IMPROVEMENTS IN BREECH-LOADING SMALL-ARMS
Year: 1877

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Christopher George Bonehill, of Birmingham, in the County
of Warwick, Gun Manufacturer, for the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN
BREECH-LOADING SMALL-ARMS."
Sealed the 22nd February 1878, and dated the 6th October 1877.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Christopher George Bonehill
at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents on the 6th October 1877.
CHRISTOPHER GEORGE BONEHILL, of Birmingham, in the County of Warwick, Gun
Manufacturer. "IMPROVEMENTS IN BREECH-LOADING SMALL-ARMS.'
"
My Invention consists of the improvements herein-after described in breech-
loading small-arms of the kind commonly called drop-down guns.
In constructing the action by which the locking down and releasing bolt, which
engages with a lump or lumps on the under side of the barrels, is worked, I connect
to the lower end of the axis of the hand lever on the tang a short arm having a
groove eccentric to the axis, the said grooved arm constituting a hollow or slotted
cam. A pin on the end of the locking bolt takes into the said eccentric groove in
the cam, and when the hand lever is turned in one or other direction the locking
bolt is withdrawn or advanced. The advance or locking motion of the bolt is effected
as usual by a spring.
In working the top cross bolt, which engages with the projecting or prolonged
end of the rib between the barrels, I employ a curved or hook-like bolt, connected
to the lower end of the hand lever axis, the curve of the said hook-like bolt being
struck from the centre of the axis of the hand lever. A hole is made in the pro-
jecting end of the rib of a size and form suitable for the reception of the said curved
or hook-like bolt.
When the hand lever on the tang is in its normal position, the said curved bolt
passes through the hole in the prolonged rib, and on turning aside the hand lever
to unbolt the barrels the said curved bolt is withdrawn from the said hole in the

page_text: rib. The said curved bolt may be made in one piece with and form the anterior
part of the hollow cam described, by which the bottom bolt is worked.
Instead of the curved bolt described, a sliding bolt, having motion in a line
parallel with the axes of the barrel, may be employed, the said sliding bolt being
made to take into a notch or recess made in the end of the prolonged rib. This
bolt may either be actuated through the lever on the tang by a hollow cam of the
kind herein before described, or it may be actuated by a lever working on the side
of the gun.
In order the more effectually to secure the "block strikers" by which the gun is
discharged in the back of the break-off, I effect the connection in the following
manner I make the block striker work in a tubular casing, collars on the
the striker limiting the range of motion of the striker within its casing. The
lower part of this casing as a screw thread upon it, and the hole in the break-off,
into which it fits, has a corresponding concave screw thread. By screwing the
Baid casing into the hole in the back of the break-off, the block striker is secured in
its place.
Block strikers made according to my Invention are quite free from the danger of
accidental displacement to which block strikers, as ordinarily made, are liable.
In order to prevent the snapping noise which is produced when the breech ends
of the barrels are shut down and bolted, which noise often disturbs game, I mount
an antifriction roller on the end of the bolt which takes into the lump on the under
side of the barrels, and by which said bolt the locking down is mainly effected. By
the use of this antifriction roller the bolt engages with the lump noiselessly, and
the inconvenience referred to is avoided.
In order to give greater strength and security to the prolonged end of the rib
and the lump on the under side of the barrels by which the locking down is effected,
I construct a portion of the rib and the lump of one piece of iron or steel. The
said iron or steel is rolled of a figure nearly similar, in cross section, to the figure
of the rib on the upper side of the barrels and the lump on the under side, the said
parts being connected by a thin web passing between the barrels, the said web
having on each side a concavity suitable for the reception of the barrels. The
required figure cannot be wholly given by rolling to the compound bar described,
the concave sides requiring to be completed by a planing or cutting process.
The usual figure is given to the prolonged end of the rib and the lumps. I con-
struct the fastening by which the "fore end" is connected with and disconnected
from the barrels in the following manner :-The sliding bolt, urged forward by a
coiled spring, snaps into the loop on the under side of the barrels when the "fore
end" is shut down upon the barrels. A lever lying flush with the fore end has at
the end of its longer arm a thumb plate by which it can be depressed, its short arm
taking into a slot in the spring bolt.
