CERTAIN IMPROVEMENTS IN THE POSITION OF AND MODE OF ACTUATING THE DETENTS IN THE BREECH ACTION OF DROP-DOWN Guns
Year: 1875

page_text: LETTERS. PATENT to Alfred John Burdett Hollis, of Birmingham, in
'
the County of Warwick, Commercial Representative of Messrs. J.
Hollis and Sons, for the Invention of "CERTAIN IMPROVEMENTS IN THE
POSITION OF AND MODE OF ACTUATING THE DETENTS IN THE BREECH ACTION
OF DROP-DOWN Guns."
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Alfred John Burdett
Hollis at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his
Petition, on the 10th June 1875.
I, ALFRED JOHN BURDETT HOLLIS, of Birmingham, in the County of
Warwick, Commercial Representative of Messrs. J. Hollis and Sons, do
hereby declare the nature of my said Invention for " CERTAIN IMPROVE-
MENTS IN THE POSITION OF AND MODE OF ACTUATING THE DETENTS IN THE BREECH
ACTION OF DROP-down Guns,” to be as follows (that is to say) :-
:-
I will describe my Invention as arranged and adapted for a double
barrelled drop-down gun, and which consists in locking the barrels to

page_text: the breech action not only by detents formed from a sliding bolt
engaging with the ordinary lumps, but also in connection with a rear
way projection formed on the face of the extractor in connection with
an advancing additional detent formed on the said bolt, and working
through the face of the break-off or standing breech, the said direct
acting bolt being retired to snap over and complete the connection or
bolting of the parts when placing the barrels in position for discharging.
To give stability to the additional detent on the face of the extractor,
the lateral sides of the said extractor are made to spread like dovetails,
and are recessed into the breech end of the barrels.
For actuating the treble detents a lateral action and lever if desired
may be used, but I can conveniently effect this by means of a lever
working over the breech strap by its connection with a stud working
through the thick part of the said strap, the base or tumbler in con-
nection with the stud beneath the strap being so fashioned as to form a
seat for the force of a strong spring to act upon for correcting or holding
the locking bolt in position, while the other extended part of the base of
the tumbler is used for connecting it by means of a small arm to the top
rear end of the sliding bolt, so that by turning the lever from left to
right by the thumb while the gun is being held the bolt will be retired
and the barrels free to drop; but as a further security I purpose adding
when required an additional bolt working in a direct central line of the
barrels from a recess formed near the top surface of the break-off. The said
auxiliary bolt may be actuated by the lever which may be effected by a
small angle strap, extending from the rear end of the auxiliary bolt,
taking into the circular collar of the lever; the projecting end of this
bolt may be fashioned into one projection for entering a recess in the top
part of the breech end of the barrels, but I prefer two projections with
duplex recesses, as the said recesses may be formed in the solid metal of
the barrels.
As an equivalent, instead of making a projection on the face of the
extractor the same result may be produced by forming an opening
through the extractor, and making the projection on the middle part of
the rear end of the barrels to work through the said opening and engage
with the advancing bolt from the face of the break-off. Again, instead
of placing the actuating lever on the strap of the break-off a lever may
be placed over the trigger guard, the stud or part on which the lever
works being similar, as already described, for actuating the detents.

page_text: The auxiliary detent or detents may be actuated by a vertical pin
rising from the base of the tumbler, passing through a segmental slot in
the strap of the break-off and taking into a free recess in the bolt, or a
deflected pin from the lower side of the said bolt passing through a slot.
in the strap of the standing breech to engage with the base or tumbler
below the said strap.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent,
filed by the said Alfred John Burdett Hollis in the Great Seal
Patent Office on the 22nd September 1875.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, ALFRED
JOHN BURDETT HOLLIS, of Birmingham, in the County of Warwick,
Commercial Representative of Messrs. J. Hollis & Sons, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her
Letters Patent, bearing date the Tenth day of June, in the year of our
Lord One thousand eight hundred and seventy-five, in the thirty-eighth
year of Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and
grant unto me, the said Alfred John Burdett Hollis, Her special license
that I, the said Alfred John Burdett Hollis, my executors, adminis-
trators, and assigns, or such others as I, the said Alfred John Burdett
Hollis, my executors, administrators, and assigns, should at any time
agree with, and no others, from time to time and at all times there-
after 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 CERTAIN IMPROVEMENTS IN THE POSITION OF AND MODE OF ACTUATING THE
DETENTS IN THE BREECH ACTION OF DROP-DOWN GUNS," upon the condition
(amongst others) that I, the said Alfred John Burdett Hollis, my
exors, admors, and assigns, by an instrument in writing under my
hand and scal, 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.

