Improvements in or connected with Lock and Trigger Mechanism for Breech Loading Guns.
Year: 1898

page_text: PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in or connected with Lock and Trigger Mechanism
for Breech Loading Guns.
I, AUGUST REICHWALD, of 9, New Broad Street, in the City of London, Steel,
Iron, Metal, and Mineral Merchant, do hereby declare the nature of this invention
(a communication to me from abroad by the Firm of Fried Krupp, of Essen, in
the Empire of Germany, Cast Steel Manufacturers), to be as follows:-
This invention relates to a percussion lock for breech mechanism for guns which
is provided with a trigger discharging device.
The firing pin of the new percussion lock is moved back by means of a two armed
cocking lever. In cocking the firing pin, a cocking stud which is mounted in the
trigger, acts upon the arm of the cocking lever, but in moving back the firing pin
into the position of rest, a surface provided on the trigger acts upon the said arm.
The cocking stud is capable of sliding in a vertical hole in the trigger arm, but
it is not capable of rotating therein by reason of a square portion. A helical spring
surrounding its shank has a tendency to force it out of the hole in the arm, so that
its head projects in the position of rest of the percussion lock, beyond the upper
surface of the trigger arm and into a recess of the arm of the cocking lever. In
this movement the outer surface of the head of the stud has a bearing against the
wall of the recess so that as will be clearly understood the pulling back of the
trigger will cause a rotation of the cocking lever and consequently a cocking of
the firing pin. On the head of the stud there is also provided an inclined sur-
face, produced by notching, upon which as will be hereinafter explained a corre-
spondingly bevilled end edge of the recess, provided on the cocking lever, acts,
when the firing pin is impelled forwards with the object of thereby pressing the
stud into its hole in the trigger arm.
The surface provided on the trigger can only act upon the arm of the cocking
lever, when the percussion lock is in the firing position, because the said arm can
only, when in this position, bear with its surface against the surface of the trigger.
As now the surface is situated very near to the axis of rotation of the trigger, the
moving back of the trigger into the position of rest will cause such a slight
movement of the cocking lever, that the firing pin will move back only through
the short distance which the firing position is distant from the position of rest.
The mode of operation of the percussion lock will now be understood. When
the percussion lock is in the position of rest, and when a pull is exerted upon the
trigger, by means of the trigger cord which is hooked into the trigger eye, the
trigger will rotate about the pin. But as the cocking stud slides with its head
along the wall of the recess provided in the arm of the cocking lever, it will cause
the arm of the cocking lever to move out of the way in a forward direction, and
thus cock the firing pin. Immediately after the cocking lever has made its greatest
stroke, the position of the trigger arm has become such, that the end edge of
the wall of the cocking lever has reached the notch-like recess (constituted the
inclined surface) in the head of the stud. By the influence of the striking spring

page_text: the edge enters the notch, and immediately after presses down (by means of its
bevilled lower corner, which acts upon the inclined surface of the stud), the stud
so that the arm of the cocking lever can slide without hindrance along the upper
surface of the cocking stud, and can shoot the firing pin forward. The latter
then carries with it the cocking lever until the arm of the latter bears with its
surface against the surface of the trigger, which is now approximately parallel to
the direction of the length of the cocking lever. In this position of the cocking
lever the full portion of its arm prevents the stud from moving out of its hole in
the trigger arm. When after firing, the breech screw is rotated for the purpose
of unlocking and opening the breech, the surface provided on the collar of the
breech screw presses back the trigger into its position of rest. Hereby the surface
of the trigger acts against the surface of the cocking lever arm and pushes the
latter forward.
The cocking lever arm therefore moves back and carries the firing pin the
short distance from the firing position into the position of rest. As soon as the
cocking lever has reached the position corresponding to the rest-position of the
firing pin, the head of the cocking stud, (which slides along under the full portion
of the cocking lever arm in the backward movement of the trigger into the position
of rest and therefore could not move out of its hole in the trigger arm,) is situated
with its full cross section opposite to the recess in the cocking lever arm and there-
fore is caused to snap by the pressure of the stud spring into this recess.
