IMPROVEMENTS IN THE CON- STRUCTION OF GUN CARRIAGES
Year: 1865

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to George Wightwick Rendel, of Newcastle-upon-
Tyne, Civil Engineer, for the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN THE CON-
STRUCTION OF GUN CARRIAGES."
Sealed the 27th March. 1866, and dated the 6th October 1865....
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said George Wightwick Rendel,
at the Office of the Commissiouers, of Patents, with his Petition, on the
6th October 1865.
,
I, GEORGE WIGHTWICK RENDEL, of Newcastle-upon-Tyne, Civil Engineer,
do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN THE
CONSTRUCTION OF GUN CARRIAGES," to be as follows:-
The improvements are specially applicable to gun carriages mounted on
slides, and to carriages with directing bars. The improvements have
reference to the apparatus employed on the carriage and slide for checking
the recoil of the gun when fired, and usually called the compressor.
The improvements have for their object to render that apparatus self-acting,
that is to say, to cause it to come into action when the gun recoils, by the
movement, itself of the gun and carriage in recoil independently of any action
on the: part of the gunners, while at the same time it may be worked by
hand. Thus, whether the apparatus be thrown into action by hand or left
to itself it comes equally into operation to arrest the recoil of the gun, and
the object of the improvements in this apparatus is further to make it remain

page_text: in action when once thrown on, until it is released by the gunner, so that to
the extent of its power it holds the gun in any position on the slide or direct-
ing bar securely so long as desired, as for instance during loading. In this
respect the improvements are specially applicable to the carriages of naval
guns, because they are fired on a moving platform, and it is necessary to hold
the gun to prevent it shifting on the slide during loading. For these purposes
I use any form of compressor in which the pressure is applied by means of
a lever acting on a screw spindle or on an excentric, and I make the lever
with an end projecting beyond the centre of motion of the lever, and I fix
upon the slide or directing bar of the carriage a tappet or striking piece in
such a position that as the gun carriage moves along the slide the end of the
lever comes in contact with the tappet, and the tappet is in the nature of a
pall so that it opposes the motion of the lever end past it in the one direction,
viz., that of recoil, and thus obliges the lever to make a partial revolution to
pass clear of it, in doing which it turns the screw spindle or eccentric, and
thus tightens the compressor, but when the carriage moves in the other direc-
tion, viz., that of running the gun out, the tappet lifts or gives way, and
allows the lever end to pass freely when it comes in contact with it. The end
of the lever may be made like a pall, and the tappet be a fixed striking piece
if preferred. When it is desired to work the compressor by hand the lever is
used, and the tappet offers no impediment to its action, nor does its being
worked by hand offer any impediment to the action of the tappet. I make
the compressor with a separate screw for the purpose of adjustment, so as to
enable the action of the lever screw in tightening the compressor to be adjusted
to allow any desired amount of recoil.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, filed
by the said George Wightwick Rendel in the Great Seal Patent Office
on the 5th April 1866.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, GEORGE
WIGHTWICK RENDEL, of Newcastle-upon-Tyne, Civil Engineer, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the Sixth day of October, in the year of our Lord One
thousand eight hundred and sixty-five, in the twenty-ninth year of Her reign,
did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto me, the said
George Wightwick Rendel, Her special licence that I, the said George
Wightwick Rendel, my executors,. administrators, and assigns, or such

page_text: others as I, the said George Wightwick Rendel, 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 THE CONSTRUCTION OF GUN CARRIAGES," upon
the condition (amongst others) that I, the said George Wightwick Rendel,
my executors or administrators, by an instrument in writing under my,
or their, or one of their hands and seals, should particularly 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 George Wightwick Rendel, do hereby
declare the nature of the said Invention, and in what manner the same. is
to be performed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and by the
following statement thereof, that is to say:-
The improvements are especially applicable to gun carriages, mounted on
slides and to carriages with directing bars. The improvements have reference
to the apparatus employed on the carriage and slide for checking the recoil of
the
gun when fired, and usually called the compressor. The improvements
have for their object to render that apparatus self-acting, that is to say, to
cause it to come into action when the gun recoils by the movement itself of
the gun and carriage in recoil, independently of any action on the part of the
gunners, while at the same time it may be worked by hand. Thus, whether
the
apparatus be thrown into action by hand or left to itself, it comes equally
into operation to arrest the recoil of the gun; and the object of the improve
ments in this apparatus is further to make it remain in action when once
thrown on until it is released by the gunner, so that to the extent of its power
it holds the gun in any position on the slide or directing bar securely so. long
as desired, as for instance during loading. In this respect the improvements
are specially applicable to the carriages of naval, guns, because they are fired
on a moving platform, and it is necessary to hold the gun to prevent it shifting
on the slide during loading.
Having thus stated the nature of my said Invention, I will proceed more
fully to describe the manner of performing the same.
DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS.

