BREECH-LOADING FIRE-ARMS
Year: 1870

page_text: "
LETTERS PATENT to John Ingram, of Birmingham, in the County of
IMPROVEMENTS IN
Warwick, Copper Agent, for the Invention of
BREECH-LOADING FIRE-ARMS."'
Sealed the 31st January 1870, and dated the 9th August 1870.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said John Ingram at the
Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the
9th August 1870.
I, JOHN INGRAM, of Birmingham, in the County of Warwick, Copper
Agent, do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention for "IMPROVE-
MENTS IN BREECH-LOADING FIRE-ARMS," to be as follows:-
My Invention consists of the construction and combination of parts
herein-after described for opening and closing the breech ends of breech-
loading fire-arms, and also for discharging the said fire-arms, and for
extracting the empty cartridge cases from the barrels of the said
fire-arms.

page_text: The breech end of the barrel is open, the said breech end being
supported upon the front end of a trough-shaped bed let into the stock of
the gun. Within and upon the said bed a sliding hammer works, the
said hammer opening and closing the breech and operating the extractor.
The said sliding hammer is forced home to discharge the gun by means
of a coiled spring, and the said hammer is held in its cocked position by
the sear of the lock engaging in a bent on the said hammer. The open
breech end of the barrel is closed during discharge by a hinged block or
strong plate jointed at bottom to the bed described; this hinged closing
block is raised and supported against the open breech end of the barrel,
and released therefrom by the action of the sliding hammer, as herein-
after described. In the axis of the closing block is a striker by which
the cartridge is discharged, and at the back of the said block are two
horn-shaped projections curved at front, between which a comb. on the
sliding hammers passes to act upon the striker; this comb is carried by
a lump on the front of the sliding hammer, the said lump on the
discharge of the hammer engaging under the horn-shaped projections
of the closing block, and holding and supporting the said block in its
place. The extractor works on the under side of the breech end of the
barrel, the hook or acting end of the extractor lying in a recess at the
extreme breech end. At the bottom and front of the sliding hammer is
a bar working in the trough of the bed beneath the breech end. When
the sliding hammer is pulled back, the said bar operates upon the front
end of the extractor, and causes its hook to extract the empty cartridge
case. The tail of the hinged closing block projects, into the trough of
the bed, and when the said block is in its raised position a tapet or short
arm on an axis in the said trough bears upon the front of the said tail of
tle block and prevents it taking a horizontal position. This tapet is
operated upon by an incline on the bar of the sliding hammer to, release
the closing block.
When the gun has been discharged the parts occupy the following
positions, namely, the hinged closing block is raised against the open
end of the barrel, and is supported in that position by the lump of the
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block and the tapet is at the same time removed from the tail of the
said closing block; the said block is thereby allowed to fall into a
horizontal position by its own weight. The continued movement of the
sliding hammer causes the hook of the extractor to push the empty
On withdrawing
cartridge case from the open breech end of the barrel.
the sliding hammer to the full extent, its coiled spring is compressed,
and the said hammer is cocked or held back by means of the sear of the
lock engaging with a notch or bent on the under side of the said
hammer.
After the introduction of a fresh cartridge into the open breech it is
only necessary to pull the trigger to effect the closing of the breech and
the discharge of the gun, that is to say, on pulling the trigger the
sliding hammer is advanced by its compressed spring, the front bevilled
end of its lump striking against the inclined edge of the now horizontal
closing block, and raising the said block into a vertical position and
closing the breech, the said block being supported in its closed position.
by means of the said lump engaging under the horn projections of
the said block, the block being thus supported the continued advance
of the hammer causes its comb to drive forward the striker and
discharge the gun.
By constructing and arranging the parts in the manner described, the
opening of the breech, the withdrawal of the empty cartridge case,
and the cocking of the hammer, are effected by one motion, the intro-
duction of a fresh cartridge only being necessary to make the gun again
ready for discharge, the closing of the breech and the discharge of the
gun being effected by the releasing of the sliding hammer.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent,
filed by the said John Ingram in the Great Seal Patent Office on
the 4th February 1871.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, JOHN
INGRAM, of Birmingham, in the County of Warwick, Copper Agent,
send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her
Letters Patent, bearing date the Ninth day of August, in the year
of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and seventy, in the thirty-

