IMPROVEMENTS IN THE METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR CONTROLLING THE ACCURACY OF SIGHTING AND AIM IN RIFLE DRILL OR PRACTICE
Year: 1881

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Richard Morris, of Cleopatra Grove, Lewisham, in the
County of Kent, for an Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN THE METHOD AND
APPARATUS FOR CONTROLLING THE ACCURACY OF SIGHTING AND AIM IN
RIFLE DRILL OR PRACTICE."
->
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the, said, Richard Morris at the Office
of the Commissioners of Patents on the 25th April 1881.
RICHARD MORRIS, of Cleopatra Grove, Lewisham, in the County of Kent.
"1MPROVEMENTS IN THE METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR CONTROLLING THE ACCURACY
OF SIGHTING AND AIM IN RIFLE DRILL OR PRACTICE."
My Invention relates to a method and apparatus by which men under aiming
drill for rifle practice can have the accuracy of their sighting and aim conveniently
tested and controlled. For this purpose I provide for an ordinary rifle a longi-
tudinally perforated block, about the size and shape of an ordinary cartridge,
which I insert in the breech, and into the hole of this block 1 screw a tube, inserted
from the muzzle of the rifle, thus converting the rifle into one of very small bore.
I provide small ball cartridges to fit the hole in the above mentioned breech block,
and I fit in a recess on the side of the breech block a sliding piece, which, moving
with the ordinary extractor, operates as an extractor of the small cartridge. The
rifle thus reduced in bore is charged, fired, and has the case of its fired cartridge
extracted in exactly the same manner as in ordinary rifle practice, the only
difference in its use being that its ammunition is on a greatly reduced scale, and
therefore comparatively inexpensive, and adapted for short ranges, without the
danger or annoyance attending ordinary rifle drill.
As a target I employ the following arrangement: I make a screen of paper or
other cheap penetrable material, and mark it in front with a series of bulls eyes or
other suitable aiming centres. On its hinder side I mark vertical lines corre-
sponding with the front bulls' eyes, and other vertical lines at various distances on

page_text: each side thereof. I also mark horizontal lines corresponding with the centres, and
other horizontal lines above and below these. When the men under drill are
ordered to sight for a certain range, and aim for their respective centres, their
bullets will pass through the target, and the officer in command can by inspection
of the paper ascertain by the position of the bullet holes relatively to the ruled
lines the extent of lateral and vertical deviation. If, for example, orders have been
given to sight for 500 yards, then if the sighting and aim be accurate the bullet
should pass through the vertical centre line of the target, and one of the horizontal
lines above the centre ruled at a height which should correspond with the correct
trajectory for 500 yards, and so for other ranges.
In cases where the small cartridges employed are fired by percussion at their
edges, the hole in the breech block and the lining tube are made so much eccentric
to the bore of the rifle as to bring the edge of the small cartridge in line with the
striker.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent filed
by the said Richard Morris in the Great Seal Patent Office on the
24th October 1881.
.
RICHARD MORRIS, of Cleopatra' Grove, Lewisham, in the County of Kent.
"IMPROVEMENTS IN THE METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR CONTROLLING THE ACCURACY
OF SIGHTING AND AIM IN RIFLE DRILL OR PRACTICE."
My Invention relates to a system and apparatus by which men under aiming
drill for rifle practice can have the accuracy of their sighting and aim conveniently
tested and controlled. For this purpose I provide for an ordinary rifle a longi-
tudinally perforated block, about the size and shape of an ordinary cartridge,
which I insert in the breech, and into the hole of this block I screw a tube inserted
from the muzzle of the rifle, thus converting the rifle into one of very small hore.
I provide small ball cartridges to fit the hole in the above mentioned breech block,
and fit upon the breech block a sliding piece, which in being moved by the
ordinary extractor operates as an extractor of the small cartridge. The rifle thus
reduced in bore is charged, fired, and has the case of its fired cartridge extracted in
exactly the same manner as in ordinary rifle practice, the only difference in its use
being that its ammunition is on a greatly reduced scale, and therefore comparatively
inexpensive, and adapted for short ranges, without the danger or annoyance
attending ordinary rifle drill.
3
or
As a target I employ the following arrangement :-I make a screen of paper
other cheap penetrable material, and mark it in front with a series of bulls eyes or
other suitable aiming centres. On its front or hinder side 1 mark vertical lines,
corresponding with the front bulls' eyes, and other vertical lines at various distances
on each side thereof. I also mark horizontal lines, corresponding with the centres
and other horizontal lines above and below these. When the men under drill are

