Improvements in Toy Pistols and Game Apparatus connected therewith.
Year: 1897

page_text: Date of Application, 24th Apr., 1897
Complete Specification Left, 24th Jan., 1898-Accepted, 9th Apr., 1898
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Toy Pistols and Game Apparatus connected
therewith.
We, HARRY DORNING BAILEY, of Norbury, Grove Park Gardens, Chiswick, in
the County of Middlesex, Engineer, and HARRY BROGDEN BUDGETT, of 26, Great
St. Helens, in the City of London, Mining Engineer, do hereby declare the nature
of this invention to be as follows:
Our invention relates to toy pistols and game apparatus connected therewith,
and has for its object to provide an improved construction of apparatus for use in
the game of ninepins or skittles in which balls are projected against the pins or
skittles by means of a pistol.
Our invention is primarily intended to be used in connection with coin freed
mechanism which permits the pistol to be operated a predetermined number of
times when a coin has been inserted in the machine.
An important feature of our invention consists in the means whereby the pistol
is automatically reloaded after every shot. Another feature of our invention con-
sists in the means for automatically resetting the pins or skittles when the pistol
is cocked.
Our improved pistol comprises a drum capable of revolving on an axis parallel
with the pistol barrel in a manner somewhat similar to that of an ordinary revolver.
Said drum is provided with chambers from which the balls are expelled by the
hammer of the pistol when the trigger is pulled. The ball, after being projected
among the pins or skittles, rolls down into a shoot which returns it into an empty
compartment of the revolving drum aforementioned so that it can subsequently
be again projected through the pistol barrel. The mechanism we prefer to use
for revolving the drum at each operation of the pistol is constructed somewhat
as follows, that is to say:-
The hammer is loosely mounted upon an axle which is rotated when the hammer
is pulled back or cocked, the hammer being held in the cocked position by any
suitable trigger mechanism. The axle has secured to it a bevel wheel which is in
engagement with another bevel wheel secured on the drum so that when the axle
is rotated the drum also rotates, being so arranged that when the hammer is cocked
one of the chambers in the drum is brought into line with the pistol barrel; the
hammer being then released by means of the trigger turns freely on its axle and
projects the ball contained in the chamber of the drum through the pistol barrel.
We prefer to connect the pins or skittles by strings secured to their bases and pass-
ing through holes in the board to a plate, which plate is connected to the hammer
of the pistol. By this means when the hammer is pulled back and the pistol
cocked the pins or skittles are set upright on the board in a well known manner.
The pistol is mounted by means of a ball and socket joint relatively to the board
on which the pins or skittles are placed, and a suitable amount of movement
allowed so that proper aim can be taken. The shoot which conveys the spent balls
to the revolving drum may be secured either to the pistol or to the skittle board,
provision being made for movement of the same relatively to the board or to the

page_text: pistol. The revolving drum of the pistol may be constructed with any suitable
number of chambers."
We may provide any suitable description of coin freed mechanism connected
with the pistol. This mechanism is arranged to lock the hammer axle, thereby
preventing the hammer from being pulled back and the pistol cocked until a coin
has been inserted in the mechanism. The money box in which coins are received
after passing through the mechanism is preferably arranged in the pedestal or stand
of the apparatus. For this purpose we arrange that the delivery shoot shall pass
from the coin freed mechanism through the ball and socket joint by which the
pistol is attached to the stand or base.
It will be observed that in our improved apparatus the same balls are used again
and again, and these balls being entirely enclosed within the machine their removal
by the operator is prevented.
The use of our improved toy pistol is not restricted to skittle or ninepin apparatus,
as obviously it may be used with any desired description of target.
W. P. THOMPSON & Co.,
Patent Agents for the Applicants, 322, High Holborn, London, W.C.
Improvements in Toy Pistols and Game Apparatus connected
therewith.
