IMPROVEMENTS IN BREECH-LOADING FIRE-ARMS
Year: 1876

page_text: PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by William Morgan-Brown at the Office
of the Commissioners of Patents on the 21st April 1876. A communication
from abroad by François Glisenti, of 15, Place du Statut, Turin, Italy.
WILLIAM MORGAN-BROWN, of the Firm of Brandon and Morgan-Brown, Engineers
and Patent Agents, of 38, Southampton, Buildings, London, and 13, Rue Gaillon,
Paris. "IMPROVEMENTS IN BREECH-LOADING FIRE-ARMS."
Description of the closing and firing mechanism. The obturator is composed of
the following parts:-
Firstly. A cylinder with a steel lever, Figures 1 and 2, open at its rear and closed
in front, with the exception of a small central hole through which the point of the
firing pin passes; its lever is bored through centrally and takes root at the guide
piece on the cylinder, at its outer extremity it is provided with a thread on which
is screwed a cap, it is slotted internally to receive the obturator spring, and externally
it has a cavity in which is fixed the little stop spring c of the lever cap, the guide piece
has a longitudinal slot in which is fixed the tail end of the cylinder stop. Besides the
transversal slot d, made for the reception of the tooth on the extractor, the cylinder
is provided at its rear with a slot terminating laterally with two flat faces, and at
its front with a curve e on which the wing of the firing pin slides. The cylinder
has also at its rear a collar f, which is also cut through at a point corresponding
with the rear slot above mentioned.
Secondly. A lever cap, Figures 1, 2, and 3, tapped internally, and provided with
two internal cavities for the small stop spring; one of its faces is roughened and
serves to indicate if the mechanism is at half cock, or if it is ready for firing.
Thirdly. A steel cylinder stop, Figure 2, provided with a projecting roughened
head t, a holding pin and a forked tail piece which acts as a spring. This stop is
fixed to the guide piece of the cylinder by means of a screw y.
Fourthly. A steel obturator spring, Figure 4, with a cross head provided with a
projection rising upwards and its lower point entering in a transversal slot made in
the firingpin.
Fifthly. A steel firing pin, Figures 5, 6, and 7, its front end being provided with
a point, a truncated cone, and three slots made in the anterior cylindrical collar;
towards its centre and at its rear it has also two other collars, the first containing a
slot g to receive the extremity of the spring, and the second being provided with
a projection h, which slides on the curved face of the slot made in the cylinder.
[Price Ad.]

page_text: And sixthly. A steel extractor, Figures, 2 and 8, provided in front with a hook,
and at its rear with a dovetail projection i, which penetrates and slides in the groove
cut in the cylinder.
The firing mechanism is composed of the following parts:-
Firstly. A trigger 1, Figure 9, jointed by means of a pin to the firing spring m
with a curved rear end o which comes in contact with the curved part of the breech
block.
And secondly. A firing spring m, the rear extremity of which is fixed by means
of a screw to the breech block, whilst its front extremity is jointed to the trigger, on
its upper face is adapted the sear n, which passing through a slot in the breech
block enters the slot g in the firing pin.
Safety Cock. When the gun is loaded and cocked ready for fire it can be put on
the safety cock by unscrewing one half turn the lever cap, in this way the spring
is still slightly set, but not sufficiently to produce the ignition of the fulminate if
the firing pin is liberated, on the other band complete security can be obtained by
unscrewing the cap one entire turn.
Three different methods can be followed for separating the main parts of this
gun.
Firstly. To withdraw the obturator unscrew the lever cap, take out the obturator
spring, taking care at the same time to hold the firing pin, in order that it should
not fall to the ground, draw back the cylinder and extract it from the block, at the
same time holding with the right hand the head of the stop raised.
Secondly. Leaving the lever cap entirely screwed on, extract the obturator bodily
acting on the cylinder stop as above stated. In this case the obturator remains
cocked, so that after having extracted it from the breech it must be uncocked by
unscrewing the lever cap one half turn.
And thirdly. In the first case unscrew the lever cap one half turn, which com-
pletely unsets the cylinder spring, afterwards take out the obturator bodily.
When it is not necessary to separate the parts of the obturator, this latter method
is preferable to the two first, but should it be otherwise, the first or the third
method may be employed indifferently. The second method is not more advantageous
than the two others.
The parts are set up again by reversing the method of operation.