page_text: NOW KNOW YE, that I, the said Alfred John Burdett Hollis, do
hereby declare the nature of my said Invention, and in what manner
the same is to be performed, to be particularly described and ascertained
in and by the following statement, reference being had to the accom-
panying Drawings and to the letters and figures marked thereon, that is
to say -
I will describe my Invention as arranged and adapted for a double
barrelled drop-down gun, and which consists in locking the barrels to
the breech action, not only by detents formed from a sliding bolt,
engaging with the ordinary lumps, but also in connection with a rear
way projection formed on the face of the extractor in connection with
an advancing additional detent formed on the said bolt, and working
through the face of the break-off or standing breech, the said direct
acting bolt being retired to snap over and complete the connection or
bolting of the part when placing the barrels in position for discharging.
To give stability to the additional detent on the face of the extractor
the lateral sides of the said extractor are made to spread like dovetails,
and are recessed into the breech end of the barrels.
For actuating the additional detent a lateral action and lever if desired
may be used, but I can conveniently effect this by means of a lever
working over the breech strap by its connection with a stud working
through the thick part of the said strap, the base or tumbler in con-
nection with the stud beneath the strap being so fashioned as to form a
seat for the force of a strong spring to act upon for correcting or holding
the locking bolt in position, while the other extended part of base of
the tumbler is used for connecting it by means of a small arm to the
top rear end of the sliding bolt, so that by turning the lever from left to
right by the thumb, while the gun is being held, the bolt will be retired
and the barrels free to drop; but as a further security I propose adding
when required an additional bolt working in a direct central line of the
barrels from a recess formed near the top surface of the break-off. The
said auxiliary bolt may be actuated by the lever which may be effected
by a small angle strap extending from the rear end of the auxiliary bolt
taking into the circular collar of the lever, the projecting end of this
bolt may be fashioned into one projection for entering a recess in the top
part of the breech end of the barrels; but I prefer two projections with
duplex recesses, as the said recesses may be formed in the solid metal of
the barrels.

page_text: As an equivalent, instead of making a projection on the face of the
extractor, the same result may be produced by forming an opening
through the extractor and making the projection on the middle part of
the rear end of the barrels to work through the said opening and engage
with the advancing bolt from the face of the break-off. Again, instead
of placing the actuating lever on the strap of the break-off, a lever may
be placed over the trigger guard, the stud or part on which the lever
works being similar as already described, for actuating the detents.
The auxiliary detent or detents may be actuated by a vertical pin
rising from the base of the tumbler passing through a segmental slot in
the strap of the break-off, and taking into a free recess in the bolt, or a
deflected pin from the lower side of the said bolt passing through a slot
in the strap of the standing breech to engage with the base or tumbler
below the said strap; but as much of this requires clearer definement
and exposition I will refer to the Drawings hereunto annexed, and to the
figures and letters marked thereon, observing that the same letters of
definement are used to denote the same parts, whether represented

page_text: The mode of actuating the bolt is by means of a swivel or arm shown
in side and top views at Figures 2 and 3, marked f, which has a round
deflecting pin passing down in a corresponding hole in the projection of
the bolt shown in dotted lines at Figure 3. The other end of the arm f
screws on the under side to the tumbler or eccentric 9, which eccentric
is represented in a top view at Fig. 7, showing the position of the screw
hole for connecting it with the arm f, whilst the square part within
the circle, after passing through the tang of the break-off, represented
in a top view of the action at Fig. 8, takes into a corresponding hole
formed in the lever marked A, Figure 1, the said tumbler or eccentric
forming the fulcrum of its action, the centre of which is indicated by
the dotted circle, as shown in Fig. 9, which represents the under side of
the tang, with the tumbler held to its work by the strong spring k, as
well as the position partly in dotted lines of the connecting arm f before
referred to in connection with Figures 2 and 3.
I
As a consequence of the eccentric connection of the arm f, principally
shown in dotted lines with the tumbler g, the lever has only to be turned
from left to right in manipulating the piece, when the bolts will be retired
and liberated from the corresponding lump a of the barrel and projec-
tion e in front of the extractor, the under cut front of which allows it to
snap over the projecting detent c when closing or snapping the barrels.
in position; but as an additional security I introduce a further detent
by means of a flat parallel bolt with semicircular edges, as represented in
a detached flat view at Fig. 10. A front end view of this bolt is shown
and its position defined in the face of the break-off, Figure 4, marked j;
the forward end of this bolt may be fashioned into a central projection
or divided into two lateral projections 1, 7, as here shown, which takes the
curvature of the barrels, as indicated by their corresponding engaging
recess marked m, m, Fig. 11, which represents the rear end of the barrels
with the extractor B and projecting detent e; this bolt j is shown in
position at Figure 8, with the top surface metal of the break-off broke
away for the purpose of better examining and explaining its action, and
is identical with Fig. 12, which shows that on the under side of this bolt,
as at Figure 10, there is an expanded recess to afford free action to the
connecting arm n, which is attached to it by a screw or rivet forming an
axis for it to move on, whilst the other end of the arm n is fitted or
formed with a round projecting pin for entering a lateral corresponding
hole in the under side of the lever A, as exhibited at Figure 12, so that