We, HARRY DORNING BAILEY, of Norbury, Grove Park Gardens, Chiswick, in
the County of Middlesex, Engineer, and HARRY BROGDEN BUDGETT, of 26, Great
St. Helens, in the City of London, Mining Engineer, do hereby declare the nature
of this invention and in what manner the same is to be performed to be particularly
described and ascertained in and by the following statement:-
-
Our invention relates to toy pistols and game apparatus connected therewith,
and has for its object to provide an improved construction of apparatus for use in
the game of nine-pins, or skittles, or the like, in which missiles are projected
against the pins, skittles, or other targets, by means of a pistol.
Our invention is primarily intended to be used in connection with coin-freed
mechanism which permits the pistol to be operated a pre-determined number of
times when a coin has been inserted in the machine, but the use of coin-freed
mechanism is not essential to the practice of our invention.
An important feature of our invention consists in the provision of means whereby
the pistol is automatically reloaded after every shot. Another feature of our inven-
tion relates to the mounting of the pistol when coin-freed mechanism is provided
in connection therewith, this being so arranged that the coins can pass from the
mechanism after releasing same to a money box provided in the fixed support or
base of the apparatus. Our invention further comprises improved means for
restoring the pins or skittles to their upright position after some of them have
been overthrown.
In order that our invention may be clearly understood, we will proceed to
describe the same with reference to the accompanying drawings, which show a
skittle game apparatus in which the operation of the pistol is controlled by a coin-
freed mechanism.
Figure 1 is a side elevation partly sectional of a complete apparatus.
Figure 2 is a plan of the same.
Figure 3 is a sectional view of the pistol and adjoining parts.
Figure 4 is a horizontal section on the line 4-4 Figure 3.

page_text: thereon.
Figure 6 is a section on the line 6-6 Figure 4.
Figure 7 is a section on the line 7-7 Figure 4, with a vertical section of the
pistol pivot added.
Figure 8 is a side elevation showing the hammer and trigger when the former
is cocked.
Figure 9 is a side elevation and Figure 10 a plan of the scoop or shoot through
which the spent balls are conveyed to the pistol in order to reload, the same.
Figure 11 is a side elevation partly sectional of one of the skittles.
Figures 3 to 11 are drawn to an enlarged scale and like letters of reference
denote the same parts throughout the drawing.
A is the pistol barrel, B the handle, C the trigger, D the hammer, E the coin
shoot, F the money box, G the skittle board, H the skittles, and I the scoop or
shoot for conveying the spent balls back to the pistol. The skittle board Ĝ is
mounted upon the top plate J of a casing J¹ secured to the money box F, the whole
being supported upon any suitable stand such as the pillar K indicated in Figure 1.
The plate J is inclined and is provided with a curved fence Je and at its lower end
has an orifice J3 leading to the scoop I.
A cage J shown only in Figure 1 encloses the skittles and pistol barrel so as to
prevent the balls escaping from the apparatus.
Referring now to Figures 3 to 10 of the drawings, the main frame work of the
pistol of which the barrel A the handle B and the scoop I form part or to which
they are connected, consists of a casing L a part L³ of which encloses the coin freed
mechanism. Said casing or frame work has a downwardly projecting tubular
portion L' the bottom part of which is of a spherical shape as shown at L2 and is
received within a socket F¹ secured on the top of the money box. It will be seen
therefore that the pistol with the coin-freed mechanism and reloading scoop is
freely supported by means of the ball and socket joint L2 F¹. The movement of
said pistol is however restricted by means of a pin L4 screwed into the ball L² which
pin projects through an orifice F2 of suitable size provided in the socket F¹. Other
restraining means may be employed if desired. A suitable amount of play is
allowed between the scoop I and the fixed parts J J¹ of the apparatus as will be seen
from the inspection of Figure 3 in order to permit of the pistol being rocked in
a vertical plane to the extent allowed by the restraining means.