page_text: consisting of a series of short blades a, a, on the carriage interspaced with the
plates b, b, which run the length of the fixed slide, and are attached to it.
The whole of the plates are, as hereafter described, pressed together to obtain
the required friction. Figures 1 and 2 show the two side elevations of a gun
carriage; Figure 3 is a cross section of the carriage and slide through the
compressor; and Figure 4 is a plan. The same letters of reference are used
in all the Figures of the Drawings to indicate the same parts. c is a lever
which acts on the screw spindle d, which by the rocking bar or lever e causes
the plates of the compressor to be pressed together; f is the lower end of
the lever c which projects beyond the centre of the spindle d, so as to come
in contact with a tappet or striking piece 9, which turns on a stud on the
slide. The tappet piece 9 is free to turn in the direction indicated by
dotted lines, but it is prevented from turning in the other direction by a stop h
fixed to the under part of the slide, so that the end f of the lever c. when the
carriage is moving back in the direction of recoil cannot pass without coming
against and riding over the tappet or striking piece g, by which the lever c is
caused to turn into the position shown by dotted lines in Figure 1, in doing
which the lever c carries the screw spindle d partly round, and thereby tightens
the compressor by the screw acting to move the screw nut at the upper end of the
lever e.
When, however, the end f of the lever o passes the tappet or striking
piece 9 in the other direction (when running out the carriage) the tappet or
striking piece g being free to turn in that direction allows the end of the lever c
to pass and the compressor is slackened by the lever c being moved by hand from
k to l. It will be evident that the tightening may also be done by hand by putting
the lever over by hand into the position shown by dotted lines in Figure 1. m is
a screw spindle for the purpose of adjusting the amount of compression, and
thus regulating the distance of recoil. The screw m acts on the rocking bar
or lever n; the lower end o of which is caused to advance or retreat so as to
alter the zero point from which the action of the screw spindle d takes effect
to pinch the compressor plates together. The screw spindle m is moved by a
lever P,
which may be retained at various points in an arc by a moveable pin g,
or by any other suitable contrivance. It is not essential that the spindle d
should act the screw on the bar or lever e, and by it on the compressor
plates, as such spindles may be otherwise arranged to accomplish the same
purpose, viz., that of pressing the plates together, as for example by an
eccentric or otherwise. Nor is it essential that the lever o should have a fixed
end acted on by the striking piece 9 as described, though that is the
arrangement preferred, as the spindle d may be acted on by any convenient
means. Neither is it essential that the. adjustment of the amount of action of

page_text: the compressor should be obtained by an independent screw and lever in the
manner described, as the requisite adjustment may (as will be evident to a
mechanic) be otherwise readily obtained.
From the above description it will be seen that the compressor apparatus
is rendered self-acting, whilst at the same time it is capable of being worked
by hand, so that in the event of the gunner omitting to act on the compressor
the same will come into action on the recoil of the gun.
Having now described the nature of my said Invention, and in what
manner the same is to be performed, I hereby declare that what I claim is the
combined arrangement herein described, by which the compressing apparatus
is rendered self-acting, whilst at the same time it can be worked by hand and
is capable of adjustment as explained.
In witness whereof, I, the said George Wightwick Rendel, have
hereunto set my hand and seal, this Twenty-ninth day of March, in
the year of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and sixty-six.
G. W. RENDEL.
L.B.)