On the depression of the lever by means of its thumb plate, the bolt is withdrawn
and the "fore end" released. Or the thumb plate may be connected directly with
the spring bolt, the unfastening being effected by pressing the said thumb plate so
as to give it a sliding motion. Or the bolt may engage with the loop on the barrels
by a cross motion. In this case an axis in the fore end carries at one end a hook-
like bolt, and at the other end a thumb plate. The said hook-like bolt is made to
engage with the loop by means of a spring, and thereby fasten the "fore end," and
by transverse pressure on the thumb plate of the bolt the latter is withdrawn from
the loop and the "fore end" released.

page_text: SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent filed by
the said Christopher George Bonehill in the Great Seal Patent Office on the
29th March 1878.
CHRISTOPHER GEORGE BONEHILL, of Birmingham, in the County of Warwick, Gun
Manufacturer. "IMPROVEMENTS IN BREECH-LOADING SMALL-ARMS."
My Invention consists of the improvements herein-after described in breech-
loading small-arms of the kind commonly called drop-down guns.
In constructing the action by which the locking down and releasing bolt, which
engages with a lump or lumps on the under side of the barrels, is worked, I connect
to the lower end of the axis of the hand lever on the tang a short arm having a
groove excentric to the axis, the said grooved arm constituting a hollow or slotted
cam. A pin on the end of the locking bolt takes into the said excentric groove in
the cam, and when the hand lever is turned in one or other direction the locking
bolt is withdrawn or advanced. The advance or locking motion of the bolt is effected
as usual by a spring.
In working the top cross bolt which engages with the projecting or prolonged
end of the rib between the barrels, I employ a curved or hook-like bolt connected
to the lower end of the hand lever axis, the curve of the said book-like bolt being
struck from the centre of the axis of the hand lever. A hole is made in the pro-
jecting end of the rib of a size and form suitable for the reception of the said curved
or hook-like bolt.
When the hand lever on the tang is in its normal position, the said curved bolt
passes through the hole in the prolonged rib, and on turning aside the hand lever
to unbolt the barrels, the said curved bolt is withdrawn from the said hole in the
rib. The said curved bolt may be made in one piece with and form the anterior
part of the hollow can described, by which the bottom bolt is worked.
Instead of the curved bolt described, a sliding bolt, having motion in a line
parallel with the axes of the barrels, may be employed, the said sliding bolt being
made to take into a notch or recess made in the end of the prolonged rib. This
bolt may either be actuated through the lever on the tang by a hollow cam of the
kind herein-before described, or it may be actuated by a lever working on the side
or under side of the gun.
In order the more effectually to secure the "block strikers" by which the gun is
discharged in the back of the break-off, I effect the connection in the following
manner-I make the block striker work in a tubular casing, collars on the striker
limiting the range of motion of the striker within its casing. The lower part
of this casing has a screw thread upon it, and the hole in the break-off, into
which it fits, has a corresponding concave screw thread. By screwing the said
casing into the hole in the back of the break-off, the block striker is secured in
its place.
Block strikers made according to my Invention are quite free from the danger of
accidental displacement to which block strikers, as ordinarily made, are liable.
In order to make the action work smoother and to lessen the wear, I mount an
antifriction roller on the end of the bolt which takes into the lump on the under
side of the barrels, and by which said bolt the locking down is mainly effected.
In order to give greater strength and security to the prolonged end of the rib
and the lump on the under side of the barrels by which the locking down is effected,
I construct a portion of the rib and the lump of one piece of iron or steel. The
said iron or steel is rolled of a figure nearly similar in cross section to the figure of
the rib on the upper side of the barrels and the lump on the under side, the said
parts being connected by a thin web passing between the barrels, the said web
having on each side a concavity suitable for the reception of the barrels. The
required figure cannot be wholly given by rolling to the compound bar described,
the concave sides requiring to be completed by a planing or cutting process.
The usual figure is given to the prolonged end of the rib and the lumps.

page_text: I will now proceed to describe, with reference to the accompanying Drawings,
the manner in which my Invention may be performed.