page_text: ordered to sight for a certain range, and aim for their respective centres, their
bullets will pass through the target, and the officer in command can by inspection
of the paper ascertain by the position of the bullet holes relatively to the ruled
lines the extent of lateral and vertical deviation. If, for example, orders have been
given to sight for 500 yards, then if the sighting and aim be accurate, the bullet
should pass through the vertical centre line of the target, and one of the horizontal
lines above the centre, ruled at a height which should correspond with the correct
trajectory for 500 yards, and so for other ranges.
In cases where the small cartridges employed are fired by percussion at their edges,
the hole in the breech block and the lining tube are made so much excentric to the
bore of the rifle as to bring the edge of the small cartridge in line with the striker.
Fig. 1 of the accompanying Drawings shews a part longitudinal section of a rifle
barrel on line X, X, Fig. 2, with an inner tube applied to it for the purposes of my
before described Invention; Fig. 2 shews a front view of the breech end thereof;
and Fig. 3 shews the arrangement of the target employed. Into the breech end of
the rifle barrel A is slid the block B, taking the place of the ordinary cartridge
fitting the breech chamber, and bored to receive a very small cartridge C. Into
the muzzle of the barrel is slid firstly a flanged tube D, and through this is passed
a small tube or barrel E, the bore of which corresponds with the bore of the
block B into which its inner end is screwed, as shewn, the front end being made
to project some distance through the barrel A, and provided with a head F by
which it can be turned for this purpose. The front end of the barrel E has an
external screw thread on which is a nut G, so that when it has been screwed into
the block B both parts can be securely held in the rifle barrel without any special
appliance to the latter, by screwing up the nut G so as to bear against the flanged
end of the tube D. It is preferred to provide means for extracting the case of the
small cartridge by means of the ordinary extractor H of the rifle. For this purpose
the block B may be provided with a sliding piece I, the inner edge of which passes
under the rim of the small cartridge C, while its outer edge passes in front of the
extractor H (to leave room for the fork, of which the block has grooves formed on
each side, or is reduced in diameter, as shewn at Fig. 2), so that the forward motion
of the latter will at the same time cause the slide I to push out the small cartridge
case or the slide I may be formed, as shewn at Figs. 2 and 2b, so as to surround
the block B. It will be evident that the slide I might be dispensed with if the
base of the small cartridge be provided with a disc of a diameter corresponding
with that of the base of the ordinary sized cartridge used with the rifle, so that
the extractor H can act directly on such disc, as shewn at Fig. 2.
It will be seen that the above contrivance can be easily and rapidly attached to
and detached from the rifle, and be adapted for use with any description of breech
loading rifle, whether with central or rim fire. It may also be applied with
advantage for converting a gun of large and smooth bore, such as a fowling piece,
into a rifle.
As it would be very difficult and expensive to manufacture the entire inner
barrel of steel with rifling grooves, I prefer to construct it of two separate lengths,
as shewn at Figs. 4 and 5, of which the rear part E may be of copper, while the
front part. E only is of steel. The tube E has a smooth bore, of a diameter equal
to that of the bullet, while the diameter of E' at the bottom of the rifling grooves
is the same as that of E, the rifling lands therefore projecting inwards from such
diameter. The joint of the two tubes may either be formed by screwing, as shewn
to an exaggerated scale at Fig. 5, or by soldering or brazing, and the rifle lands of
the tube E' are rimed off so as to die away to nothing at the joint, as shewn, so
that the bullet takes the rifling gradually as it passes the joint. The joint is by
preference covered by a sleeve E2 soldered on, the outer diameter of which fits the
Lore of the rifle, as indicated by the dotted lines Fig. 5, thereby preventing any
sagging of the tube within the barrel. The copper tube E may with advantage be
made equal to two thirds, and the steel tube one third of the entire barrel. The
target, shewn at Fig. 3 consists of a light frame, to which is attached the paper or

page_text: other screen K, which in the present instance is assumed to be of sufficient size to
serve as a target for a squad of six men, but which may be of any desired larger or
smaller size. Upon this screen are marked, either in faint lines on the front face,
or in stronger lines on the back face, the horizontal divisions a, b, c, il, & etc., of
which the lowest line a serves for indicating point blank range, at say 100 yards,
and is marked with the bulls eyes 1, 2, 3, 4, & etc., these 'bulls' eyes being plainly
inarked on the front face for the men to aim at. The other division lines b, c, il,
etc., serve to indicate the height above the bull's eye at which the bullet would
pass through the screen when placed at a certain distance, say '12 paces in front of
the men, if the rifle is correctly sighted, respectively for 200, 300, 400, & etc., yards
range, so that on inspecting the target after firing the officer can at once ascertain
whether the men have correctly set their sight and aimed accurately for the range
commanded. In addition to the horizontal division lines there may be marked
any desired number of vertical division lines l, m, on each side of the bulls' eye, in
order to ascertain the extent of any lateral deviation of fire as well as the vertical
deviation, or circles representing those of ordinary targets may be drawn..
.
It will be readily understood that 'the distances apart of the division lines a, b, c,
& etc., will have to be determined from the trajectories for the different ranges for
a given distance of the target from the firing position.
Having thus described the nature of my Invention, and in what manner the
same is to be performed, I claim,―
First. The method herein described for controlling the accuracy of sighting and
aim in rifle drill and practice, consisting, firstly, in providing an easily attachable
and detachable inner barrel to the rifle for enabling very small cartridges to be
fired thereby and, secondly, in providing a screen or target to be placed at a
short distance from the men marked with bulls' eyes and with division lines for
indicating the points at which the bullets should pass through with correct sighting
and aiming.
Second. The use in combination with rifles or small arms of an inner barrel E
screwed into a breech block B and screw nut G, substantially as and for the
purposes herein described with reference to Figs. 1 and 2 of the accompanying
Drawings.
Third. In combination with the barrel E and breech block B, the slide I,acted]
upon by the extractor of the rifle for removing the case of the small cartridge.
Fourth. The use for controlling the accuracy of sighting and aim in rifle drill or
practice, of a target or screen, arranged substantially as herein described with
reference to Fig. 3 of the Drawings.
In witness whereof, I, the said Richard Morris, have hereunto set my hand
and seal, this Twenty second day of October, in the year of our Lord One
thousand eight hundred and eighty one.
RICHARD MORRIS. (L.S.)