IMPROVEMENTS IN BREECH-LOADING FIRE-ARMS.
Year: 1856

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Edward Lindner, of the City and State of New
York, United States of America, for the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN
BREECH-LOADING FIRE-ARMS.
Sealed the 12th December 1856, and dated the 14th June 1856.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Edward Lindner at the
Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the
14th June 1856.
I, EDWARD LINDNER, of the City and State of New York, United States,
of America, do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention for " IMPROVE-
MENTS IN BREECH-LOADING FIRE-ARMS," to be as follows:-
I construct a slot or mortice at the back end of the barrel, and fit therein a
chamber or breech, moving on a peculiarly constructed pin, that passes the fire.
from any ordinary percussion "cap or pan to the contents of this movable
breech when the fire-arm is discharged.
This said chamber or breech is fitted so as to swing up at the forward end
to receive the cartridge, the same being thrown up by a spring acting on the.
back part of said breech, and when this chamber is pressed down against
the action of said spring, so as to bring the same on the line of the barrel,.
a blocking piece or latch takes said breech and holds it in place. The end
of this blocking piece or latch is to project through the stock, so that the
same can be removed by hand to allow the spring to throw the chamber
or breech up for cleaning or otherwise; but on to this blocking piece a rod
is attached, occupying the place of the ordinary ramrod, and the ball passing
through the barrel, or the force of the explosion, is made to act thereon

page_text: and liberate the breech, by means of an incline passing into the barrel, or a
small piston, receiving motion from the force of the explosion. To keep the
moving parts of the breech clean, and to prevent the escape of fire both at the
junction with the barrel and at the touch-hole, I make use of a packing of
asbestos, or equivalent material that will not burn.
My fire-arm is thus tight and reliable in use; the chamber or breech is
self-opening, and merely requires to be forced down by hand after receiving
the cartridge.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, filed
by the said Edward Lindner in the Great Seal Patent Office on the
13th December 1856.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS. SHALL COME, I, EDWARD
LINDNER, of the City and State of New York, United States of America,
send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the Fourteenth day of June, in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and fifty-six, in the nineteenth year of Her reign,
did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto me, the said
Edward Lindner, Her special license that I, the said Edward Lindner, my
executors, administrators, and assigns, or such others as I, the said Edward
Lindner, my executors, administrators, and assigns, should at any time agree
with, and no others, from time to time and at all times thereafter during the
term therein expressed, should and lawfully might make, use, exercise, and
vend, within the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, the Channel
Islands, and Isle of Man, an Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN BREECH-LOADING
FIRE-ARMS," upon the condition (amongst others) that I, the said Edward
Lindner, by an instrument in writing under my hand and seal, should par-
ticularly describe and ascertain the nature of the said Invention, and in what
manner the same was to be performed, and cause the same to be filed in the
Great Seal Patent Office within six calendar months next and immediately
after the date of the said Letters Patent.
NOW KNOW YE, that I, the said Edward Lindner, do hereby declare
the nature of my said Invention, and. in what manner the same is to be
performed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and by the following
statement, reference being had to the Drawings hereunto annexed, and to the
letters and figures marked thereon (that is to say):-

page_text: Fig. 1 is a side elevation of my improvements as applied to a musket;
Fig. 2 is a vertical longitudinal.section of said fire-arm; Fig. 3 is a plan of
the same; Fig. 4 is a cross section through the centre of the breech pin and
nipple; and Fig. 5 is a section of a variation in the means for opening the
breech. The other Figs. are separately referred to, and similar marks of
reference denote the same parts.
The nature of my Invention consists in fitting a movable breech at the
rear of the barrel, in such a manner that the force of the explosion.commu-
nicated from the motion of the ball, or the pressure of the gas, acts on the
parts that hold the breech down in place, liberating the same, and allowing a
spring to throw the forward end of the breech up, ready to receive another
charge. All those moving parts that are exposed to the action of fire from
the explosion are to be packed with asbestos, which, at the same time that it
makes the parts tight at the joints, is not affected by the fire.
I have herein shewn and described my Invention as applied to a musket,
but it will be apparent that the same might be applied to rifles, cannon, pistols,
or other characters of fire-arms.
.a is the stock, and b the barrel, both of any desired size and construction;
c is the cock or hammer, propelled by any ordinary lock, and discharged by the
trigger, as usual; e, e, are metallic straps, connecting the stock and barrel, and
forming a recess or mortice to receive the breech piece d. This breech piece
is formed as a chamber at its forward end, coinciding with the calibre of the
barrel when pressed down in place; and said breech piece is set and moves
on a centre pin f, passing through one of the straps e, and into a recess in
the opposite strap e, at which point a packing 4, of asbestos, or equivalent
material that will not burn, is provided, so as to make the parts tight at the
touch-hole, which touch-hole communicates from the centre of the chamber
through the pin fand a tightening screw 2 to the nipple 3 to receive a
detonating cap, or to an ordinary pan fer powder; and 1 is a binding
screw to hold the pin f firmly in the breech piece d. The breech piece d
is formed with a heel or projection 5 on its back end, receiving the end
of a spring g, that is sufficient at all times to throw the forward end of
the breech up to receive the cartridge, except when said breech is othe:-
wise retained in place on the line of the barrel b; and the extent of motion
to the forward end of the breeeh piece d is regulated by a screw 8 in a
curved slot in one side of the breech piece, and by releasing this screw 8
the breech can be turned up at right angles to the barrel for cleaning
when required; or the whole breech can be removed, when necessary, by
loosening the screws 1, 2, and 8, and removing the breech pin. The forward.

