IMPROVEMENTS IN BREECH-LOADING FIRE-ARMS
Year: 1865

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to William Edward Newton, of the Office for Patents,
66, Chancery Lane, in the County of Middlesex, Civil Engineer, for the
Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN BREECH-LOADING FIRE-ARMS."-A com-
munication from abroad by Philo Remington, Samuel Remington, and
Eliphalet Remington, all of Ilion, in the State of New York, United
States of America.
Sealed the 14th March 1865, and dated the 18th January 1865.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said William Edward Newton
at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the
18th January 1865.
I, WILLIAM EDWARD NEWTON, of the Office for Patents, 66, Chancery Lane,
in the County of Middlesex, Civil Engineer, do hereby declare the nature of
the said Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN BREECH-LOADING FIRE-ARMS," to be
as follows:-
This Invention consists, first, in locking the hammer whilst the arm is
being loaded, or in other words in locking the hammer whilst the bore or rear
end of the barrel is exposed by the breech plate being thrown back for the
insertion of the cartridge. The locking is effected by means of a tooth on the
hammer being made to take into a notch made in the breech piece. By
constructing the parts in this manner no accidental touching of the trigger
whilst charging the gun could cause the hammer or breech plate to fly up
and injure the fingers of the user or prematurely explode the charge.
The Invention further consists in the use of an auxiliary locking mechanism
consisting of a pin, which, by means of a spring, is made to bear against the

page_text: breech piece. The lower end of this pin is placed just above the sear, which
cannot therefore act until the pin is allowed to rise into a notch in the breech
piece, which it cannot do until the breech piece is close up to the barrel.
The Invention further consists in interposing between the breech piece and
the hammer a tumbler or cam block which is actuated by the hammer, and
which shall interlock with the breech piece so as to support and brace it
against the recoil of the exploded charge in the gun.
The Invention consists, lastly, in using a sear guard in connection with the
trigger sear and the swinging breech piece so as to prevent the trigger from
being moved when the breech piece is thrown back for the purpose of inserting
the cartridge.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, filed
by the said William Edward Newton in the Great Seal Patent Office
on the 18th July 1865.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, WILLIAM
EDWARD NEWTON, of the Office for Patents, 66, Chancery Lane, in the County
of Middlesex, Civil Engineer, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the Eighteenth day of January, in the year of our
Lord One thousand eight hundred and sixty-five, in the twenty-eighth year of
Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto
me, the said William Edward Newton, Her special licence that I, the said
William Edward Newton, my executors, administrators, and assigns, or such
others as I, the said William Edward Newton, 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 BREECH-LOADING FIRE-ARMS," being a com-
munication from abroad, upon the condition (amongst others) that I, the
said William Edward Newton, my executors or administrators, by an instru-
ment 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..
•

page_text: NOW KNOW YE, that I, the said William Edward Newton, 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, reference being had to the Drawing hereunto annexed,.
and to the letters and figures marked thereon (that is to say):
The Invention for which I have obtained Letters Patent as aforesaid is
shewn in the accompanying Drawings, in which Fig. 1 is a longitudinal
section taken through a gun constructed. according to the Invention, and
showing the breech plate up against the bore of the gun, and the hammer
against or interlocked with the breech plate. Fig.-2 is a similar section
showing the hammer at "full cock," and the breech plate as swung back to
open the rear of the barrel, so as to charge the gun; both breech plate and
hammer are not only interlocked, but the trigger is actually locked, so that it
cannot be moved, or release its sear or dog from its notch in the hammer;
Fig. 3 is another section showing the hammer nearly at the "full cock," and
the breech plate nearly up against the bore of the gun, and showing an
auxiliary or safety locking mechanism, which, although the trigger may be
moved, will not allow the hammer to fly until the breech plate is moved up
still closer to, or practically against, the bore of the gun, and which latter
mechanism would come into action should the trigger locking device break or
fail to act from any cause. Figs. 4, 5, 6, 7, and 8 represent a modification
of the fire-arm in which, instead of having the breech plate and hammer
to lock and interlock immediately with each other, a tumbler is interposed.
to interlock with said breech plate, the tumbler being operated by the
hammer, or on the same pin or shaft with the hammer. The hammer is first
locked whilst the arm is being loaded, or in other words the hammer is locked
whilst the bore or rear end of the barrel is exposed by the breech plate being
thrown back for the insertion of the cartridge. By this arrangement no.
accidental touching of the trigger whilst charging the gun could cause the
hammer or breech plate to fly up and injure the fingers of the user, or
prematurely explode the charge.
The Invention further consists in the use of an auxiliary locking mechanism
which would come into action should the trigger locking device break or from
any other cause fail to act.
Another improvement consists in interposing between the breech piece and
the hammer a tumbler actuated by the hammer, and which shall interlock
with the breech piece, so as to support and brace it against the recoil of the
'exploded charge in the gun.
The last improvemont consists in using a sear guard in connection with the

