IMPROVEMENTS IN BREECH-LOADING FIRE-ARMS
Year: 1872

page_text: PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by Alexander Melville Clark
at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition
on the 30th July 1872.-A communication from abroad by Francois
Gueury, and Ernest Dubois, both of Paris, France.
!
I, ALEXANDER MELVILLE CLARK, of 53, Chancery Lane, in the
County of Middlesex, Patent Agent, do hereby declare the nature of
the said Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN BREECH-LOADING FIRE-ARMS," to
be as follows:—
This Invention relates to improvements in breech-loading, fire-arms,
the said improvements being also separately applicable to such arms
generally.
The improvements consist, first, of a movable cap or cover for the
breech operated by the rotation of the sliding bolt, and serving to
exclude dust or rain; 2ndly, of an improved cartridge extractor; 3rdly,
of a spring in combination with the extractor for throwing out the
cartridge case immediately the bolt is drawn back; 4thly, in a method
and
of mounting the main and trigger springs without the aid of screws,
also in a method of securing the striker in the bolt whereby the parts.

page_text: may be disconnected without requiring a turn screw; only, in a method
of automatically cocking the hammer on drawing back the bolt; 6thly,
in the general arrangement and combination of the several improvements
above specified.
These improvements are illustrated in the accompanying Drawings,
Figure 1 of which shows a side view of the breech action with the hand
lever raised in readiness for drawing back the breech bolt. Figure 2,
shows a plan with the bolt drawn back; Figure 3 a longitudinal section
on line 1-2, Figure 2; Figure 4 a transverse section taken through the
line 3-4, Figure 1, with the cap or cover-slid back to uncover the
breech; Figure 5 a similar view with the breech cover in the closed
position, while Figure 6 shows a horizontal section taken on line 5-6,
Figure 1, with the bolt or hammer raised. The reference letters apply
to all the Figures.
a, barrel; b, brecch chamber in which is a longitudinal slot enlarged
at one end to receive the hand lever q or knob of the bolt i, by which
the breech is closed and locked. The end of the breech chamber is
sloped away as seen in Figure 1, to allow water to run off and is also
slotted at c to receive the hammer. d, breech cap or cover curved
concentrically with the breech chamber and received at the ends in
corresponding grooves e. This cover is caused to participate in the
rotating motion of the bolt i by a stud h on the latter engaging in a
recess on the cap d. The cap d remains stationary during the sliding
movements of the bolt, being held in the end grooves e. The sliding
bolt is of the ordinary construction provided with a spring striker w
which is held in place by a hollow screw or plug j, having a milled edge
so as to be readily unscrewed by the fingers. The rectilinear movement
of the bolt is limited in the backward direction by a screw o in the side
of the breech entering a groove p in said bolt. By partially unscrewing o,
the bolt may be readily removed for cleaning, and replaced without the
aid of any tool, and the screw is prevented from falling out when
unscrewed by a pin not shown. The cartridge extractor k is recessed in
the sliding bolt i, and fixed by a screw. It is formed of a flat steel blade
having a tooth or claw at one end in which the rim of the cartridge is
received when the breech is closed, and by which the cartridge case is
extracted when the bolt is drawn back even should it stick in the breech
owing to the expansion of the case after firing, or the elasticity of the
extractor. In closing the breech the extractor on arriving at position 3,
.

page_text: Figure 4, commences to turn with the bolt i, and enters the recess 1-2,
as shown at 4, Figure 5, on the inside of the breech chamber which
permits it to slip over the rim of the cartridge and abut against the
bevelled end of the barrel. Then on again bringing the bolt lever to the
vertical position the extractor / will be turned to position 3, Figure 4,
in which movement it is forced by the side of the breech chamber, and
the conical end of the barrel against the front of the cartridge rim
(which is received in a corresponding recess made in the head of bolt i),
so as to loosen the cartridge case previous to drawing back the bolt,
which movement may be effected without difficulty, the partial rotary
motion of the extractor having completely loosened the cartridge as
explained.
.
1, Figure 6, steel spring fixed in a recess on the outside of the breech
chamber, and provided at one end with a nib m projecting through a
slot n, as shown, into a groove in the bolt, and which on the latter being
drawn back to the full extent strikes the cartridge, case and expels it.
r, combined hammer and tumbler mounted on pin s; t, comb of
hammer. On drawing back the bolt for extracting the cartridge case or
loading the fire-arm, the milled screw j on the end of the bolt abuts
against the hammer and cocks the same without any separate cocking
motion being necessary. u, main spring connected to tumbler r by a
link v; x, trigger mounted on pin y; z, trigger spring. The springs u
and are shown as fixed on the breech a, without the aid of screws, by
inserting them in catches a¹, in which position they are retained and
fixed by pins b¹.