Improvements in Quick Firing Ordnance.
Year: 1892

page_text: Date of Application, 13th Feb., 1892
Complete Specification Left, 14th Nov., 1892-Accepted, 11th Feb.; 1893
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Quick Firing Ordnance.
I, PETER JENSEN of 77 Chancery Lane London Chartered Patent Agent do
hereby declare the nature of this invention (a communication from abroad by
Harald Thronsen of Finspong, Sweden, Engineer) to be as follows:-
One object of this invention is to construct quick firing guns of a larger calibre
than heretofore possible with the existing socalled block or wedge systems of
breech, such block or wedge becoming too heavy for practical application if used
beyond the limit already reached. Morcover as regards the screw construction of .
breech plug as heretofore constructed especially for quick firing guns this
mechanism could not be handled so quickly and I might say carelessly as could be
wished, because of the number and complexity of the operations viz. the breech
plug has first to be unscrewed, then pulled out and then brought to one side;
and in loading care has to be taken to prevent injury to the screw thread and
other parts.
To overcome these various drawbacks and defects the present invention com-
prises a screw plug having the screw threads interrupted on two opposite sides,
one concave and the other convex, the breech being made with a corresponding
lateral curved slot, or all so arranged that as soon as the plug has been unscrewed
(say by about one fourth turn) it passes out through the lateral slot, or by an
oscillating motion without having to be brought back out of the gun, and all
by one motion of a lever. By making the screw thread in the breech deeper
or larger in diameter than the hole for loading they can be kept from being injured
by the cartridge case in loading and extracting. By means of a groove in the rear
face of the breech plug and a ridge or feather thereon the cocking piece is so
arranged that the hammer is held securely until the breech plug is in a firing
position. By an incline in the rear shank of the breech plug and a corresponding
cocking lug the breech is prevented from opening when the trigger has been pulled
before the shot has gone off without a separate grip by the gunner.
This system of mechanism can be applied to any size gun. When the gun
is mounted on recoil carriage the mechanism can be worked automatically,
the breech being opened and the cartridge ejected after the recoil and as the gun
returns to firing position. The fresh cartridge when inserted throws the extractor
claw forward, the breech plug is displaced from its vertical position and drops by
its own weight at the same time pushing the cartridge in. The breech plug can
then be locked by hand or by a spring connected to the hand lever and to the
carrier.
I will first describe the mechanism as it may suitably be constructed when
intended to be served by hand and afterwards the automatic arrangement.
The breech plug takes its principal bearing on its rear face which is made with
an incline, like a screw thread, and it has a screw thread on the sides for guiding;
and for gaining bearing surface I turn as many threads on the sides as the length
will allow. The circular form of the plug is interrupted on two opposite sides, one
concave and the other convex, the curves or part circles being struck from a
centre a little below and to the right of the breech. This centre I call the
fulcrum of the breech plug. The breech end of the gun is turned out and threaded
to receive the plug but the rearmost part of it is kept smaller to make a resisting
surface (for the plug), and the hole through this part is only large enough to allow
the cartridge to pass freely in and out, and not allowing the projectile, when
loading, to reach or touch the threads. From this hole is cut a curved slot out to

page_text: one side say to the right, the width of the slot being the same as the diameter of
the hole and so deep that it reaches the rear end of the chamber, allowing the
breech plug to pass through it. The curves of this slot are struck from the
aforesaid fulcrum of the breech plug. The breech plug has a neck extending
backwards, and by this it is held of the carrier which is fixed but allowed rotary
motion on a pin in the aforesaid fulcrum projecting from the rear of the gun. The
carrier has a slot in the boss which holds the breech plug and in this slot the
cocking piece is placed, besides, it serves also as locking notch for the hand lever.
