IMPROVEMENTS IN THE LOCK MECHANISM OF CERTAIN KINDS OF BREECH LOADING SMALL ARMS
Year: 1879

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to John Reeves, of Birmingham, in the County of Warwick,
Gun Manufacturer, for the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN THE LOCK
MECHANISM OF CERTAIN KINDS OF BREECH LOADING SMALL ARMS,"
T
T
4019
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said John Reeves at the Office of
the Commissioners of Patents on the 29th May 1879.
JOHN REEVES, of Birmingham, in the County of Warwick, Gun Manufacturer.
"IMPROVEMENTS IN THE LOCK MECHANISM OF CERTAIN KINDS OF BREECH LOADING
SMALL ARMS.”
My Invention has reference to such breech loading small arms of the kind
called drop down guns as have internal or concealed hammers, and my said Inven-
tion consists of the improvements hereinafter described in the locks of the said
drop down guns. By my improvements the gun lock is constructed of a less
number of limbs or detachable parts than ordinary gun locks; the parts of the
lock are readily fixed in and removed from the carrier plate or bar, and the
lock mechanism is fixed to and removed from the body of the gun with great
facility.
form the gun lock of four detached parts or limbs, namely, of an internal
hammer, a main spring for actuating the said hammer, and a sear and sear spring,
the said sear engaging with the bent of the said hammer. Instead of using a
broad flat plate, commonly called the lock plate, for supporting the hammer and
the other parts of the lock mechanism, I employ a flat narrow bar of steel having
three pairs of side ears or bearings for supporting the main spring, and for
carrying the pins or centres of the hammer and sear. To the middle pair of side
ears or bearings the hammer is jointed, to the rear pair of ears or bearings the
sear is jointed, and the front pair of ears or bearings carries a cross pin against
which the return or bent end of the main spring bears, the doubled end of the
said main spring seating itself on a seat at the inner face of the carrying bar. I
make a longitudinal channel or groove in the body of the gun of a size and shape
proper to receive the carrying bar of the lock, the said bar when fitted in its place
D

page_text: in the body filling the said channel or groove and giving to the body the appear-
ance of a solid body. I fix the lock in the said groove or channel by means of
screw pins passed through the end, or end and side of the bar, and made to take
into the body.
In double barrel drop down guns a channel or groove at each side of the body
is formed for receiving the two independent gun locks.
I prefer to construct the internal hammer of the gun lock with a long pointed
nose for striking directly upon the cartridge, but the hammer may have a flat
nose for operating upon an ordinary striker. The hammers are furnished with
the usual cross pieces or shoulders for cocking them.
Gunlocks constructed according to my Invention may be applied to drop down
guns in which the internal hammers are cocked by the short arm of a handlever
on the underside of the gun, or by a top lever, or by a side lever, the hand lever
in either case acting upon the cross pieces or shoulders of the hammers and raising
the hammers to full cock. Or the said gun locks may be applied to self cocking
guns, that is, to such guns as are cocked by the rising of the breech ends of the
barrels for charging. Instead of making the lock mechanism of double barrel
guns on separate bars it may be made on one bar or frame.