page_text: fourth year of Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors,
give and grant unto me, the said John Ingram, Her special licence
that I, the said John Ingram, my executors, administrators, and
assigns, or such others as I, the said John Ingram, my executors,
administrators, and assigns, should at 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 Ingram, my executors or administrators, by an instru-
ment 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 Ingram, do hereby declare
the nature of the said Invention, and in what manner the same is to
be performed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and by
the following statement thereof, that is to say:—
My Invention consists of the construction and combination of parts
herein after described for opening and closing the breech ends of breech-
loading fire-arms, and also for discharging the said fire-arms, and for
extracting the empty cartridge cases from the barrels of the said
fire-arms.
The breech end of the barrel is open, the said breech end being
supported upon the front end of a trough-shaped bed let into the stock
of the gun.
Within and upon the said bed a sliding hammer works,
the said hammer opening and closing the breech and operating the
extractor. The said sliding hammer is forced home to discharge the
gun by means of a coiled spring, and the said hammer is held in its
cocked position by the sear of the lock engaging in a bent or with an
arm on the said hammer. The open breech end of the barrel is closed
during discharge by a hinged block or strong plate jointed at bottom to
the bed described; this hinged closing block is raised and supported
against the open breech end of the barrel, and released therefrom by the
action of the sliding hammer, as herein-after described. In the axis of

page_text: the closing block is a striker, by which the cartridge is discharged, and
at the back of the said block are two horn-shaped projections curved at
front, between which a comb on the sliding hammer passes to act upon
the striker; this comb is carried by a lump on the front of the sliding
hammer, the said lump on the discharge of the hammer engaging
under the horn-shaped projections of the closing block, and holding and
supporting the said block in its place. The extractor works on the
under side of the breech end of the barrel, the hook or acting end of
the extractor lying in a recess at the extreme breech end. At the
bottom and front of the sliding hammer is a bar working in the trough
of the bed beneath the breech end. When the sliding hammer is
pulled back the said bar operates upon the front end of the extractor,
and causes its hook to extract the empty cartridge case. The tail of
the hinged closing block projects into the trough of the bed, and when
the said block is in its raised position a tapet or lever bears upon the
front of the said tail of the block and prevents it taking a horizontal
position. This tapet or lever is operated upon by an incline on the bar
of the sliding hammer to release the closing block.
When the gun has been discharged the parts occupy the following
positions, namely, the hinged closing block is raised against the open
end of the barrel, and is supported in that position by the lump of the
sliding hammer, the comb of the hammer lying between the horns of
the closing block. In order to open the breech for reloading the gun
the sliding hammer is pulled back towards the butt end of the gun by
a handle or thumb plate on the said hammer. By the first motion of
the sliding hammer its comb and lump are withdrawn from the closing
block, and the tapet or lever is at the same time removed from the
tail of the said closing block, the said block is thereby allowed to fall
into a horizontal position by its own weight. The continued movement
of the sliding hammer causes the hook of the extractor to push the
empty cartridge case from the open breech end of the barrel. On
withdrawing the sliding hammer to the full extent its coiled spring is
compressed, and the said hammer is cocked or held back by means of
the sear of the lock engaging with a notch, bent, or arm on the under
side of the said hammer. After the introduction of a fresh cartridge
into the open breech it is only necessary to pull the trigger to effect the
closing of the breech and the discharge of the gun, that is to say, on
pulling the trigger the sliding hammer is advanced by its compressed

page_text: spring, the front bevilled end of its lump striking against the inclined
edge of the now horizontal closing block, and raising the said block into
a vertical position and closing the breech, the said block being supported
in its closed position by means of the said lump engaging under the
horn-shaped projections of the said block. The block being thus
supported the continued advance of the hammer causes its comb to
drive forward the striker and discharge the gun.
By constructing and arranging the parts in the manner described, the
opening of the breech, the withdrawal of the empty cartridge case, and
the cocking of the hammer arc effected by one motion, the introduction
of a fresh cartridge only being necessary to make the gun again ready
for discharge, the closing of the breech and the discharge of the gun
being effected by the releasing of the sliding hammer.
Having explained the nature of my Invention I will proceed to
describe, with reference to the accompanying Drawings, the manner in
which the same is to be performed.
Figures 1 and 2 represent longitudinal sections of the breech end of a
breech-loading gun constructed according to my Invention, Figure 1
representing the parts in the several positions which they respectively
occupy after the gun has been discharged; and Figure 2 representing
the parts in the several positions which they respectively occupy when
the breech end has been opened, and the sliding hammer cocked pre-
paratory to the introduction of a fresh cartridge into the barrel; Figure 3
is a plan of Figure 2; Figure 4 is a longitudinal section, and Figure 5
an end elevation of a portion of the gun exhibiting the action of the 2
extractor; Figure 6 is a side elevation, back elevation, and plan of the
hinged closing block or plate of the gun detached. The same letters
of reference indicate the same parts in each of the Figures of the
Drawings.
a is the barrel, the breech end of which is open; b is the jointed a
block or plate for closing the open breech end of the barrel; c is the
sliding hammer, by means of which the gun is discharged, the jointed
closing block 6 raised and supported against the open end of the barrel a,
the breech opened, and the extractor d worked. The breech end of the
barrel a is supported upon the front end of the trough shaped bed e, e, a
let into the stock of the gun, the sliding hammer c working within and
upon the said bed. The sliding hammer c is withdrawn so as to cock
it and open the breech by means of the handle c², the said hammer.

