APPARATUS FOR ADAPTING ORDNANCE FOR PRACTICE WITH MINIATURE AMMUNITION
Year: 1884

page_text: PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
I, RICHARD MORRIS of Bennett Park Blackheath in the County of Kent,
Engineer, do hereby declare the nature of my invention for "APPARATUS FOR
ADAPTING ORDNANCE FOR PRACTICE WITH MINIATURE AMMUNITION" to be ns
follows:-
In the Specification to Letters Patent granted to me on the 11th October 1883
No 4846 I described means of fitting small barrels into guns of large calibre and
operating with them so that small projectiles can be fired over moderate ranges,
the operators nevertheless acquiring practice in sighting aiming and firing as by
the use of full sized ammunition. My present invention relates to modified
apparatus applicable for this purpose to muzzle loading guns, this apparatus being
of a simple and effective character as I will now explain. I fit into the large gun
near its muzzle a cylindrical block which is made to centre truly and fit tightly in
the bore as I described in the Specification above referred to, by means of a split
cylindrical shell expanded by a conical core set up by a screw nut. At the inner
end of this block, which has a hole through it I form a screwed scating into which
the miniature barrel is scrowed, this barrel being an ordinary rifle barrel or such a
barrel with a small tube fixed within it.
Behind the barrel soating there is a tubular extension of the block having within
it a sliding striker that is pressed forwards by a spring and has a spring stud
projecting laterally from it through a slot cut through one side of the tubular exten-
sion. The block has also a tubular extension in front projecting beyond the muzzle
of the gun and on this extension is fitted a sliding boss having projecting arms to
which is attached a double lanyard that is carried back and turned sideways round
a pulley mounted at the breech end of the gun where the ordinary friction tube or
discharging hammer is placed.
From the sliding boss above mentioned a sliding rod extends backwards along a
slot through the block, and its end meets the spring stud that projects from the
striker. The slot in which this stud works has at its rear end an inwardly sloping
shoulder so that when the stud is moved back along the slot, it is caused towards
the end of its stroke to move inwards releasing itself from the sliding rod. Such
Price G21

page_text: being the construction of the apparatus, it is worked in the following manner.
The rifle bairei being unscrewed from its seat and withdrawn out of the gun has a
small cartridge inserted into its breech. It is then introduced into the block and
screwed in its seat. The Artilleryman then pulling the lanyard draws back the sliding
boss, and the sliding rod extending back from it and bearing against the stud of
the striker pushes the striker back in opposition to the spring, but when the stud
escapes as above mentioned, the striker is driven forward by the recoil of the
spring and discharges the cartridge.

page_text: COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
"
I, RICHARD MORRIS, of Bennett Park, Blackheath in the county of Kent,
Engineer, do hereby declare the nature of my invention for APPARATUS FOR
ADAPTING ORDNANCE FOR PRACTICE WITH MINIATURE AMMUNITION" and in what
manner the same is to be performed, to be particularly described and ascertained
in and by the following statement :—
In the specification to letters patent granted to me on the 11th October 1883
N° 4846 I described means of fitting small barrels into guns of large calibre and
operating with them so that small projectiles can be fired over moderate ranges, the
operators novertheless acquiring practice in sighting, aiming and firing as by the
use of full sized ammunition. My present invention relates to modified apparatus
applicable for this purpose to muzzle loading guns, this apparatus being of a simple
and effective character as I will now explain. I fit into the large gun near its
muzzle a cylindrical block which is made to centre truly and fit tightly in the bore
as I described in the Specification above referred to, by means of a split cylindrical
shell expanded by a conical core set up by a screw nut. At the inner end of this
block, which has a hole through it I form a screwed seating into which the
miniature barrel is screwed, this barrel boing an ordinary rifle barrel or such a
barrel with a small tube fixed within it.
Behind the barrel seating there is a tubular extension of the block having
within it a sliding striker that is pressed forwards by a spring and has a spring
stud projecting laterally from it through a slot cut through one side of the tubular
extension. The block has also a tubular extension in front projecting beyond the
muzzle of the gun and on this extension is fitted a sliding boss having projecting
arms to which is attached a double lanyard that is carried back and turned
sideways round a pulley mounted at the breech end of the gun where the ordinary
friction tube or discharging hammer is placed.
From the sliding boss above mentioned a sliding rod extends backwards along a
slot through the block, and its end meets the spring stud that projects from the
striker. The slot in which this stud works has at its rear end an inwardly sloping
shoulder so that when the stud is moved back along the slot, it is caused towards
the end of its stroke to move inwards releasing itself from the sliding rod. Such
being the construction of the apparatus, it is worked in the following manner.
The rifle barrel being unscrewed from its seat and withdrawn out of the gun has a
small cartridge inserted into its breech. It is then introduced into the block and
screwed in its seat. The artilleryman then pulling the lanyard draws back the
sliding boss, and the sliding rod extending back from it and bearing against the
stud of the striker pushes the striker back in opposition to the spring, but when
the stud escapes as above mentioned, the striker is driven forward by the recoil of
the spring and discharges the cartridge.
Fig. 1 of the accompanying drawings is a longitudinal section shewing apparatus
according to my invention applied to the muzzle of a gun. Fig. 2 is a transverse
section at X and Fig. 3 a transverse section at Y. A is a cylindrical shell (of

page_text: nearly the diameter of the bore of the gun) divided longitudinally along one side
and having within it a cone B on the tubular end of which is fitted a nut C. Inserting
the shell A into the muzzle of the gun up to its collar b, I, by turning the nut C,
draw forwards the cone B thus expanding the shell A and making it tightly fit the
bore. D is the small barrel which being charged with a cartridge is inserted into
tho centre of the cone and secured by several turns of a screw thread at d. On the
tube of the cone B is a sleeve E fitted to slide longitudinally and having attached
to it a rod F which passes along a slot to the rear of the cone, where it butts
against a stud G projecting from a spring striker H through a slot in the tube
which contains the striker. The stud G is pressed upwards by a spring against
the inner face of the-slot which is sloped a little downwards towards the rear.
The sleeve E has projecting from it a couple of arms e to which arms are tied
lanyards that are led back outside the gun and round a guide pulley which may be
conveniently mounted on a stud inserted in the touch hole of the gun. On pulling
the lanyards the sleeve E is drawn back and its rod F, acting on the stud G, pushes
back the spring striker H until the stud G having reached the rear part of the slot
is, by the incline thereof, drawn down so as to become disengaged from the end of
the rod F, whereupon the striker H is pushed rapidly forward by the spring and.
striking the pin K causes it to strike the detonator of the cartridge, so firing it.
The barrel D can then bo unscrewed, cleared from its spent cartridgo shell, charged
with a fresh cartridge and again screwed into its place. Also the sleeve E having
been drawn forward so that the end of its rod F again comes in front of the
stud G, the firing can be repeated. The rod F is sufficiently elastic to allow its
end to pass freely over the head of the stud G.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said
invention, and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what
I claim is
Apparatus for adapting muzzle loading guns for practice with miniature
ammunition, substantially as herein described.