IMPROVEMENTS IN BREECH LOADING SMALL ARMS
Year: 1881

page_text: PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by William Tranter at the Office of
the Commissioners of Patents on the 1st July 1881.
WILLIAM TRANTER, of Birmingham, in the County of Warwick, Gun Maker.
"IMPROVEMENTS IN BREECH LOADING SMALL ARMS."
My Invention has reference to breech loading arms of the kind commonly called
drop down guns, that is, guns in which the barrels turn upon a joint, the open
breech ends of the barrels being raised from the face of the break off for the
purpose of charging.
The object of my Invention is to effect the cocking of the hammers and the
locking of the cocked hammers by the raising of the breech ends of the barrels for
charging, the unlocking of the hammers being effected by the grasping of the
gun.
I construct and arrange the parts in the following manner :-
In the body of the gun is a lever, the long arm of which is situated under the
rear part of the barrels. The end of the short arm of the said lever bears on the
hammer on that side of its axis opposite to the side on which the mainspring bears.
The long arm of the lever carries at its end a projection which passes through
a slot in the body of the gun and bears against the underside of of the barrels.
The main spring of the gun acts upon the hammer in the usual way, but the end
of the main spring, which ordinarily has a fixed bearing, bears against the under-
side of the long arm of the lever and presses upwards the said long arm and
through the projection on the end of the long arm tends to raise the breech ends
of the barrels.
The action of the parts is as follows:-The gun having been discharged and
the mechanism by which the barrels are locked down having been operated upon
so as to unlock the barrels, the breech ends of the barrels are raised. By the
rising of the breech ends of the barrels the long arm of the lever which had been
pressed down by the barrel is raised by the action of the main spring. The short
arm of the said lever acting on the front of the hammer forces the hammer back
into its cocked position, in which position it is retained by the ordinary sear and
bent the shutting down of the barrels raising the short arm of the lever from the
front of the hammer.

page_text: The gun is now ready for firing by pressure on the trigger, but in order to
prevent the accidental discharge of the gun, I cause a spring safety lever to
engage with the head of the hammer when it is cocked, so that the cocked hammer
is held in its raised position both by the sear and bent and the spring safety lever.
The said spring safety lever is connected with another lever one arm of which is
external and nearly flush with the underside of that part of the stock grasped in
firing. When the gun is about to be fired the grasp of the hand operates the
safety mechanism, so as to unlock the hammer which is now held in its cocked
position by the sear and bent and pressure of the finger on the trigger effects the
discharge of the gun.
My improvements are especially applicable to guns having internal or concealed
haminers but are also applicable to guns having external hammers.
The lock mechanism described may be used without the spring safety lever.