The carrier is also provided with two lugs which determine the rotary motion of
the hand lever and the breech plug. The hand lever is fixed to the rearmost end
of the neck of the breech plug; a lug left in the hole of the hand lever boss
is fitted into a slot in the neck and a flanged end screw keeps it on its place: a slot
is provided for taking out the hammer without taking off the hand lever. On
the hand lever is fitted the locking lever which serves as trigger, after the locking
lug has entered the slot in the boss of the carrier into which it is forced by
a spring as soon as the breech plug is screwed home. The spring being flat acts on
the lever on both sides of the fulcrum pin of the locking lever; it both presses the
locking lug into the slot, for locking the breech plug, and keeps it away from
the cocking piece, until a further pull on the locking lever presses it against the
cocking piece, releasing the hammer and fires the shot. As the trigging is done by
the locking lug itself the gun cannot be fired without being locked.
Through the centre of the breech plug and its neck is drilled a hole of size and
shape so as to give room for the hammer and firing spring, and the neck is opened
on one side by a slot which at its foremost end is reduced in width, thus forming a
cocking thread on the same principle as in an ordinary bolt rifle. The hammer is
round pointed at the front end to serve as firing pin, it is fluted on the sides for air
passage, and has a cocking lug reaching through the slot in the breech plug neck
into the slot in the carrier in which slot the cocking piece is placed. A part of the
cocking lug is bevilled to suit the incline of the cocking thread. The hammer is
provided with a pin, screwed into the rear of it and projecting backwards through
the whole mechanism, ending in an eye or other convenient shape for cocking
by hand, and turning. A part of this pin (nearest the hammer) is round, but the
other part is square, and the hole in the end screw through which it passes is also
square, in this way it serves as spanner for unscrewing the end screw if hammer or
firing spring is to be changed or the hand lever to be taken off. Besides this
it serves as a safety lock on the hammer thus: the end screw has four notches
at the rear, on the flat sides of the square hole, corresponding with the four corners
(on the pin) which arises from the round shape of the pin passing over to square,
when the hammer is cocked those corners are as far back as the notches, and can
by one eighth of a turn of the pin enter them and the hammer is prevented
from running forward, if the gun is left loaded the gunner has only to do this grip
(turn the pinturn) to prevent the shot being fired by uninitiated people pulling
the trigger, which often with other guns has occasioned accidents. The bevil on
the cocking lug does not correspond with the cocking thread when the hammer is
as far forward as it can come, in this position the breech plug cannot be turned, as
the cocking lug reaches through the breech plug neck into the slot, before men-
tioned, in the carrier and will not allow the breech plug to turn round unless the
hammer simultaneously is pushed back. It is only when the shot goes off and the
pressure in the chamber pushes the cap, and thereby the firing pin or hammer back,
that the cocking lug and the cocking thread correspond and the breech can be
opened. In case the shot does not go off directly after the trigger has been pulled,
the gunner is prevented from, in excitement, opening the breech too quickly, which
would cause an accident if it were a hang-fire. When the breech is to be opened
after a missfire the gunner has to pull back the pin first, and then to turn the
hand lever.
On the front face the breech plug is provided with a semicircular hook shaped
ridge which grips on the rim of the cartridge case and loosens this from the chamber

page_text: when the plug is unscrewed, and it slips off the cartridge rim when the plug is
carried towards the side.
On the side nearest the chamber when the breech plug is brought aside, it is
bevilled off to give room for the cartridge case to be ejected, and also for pushing
in the cartridge when the breech plug is carried towards centre of the gun. At
the rear the breech plug has a groove and a ridge; this ridge is inclining with the
same pitch as the threads on the plug, but in reverse direction, so that some part
of it always is in line with the front face of the upper boss of carrier where the
cocking piece is placed. When the shot is fired the cocking piece has its tail end
in the groove and while the breech plug is turned for opening, and the hammer
thereby brought to cocking, nothing touches it, but as soon as the cocking thread
is run out by the cocking lug and this has entered the cocking step the inclining
end of the groove presses the tail of the cocking piece outwards, consequently the
notch (on the other side of the pivot) on to the cocking lug. By this motion the
tail end of the cocking piece has come in line with the inclined ridge, and during
the return motion, when the breech is to be locked, the ridge keeps the cocking
piece so to say screwed on to the hammer thus preventing it from slipping until the
plug is in its right place for firing.
