Improvements in or connected with Shoulder-piece Guns.
Year: 1898

page_text: Date of Application, 8th Nov., 1898
Complete Specification Left, 23rd May, 1899-Accepted, 8th July, 1899
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in or connected with Shoulder-piece Guns.
I, AUGUST REICHWALD, of 9, New Broad Street, in the City of London, Steel,
Iron, Metal and Mineral Merchant, do hereby declare the nature of this invention
(a communication to me from abroad by the Firm of Fried Krupp, of Essen, in
the Empire of Germany, Cast Steel Manufacturers), to be as follows:-
In those guns wherein the barrel travels backwards and forwards in a cradle,
when the gun is fired, the centre of gravity of the system becomes changed
during such movement; this circumstance however, has no importance in the
case of guns which are provided with an elevating mechanism, but it has influ-
ence in those guns which are elevated by means of a shoulder-piece, inasmuch
as the barrel, together with the cradle, has a tendency, when the gun is fired
to fall over backwards, so that the elevation of the gun is changed.
In order to obviate this disadvantage and according to this invention, shoulder-
piece guns are provided with a device by means of which the elevation of such
guns are fixed automatically, during the recoil and running out movements of
the barrel.
With this object in view the shoulder-piece gun is provided with a friction
locking device, which is inserted between the cradle and the gun carriage, being
thrown into operation by the gun barrel at the beginning of the recoil movement,
and thrown out of operation at the end of the running out movement.
This frictional locking device, when it is in a condition of engagement, couples
the cradle and the gun carriage together, in such a manner, that the barrel is
not able to depress its breech end when firing.
An example of construction in which the aforesaid frictional locking device
is arranged in the form of a clamping locking device, will now be described.
The gun barrel travels rearwards and again forwards when the gun is fired,
in the cradle, which is mounted by means of its trunnions in the gun carriage.
The shoulder piece is connected to the cradle and the said shoulder-piece con-
tains, in a slot, one part of the clamping locking device, namely, clamping
sector which is pivotted on a pin and is provided with a clamping groove which
is of wedge shape in cross section and has a direction eccentric to the pin. Two
teeth provided on the clamping sector have between them a space which receives
a tappet or carrier when the gun barrel is in the firing position, the carrier
being arranged on the gun barrel. To the side of the gun carriage there is
fixed the other member of the clamping device riz. a clamping arc, which is
curved concentrically to the trunnions of the cradle. The said clamping are
extends into the slot of the shoulder-piece, and rests with its concave curvature
against the correspondingly formed front wall of the slot, and it lies with its
convex curvature (which is of wedge shape in cross section) within the groove
of the clamping sector.
If now the gun barrel is in the firing position, the clamping sector is in the
position of rest, i.e. there exists a space between the walls of the groove and

page_text: the clamping arc. Therefore, the requisite elevation can be given to the gun
barrel, by means of the shoulder-piece, in the same manner as if the clamping
device was not provided. But if the clamping sector is rotated around its pin,
to such an extent that it bears firmly with its eccentric clamping groove
against the clamping arc, then the clamping device could only be disengaged
by a force having a tendency to rotate the gun barrel breech end upwards. Such
a force however is not produced at all in firing, but on the contrary the recoiling
gun barrel has a tendency to fall over backwards, as already stated, by reason
of the shifting of the centre gravity of the system to the rear. But the clamping
device cannot be disengaged by such a tendency, which at most only produces
a greater tightening of the said device, therefore the cradle, the barrel, and the
gun carriage are, when the locking piece is in the acting position, coupled
together in such a manner that the forces produced in firing are unable to effect
an alteration of the elevation that has been imparted to the gun barrel.
The mode of operation of the shoulder piece gun when provided with this
arrangement will now be readily understood. Before firing, the clamping device
is in the position of rest, therefore the gun can be trained by means of the
shoulder piece. If now the gun be fired, the gun barrel will run back in the
cradle, and, since the carrier strikes against the back tooth of the clamping
sector, it will rotate the sector on its pivot to such an extent that the carrier
will have a free path, whilst the eccentric groove of the clamping sector will
bear firmly against the clamping arc.
By this means, the elevation given to the gun barrel before firing is fixed,
until the carrier of the gun barrel, shortly before the latter terminates its for-
ward movement, strikes against the forward tooth of the clamping sector, and
returns the latter back into the original position. The cradle and the gun
barrel thereby regain their mobility with relation. to the gun carriage. The
clamping device shewn in this example of construction, may oliviously be replaced
by any other desired kind of friction locking device, without thereby altering
the nature of the invention.
Improvements in or connected with Shoulder-piece Guns.
I, AUGUST REICHWALD, of 9, New Broad Street, in the City of London, Steel,
Iron, Metal and Mineral Merchant, do hereby declare the nature of this invention
(a communication to me from abroad by the Firm of Fried Krupp, of Essen, in
the Empire of Germany, Cast Steel Manufacturers), and in what manner the
same is to be performed to be particularly described and ascertained in and by
the following statement:-
In those guns wherein the barrel travels backwards and forwards in a cradle,
when the gun is fired, the centre of gravity of the system becomes changed
during such movement; this circumstance however has no importance in the
case of guns which are provided with an elevating mechanism, but it has influ-
ence in those guns which are elevated by means of a shoulder piece, inasmuch
as the barrel, together with the cradle, has a tendency, when the gun is being
fired, to fall over backwards, so that the elevation of the gun is changed.
In order to obviate this disadvantage and according to this invention, shoulder-