page_text: the action of this bolt and detent is to work simultaneously with the
lower detents before described by the action of the lever A.
At the sides of the bolt ; I apply lateral pins tapped in their forward
end and nicked for screwing in which may be effected through lateral
slots formed in the recesses the strikers work in, as shown at p and r,
Figure 8; by means of these lateral pins the strikers may be conveniently
elevated and one of which strikers is shown at C, D, and E, Fig. 13;
8, 8, are two flats formed on the circular cylindrical part of the striker
arranged in connection with the left side barrel and hammer, so that by
passing a screw in from the side of the action radially in the direction
of the dotted line t, Figure 8, it will intersect the flattened part s about
the contre, thereby preventing the striker turning around in its seat, or
falling out, yet providing sufficient range of depression by the blow of
the hammer, and by filing a flat incline in the projecting portion of the
striker as at w, the withdrawal of the bolt j and the lateral pins p, p,
coming underneath the incline 2 of the strikers will have the effect of
lifting the said strikers from their seats as also (if preferred) the
bammers to half bent, thereby increasing safety in handling so that
when the barrels are charged and placed in position the lower
extremities or shanks of the strikers as atv will simply rest slantingly
against the rear end of the cartridge, that the blow from the hammer
in the act of firing will explode the cartridge.
I have stated in my Provisional Specification that the main bolt with
the additional elevated detent may be actuated by a lateral or lower
motion, such for instance as exhibited at Fig. 14 which simply shows
the combination of a lever arranged for working under the arm marked
F and on an axis or fulcrum at w³, the lever F and rocking arm x being
held to their work by the shoe spring y attached or secured in a recess
in the lower side of the body, and as the detents & ¹of the bolt
work in a parallel seat it is evident that the depression of the lever F
will cause the bolt to retire from the point of detention, thereby freeing
the barrels, the projection on the face of the extractor as at e, Figure 1,
and engages with the upper detent 2 when placing the barrels in
position for firing.
Fig 15 is simply a top view of Figure 14 showing the bolt G placed in
vertical position centrally with the action of the lever, z and ¹ being the
detents, whilst the top of the rocking arm is shown partly in dotted lines.

page_text: A locking motion thus described, actuated by a lateral lever as at F, may
be applied to barrels and break off as exhibited in a top view at Fig. 16,
in which I have exhibited the ordinary form of strikers kept in extension
by small helical springs.
Instead of actuating the detents by a vertical rocking motion last
described the same result may be obtained by applying the lever to the
side of the body, its action being at right angles with the direction of the
barrels, notwithstanding the bolts may be actuated in every case (if so
preferred) by means of a top lever working over the tang, as described
and exhibited at Figures 1, 2, 3, 7, and 9, more particularly shown in
the side and top views at Figures 2 and 3, but instead of the top detent c
working over the face of the extractor as described in these Figures, it
may be lengthened so as to work in a recess formed in the extractor;
and by way of making this plain I have exhibited at Fig. 17 the face of
the break off and the body in section identical as at Figure 4, but simply
showing the front of the detent or bolt a¹ that advances by the action
of restoring the lever to its position over the tang, and as the bolt
advances it enters a corresponding recess formed in or through the face
of the extractor as shown at 6³, Fig. 18, which simply represents the
face or rear end of the barrels, the extractor being shown in an extended
position.
Having thus given a description of my Invention (as illustrated by
the Drawings) and the manner in which the same may be carried into
effect, with any desirable modification in the details or mode of actuating
the same, I wish it understood that what I claim as of my Invention
and wish to protect by these my in part recited Letters Patent is,---
Firstly. Extending the main bolt upwards, as shown in side and top
views at Figures 2 and 3, so as to form or combine with the same an
additional detent in connection with a projection or recess formed in or
on the face of the extractor commonly applied to double barrelled drop-
down guns, the said bolt and additional detent being actuated by a top,
bottom, lateral, or other conveniently placed lever, as herein described
and exhibited, without restricting myself to the shape, size, or range of
the said additional detent or bolt.
Secondlz I claim the annlication of an additional detent or detente hu

page_text: the break off, as shown principally in dotted lines marked 1, Figure 1, and
in an end or front view, marked j, Figure 4, and in a top view at Figures
8, 10, and 12, together with its action and attendant parts, without
restricting myself to the divided detents here exhibited, as the same may
be substituted by a central detent taking into the dividing rib of
the barrels.
And lastly. I claim the using of the additional detents as derived
from the lower bolt, independent of the second or flat bolt, or the
detent derived from the action of the flat bolt independent of the lower
bolt, with or without the attendant parts or actions, as herein described
and set forth.
In witness whereof, I, the said Alfred John Burdett Hollis, have
hereunto set my hand and seal, this Second day of September,
in the year of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and seventy-
five.
ALFRED JOHN BURDETT HOLLIS.
(L.S.)
Witness,
JAMES S. COCKINGS,
Patent Agent,
Birmingham.