IMPROVEMENTS IN FIRING PRIMERS FOR ORDNANCE
Year: 1884

page_text: PROVISIONAL
SPECIFICATION.
I, GEORGE QUICK, of Chipping Campden, in the County of Gloucester,.
Chief Engineer, Royal Navy, do hereby declare the nature of my Invention for
"IMPROVEMENTS IN FIRING PRIMERS FOR ORDNANCE" to be as follows:-
My Invention relates to improvements in friction primers for firing the charges
in breechloading guns, the said friction primers being so constructed as to close the
vent practically gas tight at the instant the gun is fired, the said primers being
secured in the vent as described in my Patent "Improvements in Ordnance
No. 1115 of A.D. 1884.
This friction primer consists of a short, thick, cartridge case containing a friction
pin passing through an orifice in the base of the said case, the end of the said
friction pin inside the primer case being enlarged, and the rear part or shoulder of
the enlargement being conical and adapted to fit into and close a corresponding
recess formed in the base of the said primer case when the friction pin is drawn
back. The surface of the enlarged part of the friction pin is roughened, and is
surrounded by ordinary detonating material, in the usual manner, to fire the charge
of meal powder in the body of the primer case. The friction pin is held in its
proper position by a small pin or rivet passing through the side of the base of the
primer and engaging in a small recess formed in the side of the friction pin: On
the friction pin being drawn back to fire the primer, the rivet is sheared off, the
conical part of the friction pin closes the orifice in the base of the primer case gas-
tight, the pressure of the powder gas on the end of the pin also assisting to force
the pin into its seating on the firing taking place. On the friction pin and close to
the base of the said primer I form a small collar of greater diameter than the said
pin so that it cannot be drawn through the shutter or piece of metal which locks
the primer in its seating until the said shutter is completely home, and the enlarged
part of the slot in the shutter is directly in line with the collar on the pin. And
as the enlarged part of the slot in the shutter can be in line with the collar only
when the breech of the gun is closed premature firing is prevented by the said
collar. At the rear end of the friction pin an eye is formed to receive the hook of
the firing lanyard.
144
This friction primer may be employed for firing other descriptions of guns as well
as those described in my Patents.

page_text: I GEORGE QUICK of Chipping Campden, in the county of Gloucester, Chief
Engineer, Royal Navy do hereby declare the nature of my invention for
"IMPROVEMENTS IN FIRING PRIMERS FOR ORDNANCE" and in what manner the
same is to be performed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and by
the following statement :—
My invention relates to improvements in friction primers for firing the charges
in breechloading guns the said primers being so constructed as to close the vent
practically gas tight at the instant the gun is fired, the said primer being secured
in the vent as described in my former specification for "Improvements in ordnance
No 1115 of 1884 or by any other arrangement.
"1
This friction primer consists by preference of a short thick metallic case con-
taining a friction pin which passes through an orifice in the base of the said case,
part of the said friction pin inside the case being of an enlarged size the rear end
of the said enlargement being conical and adapted to close a corresponding recess
formed in the base of the said primer case when the friction pin is drawn back.
The surface of that part of the friction pin which is in advance of the conical
portion is roughened and is surrounded by ordinary detonating material in the
usual manner so that the act of withdrawing the friction pin ignites the detonating
material which in turn ignites the meal powder or long flaming composition with
which the primer case is filled.
The friction pin is held in its proper position by a small pin or rivet passing
through the side of the base of the primer and engaging in a small recess or hole
formed in the friction pin. Or by preference the pin may be held in its place by
being soldered into the case.
On the friction pin being drawn back to fire the primer the rivet is sheared off,
or the solder broken, the conical part of the friction pin closes gastight the orifice
in the base of the primer case, and the pressure of the powder gas on the end
of the pin also assists to press the said pin into its seating on the firing taking
place.
I make that part of the friction pin which fits into the base of the primer of greater
diameter, than the rear part of the said pin so that the pin cannot be withdrawn
through the shutter which locks the primer in its seating until the said shutter is
completely home, and the enlarged part of the slot in the shutter is directly in line
with the enlarged part of the pin.
At the extreme rear end of the friction pin I form an eye to receive the hook of
the firing lanyard by twisting the end of the said pin after it has been inserted in
the primer case with the detonating material attached.
In the drawings Figure 1 is a side elevation; figure 2, is a vertical longitudinal
section; figure 3, is a front elevation of the said friction primer. In these figures
letter A, designates the friction pin; B, the primer case; C, a cylinder of wood or
hard pressed clay fitted into the base of the case to act as a guide to the end of the
said pin and to support the cylinder of detonating material surrounding the friction
pin; Dis, the mass of detonating material surrounding the friction pin; and E, is
the space to be occupied by the meal powder, or composition, the end of which
composition may be covered with hard wax, or sealed with thin paper and shellac
varnish in the usual manner. Figure 4 is a side elevation which represents a
modification of the primer and friction pin which may be used in guns of the

page_text: French or other systems of breechclosing; figures 5 and 5° are a longitudinal
section and an end view respectively of a carrier for the reception of the primer
the said carrier being adapted to be screwed into the gun.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said
invention and in what manner the same is to be performed I declare that what
I claim is
The construction of friction primers having a portion of the friction pin enlarged
so that it cannot be withdrawn through the vent shutter until the said vent shutter
is perfectly closed and with another enlargement on the said pin adapted to close
the rear end of the primer case gastight on the primer being fired.
Dated this 4th dow of October 1884