Improvements in and relating to Rifling Machines for Gun Barrels.
Year: 1897

page_text: Date of Application, 23rd Jan., 1897
Complete Specification Left, 12th Aug., 1897-Accented 9th Oct
1007
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in and relating to Rifling Machines for Gun Barrels.
I, JAMES RAMSAY, Glendower, Erith Road, Erith, Kent, Civil Engineer, do
hereby declare the nature of this invention to be as follows:-
:-
The object of my invention is to provide a simple efficient and direct acting
rifling machine, with a minimum or total absence of toothed and screw gearing, so as
to obtain a smooth even, and vibrationless motion to the cutter.
For the purpose of giving a reciprocating movement I employ or use a
cylinder fitted with the usual piston head and rod, and for small and fine work
hydraulic
the cylinder and piston rod would have their axis linable with the axis of the
cutting bar.
The power I employ to obtain this reciprocating motion would be any liquid or
water under pressure, say from the ordinary street mains.
To control or reverse the motion of the piston I employ or use an ordinary
piston valve or series of water cocks controlled by suitable levers, but preferably
for simplicity a common piston valve.
Attached to the end of the piston rod is the end of the former bar working
in a swivel joint. The former bar is mounted in the usual way with spiral
grooves and nut so as to give a circular movement simultaneously with the
reciprocating movement.
Attached to the end of the former bar is the cutter bar carrying the rifling
head and tool.
The cutter bar is of the usual construction and the tool is drawn out and in the
usual way with necessary modifications to suit my machine.
The machine is automatic in its action and hand controlled as desired.
The automatic reversing of the machine and the hand controlling gear is
practically one and the same piece and consists chiefly of an extension of the
alve rod running approximately the whole length of the machine bed.
On the end of the piston rod I provide a bracket fixed to the same, and with
n eyepiece embracing the valve rod, as an easy and sliding fit. In suitable
ositions on said valve rod I provide a couple of adjustable collars. Setting and
xing the collars to the valve rod in suitable positions for any given length
f stroke of the piston rod, the eye of the bracket carried on the end of the
iston rod, will engage alternately towards the end of each stroke with
ther of the collars and push them a short distance in the same direction as
e piston rod is travelling.
This small movement of the valve rod is communicated to the piston valves and
ill either reverse or stop the direction or movement of the liquid under pressure
hich is the prime mover. On the said valve rod I provide a suitable handle
ced conveniently for the use of the machine attendant.
Although in machines for doing small and fine work I prefer to fix the hydraulic
linder linable with the cutter bar, I reserve to myself the right to place it in
y position for larger work.
T

page_text: Improvements in and relating to Rifling Machines for Gun Barrels.
I, JAMES RAMSAY, of Glendower, Erith Road, Erith, in the County of Kent, do
hereby declare the nature of this invention and in what manner the same is to
be performed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and by the following
statement —
This invention relates to machines for rifling gun barrels and has for its chief
object to provide a simple efficient and direct acting machine which is constructed in
such a manner that the use of toothed or similar gearing for operating the rifling
mechanism is dispensed with, so that a smooth even and vibrationless motion of
the rifling tool is obtained.
For this purpose I operate the said rifling tool by hydraulic pressure, suitable
means being provided to render the reversal of the stroke of the tool either auto-
matic or otherwise. I also provide means for enabling the stroke and speed of the
rifling tool to be conveniently regulated.
In order that my said invention may be fully understood and readily carried into
practice, I will proceed to fully describe the same with reference to the accom-
panying drawings, in which:-
Figure 1 is an elevation and Figure 2 a plan of the entire machine.
Figure 3 is a longitudinal section of the hydraulic cylinder drawn to a larger
scale, certain parts thereof being broken away.
Figures 4, 5 and 6 are transverse sections taken respectively on the lines 1.1, 2.2,
and 3.3, of Figure 3.
Figure 7 and 8 are respectively a plan and a longitudinal section on line 4.4,
of Figure 7 shewing the device for regulating the stroke of the hydraulic piston.
A is an iron beam supported by legs A' and constituting the bed of the machine.
B, B are the bearings in which the gun barrel is supported during the rifling
operation. C is the hydraulic cylinder. C is its piston, the rod C² of which
carries the spirally grooved former bar or copy bar . E is a bracket having its
upper part ¹ formed as a fixed nut for the said former bar D to work in and
be thereby revolved during its reciprocation by the hydraulic piston. On the free
end of this bar is mounted the rifling bar carrying the cutting tool, but as these
parts are of ordinary and well known construction they are not shown in the
drawings.
The aforesaid hydraulic cylinder C is firmly supported on the bed of the
machine by means of brackets CC, which are so arranged that the cylinder is
coaxial with the former bar 1). I do not however confine myself to this arrange-
ment as it may be found more advantageous to locate the said cylinder out of
alignment with the barrel when the machine is intended for operating on gun
barrels of large dimensions. C is the inlet pipe from which the water or other
liquid under pressure is admitted to the cylinder C; this pressure may be obtained
by connecting the inlet pipe with the ordinary water supply main or otherwise.
is the outlet pipe by which the exhaust liquid escapes from the cylinder. c is
the valve by which the ports CCS that communicate with the opposite ends of
the cylinder through the pipes C7* C8, are alternately opened to allow the liquid
pressure to act upon opposite sides of the piston Cand cause it to reciprocate.
This valve is, for sake of simplicity, of the piston type and works in a valve box cl
by the reciprocating movement of a rod This rod passes through a stuffing
box and is furnished with stops whose distance apart can be varied by
unscrewing the screws and shifting the stops toward or away from each other
as required, and afterwards tightening up the said screws. Between these stops