page_text: SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent filed by
the said John Reeves in the Great Seal Patent Office on the 24th November
1879.
JOHN REEVES, of Birmingham, in the County of Warwick, Gun Manufacturer.
"IMPROVEMENTS IN THE LOCK MECHANISM OF CERTAIN KINDS OF BREECH LOADING
SMALL ARMS."
My Invention has reference to such breech loading small arms of the kind called
drop down guns as have internal or concealed hammers, and my said Invention
consists of the improvements herein after described in the locks of the said drop
down guns.
By my improvements the gun lock is constructed of a loss number of limbs or
detachable parts than ordinary gun locks; the parts of the lock are readily fixed in
and removed from the carrier plate or bar, and the lock mechanism is fixed to and
removed from the body of the gun with great facility.
I form the gun lock of four detached parts or limbs, namely, of an internal
haminer, a main spring for actuating the said hammer, and a soar and sear spring,
the said sear engaging with the bent of the said hammer. Instead of using a broad
flat plate, commonly called the lock plate, for supporting the hammer and the other
parts of the lock mechanism, I employ a flat narrow bar of steel, having three pairs
of side ears or bearings for supporting the main spring and for carrying the pins or
centres of the hammer and sear. To the middle pair of side ears or bearings the
hannier is jointed, to the rear pair of ears or bearings the scar is jointed, and the
front pair of ears or bearings carries a cross pin, against which the return or bent
end of the main spring bears, the doubled end of the said main spring seating itself
on a sent at the inner face of the carrying bar.
I make a longitudinal channel or groove in the body of the gun of a size and
shape proper to receive the carrying-bar of the lock, the said bar when fitted in its
place in the body filling the said channel or groove, and giving to the body the
appearance of a solid body. I fix the lock in the said groove or channel by means
of screw pins passed through the end or end and side of the bar, and made to
take into the body. In double barrel drop down guns, a channel or groove at each
side of the body is formed for receiving the two independent gun locks.
I prefer to construct the internal hammer of the gun lock with a long pointed
noso for striking directly upon the cartridge, but the hammer may have a flat nose
for operating upon an ordinary striker. The hammers are furnished with the usual
cross pieces or shoulders for cocking them.
Gun locks constructed according to my Invention may be applied to drop down
guns, in which the internal hammers are cocked by the short arm of a hand lever
on the underside of the gun, or by a top lever, or by a side lever, the hand lever in
either case acting upon the cross pieces or shoulders of the hammers, and raising the
hammers to full cock. Or the said gun locks may be applied to self cocking guns,
that is, to such guns as are cocked by the rising of the breech ends of the barrels
for charging.
Instead of making the lock mechanism of double barrel guns on separate bars,
it may be made on one bar or frame.
I will now proceed to describe with reference to the accompanying Drawings
the manner in which my Invention may be performed.
Figure 1 represents in longitudinal section of the breech end of a double barrel
drop down gun containing lock mechanism constructed according to my
Invention.
Figure 2 is a longitudinal section of the said gun, showing the cocking mechanism
in the act of cocking the hammers; Figure 3 represents a plan of the underside of
the body; and Figure 34 represents an end elevation of the body, and exhibits the

page_text: carrying bars of the locks in their places in the said body; Figure 4 represents a
side elevation; Figure 5, a plan of underside; and Figure 6, a plan of upperside of
one of the gun locks constructed according to my Invention.
The same letters of reference indicate the same parts in Figures 1, 2, 3, 3ª, 4, 5,
and 6.
a, a, are the carrying plates or bars of the gun locks, the said bars being slightly
curved on their undersides to follow the outline of the underside of the body.
When however the bottom of the body is flat, the carrying plates or bars are also
flat. Each carrying bar a supports the internal haminer b, main spring c, and the
sear d, and sear spring. By an examination of the Drawing it will be seen that the
carrying bar a of each lock consists of a nearly flat narrow bar of steel, provided
with pairs of side ears or cheeks for supporting the main spring c, and for carrying
the pins or centres of the hammer and sear d. The hammer centre or axis b²
turns in the middle pair of ears or side checks at e, e, of the carrying bar a; the
centre or axis of the sear d turns in the rear pair of ears or side checks f. f, and in
the front pair of ears or side cheeks f, f, is a cross pin h, against which the return
or bent end of the main spring c bears. The doubled end of the main spring c
seats itself on a seat i made at the front end of the carrying bar a as represented.
The said front end of the bar a is made into a snug k, which is tapped at 1 for
receiving one of the fixing screws of the bar. The hammer b is furnished with a
long nose 63 for acting directly upon the cartridge, but a flat nose may be used for
acting upon a striker. On the side of the hammer b is the usual cross piece or
shoulder b, by which the hammer may be cocked as herein-after explained. In the
body of the gun two longitudinal channels or grooves m, m, are made (see Figures 3
and 34) for receiving the carrying bars a, a, of the locks, the said bars when fitted
in their places in the said body filling the said channels or grooves, and giving the
body the appearance of a solid body, as seen in the end elevation, Figure 34. Each
of the locks is fixed in its groove or channel m in the body by two screw pins,
namely, by a screw-pin n at its side taking into the side of the body, and by a
screw pin p (see Figure 1), passed from the upper side of the body, taking into the
screwed lug k on the front end of the lock bar a
I have represented in the accompanying Drawings two arrangements for cocking
the internal hammers of gun locks constructed according to my Invention, but
other arrangements for cocking the said hammers, as herein-before pointed out, may
be employed.
In Figures 1 and 2 I have represented the hammers b cocked, and the locking
underbolt withdrawn by means of a top lever q, having motion in a vertical plane.
The cranked inner arm q² of this top lever bears against the cocking lover centred
at its lower end in the trigger plate 8. The said cocking lever passes through the
locking bolt t. A spring u acting on the heel of the cocking lever gives the return
motion to it and to the top lever q, and also gives the snapping action to the locking
bolt t. When the top lever q is raised from the tang into the position represented
in Figure 2, its inner arm 22 acts upon the cocking lever r, which takes the position
represented in the said Figure 2. In taking this position the lever r cocks the
hammers b by bearing against the cross pieces or shoulders b' on the said hammers,
and also withdraws the locking bolt t and unfastens the barrels.
In Figure 7 I bave represented the hammers cocked, and the locking bolt with-
drawn by means of a lever on the underside of the gun. is the handle end of
the lever, and u² its upper arm passing through the bolt, and acting upon the
shoulders or cross pieces of the bammers in the manner described with respect to the
cocking lever r, Figure 2.
By means of lever indicators marked w, represented in Figures 7 and 8, and
separately in Figure 9, the positions of the hammers are indicated. When the
hammers are cocked they operate upon and raise the inner cranked arms of the
levers, and cause their outer arms to project through the tang, and when the hammers
are discharged the said indicator levers fall into the positions indicated in dotted
lines in Figure 7, the outer arms lying flush with the tang; Figure 10 represents in