On the concave interrupted side of the breech plug is an angular slot for working
the extractor which pivots in a bush in the breech of the gun (when the bush is
unscrewed as much as the length of the pivot the extractor can be taken out).
The extractor has a lug which enters into the angular slot when the breech plug is
brought to the side and when the lug reaches the angle of the slot the extractor is
put in motion and throws out the empty cartridge case. The lug may be made
strong enough to take the blow of the breech plug when this is brought to the
side, and prevent it from going farther out than necessary for opening the breech.
It will be understood that any of the parts of the mechanism can be taken out and
replaced without removing the breech plug.
Supposing the shot has been fired the action of the mechanism is as follows:-
The gunner grasps the hand lever thereby pressing in the locking lever and
releasing its lug from the slot in the carrier; he now turns the lever from left to
right, when the lever is turned about 70 or 90 degrees the breech plug is turned to
correspond with the curved slot in the breech of the gun, at the same time the
cocking thread has engaged with the cocking lug of the hammer and cocked this,
and the end of the groove in the rear of the breech plug, has pressed the notch
or step of the cocking piece on to the lug of the hammer, the cartridge case has
also been loosened from the chamber by the pitch of the screw. By this time the
side of the hand lever has reached a stop lug on the carrier, and the breech plug is
thereby prevented from turning farther round on its own centre, but with the con-
tinued motion of the hand lever the breech plug and the carrier will turn on its
fulcrum pin and the breech plug will slide into the curved slot. When the breech
plug has passed so far over to the side that the bevil on one of its screw threaded
sides allows the cartridge case to be ejected the slot in the concave side of the
breech plug acts on the lug of the extractor and the cartridge case is thrown out.
The mechanism is now in the position for loading.
The cartridge is then put through the breech of the gun as far as the extractor
will allow it, and the hand lever is turned over to the left; it will be seen that as
the breech plug is held on both sides by the curved lateral slot in the breech of
the gun, this (the breech plug) cannot turn round its own centre but must describe
a part of a circle with the fulcrum pin as centre, by this motion the cartridge is
pushed into the chamber by the bevil on one of the screwed sides of the breech
plug. When the centre line of the breech plug is in line with the centre line of
the gun the breech plug turns round and screws in towards the chamber until the
side of the hand lever reaches a stop lug on the carrier when the before mentioned
slot in the carrier boss is in front of the locking lug which then is pressed into the
slot by the spring, a further pull on the locking lever will then fire the slot,

page_text: If the gun is mounted on recoil carriage I make an arrangement for opening the
breech automatically in the manner stated in the introduction.
In this case the gun cau rest either in a cradle or in a recoil mantle and provided
with spring or springs to bring it forward after the recoil; in the latter case the
mantle is lengthened backwards, and if the gun is so small that it can be pointed
with the shoulder, the shoulder piece may be fitted on to it. This back continua-
tion of the mantle is on the inner side provided with three slots for working the
lever automatically, one of them runs parallel with the axis of the gun, another
has a screw-formed shape, and the third is curved laterally to the axis of the gun.
Through these slots the end of the lever runs during the recoil and the return of
the gun. As the lever always must be in the slot parallel with axis of gun when
the shot is fired it will be understood that the locking lever is not necessary and it
is only kept for releasing the cocking piece when this is acted upon by the trigger.
The position of the fulcrum pin is also in one form brought out a little more to the
right or so that when the breech is open the centre lines of the lever and the
carrier form one vertical line, but I do not bind myself to any certain position of
the fulcrum pin. In an alternative arrangement the breech plug is unscrewed and
brought in line with the curved slot in the gun breech during the motion of the
lever, the circular motion of the latter is limited by the lengthened fulcrum pin,
and then the breech plug is swung into the curved slot in the breech of the gun.
At the place where the screw formed slot and the laterally curved slot meet
there is a cover which can be opened for putting in or taking out the breech plug.
and at the other end of last named slot there is a movable lug acted upon by a
spring for locking the lever in the parallel slot. This lug has a knob for pushing
it back when the breech is to be opened by hand.