page_text: being held in its cocked or withdrawn position by the sear fengaging
in front of the arm c³ on the said hammer c (see Figure 2). As the
hammer c is cocked the coiled spring g situated around the rod h³, and
between the abutment c' of the hammer c. and the fixed cross piece e³ of
the bed e is compressed, the said compressed spring, when the hammer,
is released by the action of the trigger h upon the sear f, forcing home
the said hammer to discharge the gun, as herein-after described. The.
closing block 6 turns on a joint 7º, carried by the bed e, the tail end of
the said block being acted upon by a tapet or lever i, pressed home by
the spring k to hold the said block b in its vertical position. The tapet.
or lever i is withdrawn so as to allow the closing block to take a
horizontal position to open the breech by means of the incline co on.
the bottom of the prolonged part or bar c³ of the sliding hammer c.
In the axis of the closing block b is a striker 1, by which the cartridge
in the barrel a is ignited, and at the back of the said block are two
horn shaped projections 62, 62, curved at front (see Figure 6). When
the hammer c is discharged, a comb c³ at its front engages between the
horns b², b², and drives forward the striker 7. The comb c² is carried by
a lump c³, the front of which is curved, the said curved front of the
lump when the hammer c is discharged bearing against the inclined
or bevilled edge of the closing block b, and raising the said block into a
vertical position so as to close the breech end of the barrel a. As the
block 6 is raised the lump es passes under the horns b², b², of the said.
block, and holds and supports the said block in its raised or closing
position. The extractor works under the bottom of the barrel a, the
said extractor sliding in the support m, carried by the barrel. The hook
or acting end d of the extractor occupies a recess at the extreme breech
end. The extractor d is worked by the arm c on the bar c³ of the
sliding hammer c operating upon the tail d² of the extractor d, the return
motion of the extractor being effected by the spring d³.
The action of the gun is as follows:-When the gun has been
discharged the several parts occupy the respective positions represented
in Figure 1, that is, the hinged closing block b is raised against the open
end of the barrel a, and is supported in that position by the lump c³ of
the sliding hammer c, the comb c' of the said hammer lying between the.
horns 62, 62, of the closing block b. In order to open the breech and
extract the empty cartridge case for reloading the gun the sliding
hammer c is pulled back by the handle or thumb plate c². On the first.

page_text: motion of the hammer its comb and lump c', c³, are withdrawn from the
closing block b so as to release the said block, which would now fall
but for the lever or tapet i. When, however, the hammer c has been
withdrawn to such a distance as to permit the block b to fall without
obstruction from the lump c³, the incline cº comes into action, and by
pressing on the tail of the lever or tapet i tilts and withdraws its upper
arm from the tail of the block b, when the said block falls by its own
weight into a horizontal position and opens the breech as represented in
Figures 2 and 3. The same movement of the hammer c which releases
the closing block, causes the coiled spring g to be compressed, and the
empty cartridge case m² to be extracted from the barrel by the action of
the arm c¹ upon the tail d² of the extractor as seen in Figures 4 and 5,
where an empty cartridge case m² is represented partly withdrawn or
extracted from the barrel by the extractor hook d. As the sliding
hammer is withdrawn to its full extent to effect the last described'
operations the upper end of the sear f is depressed by the arm c³ of the
said sliding hammer passing under it, and when the said arm c³ has.
passed the said sear the latter rises, and engaging with the front of
the said arm cocks the said hammer or holds the hammer in its with-
drawn position, the several parts of the gun occupying the positions
represented in Figures 2 and 3. The gun is now ready to receive a
fresh cartridge. After the introduction of a fresh cartridge into the
barrel a it is only necessary to press the trigger to effect the closing of
the breech and the discharge of the gun; that is, on pressing the
trigger h the sear f is released from the arm c³, and the sliding hammer c
is advanced by its compressed spring 9. As the hammer c advances the
curved end of its lump ce strikes the inclined edge of the now horizontal
block 6, and raises it into a vertical position and closes the breech, the
further motion of the hammer causing the closing block to be supported
by the lump c³, and the striker i to be driven forward by the comb c² to
discharge the gun, as represented in Figure 1.
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 do not limit myself to the precise details herein described and
illustrated, as the same may be varied without departing from the nature
of my Invention. But I claim as my Invention the improvements in
breech-loading fire-arms, herein-before described and illustrated in the
accompanying Drawings, that is to say, constructing and arranging or

page_text: combining the parts of the said fire-arm, substantially as described and
illustrated, whereby the opening of the breech, the withdrawal of the
empty cartridge case, and the cocking of the sliding hammer are effected
by one motion, the advance of the sliding hammer causing the breech
to be closed, and the gun discharged.
In witness whereof, I, the said John Ingram, have hereunto set my
hand and seal, this Second day of February, in the year of our
Lord One thousand eight hundred and seventy-one.
'
Witness,
GEORGE SHAW.
JOHN INGRAM. (L.S.)