CERTAIN NEW AND USEFUL IMPROVEMENTS IN THE CON- STRUCTION OF BREECH-LOADING FIRE-ARMS
Year: 1869

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Francis Boyd, of Boston, in the County of Suffolk,
and State of Massachusetts, one of the United States of America, for
the Invention of "CERTAIN NEW AND USEFUL IMPROVEMENTS IN THE CON-
STRUCTION OF BREECH-LOADING FIRE-ARMS."-A communication from
Francis Everett Boyd and Philo Shelton Tyler, residing at Boston,
in the State of Massachusetts, one of the United States of America.
Sealed the 25th May 1869, and dated the 3rd April 1869.
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION filed by the said Francis Boyd at the Office
of the Commissioners of Patents with his Petition, and Declaration
on the 3rd April 1869, pursuant to the 9th Section of the Patent
Law Amendment Act, 1852.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, FRANCIS
BOYD, of Boston, in the County of Suffolk, and State of Massachusetts,
one of the United States of America, send greeting.
WHEREAS I am in possession of an Invention for "CERTAIN NEW AND
USEFUL IMPROVEMENTS IN THE CONSTRUCTION OF BREECH-LOADING FIRE-ARMS," and

page_text: have petitioned Her Majesty to grant unto me, my executors, adminis-
trators and assigns, Her Royal Letters Patent for the same, and have
made solemn Declaration that it is a communication from Francis
Everett Boyd and Philo Shelton Tyler, persons resident at said Boston,
in the State of Massachusetts, one of the United State of America.
NOW KNOW YE, that I, the said Francis Boyd, do hereby declare that
the following Complete Specification, under my hand and seal, fully
describes and ascertains the nature of the said Invention, and in what
manner the same is to be performed, in and by the following statement,
reference being had to the accompanying Drawings forming a part of
this Specification.
In the said Drawings Figure 1 is a plan view of the portion of a
double-barrelled gun in which my improvements are embodied; Figure 2
is a side elevation of the same; Figure 3 is a rear elevation of the same
with the breech turned down and with the stock removed; Figure 4
is a cross section through the barrels near the breech; Figure 5 is a
longitudinal section through a portion of the breech plate and one
barrel, and through the retractor; Figure 6 is a section through the
breech plate and spring catch to show an arrangement of the spring
catch in which the spring is placed in a recess in the tang of the breech
piece.
The different parts are indicated in the Drawings as follows, similar
letters indicating similar parts in the various Figures. A, A¹, is the
stock made in two parts as shown; a is the breech plate; b, b, are the
barrels; 9, 9, are clamps attached to the barrels fitted in the plates h, h,
and formed to clamp over the cam lips a¹, a¹; a¹, a¹, are lips with
cams upon the breech plate, over which the clamps g, g, lock; d, d',
are bearing plates attached to the barrels, the plate d¹ having cams
on the side towards the washer e; c is a spindle secured to the
breech plate a, which passes through the bearing plates d and d³,
(said bearing plates being fitted so that they can turn freely around
the spindle), and the end of the spindle made with a screw to receive
the nut f, and so formed between the nut and the bearing plate d' that
it will hold the washer e upon the spindle in one position, which may be
done by making the portion referred to square, or in any other well
known way; e is a washer upon the spindle, to which it is so fitted as to
prevent it from turning upon the spindle, while it can be readily
removed when the nut is taken off. This washer is made with cam

page_text: surfaces opposed to the cams upon the bearing plate d'; f is a nut to
hold and adjust the washer and keep the barrels and breech plate in
their proper relative positions; h, h, are metal plates upon the barrels
which serve to receive and hold the clamps and cartridge retractors;
i, i, are cartridge retractors, made in a tubular form with springs inside,
fitted to slide in grooves in the plates 1, h, and with flanges upon their
rear ends fitted to the form of the ends of the barrels, as shown in
Figs. 3 and 5; k, k, are strikers, with retracting springs, attached to and
passing through the breech plate; m is a spring catch attached to the
breech plate and passing into a depression in the ends of the barrels,
which prevents the barrels from turning out of their place when in
position for firing. It is drawn back and released from its hold of the
barrels by means of the thumb piece m¹; n, n, are bevels, which allow
the breech plate to be brought into place after loading, or when the
barrels are empty by forcing back the spring catch, and thus dispensing
with the use of the thumb piece.
In Figures 1 and 2 the gun is shown with the barrels and breech
piece closed together and in position for firing. Holding the barrels
firmly in one hand and drawing back the spring catch with the thumb
of the other a twist given to the stock or barrels will release all the
cams from their hold of each other and of the clamps g, g, thus freeing
the breech from pressure, and the breech may then be turned to the
position shown in Fig. 3, so as to open the rear of the barrels. The
retractors i, i, can then be used (by drawing them back) to expel the
shells of exploded cartridges, their springs immediately returning them
to their proper places. The loaded cartridges are then inserted in the
barrels, and the breech turned back to the position shown in Figures 1
and 2. In turning it back there is no need of using the thumb piece to
withdraw the spring catch, as the hevels throw the catch back
so that it will enter the depression made to receive it; while being
turned back the clamps 9, 9, engage with the cam lips a¹, a¹, and
the cams on the bearing plate d engage with those on the washer e,
forcing the barrels and breech plate firmly together and holding
them so ready for use. The cartridges are exploded by means of
the strikers k, k, which extend through the breech plate, and are so
placed that when held by the spring catch, they will be directly
opposite that part of the cartridge upon which they are designed to
strike when driven inwards by the hammer. The strikers are shown in