At the place where the parallel slot and the screw formed slot meet there is a
pawl or gate also provided with a spring which allows the lever to
pass backwards
during the recoil, but forces it to return through the screw formed slot.
If now the trigger is pulled and the shot goes off, the gun recoils and the lever
slides backwards in the parallel slot opens and passes the pawl or gate which there-
after falls back; when the recoil is run out and the gun returns to firing position,
the lever must follow the screw shaped slot whereby the breech will be opened and
the empty cartridge case thrown out. When now a new cartridge is thrown
into the breech the rim of the case will push the extractor claw forward and a lug
in the curved slot of the breech will displace the vertical position of the breech
plug so that the latter will fall down behind the chamber by its own weight, at the
same time pushing the cartridge in. The last turning of the breech plug, for
locking it, can then be done, either by hand, or by a volute spring connected with
one end to the lever and with the other to the carrier.
Dated this 13th day of February 1899
JENSEN & SON,
77, Chancery Lane, London, W.C., Patent Agents.
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Quick Firing Ordnance.
I, PETER JENSEN, of No. 77 Chancery Lane, London, Chartered Patent 4
Agent do hereby declare the nature of this invention (a communication from
abroad by Harald Thronsen, of Finspong, Sweden, Engineer) and in what manner
the same is to be performed to be particularly described and ascertained in and
by the following statement :-
One object of this invention is to construct quick-firing guns of a larger calibre 5
than heretofore possible with the existing so-called block- or wedge-systems of
breech, such block or wedge becoming too heavy for practical application if used
beyond the limit already reached. Moreover as regards the screw construction of

page_text: curved slot out to one side say to the right as particularly shewn in Figures 1
and 6 the width of the slot being the same as the diameter of the hole, and so
deep that it reaches the rear end of the chamber, allowing the breech plug to
pass through it. The curves of this slot are struck from the aforesaid fulcrum
of the breech plug at C. The breech plug has a neck a¹ extending backwards,
and by this it is held of the carrier b which can swing round the pin C in the
aforesaid fulcrum projecting from the rear of the gun. The carrier 6 has a
slot in the boss which holds the breech plug and in this slot the cocking
piece e is placed, besides it serves also as locking notch for the hand lever h.
The carrier 6 is also provided with two lugs 61 and 6 Figures 1 and 6 which
determine the swinging or part rotary motion of the hand lever h and the
breech plug u.
The hand lever h is fixed to the rearmost end of the neck a¹
of the breech plug in the manner shown in Figure 24; a lug h* being left in
the hole of the hand lever boss and forming a feather which fits into a corre-
sponding slot in the neck. The flanged end screw cap f keeps the hand lever h
in place; a slot is provided in the buss of the lever for taking out the
hammer c without taking off the hand lever. To the hand lever is pin-jointed
the locking lever i which serves as trigger after the locking lug ¹ has entered
the slot in the boss of the carrier 6 into which it is forced by a springs as
soon as the breech plug is screwed home. The flat springs acts on the lever i
on both sides of the fulcrum pin n of the locking lever: it both presses the
locking lug into the slot for locking the breech plug, and keeps it away from
the cocking piece e until a further pull on the locking lever i presses it against
the cocking piece, releasing the hammer c. and fires the shot. As this is done
by the locking lug itself the gun cannot be fired without being locked.
Through the centre of the breech plug a and its neck a' is drilled a hole of the
size and shape of the hammer c and the firing spring d and the neck a¹ is opened on
one side by a slot which at its foremost end is reduced in width thus forming a
cocking thread a' (see Figure 4) on the same principle as in an ordinary bolt rifle.