Figure 1 represents in longitudinal vertical section the breech end of a drop-
down gun, containing one of my arrangements for working the bottom locking
bolt of the gun in combination with an arrangement for fastening the barrels at
the prolonged end of the rib; Figure 2 is a plan of the under side of the same.
Figure 3 is a plan of upper side of a portion of the barrels in combination with
the hand lever and curved bolt for fastening the barrels at the prolonged rib.
Figure 4 is a side elevation of the hand lever and curved bolt separately, and
Figure 5 is a plan of the under locking bolt and parts connected with it.
The same letters of reference indicate the same parts in Figures 1, 2, 3, 4,
and 5.
a, a, are the barrels turning on the joint b, as usual; c is the break-off, and d the
body of the gun; e is the under sliding or locking bolt, for engaging with the
lumps ff, on the under side of the barrels a, a. The rear end of the sliding
bolt e is formed with a vertical tail piece e. The said bolt e is worked from the
hand lever g on the tang h of the break-off. The axis i of the said hand lever
passes through the break-off, and has fixed to its inner end a short arm or cam k,
shown detached, in combination with the bolt in Figure 5. In the said short arm
or cam k is a slot or groove / excentric to the axis i, on which the said cam is
fixed. On the upper end of the tail piece is a pin m, which works in the
excentric groove or slot in the short arm or cam k. A spring n bearing against a
shoulder on the short arm or cam k, as represented in Figure 2, gives the advance
or snapping action to the sliding bolt e, and maintains the hand lever g and the
other parts connected with it in their normal positions. By turning aside the
hand lever g on the tang of the break-off in the direction indicated by the arrow
in Figure 2, the excentric slot in the cam k, acting upon the pin m on the tail end
of the sliding bolt e, withdraws the said bolt from the shoulders or seats of the
lumps ff, and unfastens the barrels, which may now be raised and their breech
ends charged in the usual way. When the barrels are shut down after charging
them, the sliding bolt e is pressed back by the curved faces of the lumps f, f2, and
after the barrels have seated themselves on the body the said bolt e snaps upon the
shoulders or seats of the said lumps, and thereby fastens down the barrels, and the
gun is ready for discharge. At the end of the sliding bolt e is an antifriction
roller p.
On the raising or depressing of the breech ends of the barrels the curved
face of the front lump f bears against the said roller p, and the movement of the
barrels is much smoother, and there is less wear upon the lump and bolt than when
the lump presses directly on the bolt as usual.
A second antifriction roller in the bolt e may be made to bear against the curved
face of the back lumpf when a double lump is used.
The motion of the hand lever g, which works the under sliding bolt e, may also
be made to effect the fastening of the barrels at the prolonged rib between the
barrels; for this purpose the prolonged rib q, which takes into a recess in the
break-off, is furnished with a holer passing through it, and the front end of the
hand lever g is furnished with a curved or look-like bolt s, the said hook-like bolt
having motion about the centre or axis i, on which the said hand lever turns.
When the hand lever g is in its normal position and the barrels are shut down, the
said curved or hook-like bolt 8 passes or snaps through the hole r in the prolonged
rib q, as illustrated in Figures 1 and 2, and the barrels are thereby fastened at the
said rib at the same time that they are fastened down at their under sides by the
action of the under sliding bolt e. On turning aside the hand lever g to withdraw
the under sliding bolt e, the same motion withdraws the curved bolts from the
hole in the prolonged rib q, and the barrels are thereby simultaneously unfastened
at top and bottom.
Instead of making the curved bolts a portion of the hand lever g, as represented,
the said curved bolt may be made in one piece with the slotted cam k which works

page_text: The arrangement of parts for working the under sliding bolt e may be used-alone
or in combination with the arrangement described, or with other arrangements for
fastening the barrels at the rib.
Figure 6 represents in longitudinal, section, and Figure 7 in plan of upper side,
the breech end of a drop down gun, in which the fastenings of the barrels at the
prolonged rib is effected by a sliding bolt instead of by a curved or hook-like bolt,
as herein-before described.
