IMPROVEMENTS IN BREECH LOADING FIRE ARMS
Year: 1883

page_text: PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by Edwin Ambrose Brydges at the Office
of the Commissioners of Patents on the 5th February 1883.
Communicated
to him by Conrad Garbe of the City of Berlin and German Empire.
EDWIN AMBROSE BRYDGES of the firm of Brydges & Co Engineers and Patent
Solicitors of 107 Königgrätzer Strasse in the City of Berlin and German Empire
"IMPROVEMENTS IN BREECH LOADING FIRE ARMS" a communication to me by
Conrad Garbe of the City of Berlin and German Empire aforesaid.
This invention relates to improvements in breechloading firearms and differs
from all existing systems through its extremely simple construction of the parts of
the mechanism in the sliding breech and their being reduced to a minimum.
This said breechloading fire arm is specially adapted for employment as a
military weapon as only three simple manipulations are requisite to load and cock
the said fire arm, that is / the direct withdrawal of the sliding breech piece
instead of the withdrawal and partial revolution of the sliding breech piece as is
necessary with fire arms now in use such as Chassepot, Mauser etc / laying the
cartridge in the chamber in the breech receiver / direct forward sliding movement
of the sliding breechpiece without any turning of the said breechpiece.
It is evident that the construction of this firearm enables the same to be fired
much more rapidly than can be the case with firearms now in use. A guide piece
for the sliding breechpiece is screwed, soldered or otherwise attached to the breech
receiver, or the same can be made of one piece with the said breech receiver. This
said guide piece is provided with, slanting or inclined sides one of which said sides
is made preferably of less height than the other so that the fired off shell or
cartridge case can be readily ejected. The sliding breech piece is in like manner
provided with inclined inner longitudinal surfaces so as to make a good joint
with the inclined sides of the said guide piece and slides backwards and forwards
on such said guide piece. The hammer is arranged within the sliding breech piece
which is held in correct position by means of a semi-circular stop which said stop
catches in a like groove in the guide piece for the sliding breech piece.
In order to enable the sliding breech piece to be readily withdrawn a suitable
groove is formed in the interior surface of the sliding breech piece so that when
the hammer is given half a revolution the semicircular stop on the hammer fits in
this said groove and the sliding breech piece can be readily withdrawn,

page_text: The spiral spring lays on the one end against the front inner surface of the plug
or head to the firing pins on the other end against the rear interior surface of the
hammer and is coiled around the stem of the firing pin.
The spiral spring holds the firing pin hard up against the moveable head. The
head of the firing pin is provided with a projecting rib which slides in a suitable
groove in the sliding breech piece and is further provided with an opening in the
lower surface in which the nose of the trigger catches when the breech piece is
drawn back and the spring compressed. A suitable extractor is attached to the
moveable head. If the gun is to be cocked the knob is slightly raised in order to
free it from the recoil shoulder and the sliding breech piece is drawn back until the
nose of the trigger snaps into the cavity in the head to the firing pin. The
cartridge is now laid in the cartridge chamber in the breech receiver and the
sliding breech piece moved forward till the crank to the knob or handle snaps in
before the recoil shoulder when the cartridge can be fired. The cartridge chamber
in the barrel is securely closed by the conically formed moveable head to the
sliding breech piece which fits in the conical opening in the rear end of the barrel.
A suitable spring is so arranged on the cranklike prolongation of the knob to
the sliding breech block that the same has always the tendency to snap under the
recoil shoulder as soon as the same is reached.
The recoil shoulder offers absolute security against the opening of the breech on
exploding the charge. In case the shell should crack and gas escape to the rear a
small groove is made in the breech receiver so that such said gas can readily escape
without entering the sliding breech piece or injuring the person firing. In order
to decide whether or no the gun is cocked the hammer is provided with a horizontal
boring consequently if the end of the firing pin is to be seen the gun is cocked, is
this not the case the gun is not cocked.
A reliable safety arrangement is so employed that it is utterly impossible to fire
off the gun when the said safety catch is in position. This said arrangement
consists of a small spindle provided on the lower end with a suitable thumb piece
and above with a suitable nose which said nose catches under the trigger spring
and prevents the same being operated and the trigger nose being withdrawn from
the head or slide to the firing pin.