page_text: face of the breech piece is formed as the arc of a circle from the centre of
the pin, and is extended below the chamber, as at i, to cover the end of the
barrel, and retain any gas or smoke from the explosion when the breech is
elevated; and in order to make the joint between the breech piece and rear of
the barrel as tight as possible, I introduce a packing of.asbestos, or equivalent
material, as at 7.
h is a seer on a fulcrum 6, and fitted with projections 12, setting into
notches in the back end of the breech on each side of the spring g, and the.
upper end of said seer is kept to the breech by a spring 13, so that when the
breech d is pressed down into place, the said seer / retains the same, and
the upper end projecting through the stock, as at 14, furnishes facility for
pressing back the seer by hand, so as to allow the spring g to throw up the
breech when necessary; but this operation of disengaging the seer for throwing
up the breech is accomplished, when firing the piece, by the force of the
explosion itself, acting by means of the motion of the ball or pressure of the
gases, as follows.
k is a rod occupying the position of the ordinary ramrod, and passing.
through a slot in the lower end of the seer h, where it terminates with a nut
or head 15; is a spring around said rod k, acting in aid of the spring 13, to
keep the seer to the breech; m is an incline on the end of a bent lever n, set
on a fulcrum 9, to the shorter arm of which lever the rod k is jointed, and the
said incline m passes into a mortice or slot in one side of the barrel b, so that
as the ball passes, said incline is forced down, drawing on the rod k, disen-
gaging the seer h, and allowing the spring g to throw up the breech d, ready
to receive another cartridge. And it will be apparent, that on firing the piece
the detonation from the cap on the nipple 3 passes through the centre of the
pinto the cartridge, and the fixed and moving parts of the said touch-hole
always coincide, and there is no concussion on the breech. Motion might be
communicated from the ball to open the breech by any other convenient
means, or the breech may be opened by the pressure of the gases in the
explosion acting upon the following means, or any other that will be equally
efficient.
ris a small cylinder beneath the barrel b, having an opening 11 to pass the
gas from the explosion to act on a piston s in said cylinder, packed with
asbestos, or equivalent material; and 9 is a packing to the rod k; and this
rod k is shewnin Fig. 5, as terminating as a fork 2, shewn in plan in Fig. 8,
that sets into notches 16 on each side of the breech d, to hold the same down
in place, instead of the seer h; and t is a trigger to slide said fork p along
and open the breech, when it is desired to do so by hand; and around the

page_text: rear end of the barrel I place a ring o, attached to the sliding fork P, and
provide a packing, as at 10, and cause the rear of said ring to pass into a
circular groove around the chamber in the breech d (see Fig. 7), so that the
joint between the breech and barrel is rendered perfectly tight, and this ring
is slid forward with the fork p before the breech is elevated.
What I claim as my Invention is,―
First, communicating motion to a rod situated below, or nearly parallel to
the gun barrel, by means of power derived from the passage of the ball or
cartridge through the barrel, or the pressure of the gases in the explosion
acting on parts connected to said rod, substantially as specified.
Second, I claim disengaging or opening the breech by a motion obtained
from the passage of the ball or cartridge through the gun barrel, or by the
action of the expansive power of the powder when the gun is fired off.
Third, I claim the use of asbestos, or equivalent material, as a packing at
those parts of fire-arms exposed to motion and to the action of fire in the
explosion, for the purposes specified.
Fourth, Iclaim constructing the breech & with the shield to cover the end
of the barrel when the chamber is elevated, as specified.
Fifth, I claim constructing the breech pin with the touch-hole through its
centre, to communicate at all times with the nipple that is set on the strap e,
avoiding all concussion on the breech, as specified.
Sixth, I claim the sliding ring o setting into a circular recess around the
chamber of the breech, and moved by the ball, cartridge, pressure of, gas in
the explosion, or by hand, as specified.
In witness whereof, I, the said Edward Lindner, have hereunto set my
hand and seal, this Fourteenth day of November, in the year of our
Lord One thousand eight hundred and fifty-six.
Witnesses,
LEMUEL W. SERRELL,
289, Broadway, New York.
THOMAS G. HAROLD,
Brooklyn, Long Island.
EDWARD LINDNER. (L.s.