Improvements in Carriages or Mountings for Automatio or other Light Guns.
Year: 1895

page_text: Date of Application, 26th July, 1895
Complete Specification Left, 25th Apr., 1896-Accepted, 13th June, 1896
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Carriages or Mountings for Automatio or other
Light Guns.
We. HIRAM STEVENS MAXIM, of Baldwyn's Park, Bexley, in the County of
Kent, Mechanical Engineer, and LOUIS SILVERMAN, of Crayford Works,
Crayford, in the County of Kent, Engineer, do hereby declare the nature of this
invention to be as follows:-
This invention has for its object to combine in a carriage or mounting for two
or other number of automatic or other light guns the advantages of a tricycle or
other velocipede and a tripod stand, whereby we provide for moving the guns with
great facility and celerity from one place to another and also provide for affording
to them a firm and reliable support when in action.
°
For this purpose we employ any ordinary or convenient form of velocipede,
preferably a tandem tricycle, to whose transverse bar, or the tubular portion
extending between the driving-wheels, we pivotally connect the vertical forked
posts in which the guns are supported by their trunnions. At a suitable point on
the said forked posts we connect therewith a tubular bar capable of being raised
and lowered as required. That is to say when adjusted for travelling the said bar
is raised into a horizontal position and chained or otherwise secured to the cycle
frame, but when adjusted for action the said bar is released so that its rear end
rests on the ground and forms the trail of the stand or mounting. We prefer to
provide the mounting with a trail for each gun. The connection of the trails to
the aforesaid forked posts is such that when the said trails are lowered the guns
are brought into firing position or into position for being aimed by any convenient
means provided for the purpose. The free or rear extremities of the trails are
preferably provided with spiked feet for enabling them to obtain a firm grip of the
ground. The trails may also be furnished with seats of any appropriate construction
for the use of the gunners during the working and firing of the guns.
We also in some cases provide adjustable pivoted forelegs which when adjusted
for travelling occupy a horizontal position in proximity to the aforesaid transverse
bar of the tricycle frame, but which are so arranged that when turned downward
their free ends rest upon the ground and give extra steadiness to the guns. If
desired these forelegs can be employed to raise the driving wheels of the tricycle
quite clear of the ground so that while the guns are in action their weight will be
entirely isolated from the tricycle and will be borne by the tripod legs and the
trails as in an ordinary tripod mounting. The aforesaid forelegs are preferably
furnished with spiked feet.
The connection between the velocipede and the guns is such that the guns can
be instantly disconnected and if necessary be used independently so as to be fired
in different directions.
For carrying the ammunition we provide a receptacle depeuding from the said
transverse bar of the tricycle frame.
If desired we may provide the tricycle with means for carrying small arms.
Dated this 26th day of July 1895.

page_text: Improvements in Carriages or Mountings for Automatic or other
Light Guns.
We, HIRAM STEVENS MAXIM, of Baldwyn's Park, Bexley, in the County of
Kent, Mechanical Engineer, and LOUIS SILVERMAN, of Crayford Works,
Crayford, in the County of Kent, 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 :-
This invention has for its object to combine, in a carriage or mounting for two
or other suitable number of automatic or other light guns, the advantages of a
tricycle or other velocipede and of a tripod or other stand for the guns, that is to
say a stand that will seive as a support or rest for the guns when they are fired.
We thereby provide for moving the guns with great facility and celerity from
one place to another and also for affording to them a firm and reliable support
when in action.
For this purpose and when providing for two automatic guns we pivotally connect
to the rear axle of the velocipede, or to any other suitably arranged transverse bar
or shaft, two forked posts arranged one on each side of the driving mechanism and
in these forked posts the guns are supported by their trunnions. To each of the
said forked posts a tubular bar or trail is connected, which is capable of being
raised or lowered as required. We also provide the framing of the velocipede
with adjustable forelegs which are so arranged that when their free ends or feet
are on the ground they cause the driving wheels of the velocipede to be raised out
of contact with the ground.
We also provide a number of receptacles containing the ammunition for the
guns and these receptacles are suspended from the rear axle of the tricycle or,
preferably, from the aforesaid trails.
In the accompanying drawings we have illustrated two automatic guns mounted
on a "tandem" tricycle according to our invention, Figure 1 being a side elevation
and Figure 2 a plan.
Figure 3 is a transverse section of a detail hereinafter more fully referred to.
A is the framing of the tricycle. B B are the saddles upon which the gunners
sit when driving the tricycle. CC are the driving wheels which are driven in the
ordinary manner by cranks c and chain gearing c'; any other suitable driving gear
may however be employed. Only one of the driving wheels can be seen in the
drawings.
"
DD are the automatic guns which are of the well known "Maxim
type and
E E are the forked posts in which these guns are mounted. The forked posts are
pivotally connected by clips e and bolts to the transverse bar F which extends
between the aforesaid driving wheels. G, G are the trails which are rigidly
connected to the forked posts and are provided with seats or saddles g for the use
of the gunners when firing the guns. To the outer or free ends of these trails are
pivotally connected spiked feet g'. ggare straps carried by loops near the
extremities of arms a a projecting from the framing of the tricycle. These straps
serve to support the trails in their raised position during the travelling of the
tricycle.
The aforesaid transverse bar F is furnished with lugs or projections F' to which
the fore legs f (shewn by dotted lines in Figure 1) are adjustably connected by
bolts. These legs are capable of being turned about their connections into a
horizontal position when the tricycle is travelling and they then lie in proximity
to the aforesaid transverse bar F in which position they can be retained by
a strap or other suitable means. By turning the said fore legs downwardly into the