The hammer D is loosely mounted upon a spindle D' supported in bearings in
the casing the movement of said hammer being restricted by a spring De coiled
round the spindle one end of said spring being secured to the hammer and the
other end thereof being secured to the casing. Secured to said spindle is a wheel M
provided with a slot M¹ in its periphery and a four-armed star wheel N having
anti-friction rollers N¹ supported in the ends of its arms.
These two wheels form a portion of the coin-freed mechanism proper. On the
other side of the hammer a ratchet wheel D² is firmly mounted on the spindle
which ratchet wheel co-operates with a pawl D³ pivoted at D' to the hammer and
controlled by means of a spring D5 also secured to the hammer. O is a bevel wheel
secured to the spindle D' outside the ratchet wheel D².
Secured to the casing L in the same plane with the spindle D¹ and midway
between the barrel A and the scoop I is a pivot P upon which a cylinder P¹ can
revolve and secured to said cylinder is a bevel wheel P2 which engages with the
bevel wheel O. The cylinder P1 is provided with a suitable number of chambers P³
substantially cylindrical the front ends of which are the same diameter as the bore
of the barrel A and the scoop I, opposite which each of said chambers comes in
succession as the cylinder P rotates. The thickness of said cylinder is a little
greater than the bore of the barrel, so that the chambers thereof will each contain
a single ball of the size intended to be projected by the pistol. The rear openings
of the chambers are covered by a plate L³ secured to the casing L and by portions
of the casing itself, an orifice Le being provided at the top opposite the end of the

page_text: barrel, through which the front of the hammer passes when the pistol is discharged.
The front of the hammer is preferably provided with a hardened plug as shewn to
take the wear.
In order to prevent the balls rolling out of the upper chamber
prior to the discharge of the pistol when the barrel A is depressed, said chambers
are made slightly conical the large end of the cone being at the rear so that when
the barrel is depressed to the utmost extent permitted by the device for restraining
the movement of the pistol, the floor of the uppermost chamber P³ will be approxi-
mately horizontal and the ball therein will remain in proper position against the
orifice L to be struck by the forward end of the hammer D.
The trigger C the tail of which projects through a slot B' in the handle is pivoted
at C to the casing and can engage with a notch D' in the hammer D) when the
latter is pulled against the force of the spring Do. This will be clearly understood
from Figure 8 which shows the hammer in its cocked position. Figure 8 also shows
the trigger spring C, which holds the trigger in the notch of the hammer.
The coin-freed mechanism is most clearly shown in Figures 4, 6 and 7 in
which M N are bars sliding in bearings in plates L7 La secured to the casing.
The front end of the bar M is adapted to engage in a slot M¹ of the wheel M and
the front end of the bar N³ is provided with a plate N³ with which the rollers N¹
of the star wheel N engage when the spindle D₁ is rotated. The sliding bars M²
and N are continuously pressed forward by means of the springs M N held
between collars on their respective bars and the plate L8 as shown. The coin
shoot E is continued inside the casing by means of two plates E¹ El located between
the plates L7 L8, said plates being at a distance apart a little greater than the
thickness of coin the insertion of which is required to govern the operation of the
mechanism. The plate N3 is turned at right angles and projects rearwardly through
an orifice L⁹ in the plate L' between the plates El forming the sides of the coin
shoot, the rear face N5 of said plate N³, being flat. Secured to the rear end of
the sliding bar M2 is a similar plate M³ which projects through an orifice L10 in the
plate L8 between the sides E¹ of the coin shoot opposite the face N of the plate N³
The front face Me is made concave to fit the periphery of the coin, the length of
the plate being such that the greatest distance between the face M6 thereof and the
face N5 when the star wheel N and the wheel M are in the position shewn in
Figures 6 and 7, is equal to the diameter of the coin. Below the bars M² N2 the
coin shoot is continued by the tube E3 which ultimately delivers the coin through
the orifice E3 into the vertical tube L. Said vertical tube and the ball L2 are of
such a diameter internally as will permit the coin to fall freely through the same
into the money box F.