page_text: trigger sear, and the swinging breech piece, so as to prevent the trigger from
being moved when the breech piece is thrown back for the purpose of
inserting the cartridge.
In the several Figures A is the stock of the fire-arm, and B the barrel,
which is bored through and through so as to admit of being charged at the
rear. C is the hammer pivotted at a; D is the swinging breech-piece hinged
or pivotted at b, and E is the trigger pivotted at c. The hammer and breech,
as shown at Figs. 1, 2, and 3, may be so arranged as to interlock with each
other, and the trigger and hammer may have the ordinary trigger and
hammer. connections with regard to each other. In the Drawings, however,
I have shewn another kind of mechanism, which will lock the hammer and
revent it from flying up until the breech plate is swung fully up against the
bore of the gun, or until the trigger is pulled, as in other arms, after it is
fully up, thus preventing any premature flying of the hammer or discharging
of the cartridge. until the proper moment. An arm e on the end of the spring
piece stands nearly vertically under the pivot of the breech piece D, so that
when the breech piece is swung back the portion g thereof will take against the
top of the arme, and press it and its connected portion f down with it until the
part frests against the heel h of the trigger, and completely locks the trigger,
so that it cannot be moved, and consequently its sear i cannot be drawn out of
the full cock notch 3 (Fig. 2), nor can any premature flying up of the hammer
occur so long as the breech piece is swung or drawn back, nor until it is up, or
nearly up to the bore of the barrel. In other words there is a positive locking
of the hammer against any movement, accidental or otherwise, so long as the
breech piece is swung back or removed from the barrel or bore of the gun.
This locking is an automatic movement contingent upon the moving of the
breech piece, and is not a separate mechanism requiring a separate mani-
pulation, which would render it almost impracticable as an army gun.
The locking of the hammer in case the arm e should break or be removed
can be effected in another way, viz., by means of the recess 1 in the breech
piece, and the projection 2 on the hammer; for suppose the arm to be
removed or to be broken off, as shown in Fig. 3, then the trigger. could be
moved, and its sear would release the hammer, but the hammer cannot fly up
until the breech piece is swung clear up, and this cannot be done without very
great force, for when the breech plate comes up as far as shown in Fig. 3,
where it still holds the hammer interlocked, its recess 1 takes or holds upon
the projection 2 on the hammer, and there stops. In order to draw the
hammer back, so as to release the breech piece and allow it to swing clear up
to the barrel, it is brought within the influence of the trigger, where it is

page_text: caught on the full-cock notch 3 and held. Thus under any and all circum-
stances there is no danger of a premature flying up of the hammer. And it is
only when the breech piece is up, and the hammer is on the full cock, that
the hammer can be let off for so long as the bore of the gun is open or the
breech piece moved back from it, so long will there be a positive locking of
the hammer against any accidental flying of the hammer by pulling the trigger
or otherwise. This is called "locking the hammer;" it may be called locking
the trigger, as the trigger controls and lets fly the hammer under varying
circumstances, and when the trigger is locked, and the hammer on the "full
cock" of course the hammer is locked too, as the trigger cannot be moved to
allow it to fly.
In Figs. 4, 5, and 6, a modification of the fire-arm is shewn. In
this instance a tumbler F works in connection with the breech piece D
instead of having the hammer to so work, as heretofore described. The
hammer in this case may be placed on the same shaft or pin a that the
tumble F is placed upon, so that it (the hammer) may serve as a lever to
work the tumbler by. In this case the tumbler F and breech piece D have
curved lines which match each other, so that the breech piece may be moved
independently of the tumbler, or the tumbler independently of the breech
piece, so that when the breech piece is up against the bore of the gun, and
the hammer is let fly to discharge the cartridge, the tumbler shall lock and
hold the breech piece against the force of the discharge and prevent it from
flying back as effectually as in the other case where the hammer performs
this duty. And though the placing of the hammer C and tumbler F both
upon the same pin or shaft a makes a compact and very neat arrangement, yet
if from any cause it may be found expedient or desirable to set the hammer
farther back than the position of the breech piece D it may be done, and the
hammer or its pin or shaft connected to the tumbler F by a link or other
mechanical connection that will admit of the hammer moving the tumbler
into and out of action with the breech piece as the case may be. In this
modification of the arm there is also shewn a sear guard k pivotted at o, and
controlled by a spring m, which at its forward and upper end is bent up so as
to be caught by the projection n on the breech plate when these two parts
come in contact with each other, and hold it against any movement. The
lower and rear portion r of this sear guard takes under the trigger sear i,
and thus prevents the trigger from being moved, and consequently from
allowing the hammer to fly; this is clearly shown in Fig. 5.
In the Drawings. Figs. 4, 5, and 6, the hammer is shewn as placed on the
left-hand side of the gun; it may as readily be placed on the right hand side,

page_text: and either of the hammers C¹ or C" be used, the former for striking a pin to
'explode the cartridge or a nipple to explode a cap, and thus the charge, and
the latter for passing through a slot in the breech piece to strike the cartridge
itself at its centre, or at its rim or flange whichever may be preferred. The
main spring G is attached by a links to the tumbler F, which is provided
with the usual half and whole cock notches 3, into which the sear i may take.
The sear i on the trigger E is kept in proper position for taking the notches 8
by means of the spring t. One of the advantages gained by adopting the
'tumbler as a locking mechanism instead of the hammer is, that a much closer
joint may be used between the frame and breech piece, and less opening for
anything to get into, as the hammer can then be set on the side of the gun
instead of swinging through an opening in rear of the breech piece.
Having now described the Invention that has been communicated to me,
as aforesaid, what I claim and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is,―
First, locking the hammer whilst the fire-arm is being loaded or the bore
of the gun exposed for the insertion of the cartridge so as to prevent any
accidental flying up of the hammer.
:
I also claim the use of the auxiliary locking mechanism, consisting substan-
tially of the recess 1 in the breech plate and the projection 2 on the hammer,
as and for the purpose set forth.
I also claim the combination of the hammer, tumbler, and swinging breech
piece operating together, as and for the purpose described.
I also claim, in combination with the tumbler, breech piece, and trigger
seari the sear guard k operating therewith, as and for the purpose substan-
tially as described and represented.
In witness whereof, I, the said William Edward Newton, have here-
unto set my hand and seal, this Seventeenth day of July, in the year
of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and sixty-five.
Witness,
J, W. MOFFATT,
: 66, Chancery Lane.
W. E. NEWTON. (L.S.)