Improvements in Moving Targets.
Year: 1897

page_text: Date of Application, 3rd May, 1897
Complete Specification Left, 31st Jan., 1898-Accepted, 12th Mar., 1898
Improvements in Moving Targets.
I, JAMES RIGG, retired Major and Lieutenant-Colonel First Cheshire and Car-
narvonshire Volunteer Artillery, and an Engineer, of No. 11, Queen Victoria
Street, in the City of London, do hereby declare the nature of this invention
to be as follows:-
My invention has for its object the construction of targets, principally for rifle
practice, which, though moving across a line of fire and generally in the form
of a disc having a bulls eye in its centre, do not revolve. thus enabling a marker
to indicate the exact position of any shot in such target with reference to a vertical
or horizontal line.
To attain this object I employ a light metal wheel through the boss of which
passes a stud which may either revolve freely or be firmly keyed. or fixed in this boss.
A target may be attached to or suspended from either end of this stud, which
stud is capable of freely revolving within the attachment or if preferred, a target
may be on one side of the wheel and a counterbalance weight or weights on the
opposite side.
Circular targets may be either co-axial with the wheel or suspended from it.
If circular, they are weighted to prevent oscillation or pendulous motion and,
to reduce friction on the axle, ball bearings may be employed.
The targets, whether co-axial or pendulous, may be of various forms such as
circular penetrable discs of millboard, canvas or wood er wholly or partially only,
metal gongs, as for instance to act as a bulls-eye or they may be made in any
irregular form as for instance that of a rabbit or other animal and any of these
forms of targets may be interchangeable upon the same wheel.
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I, JAMES RIGG, of No. 11, Queen Victoria Street, in the City of London,
Engineer, do hereby declare the nature of this invention and in what manner the
same is to be performed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and by the
following statement:-
My invention has for its object the construction of targets principally for rifle
practice, which, though moving across a line of fire and generally in the form
of a disc having a bulls eye in its centre, do not revolve, thus enabling a marker

page_text: to indicate the exact position of any shot in such target with reference to a vertical
or horizontal line.
To attain this object I employ a light metal wheel, through the boss of which
passes a stud which may either revolve freely or be firmly keyed or fixed in this boss.
A target may be either attached to or suspended from either end of this stud, which
stud is capable of freely revolving within this attachment or, if preferred, a target
may be on one side of the wheel and a counterbalance weight or weights on the
opposite side.
Circular targets may be either co-axial with the wheel or suspended from it.
They are weighted to prevent oscillation or pendulous motion and, to reduce
friction on the axle, ball bearings may be employed.
The pendulous form of my non-revolving target may be constructed so that
the target may be either attached to the lower end of the rod or rods hanging
from the axle or stud of the wheel or this rod may be prolonged upwards to
carry the target, a pendulum weight being attached to the lower end.
The targets whether coaxial or pendulous may be of various forms such as
circular penetrable discs of millboard, canvas or wood, or wholly or partially only,
of these or similar materials or, when required to act the purpose of a bull's eye
only, I may employ a metal gong, or they may be made in any irregular form
ns, for instance, that of a rabbit or other animal or a bird and any of these forms
of target may be interchangeable upon the same wheel.
DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS.
Fig. 1 Sheet I shews a vertical transverse section of a non-revolving target,
co-axial with the wheel upon which it travels.
Fig. 2 is a front elevation of the wheel the target being removed.
Fig. 3 is an elevation of the co-axial target as seen from the firing point.
Fig. 4 is an end elevation of the same target.
Fig. 5 Sheet II is a vertical transverse section of a non-revolving target sus-
pended from the axis of the wheel upon which it travels.
Fig. 6 is a front elevation and Fig. 7 an end elevation of the same.
Fig. 8 Sheet III is a front elevation of a non-revolving target carried above
the axis of the wheel upon which it travels and steadied by a pendulous weight
below, a metal gong being here used as a target.
Fig. 9 is an end elevation of the same.
Figs. 10 & 11 are front and end elevations respectively of the metal ring used
to carry non-revolving penetrable targets:
In Figs. 1, 2, 3 & 4 Sheet I, II is the revolving wheel which may be made of
iron steel or other suitable material and through its boss I a shaft G passes pre-
ferably not revolving with it, but running on ball or other bearings. To either
end of this shaft are fixed concentrically the non-revolving targets A, A1; which in
this instance are shewn as wooden discs, having canvas or paper stretched thereon.
To further prevent any tendency to revolve with the motion of the wheel,
weights K, K, are attached to their lowest parts. In the event of its not being
desired to reverse the wheel at each end of the track, one of the targets, A or A¹
may be removed and a corresponding counterbalance weight substituted.
In Figs. 5, 6. & 7 Sheet II a modification of the non-revolving targets is shewn.
The short shaft C passes freely through the boss of the wheel F, and at either
end of this shaft are suspended the lugs L. L₁, carrying the non-revolving
targets B. B to which are attached the weights E, E', being intended to prevent
oscillation during the transit of a target across the range, or in case one target only
be required, a corresponding weight would be attached to the lug on the opposite
side.
In Figs. 8, 9, 10 & 11 Sheet III the non revolving target is shewn above the
axis of the wheel carrying it across the line of fire, the breeches bracket M.
Fig. 8 & 9 being supported by a pin N. freely passing through the bosses upon it
and that upon the wheel, the target T being a metal gong suspended from the

page_text: hooks P, P, by the rods Q, Q the depending rods R, R', carrying the pendulous
weight W. In Figs. 10 & 11 is seen the metal ring S with pointed pins which
may be similarly hung from the hooks P, P, and to which any penetrable target
V circular or of other form, may be readily attached or detached. A circular
penetrable target is in this instance indicated.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said inven-
tion and in what manner 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 shewn on
the drawings as the same may be varied without departing from the nature of
my invention, and I declare that what I claim is:-
1. A circular target, which does not revolve, connected concentrically to a wheel
travelling across a range substantially as herein before described and illustrated
in the accompanying drawings, Figs. 1, 2, 3 & 4 Sheet I.
2. A target of an irregular form, such as a rabbit or other animal or a bird,
connected to a wheel as in Claim No. 1.
3. Two targets or one target and a counterbalance weight, connected to a wheel
travelling across a range substantially in the manner hereinbefore described and
illustrated in the accompanying drawings Figs. 5 to 11, Sheets II & III.
Dated this 31st day of January 1898.
JAMES RIGG.