page_text: the Drawings as intended for use upon a cartridge which is struck in the
centre of its rear end, and I commonly use a cartridge made of metal,
flanged to fit in the groove shown at the rear of the barrel, and having
in the centre of the rear end an ordinary gun cone to receive a per-
cussion cap, the cone being sunk below the surface of the end plate. I
prefer these cartridges, as they can be easily loaded and will last a long
time, but I do not wish to confine myself to a gun using this style of
cartridge, as it is obvious that the striker could be so placed as to explode
the ordinary form of metallic cartridge where the percussion powder is
placed within the flange.
It is not claimed that a gun turning upon a spindle is new, nor a gun
turning upon a spindle and having a single clamp projecting from the
breech plate, which clamp catches upon a lip projecting from the barrel,
.but it is believed that no gun, whether single or double barrelled, has
ever before been made having the clamps attached to the barrel and
projecting backwards over a suitable breech plate, or that a double-
.barrelled gun has ever been made with a clamp which did not lie in the
line of sight, or with more than one clamp. It is also important that a
double-barreled spindle gun should be so constructed that the barrels
can be thrown to either the right or left at pleasure, and this is believed
to be the first gun so constructed. By using two clamps the barrels and
breech piece are held together more firmly than if only one is employed,
and the line of sight is not obstructed by them even if the clamps are
placed upon the breech piece and the lips upon the barrels.
The plate or washer e upon the spindle with cam surfaces bearing
against similar surfaces on the bearing plate d' gives an additional force
in pressing the two parts of the gun together, and can be used as a
means of adjustment, being forced towards the bearing plate by the
screw nut f. The cams also serve to take a portion of the wear from the
camp lips upon the breech plate. It is obvious that a cam washer may
be attached to the bearing plate d instead of making its surface cam-
shaped. Metal plates are fixed upon the rear portions of the barrels, as
shown at h, h, in the Drawings; they are usually forged in the manu-
facture of the barrels, but may be secured in any suitable way, and
afford a means for holding the clamps g, g, and the retractors i, i,
without cutting into and weakening the barrels. The clamps are closely
fitted in grooves in the plates, and after being adjusted are securely
fastened by means of pins or screws. It is preferable to make these

page_text: grooves and clamps of such a form as to prevent all motion of the clamp
except the endwise motion, and rely upon the screw or pin only for the
purpose of preventing this last motion.
The retractors are made with flanges, and in a tubular form, as shown
by the Drawings, which makes their operation more sure and easy than
that of the flat dovetailed retractors in common use, which from their
form will sometimes stick in the ways; they are made with a slot in the
direction of their length, so that they may play over a stationary pin and
enclose a spiral spring, one end of which presses against the pin and the
other end against a plug in the forward end of the retractor, as shown in
Figure 5.
Strikers k, k, are used as the means by which the hammer acts
through the breech plate to explode the cartridge, and this method
is preferred, but it is obvious that the equally well-known way of
apertures through the breech plate of the proper size and shape to allow
a portion of the hammer to pass through and act directly upon the
cartridge may be substituted for the strikers. Neither the strikers nor
apertures through the breech piece are new in themselves, and no claim
is made to them; but it is claimed to be new to explode the charge of a
spindle gun (that is to say, a gun having a barrel or barrels mounted
upon a spindle, substantially as above described, not meaning to include
guns where the barrels are brought successively into position to be fired
on the principle of a revolver, by the action of the hammer through the
breech piece. In all other spindle guns, as that term is used in this
Specification, the hammer explodes a cap upon a nipple which is inserted
in the breech piece, and the flame from the cap passes through a hole
drilled through the breech piece to the cartridge.
The claim to this portion of the Invention is therefore limited so as to
include the strikers only when used in connection with the other parts.
By means of the improvements herein set forth a fire-arm is produced
which is simple, easily understood, operated, and cleaned, not liable to
get out of order, and which possesses all the qualifications requisite in a
sporting gun. The barrels are held firmly against the breech when
ready for firing; they can be turned quickly to retract the exploded
cartridge shells or to load, and as quickly turned back into place; and
the retractors operate surely and easily.

page_text: What I claim as new in this Invention, and desire to secure by
Letters Patent is,-
First. A breech piece having lips upon its upper part in combination
with clamps attached to the barrels and projecting backwards over the
breech piece, substantially as and for the purpose specified.
Second. Two clamps g, g, whether attached to the barrels or breech
piece, in combination with two cam projections on which they clamp,
and with two barrels arranged to turn upon a suitable spindle, the
whole being arranged so that the barrels can be thrown to either the
right or to the left, all substantially as described.
Third. The plate or washer e, formed as described, and attached to the
spindle c in combination with the raised or cam-shaped surfaces of the
bearing plate d', as set forth.
Fourth. The barrels with metal plates at their rear ends in
combination with the clamps when the latter are inserted and suitably
secured in grooves in the former.
Fifth. The flanged tubular retractor i containing a spring when
arranged to operate substantially as shown and described.
Sixth. The combination of a breech piece through which the hammer
acts, substantially as above described, with a barrel or barrels arranged
upon a spindle, substantially as above described, and a spring catch, all
so arranged that the spring catch will hold the barrel or barrels in their
correct relation to the hammer, so that the latter may act through the
breech piece to explode the cartridge, substantially as and for the
purpose specified.
In witness whereof I have hereunto set my hand and seal, this