The hammer c is round, pointed at the front end to serve as firing pin, with lateral
fluting for air passage, and has a cocking lug e¹ reaching through the slot in the
breech plug neck a' into the slot in the carrier b in which slot the cocking piece e is
placed, see Figures 2, 4, 10 and 16. A part of the cocking lug c' is bevelled to suit
the incline of the cocking thread a². The hammer is provided with a pin c¹
screwed into the rear of it and projecting backwards through the whole mechanism
ending in an eye or other convenient shape for cocking by hand and turning. A
part of this pin c² (nearest the hammer) is round, but the other part is square, and
the hole in the screw cap f through which it passes is also square, in this way it
serves as a spanner for unscrewing the screw cap f if the hammer or the firing
spring are to be changed or the hand lever to be taken off. Besides this it serves
as a safety lock on the hammer thus: the screw cap ƒ Figures 2 and 4 has four
notches at the rear, on the flat sides of the square hole, corresponding with the
four corners (on the pin c³) which arises from the round shape of the pin passing
over to square; when the hammer is cocked those corners are as far back as the
notches and can by of a turn of the pin center them and the hammer is
prevented from running forward, if the gun is left loaded; the gunner has only to
turn the pin one eighth turn to prevent the shot being fired by uninitiated
people pulling the trigger which often with other guns has occasioned accidents.
The bevil on the cocking lug c¹ does not correspond with the cocking thread a³
when the hammer is as far forward as it can come; in this position the breech
plug a cannot be turned as the cocking lug (see Figure 2) reaches through the
breech plug neck a¹ into the slot before mentioned in the carrier band will not
allow the breech plug to turn round unless the hammer simultaneously is pushed
back. It is only when the shot goes off and the pressure in the chamber pushes
the cap and thereby the firing pin or hammer back that the cocking lug e¹ and the
cocking thread a correspond and the breech can be opened. In case the shot does
not go off directly after the trigger has been pulled, the gunner is prevented from,

page_text: in excitment, opening the breech too quickly which would cause an accident if it
were a hang fire. When the breech is to be opened after a misfire the gunner has
to pull back the pin c first and then to turn the hand lever h.
On the front face the breech plug is provided with a semicircular hook shaped-
ridge a³ (Figures 2, 3, 4, 5, 7, 8, 9 and 10) which grips on the rim of the cartridge
case and loosens this from the chamber when the plug is unscrewed and the open
part of it (see Figure 9) is so placed that it slips off the cartridge rim when the
plug is carried towards the side. On the side nearest the chamber when the breech
plug is brought aside it is bevelled off as shown at a*, Figure 9, to give room for
the cartridge case to be ejected and also for pushing in the cartridge when the
breech plug is carried towards centre of the gun. At the rear the breech plug has
a groove a³ and a ridge as (see Figures 2, 11 and 114), this ridge is inclining with
the same pitch as the threads on the plug but in reverse direction so that some part
of it always is in line with the front face of the upper boss of carrier where the
cocking piece e is placed. When the shot is fired the cocking piece has the position
shown in Figure 2. The tail end of it is in the groove as and while the breech
plug is turned for opening and the hammer thereby brought to cocking, nothing
touches it but as soon as the cocking thread a* (sec Figures 8 and 11) has been
passed through by the cocking lug c¹ and this latter has entered the cocking step a
the inclining end of the groove a presses the tail of the cocking piece e outwards
and consequently brings its notch ex on the other side of its pivot against the
cocking lug c. By this motion the tail end of the cocking piece e has come in line
with the inclined ridge a' and during the return motion when the breech is to be
locked the ridge a keeps the cocking piece, so to say, screwed on to the hammer
thus preventing it from slipping until the plug is in its right place for firing.
On the concave side of the breech plug is an angular slot a³, Figures 3, 5, 6
and 7, for working the extractor g which pivots in a bush that is screwed into
the breech of the gun (when the bush is unscrewed as much as the length of the
pivot the extractor can be taken out). The extractor has a lug g' which enters
into the angular slot a when the breech plug is brought to the side, and when the
lug g' reaches the angle of the slot the extractor is put in motion and throws out
the empty cartridge case (see Figure 7). The lug gl may be made strong enough
to act as a stop for the breech plug when this latter is brought out to the side and
thus prevent it from going farther out than necessary for opening the breech. It
will be understood from the drawings and Specification that any of the parts of the
mechanism can be taken out and replaced without removing the breech plug.
