Improvements in Small Arms and Ordnance.
Year: 1894

page_text: Date of Application, 9th Apr., 1894
Complete Specification Left, 9th Feb., 1895-Accepted, 30th Mar., 1895
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Small Arms and Ordnance.
We, DANIEL HICKIE of 20 Aliwal Road, New Wandsworth in the County of
London, Mining and Machinery Expert and GEORGE FREDERICK BEUTNER of
65 and 66 Basinghall Street in the City of London, Merchant do hereby declare
the nature of our invention to be as follows.:-
The object of this invention is to provide small arms and ordnance which are
more durable, lighter, and less liable to become heated externally than is the case
with small arms and ordnance as hitherto made. Instead of making the barrel of
the gun of one considerable thickness of metal as hitherto it is made of two
portions or tubes of comparatively thin metal one inside the other and maintained
in a concentric position relatively to each other by any suitable means for instance
by screws passed through the outer part and bearing upon the inner part. Between
the two portions or tubes a packing of non-conductive material such for example
as felt, asbestos, slagwool graphite or cowhair is introduced it constituting a
comparatively light but sufficiently strong resisting medium and preventing
overheating of the outer portion or tube and so rendering the gun more durable as
it is the heating of a considerable mass of metal from the inside and the consequent
irregular expansion and contraction which weakens so considerably ordinary barrels
as hitherto made. The invention may be applied either to the making of new guns
or to the conversion of okl guns in the latter case the old barrel can be bored out
to the requisite thinness to allow of the introduction of the inner portion or tube
and the packing as aforesaid.
In place of using a packing of materials such as described, I may use rigid
rings or longitudinal or other distance pieces of non-conducting material or of
metal and if desired such rings or distance pieces may be used in combination with
packing material of the kind hereinbefore described.
Dated the 9th day of Auril 1894.
JOHNSONS & WILLCOX,
47, Lincoln's Inn Fields, London, W.C., Agents.
VUDIL LEIDDI MUITIVATION.
Improvements in Small Arms and Ordnance.
DANIEL HICKIE of 66 Basinghall Street, London E.C. Mining and Machinery
Expert and GEORGE FREDERICK BEUTNER of same address Merchant, 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:-
The system hitherto of making arms such as rifles and ordnance of one piece
mainly throughout subjecting large bodies of metal to irregular expansion and
contraction is by this invention displaced and instead we make such arms of two
tubes of comparatively thin metallic substance lighter and safer, between which
we place non-conducting material of asbestos, hair, felt, paper or paper pulp or
Price 81

page_text: other suitable material-pressed very firmly between the tubes by any suitable
means. This packing may be made to form throughout complete non-metallic
contact between the tubes as exemplified in the drawings Figs. 1 and 18 which
represent the breech part and muzzle of a rifle constructed on this principle, with
the middle part broken away, Figures 2, 3 and 4 being intended to represent a
piece of ordnance constructed in accordance with this invention also but with
partial metallic contact at the breech end both systems being applicable to small
arms and cannon as may be desirable, that is complete non-metallic contact
between the inner and outer tubes as in Figure 1A and 1B and partial metallic
contact as in Figure 2 and 3-through the screwing parts Figure 3.
In the drawings herewith the same letters in each are meant to refer to the same
things.
A. is an outer tube of comparatively thin metallic substance. B is an inner
tube or barrel also of comparative thinness from the cartridge chamber forward,
this inner tube being otherwise constructed interiorly as regards grooves, chambering
and breech connection like any other rifle or arm. The two parts or tubes (A
and B) may be kept in their relative positions by any suitable means.
E is a
non-conducting medium or packing of asbestos, hair, felt, paper, paper-pulp or other
suitable material pressed firmly between the outer and inner tubes by any suitable
means. El (Fig. 1) shows the junction of the outer and inner tubes towards the
breech end. E represents a washer or ring formed of non-conducting material
to prevent metallic contact between the end of the outer tube and the forward part
of the breech block A'. The screwing part at E¹ is formed so as to admit of
asbestos cloth or other similar or suitable substance being pressed tightly between
the threads for preventing metallic contact here also. The packing E is continued
tc the muzzle as shown. In Fig. 1 the attachment at the muzzle is shown by D
and d. D is a metallic ring or washer with non-conducting packing between it
and the inner barrel or tube and are set screws through the outer tube, these
serve to keep the inner and outer tubes in position and admit of the expansion and
contraction of the inner tube. The outer tube remains cool at all times and with
its furniture intact admits of the inner tube being renewed.
'
In Figure 2, which represents the breech end of a piece of ordnance, the breech
connections are formed as follows: The outer tube A is screwed to the inner tube
throughout the length of the wide part of the breech in the form set forth in
Figure 3 which is a section of Figure 2 on the lines 1-2. are four longitudinal
ribs on which screwing parts are cut to receive corresponding screw threads in the
outer tube. The spaces between the parts are filled with compressed non-
conducting material E and forward of the screw parts the packing is continued
to the muzzle as in Figure 1 and Figure 4. A metallic ring or washer K is
screwed into the breech end and presses against the packing (E) and the inner
tube B.
The non-conducting material whilst preventing irregular expansion and
contraction, inseparable from rifles or cannon made of one piece, through its
interception of the heat from the inner tube to the outer, tends to distribute the
strain between the inner and outer tubes when the space between these is efficiently
filled and the material thoroughly compressed.
Our invention applies to the conversion of old arms of the larger calibres into
modern small-bore arms as well as to the construction of new arms. By way of
illustration we have (in Figure 1A and 1B) given a view of a Martini Henry rifle
converted into a small bore rifle on this principle. The outer tube is thus formed:
the rifling grooves are bored out and the barrel thinned internally and smoothly to
the thickness of one-sixteenth of an inch at the muzzle and the reminder in
proportion. The inner small bore tube takes the screwing part in the breech block
instead of the Martini Henry barrel, the screwing part of latter is cut off and
an inside screwing thread is formed in it at E' to screw over corresponding threads
on the inner barrel forward of the breech-block A. These screw parts admit
asbestos cloth or other suitable material between the threads so that in forcing

page_text: home the outer tube over the inner barrel said packing may enter the screw-part
and thus prevent metallic contact between the outer and inner tubes or barrels.
The packing is made to form a washer E' between the breech-piece and outer
tube or barrel. The packing is now continued to the muzzle and pressed in by
hydraulic pressure or hand & hammer with tubes for packing home and condensing
the material sufficiently hard to form the proper resisting strength between both
barrels. The muzzle end Fig. 1B is completed by placing a ring (D) between both
tubes with non-conducting material between the ring and inner tube. Through the
outer tube set-screws d' are fixed for regulating the position of the inner barrel
which is allowed to expand and contract whilst being thus held in position. The
rifle is then complete.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of our said inven-
tion and in what manner the same is to be performed we declare that what we
claim is :
In or for small arms or ordnance the conversion of old arms or manufacture of
new arms with the use of a non-conducting medium between an inner tube or
barrel and an outer tube or metallic covering.
D. HICKIE.
G. F. BEUTNER.