Figure 8 represents in side elevation the under sliding and upper sliding bolts,
together with the slotted cam and a portion of the hand lever; and Figure 9.
represents in plan the upper sliding bolt separately.
Figure 10 represents the hand lever separately.
In this arrangement the pin m on the tail end e of the under sliding bolt e,
which works in the slot of the cam k for effecting the motion of the said sliding
bolt, is prolonged upwards, and on the top of the prolonged part the upper sliding
bolt t is fixed, as represented. The prolonged end of the ribs has a notch or
recess u made in its end, into which notch or recess the top sliding bolt t snaps to
fasten the barrels at the rib. When the hand lever g is turned aside to unfasten
the barrels, the top sliding bolt t is withdrawn from the notch u in the rib q
simultaneously with the withdrawal of the under sliding bolt e from the seats in
the lumps f,f.
The parts of the gun, Figures 6, 7, 8, 9, and 10, which I have not described, are
the same as corresponding parts of the gun first described, and the same letters of
reference indicate the same parts.
Instead of simultaneously withdrawing the top and under sliding bolts by the
action of a cam on the axis of the hand lever on the tang, the said bolts may be
withdrawn by the action of a lever on the side or under side of the gun. This modi-
fication of my Invention is illustrated in side elevation (partly in section) in Figure
11, and the bolts detached in Figure 12. e is the sliding under bolt, and v is the
top sliding bolt taken into a notch or recess in the prolonged rib, the said top bolt
being connected to the under bolt e by the tail end e² of the said under bolt; w, ws,
is the side lever for working the two bolts e, v. The short arm w of the lever takes
into an opening in the under bolt e, and the advance or snapping motion of the said
bolt e and the top bolt vis effected by the spring a acting on the shoulder of the
short arm w of the lever.
When it is wished to unfasten the barrels the thumb plate end w² of the lever at
the side of the gun is depressed. The short arm w of the said lever is thereby made
to move towards the butt end of the gun, withdrawing the under bolt e, and through
the tail piece e of the said under bolt, the top sliding bolt v, as will be understood
by an examination of the Drawing.
Instead of a lever on the side of the gun, as in Figure 11, a lever on the under
side of the gun may be employed for working the two bolts e, v.
Figure 13 represents in section, and Figure 14 in elevation, a block striker con-
structed according to my Invention.
Figure 15 represents the same, before the tube, forming the head or enlarged upper
part of the striker, is rivetted to the rod or striker proper.
Figure 16 represents the striker proper separately; Figure 17, the tubular casing
in which the striker works; and Figure 18, the tube which forms the head of the
striker.
Figure 19 represents in section a portion of the body of a gun to which one of my
improved strikers is applied.
The block striker consists of a rod or striker a having a head or enlarged upper
part b, the said striker having a limited motion in the tubular casing c. The head
or enlargement 6 of the striker is made by placing a tube 6 (shown separately in
Figure 18) upon the upper end of the rod a, the said rod having been previously
placed in the casing c, as shown in Figure 15. By expanding or rivetting the pro-
truding upper end of the rod a upon the top of the tube b, the said tube and rod
are connected together and the striker secured in the casing c. The tubular casing c,

page_text: in which the striker works is screwed at its lower end, and a corresponding screwed
hole d (Figure 19) is made in the back of the break-off to receive the screwed part
of the casing c. By screwing the casing cinto the hole d the striker is secured in
its place, as illustrated in Figure 19. A collar f on the striker limits its motion in
one direction, and the bottom of the head or enlargement b limits its motion in the
other direction. The head b of the striker is provided with a milled shoulder i, by
means of which the striker may be lifted in its casing should it be wedged therein.
The lifting or pushing back of the striker described may be effected by the action of
the barrels or by the action of a spring.
Figure 20 represents in end elevation, Figure 21 in cross section, and Figure 22
in plan, the breech ends of a pair of barrels, the rib, the prolonged end of the rib,
and the lump of the said barrels being constructed according to my Invention
Figure 23 represents in end elevation and side elevation the rib, its prolonged end,
and the lump detached from the barrels; and Figures 24 and 25 represent the pair
of barrels to be fitted to the said rib and lump.
