AN IMPROVED BREECH-LOADING FIRE-ARM
Year: 1867

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Edward Lewis Sturtevant, of Boston, County of
Suffolk, and State of Massachusetts, United States of America, for the
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION filed by the said Edward Lewis Sturtevant
at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition and
Declaration, on the 19th March 1867, pursuant to the 9th Section of
the Patent Law Amendment Act, 1852.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, BE IT
KNOWN, that I, EDWARD LEWIS STURTEVANT, of Boston, County of Suffolk,
and State of Massachusetts, United States of America, have invented "AN
IMPROVED BREECH-LOADING FIRE-ARM," and do hereby declare the following to
be a full, clear, and exact description thereof, reference being had to
the accompanying Drawings making part of this Specification, and in which
Figure 1 is a top view, and Figure 2 a side elevation of a breech-loading
repeating fire-arm constructed in accordance with my Invention, and with the
outer plate removed; Figures 3 and 4 are vertical and longitudinal sections;
and Figure 5 a vertical and transverse section of the same, Figure 6

page_text: being an inner side view of the breech receiving chamber herein-after
described.
The object of this Invention is to simplify the construction of a class of
fire-arms which have heretofore been very complicated and expensive in
manufacture, and difficult to keep in order and repair; an arm constructed
in accordance with my plan being extremely simple in make and effective in
operation, with no complication of parts or of movements to operate it.
In the Drawings above referred to as illustrating my Invention A denotes
the barrel of a fire-arm, and a its base. The frame or stock is shown at B
as being hollow or formed with a longitudinal chamber 6 extending some
distance underneath the barrel, and containing a sliding block or carriage C,
which slides longitudinally back and forth therein during the operation of
loading and discharging the piece. This sliding block C serves the purpose of
not only receiving the cartridge and introducing it into the barrel, but forms
a recoil bearing or breech for resisting the force of the explosion of the charge,
the expulsion of the spent shell from the arm being also effected by its
movements; to this end the sliding block has a circular opening c extending
about two-thirds through it; this opening being of a sufficient calibre to
easily receive a cartridge from a magazine suitably connected with it, the
cartridge being forced forward by means of a spring or other equivalent
device. As this device forms no part of my present Invention I have not
considered it necessary to show it. The forward part of the sliding block is
formed with a semicircular recess r of a sufficient length to receive a
cartridge, and being in line with or a continuation of the opening c a narrow
vertical slot or passage d being cut transversely across the block and between
the two as represented in the Drawings, a carrier block or cross head 6,
slides. vertically within this slot d and in contact with the front face of the
opening c, the sliding block C having an enlargement or offset of rising above
the front end of the opening, and serving as a recoil bearing or breech to
close the end of the barrel. This inner face of the breech f is formed with a
dovetailed or other properly formed groove or channels for receiving the
flange of the cartridge, and holding the same in a horizontal position while
being carried forward into the barrel. The carrier block e is retained in due
connection with the carriage C by means of ears or lugs 9, 9, extending from
it and into upright grooves formed in the side of the carriage, a friction break
being applied to the carrier in the shape of a plate spring / secured to its
under part, and carried downward and between the carriage and the bottom
of the chamber 6 of the stock. Reciprocating vertical movements are
imparted to the carrier e by the
agency of studs i, i, projecting laterally