Our improved skittle apparatus intended for use with the pistol above described
is shewn in Figures 1, 3, and 11. To each skittle is pivotally attached in a
recess in the base thereof a rod H2 which can slide easily through an orifice H³
in the plate J and the skittle board G. The ends of the rods H2 pass loosely through
orifices in a plate H and are provided with lock-nuts H5 on the under side thereof.
The plate H is connected by a link or links H* to a lever He pivotally supported
at H7 from the ton plate J of the casing J¹ the weight of said lever and plate H
being sustained by the spring H8. Secured to the front end of the lever He is a
flexible connecting cord H2 which passes round guide pulleys J and is connected
to a bar Q enclosed at the bottom of the money box F. Said bar Q passes through
an orifice F³ and terminates in a handle Q₁ being provided with a spring Q³ to
return it to its normal position when pulled.
Having now described the construction of our improved apparatus we will now
proceed to shew how the same is operated. The number of teeth in the ratchet
wheel D is the same as the number of chambers P³ in the cylinder P¹ and the
number of teeth in the bevel wheel O and P2 being equal, it follows that every
time the pawl D³ on the hammer D enters a fresh tooth on the ratchet, a fresh
chamber will be brought opposite the rear orifice of the barrel A of the pistol. If
when no coin has been inserted in the mechanism the hammer D be pulled back
in the direction of the arrow (Figure 3) the pawl D³, engaging with the ratchet

page_text: wheel I rotates the spindle D¹. Since however the front end of the bar M³ is in
engagement with the notch M¹ of the wheel M, the spindle is prevented from
rotating except to a very small extent and the hammer cannot be cocked. When
however a coin of proper size is inserted in the shoot E it is caught and retained
between the faces M and No of the plates M5 and N3, attached to the bars M2 N2 as
shewn in Figures 6 and 7, the coin being denoted by the letter R in dot and dash
lines. Under these circumstances the rotary movement of the spindle D¹ permitted
by the slot M' when the hammer is pulled back will through the agency of the
star wheel N, engaging with the plate N³, press said plate backwards against the
force of the spring N and the backward movement will be transmitted through
the coin R and the plate M³ to the bar M2 the front end of which will thereby be
withdrawn from engagement with the notch M¹; a further rotation of the spindle D¹
is thereby permitted until the hammer D reaches the position shewn in Figure 8
and the trigger C engages with the notch D7 the hammer being then fully cocked.
The rotation of the spindle D¹ rotates the cylinder P¹ by means of the bevel
wheels O and P2 on its pivot P and brings a fresh chamber containing a ball into
position at the rear of the barrel A. If the trigger is now pulled the hammer
is released and moves round the spindle under the force of the spring De to its
normal position and the front of said hammer strikes the ball in the uppermost
chamber of the cylinder P and projects the same through the barrel A; the spent
ball falling off the skittle board G on to the sloping plate J rolls to the bottom
of the slope being guided if necessary by the fence J2 and finally drops through
the orifice J into the scoop I through which it enters the bottom chamber of the
cylinder P which will be opposite the rear orifice of the scoop I. The handle Q
is now pulled which through the flexible connection H9 on the lever He pulls down
the plate H and thereby restores any skittles which may have been knocked over
by the ball to their upright position. It will be seen that the rod H2 slides longi-
tudinally through the orifice H³ and consequently when a skittle has been knocked
over and said rod is pulled, there can be no hitch or jamming which would prevent
the skittles from being set upright.
The release of the coin from the mechanism is accomplished while the hammer
is being cocked for the first time in the manner following, that is to say, as long
as the plate N³ is being moved to the rear by a star wheel N the coin R is gripped
between the rear face №5 of said plate and the front face M6 of the plate M³, when
however the operative arm of the star wheel N reaches a horizontal position the
plate No, will have attained its extreme rear-most position and the hammer of the
pistol will also be at half-cock.
