IMPROVEMENTS IN BREECH-LOADING SMALL-ARMS
Year: 1878

page_text: PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by Samuel Matthew at the Office of the
Commissioners of Patents on the 10th September 1878.
SAMUEL MATTHEWS, of Birmingham, in the County of Warwick, Gun Manu-
facturer.. "IMPROVEMENTS IN BREECH-LOADING SMALL-ARMS."
My Invention relates to those kinds of breech-loading small-arms commonly
called "drop-down" guns, and my said Invention consists principally of the
arrangements or combinations of parts herein-after described for cocking the
internal or concealed hammer of the said guns, and for preventing the accidental
dischargo of the said guns.
My Invention may also be applied to guns having external hammers as herein-
after explained.
I arrange the internal or concealed hammers upon lock plates fixed in the sides
of the body of the gun, and I cock the said hammers by means of the hand lever
which works the bolt by which the barrels are bolted down and released. The
thumb plate end of the said hand lever is situated on the under side of the body of
the gun, and the upper armn of the said lever which works the sliding bolt is
prolonged upwards to the under side of the tang, and works in a recess in the said
tang. The said upper or prolonged end of the arm of the hand lever is situated in
front of parts of the breasts of the internal or concealed hammers. When the
hand lever is depressed to unfasten the barrels for charging the gun the upper arm
of the said lever, moving towards the butt end of the gun withdraws the locking
bolt, and the cocking or extreme end of the said upper arm at the same time acts
upon the breasts of the hammers, and raises them to full-cock, the said hammers
being held in their cocked positions by means of the sears of the lock mechanism
engaging in the ordinary way with bents in the tumblers of the said hammers.
For the purpose of preventing the accidental discharge of the gun I lock the
triggers by the act of unfastening, and cocking the gun by the following arrange-
ments of parts: Near the shoulders of the triggers is a safety slide or bolt provided
on the under side of the gun with a thumb plate for working it by hand. The said
slide or bolt is furnished inside the gun with a rod, which rod on the cocking of
the hammers is acted upon by the upper arm of the hand lever, and pushed back so
Davies 077

page_text: as to cause the slide to cross and bear upon the triggers, and prevent them rising
for the discharge of the gun. The triggers are thus locked by the act of cocking
the gun. To release the triggers for the discharge of the gun the safety slide is
withdrawn from the triggers by operating by hand upon the thumb plate of the
slide external to the gun.
Indicators working through the tang of the break-off may be raised by the
hammers when the latter are being cocked, so as to indicate the positions of the
hammers. When the gun is discharged the said indicators fall by their own
weight.
Instead of cocking the hammers and operating the locking bolt by a lever
worked from the under side of the gun, the said hammers may be cocked and the
bolt worked from the tang of the break-off by the following mechanism-On the
under side of the tang is a horizontal slide worked by a thumb plate external to
the tang. This slide carries two vertical arms; one of the said vertical arms is
situated in the break-off, and works the sliding bolt, the bottom of the said arm
being jointed to the break-off below the sliding bolt; the other vertical arın is
shorter than the first-named arm, and is situated at the back of the break-off, and
is for the purpose of cocking the hammers. When the horizontal slide on the tang
is drawn back towards the butt end of the gun the bolt is withdrawn, and the
hammers at the same time cocked.
The motion of the slide to cock the hammers may be made to operate a second
slide or safety bolt to lock the triggers, and prevent the accidental discharge of tho
gun; or instead of a sliding thumb plate on the tang for working the cocking and
unbolting slide described a short lever may be jointed to the tang, and its inner
arm be made to bear upon the rear end of the said slide to cock the hammer and
unbolt the gun; or a long lever on the tang, moving in a vertical plane, and jointed
to the break-off, may be employed instead of a slide. In this arrangement.
the lever is provided with arms for cocking the hammers, and working the
sliding bolt.
The cocking slide described may be applied to the under side of the gun instead
of to the tang.
In applying my Invention to the cocking of external hammers I place on the
tumbler of the lock mechanism an arm, which is operated by the cocking arm of the
lever or slide herein-before described.
I fasten the "fore end" to the barrels by means of a flat horizontal lever situated
on the side of the "fore end," and working in a plane at right angles to the loop on
the under side of the barrels. The said flat lever is pressed home by a spring acting
upon it near its joint. When the fore end is pressed towards the barrels the flat
horizontal lever is raised by coming against the loop, and as soon as the fore end
has seated itself on the barrels the flat lever is brought opposite, and made to snap
into a cross slot in the loop. The "fore end" is thereby fastened very firmly in
its place.
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