CERTAIN IMPROVEMENTS IN BREECH-LOADING FIRE-ARMS
Year: 1865

page_text: PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by Peter Armand le Comte de
Fontaine Moreau at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with
bis Petition, on the 24th April 1865.-A communication from Monsieur
Marie Joseph Eugène du Liège de Puychaumeix, residing at No. 26,
Rue de la Fidélité, Paris, in the Empire of France.
I, PETER ARMAND LE COMTE DE FONTAINE MOREAU, of the General Patent
Offices, 10, Rue de la Fidélité, Paris, in the Empire of France, and 4, South
Street, Finsbury, London, Patent Agent, do hereby declare the nature of the
said Invention for "CERTAIN IMPROVEMENTS IN BREECH-LOADING FIRE-ARMS," to
be as follows, that is to say:
The Invention communicated to me relates to the manufacture of breech-
loading fire-arms in which the barrels are moveable in the direction of the
axis of the butt end. For that purpose the barrel is provided with a slide
forming part of the breech, and working in a groove prepared in the butt. To
load the gun the slide is made to bit against the piece on the butt, without
which the barrel would be moved from its normal position, it has only to be
moved the required distance in the direction of its length for the insertion of
the cartridge. The slide in order to be sufficiently solid should be made in one
piece with the breech piece, it is furnished with a piece of metal on the side
which is placed in a groove in such a manner that the sides which serve to
fix it to the slide give at the same time strength to the under side of the

page_text: breech piece. The latch is jointed, and its key forms an arm and fits into the
latch when it is fixed, and holds it firm. By means of this jointed latch the key
can be adjusted with precision in the mortice made to receive it in the breech
piece, and in the end piece soldered on the barrel. This latch with its stop
can be dispensed with if required in the ordinary fire-arms, but it is very useful
for preventing the recoil of fire-arms in which the bullets are rammed in.
Another jointed latch is placed behind, and the spring which moves it is placed
in a groove under the rod of the latch after the slide, because in this position
it bas less space to move in and is consequently sufficiently flexible no matter
what pressure it receives. When the slide is very thick it is necessary to
make oval the hole of the key, in which is placed the pin which holds it to the
latch, so that in working the latch shall not push the key, which ought to be
perfectly adjusted in its mortice. The two springs of the latches can be in
one piece. In order to fix or hold the barrel or barrels I provide a stop
above the breech piece, and this result is obtained by continuing into the breech
piece the mortice which receives the key or pin of the latch, and in this
groove is placed a key or bolt, which bolt when the barrel is pushed on the
breech pieco is pushed by the key into a bolt hole formed in the prolongation
of the barrel or between the barrels; this bolt is moved by a spring placed in
an opening made in the bottom of the breech piece, and which opening must
be made so as to give to the spring only sufficient space to work the bolt
while the spring must not be so strong as the spring of the latch. In order
to secure a greater amount of solidity, and not to make the prolongation of the
barrel too large, as it would then be in the way of the pin of the cartridge,
a shoulder is made in the bolt and screwed to a piece provided with an
opening to receive the end of the bolt. A screw working in a nut fixed in
the stock prevents the recoil on the butt end of the gun.