Improvements in Mountain Guns.
Year: 1896

page_text: Date of Application, 23rd Oct., 1896-Accepted, 12th Dec., 1899
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Mountain Guns.
I, PIERRE LYCOUDIS, of 64 Rue Socrate, Athens, Greece, Major of the
Engineers in the Greek Army, 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 the construction of a mountain gun light and separable
into parts for convenience of transport, and yet fulfilling the following
conditions:-
1. Range equal to that of a field gun.
2. The gun to be readily separable into parts, none of which to exceed 2 cwt. in
weight, so as to be carried by mules.
3. The joints of the separable parts not to affect the rifled lining tube made in
one piece with the charge chamber.
A gun according to this invention equivalent in power to a field gun may be
separable into 3 parts so as to be carried by 3 mules; while a gun equivalent to a
light field gun may be separable into 2 parts to be carried by 2 mules.
Figs. 1 to 6 of the accompanying drawings relate to a 3 part gun; Fig. 1 is a
longitudinal section of the gun complete, Fig. 2 is a side view of the jacket, Fig. 3 is a
side view of the breech piece, Fig. 4 is a front view, Fig. 5 a longitudinal section of
the connecting sleeve and Fig. 6 is a part longitudinal section, drawn to an enlarged
scale, shewing the gas check ring.
Fig. 7 is a part longitudinal section of a gun when the gas check ring is
dispensed with.
Fig. 8 is a part longitudinal section shewing a modification.
Fig. 9 is an elevation of the connecting nut and Fig. 10 a longitudinal section
of a lighter form of gun.
Fig. 11 is a longitudinal section of a modified form of the gun shewn in Figs. 9
and 10, Fig. 12 being an elevation of the breech piece. Figs. 13 to 24 inclusive
shew another form of gun, Fig. 13 being a longitudinal section, Fig. 14 an
elevation and Fig. 15 an end view of the lining tube. Fig. 16 is a longitudinal
section and Fig. 17 an end view of the jacket. Fig. 18 is a rear view of the
breech plug. Fig. 19 is a rear view and Fig. 20 a longitudinal section shewing the
closing mechanism. Figs. 21 and 22 shew the two positions of the catch for
the carrier. Fig. 23 is an elevation shewing the connection of the breech plug to
the jacket. Fig. 24 is a section shewing the gas check ring. Fig. 25 shews a
modification.
The gun when separated forms 3 loads namely (1) the lining tube t, (2) the
breech piece T and its closing mechanism, (3) the jacket J and the sleeve M.
The tube t has about its middle a collar t¹ and at its rear end another collar t*
coned, each collar has two feathers; the tube between the collars is coiled with
steel wire.
The breech piece T, which may be strengthened by wire coils, is provided with
breech closing mechanism (not shown) and is recessed in front to receive the rear
end of the tube t.
The jacket J has its rear part entering the front of the breech piece, and it, as
well as the breech piece, has 4 helical segments 6 61 for connecting them.
The sleeve M has at each end 4 internal helical segments and has two external
handles c.

page_text: A gas check ring d, shewn to an enlarged scale in Figure 6, screwed into the
breech piece. occupies a recess formed partly in the breech piece, partly in the
rear collar of the tube t. This ring is so formed as to present circular grooves,
in passing through which the escaping gases lose pressure. The ring d may be
dispensed with when the joint is covered by the metal of a cartridge case as shewn
in Figure 7.
The parts are put together as follows. The sleeve M being on the jacket J
which rests by its trunnions, the tube t is introduced, its feathers entering mortices
of the jacket, and on the tube is placed the breech piece T. The sleeve M is then
turned so that its helical segments 63, acting on the corresponding segments b, b¹,
draw the jacket and breech piece forcibly together.
In order to turn the sleeve either way, a lever coated with copper is passed
through the handles c. A wedge bolt sliding in a groove of a plate fixed on the
right side of the breech piece, being pushed by hand into the interval between the
segments in the sleeve so as to bear against one of these segments, prevents
the sleeve from turning back. The gun is separated by like operations in reverse
order. The feathers of the tube t engaged in mortices of the jacket prevent the
tube from turning, When it is desired to dispense with the gas check d, without
having resource to metallic cartridge shells, the breech piece and tube may be
modified as shewn in the longitudinal section Figure 8.
For the lighter gun separable into two loads, the construction is that shewn in
Figures 9 and 10, the one load consisting of the tube t, the other consisting of the
breech jacket J, with its closing mechanism and the nut or sleeve E,.which has
internal helical segments 63, and which is turned by a suitable wrench taking into
notches provided on the sleeve. It is prevented from turning back by a wedge
bolt, as in the previously described construction.
A modified form of gun shewn in Figures 11 and 12, is separated into 2 loads,
the one being the tube t, the other the jacket J, the breech V and its closing
mechanism.
The breech in this case has 4 external helical segments which engage with
corresponding segments within the rear of the jacket J.
For putting the parts together, the tube is introduced into the jacket, its feathers
engaging in the mortices of the jacket, then the breech V is put on and turned by
a suitable wrench. It is prevented from turning back by a key inserted in a recess
formed partly in the breech piece and partly in the rear end of the jacket. The
separating and putting together of the parts may be simplified by adopting the
modified construction shewn in Figures 13 to 24 inclusive.
The one load consists of the tube t, the other consists of the jacket J, (shewn
separately in Figures 16 and 17) and the closing mechanism C shewn in Figures 19
and 20. The tube t, as shewn in Figures 14 and 15, has about its middle aud at its
rear end 4 studs 6 and 66, equally spaced round it.
The jacket J has in front 4 grooves 6' fitting the studs 66 and, near its rear,
4 segments the spaces between which receive the studs ; springs e in those
spaces serve to centre the tube in the jacket.
The breech plug C is a solid of revolution held on a carrier which is hinged
at m to the jacket J. The profile of the front of C is a circular arc struck from
the axis of the hinge m as a centre, on this front are formed 4 wings of concentric
curvature in front and having their rear faces inclined at about 60° to the axis and
helically sloped as shewn in Figure 23. The sides of the wings are flat except the
left sides of the highest and lowest which are segments of cylinders having
their axes coinciding with that of the hinge m. The rear of the breech plug is a
throat which can turn in the carrier. A gas check ring d' (Figure 24) is screwed
into the front recess of C and, when the breech is closed, engages in a recess at
the rear end of the tube t. When metal cartridge cases are employed the ring d'
may be dispensed with.
The rear end of the jacket J constituting a nut for the breech plug C has
4 segments formed to correspond with those of the plug, their faces being such