It is clear that the cocking of the percussion lock may also be repeated any
desired number of times by pulling forward the trigger (after the trigger has
been pulled to fire the gun), by means of the trigger cord that is suspended from
the eye or by pressing the trigger forward by hand.
Dated this 17th day of September 1898.
BREWER & SON,
London & Leeds, Agents for the Applicant.
Improvements in or connected with Lock and Trigger Mechanism
for Breech Loading Guns.
I, AUGUST REICHWALD, of 9, New Broad Street, in the City of London, Steel,
Iron, Metal, and Mineral Merchant, do hereby declare the nature of this invention
(a communication to me from abroad by the Firm of Fried. Krupp, of Essen, in
the Empire of Germany, Cast Steel Manufacturers), and in what manner the same
is to be performed to be particularly described and ascertained in and by the
following statement; -—-
This invention relates to a new form of construction of the percussion lock for
breech mechanisms for guns which is provided with a trigger discharging device
and is protected by Patent No. 15468 of 1898. Similarly to the percussion lock
of Patent No. 15468, this new form of construction has also the peculiarity that
the cocking trigger by means of a projection arranged on it first rotates the two-
armed cocking, lever, which bears against the firing pin, whereby the firing pin
is cocked and then slides with its projection from off the cocking lever, where-
upon the firing pin is impelled forwards by the pressure of the firing spring. But
whereas in the percussion lock of Patent No. 15468 of 1898, the firing pin is com-
pelled to make exactly the same to and fro movement once more which it makes
when the gun is being fired, in order to pass out of the firing position into the
position of rest, the percussion lock is now constructed, according to the present

page_text: invention, in such a manner that the firing pin in order to pass, after firing, back
into the position of rest, need only move back the short distance which the position
of rest is distant fror the firing position.
As in this small backward movement of the firing pin, there is not yet a consider-
able tensioning of the firing spring, it will be readily understood that the return
movement of the percussion lock from the firing position into the position of rest
(which as a rule is effected, in opening the breech, by the rotation of the breech
block handle, but which in the case of misfires is also effected by simply pulling
the trigger forward) now requires in the new form of construction considerably
less power than in the form of construction of Patent 15468 of 1898.
The accompanying drawings illustrate the new form of construction of the per-
cussion lock in combination with a horizontal wedge breech closing mechanism
for guns. Figs. 1, 3 and 5 are side elevations of the breech mechanism. Figs. 2,
4 and 6 are respectively horizontal sections through Figs. 1, 3 and 5. In these
drawings, Figs. 1 and 2 shew the percussion lock in the position of rest. Figs. 3
and 4 shew the percussion lock in the moment of the completed cocking. Figs. 5
and 6 shew the percussion lock in the position of firing, (position after the trigger
has been completely pulled), Figs. 7, 8 and 9 illustrate details of the invention
hereinafter referred to.
Similarly as in Patent No. 15468 of 1898, the firing pin E is moved back by
means of the two armed cocking lever B (Figs. 2, 4, 6 and 7). In cocking the
firing pin, the cocking stud C which is mounted in the trigger A, acts upon the
arm of the cocking lever B, but in moving back the firing pin into the position
of rest, the surface m provided on the trigger acts upon the said arm. The cock-
ing stud C is capable of sliding in a vertical hole in the trigger arm a but it is
not capable of rotating therein by reason of a square portion. A helical spring e
surrounding its shank has a tendency to force it out of the hole in the arm a, so
that its head c projects in the position of rest of the percussion lock (Figs. 1
and 2) beyond the upper surface of the trigger arm a and into the recess 7 of the
arm of the cocking lever. In this movement the outer surface of the head c
of the stud has a bearing against the wall n of the recess y, so that as will be
clearly understood the pulling back of the trigger A will cause a rotation of the
cocking lever B and consequently a cocking of the firing pin E. On the head c
of the stud C there is also provided an inclined surface p (Fig. 8) produced by
notching, upon which as will be hereinafter explained, the correspondingly bevilled
end edger of the recess (Fig. 7) provided on the cocking lever B acts, when
the firing pin is impelled forwards, with the object of thereby pressing the stud C
into its hole in the trigger arm a.
