IM- PROVEMENTS IN BREECH-LOADING FIRE-ARMS.”
Year: 1872

page_text: in
LETTERS PATENT to John Cole, of 29, Great Portland Street, W.,
the County of Middlesex, Gunmaker, for the Invention of "IM-
PROVEMENTS IN BREECH-LOADING FIRE-ARMS.”
"
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said John Cole at the Office
of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the 7th June
1872.
I, JOHN COLE, of 29, Great Portland Street, W., in the County of
Middlesex, Gunmaker, do hereby declare the nature of the said Inven-
tion for "IMPROVEMENTS IN BREECH-LOADING FIRE-ARMS," to be as follows:-
This Invention consists of improvements in the breech-loading rifle
known as Green's Patent breech-loading rifle, and for which Letters
Patent were granted to Charles Edmund Green and John Green, dated
9th January, 1871, and No. 49.
First. For self-cocking; the peculiarity of which is that the gun can
be worked with greater safety than ordinary self-cocking guns, by reason

page_text: of its having a half-cock bent to the tumbler which can be used at
pleasure by means of a small lever on the outside in the place where
the cock is in ordinary guns. The lock work of this lever or arm is
strong and simple in all its parts, having a flat mainspring and sear
spring the trigger is also attached to the lock plate, the whole of
which (lock and trigger) is attached to the under side of the breech
action by one or more screws, the shank of the tumbler projecting, to
which the small lever is fitted to place the lock at half-cock after being
cocked and not wanted to be fired (the upper part of the tumbler forming
the cock or striking part) in the same manner as ordinary guns; the
method by which this lock is raised to half-cock is by raising the lever.
This lever has a cam at the back to partially extract the cartridge case.
An inclined plane or segment of a screw is cut from the middle of the
bolt, and the action of turning the lever to open the breech raises the
lock to half-cock, then by drawing the bolt back places the lock on full
cock, which can be lowered to half-cock at pleasure without the danger
of exploding the cartridge.
The striking pin of this improvement is also withdrawn by the action
of opening the breech, thereby doing away with the spiral spring and
overcoming the objections usually made to bolt breech loading rifles, the
striking pin being held firmly back until the lever is securely locked
ready for firing.
This improvement can also be used with an extra trigger or projection
from the tumbler, whereby it may be cocked or uncocked in the same
manner as by the side lever.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent,
filed by the said John Cole in the Great Seal Patent Office on the
7th December 1872.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, JOHN
COLE, late of 29, Great Portland Street, W., in the County of Middlesex, 3
but now of 13, Newman Street, Oxford Street, Marylebone, Gun Manu-
facturer, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her
Letters Patent, bearing date the Seventh day of June, in the year of our

page_text: at
Lord One thousand eight hundred and seventy-two, in the thirty-fifth
year of Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and
grant unto me, the said John Cole, Her special licence that I, the said
John Cole, my executors, administrators, and assigns, or such others as
I, the said John Cole, my executors, administrators, and assigns, should
any time agree with, and no others, from time 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 FIRE-ARMS," upon the condition
(amongst others) that I, the said John Cole, my executors or adminis-
trators, 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 John Cole, 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:―
This Invention consists of improvements in breech-loading fire-arms
working on the bolt or plunger system, the speciality of which consists
in my method of self-cocking by using the ordinary system of gun lock.
The lock work of this gun is strong and simple in all its parts, having a
flat mainspring and sear spring, the trigger, the stop, and safety pin is
also attached to the lock plate, the whole of which is fastened to the
under side of breech action by one or more screws, the shank of tumbler
projecting, to which the small lever is fitted to place the lock at half-
cock after being cocked and not wanted to be fired, the upper part of
the tumbler forming the cock or hammer to strike the pin to explode
the cartridge.
And in order that my said Invention may be readily understood I will
proceed to describe the same, reference being had to the annexed Sheet
of Drawings, wherein Fig. 1 shews the lock, trigger, and stop bolt
attached to lock plate, with longitudinal section of shoe with lock
plate fastened to it. a, the hammer actuating the tumbler b; c is the

page_text: incline to partially withdraw the cartridge; h, the lock plate; and i, the
barrel.
Fig. 2 shews the key by which the lock is lowered to half-cock.
Fig. 3 shews section of bolt with the striking pin. k, the lever with 5
incline to correspond with g, Fig. 1; 1, the incline for raising the
hammer a to half-cock; m, the incline to withdraw the striking pin.
Fig. 4 shews the cover recessed out for bolt and striking pin to
work in.
The method by which this lock is raised to half-cock is by raising the 1
lever k to its full extent (which has the effect by means of a segment of a
circle at its base of first moving the empty shell, thereby insuring perfect
and easy extraction), and by drawing back the bolt, sufficient to insert
the cartridge, places the lock on full-cock, which can be placed on half-
cock at pleasure without the danger of exploding the cartridge.
The striking pin, shewn more particularly in Fig. 3 of this improve-
ment, is also withdrawn by the action of opening the breech by means of
being held in position by a pin in the hole of action working on the
segment of a screw in the front fixed part of the bolt.
Having thus described my said Invention, I declare that what I claim
and desire to be secured to me by the herein-before in part recited
Letters Patent is, the improvements in breech-loading fire-arms as herein-
before described, and illustrated on the Drawings, or any mere modifi-
cation thereof.
In witness whereof, I, the said John Cole, have hereunto set my
hand and seal, this Seventh day of December, in the year of our
Lord One thousand eight hundred and seventy-two.