page_text: position in which they are illustrated in Figure 1 the driving wheels CC cau be
raised from the ground, so that while the guns are in action the weight of
the latter will be entirely isolated from the tricycle and will be borne by the said
legs and the trails as in an ordinary tripod gun-mounting. Suitable stops are
provided for limiting the extent to which the said fore legs can be turned outwardly
and the ends of these legs are furnished with spiked feet f² similar to those with
which the trails G are provided.
HH are the receptacles for the ammunition. These receptacles are furnished
with straps for connection to the trails G. The straps are provided with two
stud (Figure 3) one of which is adapted to engage with an aperture in the
trail G and the other with a key-hole slot in the strap h when the latter
encircles the trail. This manner of affixing the ammunition receptacles to the
trails enables the said receptacles to be readily attached or detached, and keeps
them from shifting longitudinally on the trails. II are longitudinal bars forming
part of a light frame carried by the main framing of the tricycle. These
longitudinal bars extend along each side of the series of ammunition receptacles
and prevent undue lateral movement or agitation thereof during the travelling of
the tricycle.
By reason of the pivotal connection of the forked posts E to the tricycle and the
rigid connection of the trails G to the aforesaid forked posts, it will be seen that
by releasing the trails from the position in which they are represented by the full
lines in Figure 1, and allowing their spiked feet to rest on the ground, the guns
will be at once caused to assume their firing position, that is to say they will be
immediately brought into a convenient position to be readily aimed at an object.
The dotted lines in Figure 1 represent the guns in this position. The combined
weight of the ammunition in the receptacles H and of the gunners when seated on
the saddles g, causes the spiked feet of the trails to enter the ground whereby the
said trails are firmly pressed down, so that when the guns are fired considerable
resistance is offered to any recoil movement of the velocipede; but where extreme
steadiness of the gun is required the fore legs f are also turned down to raise the
driving wheels C from off the ground, as shewn by dotted lines in Figure 1. In
many cases it will however be found that the trails G will give sufficient steadiness
without the assistance of the fore-legs f.
We wish it to be understood that the number of guns carried by the tricycle
can be varied and that in some cases only one trail need be used instead of a
separate trail for each gun as shown in the drawings.
We prefer to provide the tricycle with one or more folding tripod stands, so that
in the event of the gunners meeting with very uneven ground or entering districts
that are unsuitable for tricycle travelling, the guns can be readily dismounted from
the tricycle and be carried to the place where they are to be fired and there be
mounted on the aforesaid folding tripod stands. These tripod stands can be
connected to any convenient part of the tricycle by straps.
If desired means may be provided on the longitudinal framing of the tricycle
for allowing a rifle to be connected thereto as represented by dotted lines in
Figure 1.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of our said
invention and in what manner the same is to be performed, we declare that what we
claim is :-
1. The combination, with a velocipede, of a stand for two or other number of
automatic or similar guns, for the purpose specified.
2. A velocipede provided with two automatic or other light guns pivotally
connected at the sides of the driving mechanism to a transverse shaft or bar by
orked posts having trails which are capable of being raised when the velocipede
is travelling, and of being lowered to the ground when the guns are to be fired.
3. A gun mounting comprising a velocipede and a stand and capable of ready
adjustment to rest upon either its wheels or its feet for the purposes specified.

page_text: 4. In the aforesaid gun mounting the manner of carrying the ammunition
receptacles, substantially as described and for the purpose specified.
5. A velocipede gun mounting substantially as described and illustrated in the
accompanying drawings.
Dated this 25th day of April 1896.
HASELTINE, LAKE & Co.,
45 Southampton Buildings, London, W.C., Agents for the Applicants.