The surface m provided on the trigger A can only act upon the arm f of the
cocking lever, when the percussion lock is in the firing position (Fig. 6), because
the said arm f can only, when in this position, bear with its surface o against
the surface m of the trigger. As now the surface m is situated very near to the
axis of rotation of the trigger, as shewn in Figs. 5 and 6, the moving back of
the trigger into the position of rest will cause such a slight movement of the cock-
ing lever B, that the firing pin will move back only through the short distance
which the firing position (Fig. 6) is distant from the position of rest (Fig. 2).
The mode of operation of the percussion lock will now be understood without
further trouble: When the percussion lock is in the position of rest (Figs. 1
and 2), and when a pull is exerted upon the trigger by means of the trigger cord
which is hooked into the trigger eye k, the trigger will rotate about the pin d.
But as the cocking stud C slides with its head calong the wall n of the recess q
provided in the arm f of the cocking lever, it will cause the arm f of the cocking
lever to move out of the way in a forward direction, and thus cock the firing pin.
Immediately after the cocking lever B has made its greatest stroke, the position
of the trigger arm a has become such (Fig. 4) that the end edge r of the wall n
of the cocking lever has reached the notch-like recess (constituted by the inclined
surface ) in the head c of the stud C. By the influence of the striking spring

page_text: the edge r enters the notch, and immediately after presses down (by means of
its bevilled lower corner which acts upon the inclined surface of the stud C,
see particularly Fig. 7), the stud C so that the arm f of the cocking lever can
slide without hindrance along the upper surface of the cocking stud C, allowing
the firing pin to be thrown forward by the action of the firing spring. The firing
pin then carries with it the cocking lever B until the arm f of the latter bears
with its surface o against the surface m of the trigger A, (Fig. 6) which is now
approximately parallel to the direction of the length of the cocking lever. In
this position of the cocking lever the full portion of its arm f prevents the stud C
from moving out of its hole in the trigger arm. When after firing, the breech
screw 1) is rotated for the purpose of unlocking and opening the breech, the sur-
face (Figs. 2, 3 and 4) provided on the collar h of the breech screw, presses back
the trigger into its position of rest (Fig. 2). Hereby the surface m of the trigger A
(Fig. 6) acts against the surface o of the cocking lever arm f and pushes the latter
forward. The cocking lever arm 7 therefore moves back and carries the firing
pin, without the latter making a to and fro movement as in Patent No. 15468
of 1898, the short distance from the firing position (Fig. 6) into the position of
rest (Fig. 2). As soon as the cocking lever has reached the position corresponding
to the rest-position of the firing pin, the head c of the cocking stud which was
sliding along under the full portion of the cocking lever arm f in the backward
movement of the trigger into the position of rest, (see especially Fig. 5), and
therefore could not move out of its hole in the trigger arm a, is situated with
its full cross section opposite to the recess 9 in the cocking lever arm f and there-
fore is caused to snap by the pressure of the stud spring into this recess.
percussion lock is now again in the position illustrated in Figs. 1 and 2. It is
clear that the cocking of the percussion lock may also be repeated any desired
number of times by pulling forward the trigger A (after the trigger has been
pulled to fire the gun) by means of the trigger cord that is suspended from the
eye or by pressing the trigger forward by hand.
The
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of this inven
tion and in what manner the same is to be performed I declare that what I
claim is
A form of construction of the percussion lock protected by Patent No. 15468 of
14th July 1898, in which (for the purpose of obviating a superfluous movement
in returning the firing pin from the firing position into the rest position), the
cocking nose consists of a spring stud C arranged on the trigger and which is
capable of moving transversely to the direction of rocking of the trigger, and which
is pressed aside by the cocked firing pin through the medium of inclined sur-
faces (r and p), provided on the cocking lever B and on the stud C, and is thus
thrown out of operation, whereupon after the shooting forward of the firing pin,
a surface m provided on the trigger in the vicinity of its pivot d, acts upon the
cocking lever, and, in rotating the trigger back into the position of rest, moves
back the firing pin from the firing position into the position of rest.
Dated Lnis 9th day ot Nov 1200
DICH LOIS 9th day of
1200
BREWER & SON,
London & Leeds, Agents for the Applicant.