Supposing the shot has been fired and the mechanism is in the position shown
on Sheet 1, the action of the mechanism is as follows. The gunner grasps the
hand lever h thereby pressing in the locking lever i and releasing its lug ¹ from
the slot in the carrier b. He now turns the lever from left to right that is to say
from A to B, Figure 1, whereby the breech plug is turned partly round and brought
opposite the curved lateral slot in the breech of the gun at the same time the
cocking thread a³, Figures 4 and 8, has engaged with the cocking lug c of the
hammer and cocked this, and the end of the groove a' in the rear of the breech
plug has pressed the notch ex of the cocking piece e on to the lug of the hammer;
the cartridge case has also been loosened from the chamber by the pitch of the
screw-thread of the breech plug and by means of the ridge a³. By this time the
side of the hand lever has reached a stop lug 2 on the carrier and the breech plug
is thereby prevented from turning further round on its own centre but with the
continued motion of the hand lever the breech plug and the carrier will turn on
their fulcrum pin C and the breech plug will slide into the curved slot. When
the breech plug has passed so far over to the side that the bevel at on one of its
screw threaded sides allows the cartridge case to be ejected the slot as in the
concave side of the breech plug acts on the lug g of the extractor and the cartridge
case is thrown out. The mechanism has now the position shown in Figures 6 and 7,
Sheet II, which is the position for loading.
The cartridge is then put through the breech of the gun as far as the extractor

page_text: will allow it and the hand lever is turned over to the left. It will be seen that as
the breech plug a is held on both sides by the curved slot in the breech of the gun
it cannot turn round its centre but must describe a part of a circle with C as centre
and by this motion the cartridge is pushed into the chamber by the bevel at on one
of the screwed sides of the breech plug. When the centre line of the breech plug
is in line with the centre line of the gun the breech plug turns round and screws in
towards the chamber until the side of the hand lever reaches a stop lug 6¹ on the
carrier. The before mentioned slot in the carrier boss is then in front of the
locking lug which latter is then pressed into the slot by the spring s. A further
pull on and let go of the locking lever i will then fire the shot.
If the gun is mounted on recoil carriage I make an arrangement for opening the
breech automatically as shown on Sheet III.
Figure 12 is a part sectional end view showing the breech closed.
Figure 13 is an end view showing the breech open.
Figure 14 is a side view showing the action slots partly in section.
Figure 15 is the plan also showing the action slots partly in section.
Figure 16 is a plan section showing the cocking and firing arrangement to a
somewhat larger scale.
Figure 17 is an alternative for the position of the centre C.and the motion of
the breech plug.
All the parts corresponding with those in Sheets I and II are marked with the
same letters.
In this case the gun can rest either in a cradle or in a recoil mantle and provided
with spring or springs to bring it forward after the recoil; this mantle t (as shown
in Sheet III) is continued backwards as shewn at t* and if the gun is so small that
it can be pointed with the shoulder the shoulder piece may be fixed on to it.
This back continuation t* of the mantle is on the inner side provided with three
slots for working the lever automatically; one of them t¹ runs parallel with the
axis of the gun, another 2 has a screw-formed shape, and the third slot t³ is curved
laterally to the axis of the gun. Through these slots the end of the lever h runs
during the recoil and the return of the gun. As the lever always must be in the
slot parallel with axis of gun when the slot is fired it will be understood that the
locking lever is not necessary and it is only kept for releasing the cocking piece e
when this is acted upon by the trigger u. The position of the fulcrum pin C is also
brought out a little more to the right or so that when the breech is open the centre
lines of the lever and the carrier 6 form one vertical line (see Figure 13) but I
do not bind myself to any certain position of the fulcrum pin. Figure 17 shows an
alternative arrangement where the breech plug is unscrewed and brought in line
with the curved slot in the gun breech during the motion of the lever h, the circular
motion of the latter is limited by the rear prolongation of the fulcrum pin C
coming in contact with the part of the lever h and then the breech plug is swung
into the curved slot in the breech of the gun.
At the place where the screw-formed slot t and the laterally curved slot t* meet,
there is a cover which can be opened for putting in or taking out the breech
plug, and at the other end of slot t there is a movable lug w, Figure 14, acted
upon by a spring w' for locking the lever in the parallel slot t'. This lug has a
knob y for pushing it back when the breech is to be opened by hand.