page_text: plan of upperside; Figure 11, in section taken on the dotted line y, y; Figure 10 and
Figure 12, in plan of underside lock mechanism for a double barrel gun constructed
according to my Invention. In this arrangement the lock mechanisms for the two
barrels are carried by the same plate or broad bar x, instead of by separate narrow
bars, the broad bar or plate having near each of its longer edges the side ears or
bearings and seat described with respect to the narrow supporting bar for a single
lock. The said broad bar or plate is also furnished with tapped lugs and holes
for securing the bar or plate to the body of the gun. When the modification,
Figures 10, 11, and 12, is used, the bottom of the body has a recess or opening inade
in it of a size and shape proper to receive the broad bar or plate x carrying the two
locks. The said broad bar or plate x, when fixed in the body, constitutes the
bottom of the body, and is furnished with a middle opening for receiving the trigger
plate, as represented. The parts of the compound or double lock, Figures 10, 11,
and 12, are marked with the same letters as corresponding parts in Figures 4, 5,
and 6.
Having now described the nature of my Invention, and the manner in which
the same is to be performed, I wish it to be understood that I claim as my Inven-
tion, the improvements in the lock mechanism of certain kinds of breech loading
small arms, herein before described and illustrated in the accompanying Drawings,
that is to say, constructing the lock mechanism of drop down guns having internal
or concealed hammers, of the detached parts or limbs described and represented,
which parts or limbs are supported upon a carrying bar provided with side ears or
bearings or side cheeks for supporting the pins or centres of the internal haınıner
and sear, and the cross pin for the main spring, and an end seat for the main spring
to seat itself upon, the said carrying bar being fitted in a groove or channel in the
underside of the body of the gun, and fixed in its place by a screw pin or screw
pins, substantially as described and illustrated; also making the lock mechanism of
double barrel guns upon one broad bar or plate or frame, constructed as described
and illustrated, instead of upon separate narrow bars.
In witness whereof, I, the said John Reeves, hav. hereunto set my hand and
seal, this Twentieth day of November, in the year of our Lord One thousand
eight hundred and seventy nine.
Witness,
RICHARD SKERRETT,
Clerk to George Shaw,
Birmingham.
JOHN REEVES. (L.S.)