As the spindle D¹ continues to rotate while the hammer is being brought to the
position of full-cock the plate N³, begins to move forward under the influence of
a spring N and the plate M follows it under the influence of the spring M4, when
the bar M² has moved forward so far that its front end engages with the periphery
of the wheel M the forward movement of the plate M5 will of course be arrested,
the plate N³, continues however to move forward until .when the hammer is fully
cocked the star wheel N takes a position similar to its initial position as shewn
in Figure 7, consequently the distance between the faces N5 and M6 will be
increased and the coin will fall from between them into the shoot E².
The release of the coin does not immediately prevent the hammer from being
re-cocked since the bar M2 is not in engagement with the notch M¹ of the wheel M
consequently no impediment is offered to the rotation of the spindle D' during the
operation of cocking until the said spindle has made one complete turn, after which
the front end of the bar M2 will again engage with the notch M.
The number of times which the pistol can be discharged during one complete
turn of the hammer spindle D¹ will depend upon the throw of the hammer. In
the drawing the hammer requires to be moved through an arc of about 90° in
order to cock it, the ratchet wheel 12 has four teeth and the cylinder P¹ is provided
with four chambers consequently the wheel M returns to its initial position when
the hammer has been cocked and released four times, and for one coin inserted

page_text: in the mechanism four shots can be obtained. It is obvious that by making two
notches in the periphery of the wheel M only two shots, and by making four notches
in said periphery only one shot would be obtained for every coin inserted in the
mechanism also by increasing the number of chambers in the cylinder P¹ con-
currently with the number of teeth on the ratchet wheel D2 and the number of arms
on the star wheel N and limiting the throw of the hammer a greater number of
discharges could be obtained for one revolution of the hammer spindle D¹. Our
invention is of course not restricted in this particular.
The range of movement of the pistol owing to the ball and socket joint by which
it is supported is very considerable, this does not however interfere with the
reloading owing to the shape of the scoop or ball shoot I clearly shewn in Figure 10,
which will receive a ball from the table J through the orifice J³, in any position
which the pistol can assume.
In order to ensure the satisfactory reloading of the pistol we sometimes with a
four chambered pistol as shewn in the drawings use four balls some one or other
of which will always be in the tubular portion of the scoop I so that as soon as
the cylinder P rotates bringing an empty chamber opposite the end of the scoop
a ball will be ready to enter said chamber. It is obvious that in our improved
apparatus the same balls are used again and again and these balls being entirely
enclosed within the machine their removal by the operator is prevented.
We have shewn our improved pistol combined with a number of skittles against
which the ball is projected when the pistol is discharged. We may however employ
the same with any suitable form of target which would be located at the front end
of the plate J the re-setting apparatus being dispensed with.
Our invention is not limited to the case wherein the operation of the pistol is
controlled by a coin freed mechanism, an automatically reloading pistol which can
be discharged any number of times in succession at a target or skittles forming
an interesting toy for private use. Furthermore other descriptions of coin freed
mechanism may be employed in conduction with our improved self-loading pistol.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of our said
invention and in what manner the same is to be performed, we declare that what
we claim is: -
1. A game apparatus provided with a pistol for projecting missiles at a target,
skittles or the like, and so constructed that the spent missiles are automatically
returned into the pistol so as to reload the same.
2. A toy pistol the operation of which is controlled by a coin-freed mechanism
and which is connected to a support by a hollow universal joint through which joint
the coin passes from the mechanism to the money box.
3. A toy revolver pistol having coin-freed mechanism connected with the hammer
which permits the same to be cocked a predetermined number of times when a coin
has been inserted in the mechanism.
4. In a skittle game apparatus, means for restoring the skittles to their upright
position, constructed and operating as described with reference to Figures 1, 3,
and 11, of the accompanying drawings.
5. In a game apparatus of the kind described, an automatically reloading pistol
either with or without coin-freed mechanism attached and constructed and operat-
ing as described with reference to the accompanying drawings.
1
Barcu v
of January 1000.
W. P. THOMPSON & Co.,
Of London, Liverpool, Manchester and Birmingham,
Patent Agents for the Applicant.