page_text: piece guns are provided with a device, by means of which the elevation of such
guns is fixed automatically, during the recoil and running out movements of
the barrel.
With this object in view, the shoulder piece gun is provided with a friction
locking device, which is inserted between the cradle and the gun carriage, being
thrown into operation by the gun barrel at the beginning of the recoil movement,
and thrown out of operation at the end of the running out movement. This
frictional locking device, when it is in a condition of engagement, couples the
cradle and the gun carriage together, in such a manner, that the barrel is not
able to depress its breech end when firing.
The accompanying drawings illustrate a form of construction of this inven-
tion, in which the aforesaid frictional locking device is arranged in the form of
a clamping locking device.
Fig. 1 is a side elevation of the rear portion of a shoulder-piece gun; the
barrel being shewn in the firing position, with the clamping locking device
thrown out of gear.
Fig. 2 is also a side elevation of parts of the gun carriage shewing them in
the position which they occupy during the time the gun barrel is running back
and running out again.
Fig. 3 is a plan view of Fig. 1, and Fig. 4 is a cross section on the line-
of Fig. 1.
The gun
barrel travels rearwards and again forwards when the gun is fired,
in the cradle g, which is mounted by means of its trunnions in the gun car-
riage k. The shoulder piece is connected to the cradle, and the said shoulder
piece contains, in a slot, one part of the clamping locking device, namely, a
clamping sector a which is pivotted on apin, and is provided with a
clamping groove / which is of wedge shape in cross section, and has
a direction eccentric to the pin b. Two teeth provided on the clamping
sector a have between them a space which receives a tappet or carrier f,
when the gun barrel is in the firing position, the carrier f being arranged on the
gun barrel (Fig. 1). To the side of the gun carriage there is fixed by means
of the bolt e, the other member of the clamping device viz.: a clamping are d
which is curved concentrically to the trunnions of the cradle. The said clamping
arc d extends into the slot m of the shoulder-piece and rests with its concave
curvature on the correspondingly formed front wall of the slot m, whilst it lies
with its convex curvature (which is of wedge shape in cross section) within the
groove of the clamping sector a.
If now the clamping sector a is in the position shewn in Fig. 1, there exists
a space between the walls of the groove and the clamping arc d. Therefore,
the requisite elevation can be given to the gun barrel, by means of the shoulder
piece in the same manner as if the clamping device ad was not provided.
But if the clamping sector is rotated around its pin b, to such an extent that
it bears firmly with its eccentric clamping groove 7, against the clamping arc d
(Fig. 2), then the clamping device could only be disarranged by a force, having
a tendency to rotate the gun barrel, breech end upwards. Such a force however
is not produced at all in firing; but on the contrary the recoiling gun barrel
has a tendency to fall over backwards, as already stated, by reason of the shift-
ing of the centre of gravity of the system to the rear. But the clamping device
cannot be disengaged by such a tendency, which at most only produces a greater
tightening of the said device, therefore, the cradle, the barrel, and the gun
carriage are, (when the locking piece a is in the position shewn in Fig. 2) coupled
together in such a manner that the forces produced in firing, are unable to effect
an alteration of the elevation that has been imparted to the gun barrel.
The mode of operation of the shoulder-piece gun when provided with this
arrangement will now be readily understood. Before firing, the gun barrel and
the clamping device are situated in the position shewn in Fig. 1, and the gun
can therefore be trained by means of the shoulder piece. If now the
gun be

page_text: fired, the gun barrel will run back in the cradle, and, since the carrier f, strikes
against the tooth of the clamping sector a, it will rotate the sector on its
pivot b, to such an extent that, the carrier will have a free path, whilst the eccen-
tric groove of the clamping sector will bear firmly against the clamping arc d
(Fig. 2).
By this means, the elevation given to the gun barrel before firing is fixed,
until the carrier f of the gun barrel, shortly before the latter terminates its
forward movement, strikes against the tooth i of the clamping sector, and returns
the latter back into the original position (Fig. 1). The cradle and the gun
barrel thereby regain their mobility with relation to the gun carriage. The
clamping device shewn in this example of construction, may obviously be replaced
by any other desired kind of friction locking device without thereby altering the
nature of the invention.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of this inven-
tion and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what I
claim is:-
1. A shoulder-piece gun in which the elevation of the gun barrel is fixed
during the recoil and running out movements of the said gun barrel, by means
of a friction locking device which is located between the gun carriage and the
cradle, the said locking device being thrown into operation by the gun barrel
at the commencement of the recoil movement, and thrown out of operation at
the end of the running out movement, the device, when in its operative position,
coupling the cradle with the gun carriage.
2. The general arrangement and combination of parts composing the improved
locking device for shoulder-piece guns, constructed and acting substantially
as and for the purposes described with reference to the accompanying drawings.
Dated this 021 day of May 1800
BREWER & SON,
London and Leeds, Agents for the Applicant.
BREWER & SON,
London and Leeds, Agents for the Applicant.