;
k is the rib on the upper side of and between the breech ends of the barrels; k² is
the prolonged end of the said rib; and Z is the lump on the under side of the barrels,
into which lump the locking bolt takes. The rib k and lump are connected
together by a thin web passing between the barrels (see Figure 21), each side of the
said web having a concavity m made in it suitable for receiving portions of the
barrels. The parts k, k³, and 1, and the connecting web at m are made of one piece
of steel or iron by rolling, the concave slides m, m, of the connecting web between
the rib and lump being completed by a planing or cutting process. The sides p, p,
of the barrels to be brazed to the rib k and lump & and their connecting web m are
made of the form represented in the Drawing, so that they may fit accurately in the
concavities m, m, and upon the lump l.
It will be seen by an examination of the Drawing that the sides of the barrels
which are fitted in the concavities m, m, of the connecting web are not cut away as
usual, those parts of the barrel which are connected to the rib connecting web and
lump having the same strength as the other parts.
The concave sides of the web between the rib and lump k, l, constitute seats for
the sides of the barrels to seat themselves upon. By means of these seats the fitting
and connecting of the barrels to the lump and rib is much facilitated.
The shapes of the rib k, prolonged part k², and lump are perfected in the
ordinary way.
•
The rib and lump k, l, and their connecting web at m, m, may be constructed
without the prolonged end k² of the rib when the barrels are not to be fastened at
the prolonged rib.
Having now described the nature of my Invention, and the manner in which the
same is to be performed, I wish it to be understood that I do not limit myself to the
precise details herein described and illustrated, as the same may be varied without
departing from the nature of my Invention; but I claim as my Invention of
improvements in breech-loading small-arms of the kind called drop-down guns,-—
First. The arrangement or combination of parts, herein-before described and illus-
trated in Figures 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, and 10 of the accompanying Drawings, for
working the bottom or under locking bolt, which engages with a lump or lumps on
the under side of the barrels, that is to say, connecting to the lower end of the axis
of the hand lever on the tang a slotted arm or cam, the slot in the said arm or cam
being excentric to the axis of the said hand lever, a pin on the tail end of the
bottom or under bolt taking into the excentric slot in the said arm or cam, the
several parts being arranged and operating substantially as described and
illustrated.
Secondly. The arrangement or combination of parts, herein-before described and
illustrated in Figures 1, 2, 3, and 4 of the accompanying Drawings, for fastening the
barrels to the prolonged rib, that is to say, fastening the barrels to the rib by means
of a curved or hook-like bolt taking into a hole made in the projecting end of the
said rib, the said curved or hook-like bolt being either formed in one piece with the

page_text: hand lever on the tang, or with the slotted arm or cam by which the bottom bolt is
worked, as described; also the arrangement or combination of parts, described and
illustrated in Figures 6, 7, 8, 9, and 10, for fastening the barrels to the prolonged
rib by means of a sliding bolt taking into a notch or recess in the end of the said
rib; also the arrangement or combination of parts, herein-before described and
illustrated in Figures 11 and 12, in which the sliding top bolt taking into the end
of the prolonged rib is actuated from the lower or under sliding bolt, and the latter
by a lever on the side or under side of the gun.
Thirdly. Constructing and combining the parts of block strikers, and securing the
said strikers in the break-off of the gun, in the manner herein-before described, and
illustrated in Figures 16 to 19, both inclusive, of the accompanying Drawings.
Lastly. Constructing a portion of the rib on the upper side of the barrels of drop-
down guns and the lump at the under side of the breech ends of the said barrels of
one piece of iron or steel, the said rib and the lump being connected together by a
thin web with concave sides, into which concave sides the barrels are fitted, whether
the said rib be formed with or without a prolonged end, substantially as herein-
before described, and illustrated in Figures 20 to 24, both inclusive, of the accom-
panying Drawings.
In witness whereof, I, the said Christopher George Bonehill, have hereunto set
my hand and seal, this Twenty-seventh day of March, in the year of our
Lord One thousand eight hundred and seventy-eight.
CHRISTOPHER GEORGE BONEHILL. (LS.)
Witness,
GEORGE SHAW,