page_text: as to allow for the circular movement of the wings as the carrier turns on the
hinge m. The carrier consists of a ring with flanger and a pair of hiuge arms;
the plug is held to the carrier by a disc p screwed to the plug, and the rest of the
mechanism is attached to eyes 1 formed on the carrier. As shewn in Figures 21
and 22 a catch k urged by a spring k¹ is pivotted in a slot of the carrier.
While
the carrier is away from the breech the catch is held by the spring in the position
shewn in Figure 21, but when the carrier is closed against the breech the catch is
held within the slot as shewn in Figure 22.
.
A pivot is held in the eyes 11 by bolts ss which are of square section at the
ends but round in the middle, the squared parts being engaged in the eyes of two.
lever arms ii the round parts in the eyes and the ends of the bolts being hell
by pins in the pivot f; thus the arms ii, which carry a handle n, necessarily move
the pivot f with them. On the pivot fis fitted a semicylindrical sleeve g having a
helical slot to in which moves a couical roller z pivotted on an arm at right angles
to the pivot; the sleeve g has two projecting arms s', engaging between them a
roller q pivotted on the breech plug. This breech mechanism operates as follows.
The breech is opened by merely moving the handle n to the right, thus turning the
pivot f, and the roller z moving in the slot causes the sleeve to rise, moving with
it the roller g and thus turning the breech plug one eighth of a revolution and
disengaging its wings from the segments of the jacket. By continuing the move-
ment of n, the carrier is caused to turn on the hinge m, and the breech is quite
opened. The breech is closed by like action reversed.
C
In opening the breech, when the carrier is scarcely away from the gun, the
catch k comes into action connecting the lever i to the carrier, so that on moving
back to the left the carrier turns on the hinge introducing the plug into the breech
without turning it, but as soon as k meets the breech the arm is disconnected
from the carrier and its farther movement turns the plug engaging its wings with
the segments of the jacket.
The mechanism may be somewhat simplified by dispensing with the rollers
and q and substituting for fa screw of quick pitch and rounded threads, and for
the sleeve g a nut working in a groove of the breech plug and by increasing the
pitch of the screw so as to reduce the movement of the lever to one sixth of a
revolution.
It will be seen that the construction of gun described with reference to Figures 9
to 24 flow from that shewn in Figure 8, but a gun separable into two loads may be
a modification of that shewn in Figures 1 to 7; it is only necessary to substitute
for the jacket J a nut such as is shewn in Figures 9 and 10, thus producing a gun
such as is shewn in Figure 25, the loads being, for the one the tube t and the
nut E, for the other, the breech jacket J with its closing mechanism.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said inven-
tion and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what I
claim in respect of guns separable for transport is:-
1. The separation of the parts in lengths without interfering with the rifling.
2. The combination of a removable jacket with a tube coiled with steel wire,
and containing or not the charge chamber.
3. The use, for securing the parts together, of a sleeve, nut or breech, having
helical segments, not part screws.
4. The several modified constructions described.
5. The breech mechanism described with reference to Figures 19 and 20.
6. The gas check rings described.
בד
ABEL & IMRAY,
Agents for the Applicant.