead coming
in contact with the barrel.
I have described the body of the projectile as being made of lead; but it may be
formed of other soft metal or of a composition of which lead forms a part without
departing from the spirit of the invention.
I am aware that iron and steel projectiles have been coated with copper by electric
deposition.
I am also aware that it has been proposed to partly encase an iron projectile in a
copper casing by inserting the butt of the projectile loosely in the top of the casing,
and then closing the same loosely around said projectile by means of dies; and I am
also aware that lead projectiles have been coated with a cylinder of copper having a
seam or joint at the sides. These projectiles, however, are very different as the process
of making them is essentially different.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of the said invention,
and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what I claim is :-
-
1. A projectile of soft metal, having its point and base covered with a seamless
smooth casing of harder metal, substantially as described.
2. A projectile having its body of soft metal firmly encased from apex to base with
a seamless smooth casing of harder metal, substantially as described.
3. A lead bullet having its point encased in a hard-metal shell, substantially as
described.
A. MELVILLE CLARK.
By A. M. & Wm. Clark,
53, Chancery Lane, London,
Patent Agents.