IMPROVEMENTS IN ORDNANCE
Year: 1881

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to William Palliser, of No. 21, Earl's Court Square, South
Kensington, in the County of Middlesex, Knight, for an Invention of
"IMPROVEMENTS IN ORDNANCE."
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said William Palliser at the Office,
of the Commissioners of Patents on the 2nd June 1881.
WILLIAM PALLISER, of No. 21, Earl's Court Square, South Kensington, in tho
County of Middlesex, Knight. "IMPROVEMENTS IN ORDNANCE."
My Invention relates to the construction of guns, which may be either breech
loaders or muzzle loaders, as I will describe. I cast in steel a casing which
constitutes the external material of the gun, making this casing the whole length
of the gun. The trunnions may be cast on a separate hoop fixed on the casing,
but I prefer to cast them in one with the casing, and in this case, in order to lessen
the drag of these in cooling, I prefer to hollow the trunnions from the outside.
I thoroughly anneal this casting in order to equalise the strains resulting from the
cooling, and I turn it on the outside and bore it out internally nearly to the dimen-
sions suited to receive the lining tubes. As this turning and boring by the removal
of metal is apt to disturb the equilibrium of the internal strains I again anneal the
casing so as to equalise these strains, and I then by a light cut finish the boring to
the required dimensions. I then line the guu with soft iron coiled lining tubes
arranged as follows:-The inner lining tube extends the whole length of the bore,
but it is thickened externally near the middle of its length, the thickened part
terminating in front in a sloping shoulder which, the tube being inserted from the
breech, fits against a corresponding shoulder in the casing. The thickened part of
the internal tubo terininates behind at or near the lino of the trunnions in a
sloping shoulder, against which butts the end of the outer lining tube, which is
screwed in from the breech, and extends nearly as far as the trunnions. In intro-
ducing these tubes into the casing I depart from the usual method of making them
a tight fit by shrinkage of the metal over them. On the contrary, I make them
an easy fit to the casing and to one another, so that when tho gun is brought into

page_text: use theso tubes, being of comparatively yielding material, are to a certain extent
expanded by the pressure of the powder gas, and are thus caused to fit closely.
When the gun is used as a breech loader it is provided with a short breech lining
Lube having a concave mouth. This tube is screwed in from the breech, so that its
concave month butts against the end of the outer lining tube, which is made of
convex form, so as nearly to correspond with the concavity above mentioned, but
to take the bearing mostly at the side towards the axis of the bore. Iuto this
short lining tube is screwed an inner lining tube having an internal thread to
receive the removeable breech plug. When the gun is used as a muzzle loader, a
similar short breech tube is screwed in, and it receives a fixed breech plug screwed
permanently into it, this plug having in front of it another plug which is screwed
into the inner lining tube, and is made of cupped form so as to act as a gas check.
In order to steady and secure the inner lining tube at the muzzle I introduce from
the muzzle end of the gun a screwed ring, which is screwed into an annular recess,
and butts against a sloping shoulder on the inner lining tube.

page_text: SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent filed
by the said William Palliser in the Great Seal Patent Office on the
1st December 1881.
WILLIAM PALLISER, of No. 21, Earl's Court Square, South Kensington, in the
County of Middlesex, Knight. "IMPROVEMENTS IN ORDNANCE."
My Invention relates to the construction of guns, which may be either breech-
loaders or muzzle-loaders, as I will describe. I cast in steel a casing which
constitutes the external material of the gun, making this casing the whole length
of the gun. The trunnions may be cast on a separate hoop fixed on the casing, but
I prefer to cast them in ono with the casing, and in this case, in order to lessen
the drag of these in cooling, I prefer to hollow the trunnions from the outside. I
thoroughly anneal this casting in order to equalise the strains resulting from the
cooling, and I turn it on the outside and bore it out internally nearly to the dimen-
sions suited to receive the lining tubes. As this turning and boring by the
removal of metal is apt to disturb the equilibrium of the internal strains, I again
anneal the casing so as to equalise these strains, and I then by a light cut finish
the boring to the required dimensions. I then line the gun with soft iron coiled
lining tubes arranged as follows:-The inner lining tube extends the whole length
of the bore, but it is thickened externally near the middle of its length, the
thickened part terminating in front in a sloping shoulder which, the tube being
inserted from the breech, fits against a corresponding shoulder in the casing. The
thickened part of the internal tube terminates behind at or near the line of the
trunnions in a sloping shoulder, against which butts the end of the outer lining
tube, which is screwed in from the breech, and extends nearly as far as the
trunnions. In introducing these tubes into the casing I depart from the usual
method of making them a tight fit by shrinkage of the metal over them. On the
contrary, I make them an easy fit to the casing and to one another, so that whon
the gun is brought into use these tubes, being of comparatively yielding material,
are to a certain extent expanded by the pressure of the powder gas, and are thus
caused to fit closely. When the gun is used as a breech loader it is provided with
a short breech lining tube having a concave mouth. This tube is screwed in from
the breech, so that its concave mouth butts against the end of the outer lining
tube, which is made of convex form so as nearly to correspond with the concavity
above mentioned, but to take the bearing mostly at the side towards the axis of
the bore. Into this short lining tube is screwed an inner lining tube having an
internal thread to receive the removeable breech plug. When the gun is used as a
muzzle loader a similar short breech tube is screwed in, and it receives a fixed
breech plug screwed permanently into it, this plug having in front of it another
plug which is screwed into the inner lining tube, and is made of cupped form so as
to act as a gas check. In order to steady and secure the inner lining tube at
the muzzle, I introduce from the muzzle end of the gun a screwed ring, which is
screwed into an annular recess, and butts against a sloping shoulder on the innor
lining tube.
Fig. 1 of the accompanying Drawings is a longitudinal section of a breech
loading gun, and Fig. 2 is a longitudinal section of a muzzle loading gun, according
to my Invention. C is the cast steel casing which, after being bored and turned,
annealed, and again bored with a light cut to the finished size, receives the inner
lining tube A, which is of soft iron coiled, and which butts by the sloping
shoulder a against a corresponding shoulder of the casing. The outer lining tube B,
which is also of soft iron coiled, or may be of steel, coiled as described in the Specifi
cation to my Patent, No. 3038 of 1862, is screwed in to butt with its sloping end b

page_text: against a sloping shoulder of the A tube. To steady and secure the A tube at the
muzzle I introduce the screwed ring R into an annular recess of the casing, screwing
it up to butt with its sloping end against a sloping shoulder of the A tube. When
the gun is to be used as a breech loader the breech is arranged as shewn in Fig. 1.
It is fitted with a short lining tube D, made with a concave mouth d, which butts
against the convex end of the B tube. Into the D tube is screwed an inner lining
tube E, which is screwed internally to receive tho screwed breech plug F, that is,
as hinged to the breech, in the well known manner. The gun when used as a
muzzle loader is arranged at the breech as shewn in Fig. 2. It has a short lining
tubo D, into which is screwed permanently the breech plug G butting against a
front plug H, which is screwed into the A tube, and has its front made of cup form,
presenting a lip to act as a gas check.
Having thus described the nature of my Invention, and in what manner the
same is to be perforined, I claim,—
In the construction of guns the combination of the cast steel external casing C
and the lining tubes A and B introduced into the casing without shrinking,
substantially as horein described.
In witness whereof, I, the said William Palliser, have hereunto set my hand
and scal, this Thirtieth day of November, in the year of our Lord One
thousand eight hundred and eighty one.