page_text: from it and into two irregular endless channels or grooves j,j, formed in
opposite sides of the chamber b, as shown in Figure 6 of the Drawings.
Sliding longitudinal movements are imparted to the carriage C by a guard
lever D, which is hinged to the stock, as shown in Figure 3 of the
Drawings, the shorter arm k of which rises upward into the chamber b, and
is provided with two studs to extend into a dovetailed groove formed in the
front end of the carriage C. The longer arm m of the guard lever serves as a
guard to cover and protect the trigger. The breech or carriage C may be
locked in position against the end of the barrel in a variety of ways, that
shown in the present application, however, being simply a wedge n forming
part of the guard lever, which extends through a slot o in the stock, and into
a mortise or recess p made in the under side or rear end of the carrier C.
A lock for exploding the cartridges may be applied in any well-known
manner. I would remark that the front end of the recoil block or offset f
should be so constructed as to close around the inner end of the barrel, and
prevent any possibility of bursting of the metallic shell of the cartridge. In
operating with the above-described fire-arm, cartridges to the number of ten
or thereabouts are to be inserted within the tube or magazine connected with
the sliding carriage C, several of which will lay within the opening c, the
forward one of the number projecting forward into the semicircular recess r,
and so that its flange shall rest within the bottom of the grooves. By seizing
the longer arm of the guard lever and throwing it down into the position
shown in Figure 4 of the Drawings the sliding block C will be forced back-
ward to its extreme position, the action of the rear side of the endless
grooves i, j, serving during this movement to throw the carrier block e
upward, and carry the cartridge with it and into line with the bore of the
barrel, as shown in the said Figure 4, the groove, as before mentioned, serving
to maintain the horizontal adjustment of the cartridge, while the carrier
block e serves to sustain and raise it. By reversing the movement of the guard
lever and bringing it up in place against the stock the sliding block C will be
carried forward, forcing the cartridge into the barrel and closing the rear end
of the same, the action of the inclined portion b¹ of the endless grooves j, j,
serving during this movement to lower the carrier e into its original position
at the bottom of the slot d, the plate spring h before referred to closing the
inner end of the opening c during the forward movement of the block C, and
keeping back the cartridges which may be in it. As soon as the carrier e has
reached its lowest position the opening c is uncovered, and a cartridge forced
forward into the recess r. On bringing down the guard lever a second time
the cartridge within the recess r will be thrown upward in the same manner

page_text: as the first, and striking the empty shell which has been withdrawn from the
barrel by the breech f will discharge it from the fire-arm through an opening
in the top of the stock or frame B, and will be itself brought into position
in line with the barrel.
It will thus be seen that the above-described arm is extremely simple
in its construction, with no parts liable to derangement or breakage. Its
motions are all positive in their action and certain in their results. In addition
to the endless groove for raising the cartridge carrier I have contemplated
the employment of an inclined plane or bridge for aiding this movement if
in practice this should be found necessary.
In Figures 7, 8, 9, and 10 of Sheet 2 of the accompanying Drawings is
shown an additional feature or improvement of the arm, the object of this
addition being to enable a greater number of cartridges to be carried by
or in the arm, thus increasing its effectiveness for rapid and continuous
firing.
In the said Figures 7, 8, 9, and 10, A denotes the stock, or a portion
thereof of a fire-arm, having extending through its shank a tube a, connecting
with the breech-loading portion of the arm in any well known manner. The
main portion of the stock is formed with a chamber 6 for receiving a magazine
B, composed of a series of concentric chambers or cylindrical tubes c, c, c, etc.
the forward ends of which rotate in contact with the end of the tube a, and
which are united together about a common axis, and supported at each end
by journals d, d, apheld by suitable bearings or plates e, e, applied within the
chamber b. The outer ends of the tubes c, c, c, may be encircled by a milled
head or ring f, a small portion of whose circumference may project beyond
the outer surface of the stock in order to enable a person to readily revolve
the magazine, this head f being supplied with a spring catch or other suitable
device for locking the chambers c, c, c, in alignment with the tube a. An
opening 9 provided with a covering plate h is made in the butt plate i to
allow of the introduction of cartridges to the magazine. A spring or other
suitable device is to be applied in connection with the magazine to feed or
press the cartridges along towards the barrel. Previous to going into action
the magazine is to be supplied with its full complement of cartridges, which
may be done through the opening 9 readily and expeditiously. As the
contents of one chamber are éxhausted the magazine may be rotated so as to
bring the next adjacent chamber in line with the tube a, and so on in
succession until the entire contents of the magazine have been exhausted,
thus making the arm a very effective one in the hands of a well-drilled
soldier.

page_text: The advantages of this portion of my Invention are, aside from the fact of
giving the soldier so many continuous shots at his command, that much time
is saved which is lost in filling the magazine as heretofore constructed, besides
enabling a person to carry in a compact and convenient form a comparatively
large amount of ammunition, and utilizing the bulk or substance of the stock,
which is now wasted.
The Invention may be applied in a variety of ways, and to different arms.
Figure 11 shows a modified or different construction of the arm, but
preserving the general principles shown in Sheet One of the annexed
Drawings.
As its operation is similar to the first described, and will be readily
understood by those conversant with fire-arms, an elaborate description of it
is considered unnecessary.
I claim the improved fire-arm, or any of its details, constructed substantially
as above described, or, as far as matters of manufacture are concerned, in an
equivalent manner, as I do not intend to limit myself to the precise con-
struction as illustrated.
In witness whereof I have hereunto set my hand and seal, this 4th
March 1867.
EDWARD LEWIS STURTEVANT. (L.S.)