page_text: on
an arm c6 carried by the piston rod C³ works in such a manner that as the said
piston completes its forward and backward strokes the stops are acted
alternately by the said arm whereby the rod and its valve are shifted to the
required extent to cut off the liquid pressure and to so stop the movement of the
cutting tool at the end of each of its strokes.
་
This stoppage of the tool at the end of each stroke is desirable in a machine
for rifling small barrels, in order to give time for the removal of the shavings
resulting from each cutting stroke of the tool and also for enabling the said tool
to be set into its cutting or its non-cutting position according as the next stroke
thereof is to be outward or inward with respect to the barrel:
The outer end of the said valve rod c² works in a bracket G which is bolted to
the beam A of the machine and is provided with flanged ends G1 G2. The part
of the said rod between these flanged ends is furnished with a distance piece g
to which a pivoted handle gl is connected. The length of the said distance piece is
made adjustable by nuts g2 g for the purpose hereinafter explained. The said
handle g enables the valve rod to be shifted by the machine attendant in order to
place the valve c into a position to cause another stroke of the cutting tool to
take place.
When this handle occupies a middle position as represented in the drawings the
said valve e closes both of the ports C7 C8. In the machine illustrated this is
the position to which the handle is automatically set at the termination of each
stroke by the arm c acting on one or other of the stops c³.
To start the machine working, when the parts are in the position indicated in
the drawings, the said handle is shifted towards the right thereby moving the
valve c towards the left and setting it into a position to open the port C7 to the
liquid pressure and the port C8 to the exhaust pipe C. The liquid under pressure
is thus permitted to enter the left hand end of the cylinder C through the pipe C
and act on the left hand side of the piston C₁, while the liquid on the other side
of the piston flows away through the aforesaid exhaust pipe C. The piston is
thus caused to move towards the right and draw the former bar. 1 through the
nut E, the said former bar being thereby revolved and the cutting tool caused to
cut the spiral groove in the gun barrel in the ordinary and well known manner.
As the said piston approaches the end of its stroke, the arm carried by the
piston rod C strikes against the stop whereby the valve rod 2 is shifted towards
the right, thus causing the handle g and the valve e to occupy their middle
position and close both of the ports 07 C8 and so stop the movement of the piston.
The said handle g is then shifted towards the left whereby the valve c is caused
to move to the right and open the port C8 to the water pressure pipe C and the
port C to the exhaust pipe C. This movement of the valve therefore allows the
liquid under pressure to pass along the pipe CS* and act on the right hand side
of the piston C whereby the stroke of the piston is reversed. When the piston
approaches the end of its stroke in this direction, the said arm of strikes against
the stop thus shifting the valve'c into its former middle position and causing
the piston to again stop working.
For the purpose of enabling the cutting stroke of the tool to take place slowly
and the return stroke quickly, the distance piece g is provided with the aforesaid
adjustable nuts g²g at its ends. These nuts can be adjusted to strike against
the flanged ends G G2 of the bracket G and so limit the movement of the valve
rod and its valve e in either direction. Thus if the said nuts be so adjusted
that the distance between the nut g³ and the flanged end G2 of the bracket be
greater than the distance between the nut g² and the end G', the ports C7 C8 will
be opened wider when the valve c moves towards the right than when it moves
towards the left, with the result that the speed of the piston towards the left
will be greater than that towards the right. In other words a quick return or
inward movement of the piston will be obtained.
By increasing or diminishing the distance between the aforesaid stops c¹ c³, the

page_text: stroke of the piston can be increased or diminished according to the length of
the barrel to be rifled.
When my invention is applied to machines for rifling large barrels I prefer to
effect the reversal of the stroke automatically instead of manually as above ex-
plained. This can be easily accomplished by setting the aforesaid stops c
somewhat closer to each other, so that the arm co will act on them at the termina-
tion of the to and fro strokes of the piston, for a sufficient length of time to
cause the valve rod c² and its valve e to be shifted from one end of its stroke
to the other at the termination of each stroke of the piston. If the momentum of
the piston or other working parts connected therewith be not sufficient to move
the stops far enough in this manner, I provide between each of the stops and the
said arm ca spring which will be compressed by the said arın as the piston
completes its stroke in either direction, and, when the piston comes to rest the
said compressed spring will react and complete the shifting of the valve c and cause
the reversal of the stroke of the piston.
In order to enable the aforesaid former bar D to revolve without the piston
rod C³, it is connected thereto by a swivel joint consisting of a socket d to which
the bar D is screwed, the said socket being connected to the piston rod by a
plug having a screw stem d² which screws into the end of the said piston rod.
In this manner the bar and its socket d can revolve about the plug d¹ which
remains fixed to the piston rod.
As is usual in rifling machines the gun barrel is lubricated with soapy water
or other appropriate liquid, such liquid being conducted to a tank H by a pipe h
leading from a receptacle h¹ into which the surplus liquid trickles.
Although in Figure 1 of the drawings, I have shown the machine arranged
horizontally, it is in practice preferably arranged at a slight inclination to the
horizontal, so that the escaping soapy water will readily flow from the machine
into the aforesaid chamber h¹.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said
invention and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what
I claim is:-
1. A gun-barrel rifling machine in which the former-bar is operated hydrauli-
cally for the purpose specified.
2. A gun-barrel rifling machine in which the valve of the hydraulic cylinder
is capable of being actuated by an arm on the piston rod alternately striking
adjustable stops on a rod extending from such valve, or by a handle with which
the said valve rod is provided.
3. The combination with the aforesaid valve rod of a distance piece carrying
adjustable nuts working between the flanged ends of a stationary bracket for the
purpose specified.
4. A gun barrel rifling machine constructed to operate hydraulically substantially
as described with reference to the accompanying drawings.
Dated this 19th day August 1807
HASELTINE, LAKE & Co.,
45 Southampton Buildings, London, W.C., Agents for the Applicant.