At the place where the parallel slot t' and the screw formed slot t' meet, there
is a pawl or gate provided with a spring which allows the lever h to pass
backwards during the recoil but forces it to return through the screw-formed
slot. When the gun is loaded the position of the mechanism will be as shown in
Figures 12, 14 and 16.
If now the trigger u Figures 14 and 16 is pulled and the shot goes off, the gun
recoils and the lever / slides backwards in the parallel slot t¹ opens and passes the
pawl or gate which thereupon falls back; when the recoil is run out and the gun
returns to firing position the lever must follow the screw-shaped slot t' whereby
the breech will be opened and the empty cartridge case thrown out.
The

page_text: mechanism has then the position shown in Figure 13. When now a new cartridge
is thrown into the breech the rim of the case will push the extractor claw forward
and a lug or tumbler g in the curved slot of the breech will displace the vertical
position of the breech plug so that the latter will fall down behind the chamber
by its own weight, at the same time pushing the cartridge in. The last turning
of the breech plug for locking it, can then be done, either by hand or by a
volute spring connected at one end to the lever hand at the other to the
carrier b.
Figure 18 is an end view of a breech mechanism of a modified form suitable also
for larger size handworked quickfiring guns; Figure 19 is a section on line A B
and Figure 20 a section on line C D. Similar letters refer to parts corresponding
with the previous figures.
Figure 21 is an end view of a breech mechanism of a modified form suitable also
for larger size quick-firing guns, the action being similar to that described with
reference to Figures 12 to 17, that is to say, with automatically opening breech
after firing. Figure 22 is a section on line Ċ D.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said inven-
tion and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what I
claim is :
1. Constructing breech loading ordnance with a lateral curved slot at the rear
end of the gun in combination with a breech plug adapted to work therein, all so
arranged that the breech can be opened by one oscillating motion of the breech
plug without first bringing the latter back out of the gun, substantially as set
forth.
2. In combination with the lateral curved slot in the breech at the rear of the
gun and an internally screwed breech of a larger diameter than the chamber or bore
of the gun, a breech plug having the corresponding screw thread interrupted on
two opposite sides where it fits the said slot substantially as set forth.
3. An externally screwed breech plug having the screw thread interrupted ou
two opposite sides where it fits to work in a lateral curved slot in the breech and
at the rear of the gun, said plug having a neck or shank at its rear, in combination
with a carrier enclosing the said neck and capable of swinging round a fulcrum
from which the slot curves are struck, a hand lever mounted on the centre of plug
and carrier and provided with a locking or firing lever and stops on the carrier
for limiting the sweep of the hand lever and permitting the opening and
closing of the breech, that is to say, in the first case unscrewing the breech plug
and then by a continuation of the motion swinging it around the fulcrum into the
lateral slot and in the second case swinging it back and then by a continuation of
the motion screwing it into the breech substantially as set forth.
4. The groove a in and the ridge a on the rear face of the breech plug in com-
bination with the cocking piece e, in the carrier b, whereby the hammer is held
securely until the breech plug is in a firing position substantially as set forth.
5. The incline or cocking thread a² in the rear neck of the breech plug in com-
bination with the cocking lug c whereby the breech is prevented from opening
when the trigger has been pulled before the shot has gone off, without a separate
gripping action of the gunner substantially as set forth.
6. The construction of the firing pin
substantially as set forth.
acting as a safety stop on the hammer c
7. The construction of handworked quick firing ordnance as described with
reference to Figures 1 to 11 and 18 to 20.
8. The slots 2 t, Figures 12 to 17, in combination with the lug w and pawl a
for influencing the automatic motion of the breech mechanism substantially as set
forth.
9. The mode of using the weight of the breech plug for partly closing the
breech automatically when loading substantially as set forth.
R

page_text: 10. The construction of automatically opening quickfiring ordnance as described
with reference to Figures 12 to 17 and 21 and 22.
Dated this 14th day of November 1892.
JENSEN & SON,
77, Chancery Lane, London, W.C., Patent Agents.