IMPROVEMENTS IN BREECH- LOADING GUNS
Year: 1870

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Charles Golden, of Bradford, in the County of
York, Gun Maker, for the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN BREECH-
LOADING GUNS."
Sealed the 12th May 1871, and dated the 14th November 1870.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Charles Golden at the
Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the
14th November 1870.
I, CHARLES GOLDEN, of Bradford, in the County of York, Gun Maker,
do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS
IN BREECH-LOADING GUNS," (to be as follows):-
This Invention has reference to self-acting receding strikers placed
horizontally through the head of the gun. I arrange that motion to
these strikers shall be given by the action of the mainspring as follows :-
A right angled lever is inserted in the hob of the lock plate, and the
fulcrum of this lever is at the angle or junction of the two arms. One
:-

page_text: arm of this lever has a stud formed on it projecting downwards and
bearing on the mainspring, and the other arm bears on the end of
another lever which is inserted into a groove or morticing made under
the strikers in the head of the gun, and the fulcrum of this lever is on
a pin which passes through the side of the head at right angles to the
strikers. The lower end of this lever bears on the upper end of the lever
inserted in the hob of the lock plate, and the upper end of the said lever
which is inserted in the slot or morticing of the striker is formed in the
shape of a circular disc, and the disc part of this end of the lever fits or
works in the slot or morticing made through the striker, thus motion
is given to the striker by the disc shaped end of the lever being inserted
into the slot made in the striker, and the upper end of the lever inserted
in the hob of the lock plate bears on the lower end of the lever which
is inserted in the morticing made in the head of the body under the
striker and the lower end of the lever inserted in the hob of the lock
plate bears on the mainspring, so that on the end of the striker receiving
the blow from the cock fixed on the tumbler the striker is forced
upwards against the cap inserted in the body of the cartridge; and on
the reaction of the mainspring pressing against the stud end of the lever
inserted in the hob of the lock plate causes the striker to recede from the
face of the head of the gun to its original position.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent,
filed by the said Charles Golden in the Great Seal Patent Office on
the 13th May 1871.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, CHARLES 2
GOLDEN, of Bradford, in the County of York, Gun Maker, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her
Letters Patent, bearing date the Fourteenth day of November, in the
year of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and seventy, in the thirty-
fourth year of Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give
and grant unto me, the said Charles Golden, Her special licence that I,
the said Charles Golden, my executors, administrators, and assigns, or
such others as I, the said Charles Golden, my executors, administrators,
and assigns, should at any time agree with, and no others, from time

page_text: "
to time and at all times thereafter during the term therein expressed,
should and lawfully might make, use, exercise, and vend, within the
United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, the Channel Islands,
and Isle of Man, an Invention for IMPROVEMENTS IN BREECH-LOADING
GUNS," upon the condition (amongst others) that I, the said Charles
Golden, my executors or administrators, by an instrument in writing
under my, or their, or one of their hands and seals, should particularly
describe and ascertain the nature of the said Invention, and in what
manner the same was to be performed, and cause the same to be filed in
the Great Seal Patent Office within six calendar months next and
immediately after the date of the said Letters Patent.
NOW KNOW YE, that I, the said Charles Golden, do hereby declare
the nature of my said Invention, and in what manner the same is to
be performed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and by
the following statement and accompanying Sheet of Drawings (that is
to say):-
My Invention has reference to self-acting receding strikers placed
through the head of the gun. I arrange that motion to these strikers
shall be given by the action of the mainspring as follows:-A right
angled lever is inserted in the hob of the lock plate, and the fulcrum of
this lever is at the angle or junction of the two arms. One arm of this
lever has a stud formed on it projecting downwards and bearing on the
mainspring, and the other arm bears on the end of another lever which
is inserted into a groove or morticing made under the striker in the head
of the gun, and the fulcrum of this lever is on a pin which passes
through the side of the head at right angles to the striker. The lower
end of this lever bears on the upper end of the lever inserted in the hob
of the lock plate. The upper end of the said lever which is inserted in
the slot or morticing of the striker is formed in the shape of a circular
disc, and the disc part of this end of the lever fits or works in the slot
or morticing made through the striker. This motion is given to the
striker by the disc shaped end of the lever being inserted into the slot
made in the striker, and the upper end of the lever inserted in the hob
of the lock plate bears on the lower end of the lever which is inserted in
the morticing made in the head of the body under the striker, and the
lower end of the lever inserted in the hob of the lock plate bears on the
mainspring, so that on the end of the striker receiving the blow from

page_text: the cock fixed on the tumbler the striker is forced forwards against the
cap inserted in the base of the cartridge, and on the reaction of the
mainspring pressing against the stud end of the lever inserted in the
hob of the lock plate causes the striker to recede from the face of the
head of the gun to its original position.
In order that my said Invention may be fully understood, I herein
give reference to an accompanying Sheet of Drawings of such parts of a
breech-loading gun as will enable me to shew the application of my
improvements.
Fig. 1. is a longitudinal section taken through the centre of the barrel,
shewing the lock in the position of 'full cock;" Fig 2. is a similar
section shewing the lock in its position of the precise point of percussion or
concussion and before the recoil of the striker, while Fig. 3 is also a
section shewing the lock in its ordinary state of rest which is also "half-
cock."
A is the striker having a slot or morticing formed through it into
which is inserted the disc-shaped end of the lever B, the fulcrum of
which is a pin C passing through the side of the head at right angles to
the striker. D is the right angled or bell crank lever which is inserted
in the hob of the lock plate, the fulcrum being at the angle E. One
arm or end of this lever bears on the lever B, and the other arm having
a stud or projection at its end rests on one limb of the mainspring F.
The other limb of the mainspring is attached by a link G to the tumbler
H, on which the cock I is fixed, J is the tumbler catch lever which is
pressed by a spring K and operated by the trigger acting on the pro-
jecting stud end L in the usual manner.
It will now be readily seen that by means of this Invention the
reaction or self-acting receding motion or recoil action of the striker is
effected or produced by the mainspring. And to facilitate the action
I diminish friction by applying or inserting a steel roller M into the end
of the upper limb of the mainspring for the link end of the tumbler to
bear against.
Having thus described the nature of my said Invention, and shewn by
Drawings in what manner the same is or may be performed or carried
into practical operation, I would have it understood that I do not confine
myself to the precise details of construction or arrangement of the parts
as shewn and described, but what I claim as my Invention is, the method

page_text: of effecting or producing the reaction of the strikers by means of the
mainspring in manner substantially as shewn and described.
In witness whereof, I, the said Charles Golden have hereunto set my
hand and seal, this Twelfth day of May, in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and seventy-one.
Signed, sealed, and delivered by the
within-named Charles Golden in
the presence of
J. W. TASKER,
Clerk to W. Tasker,
Patent Agent,
CHARLES GOLDEN. (L.S.)
Halifax & Bradford.