IM- PROVEMENTS IN BREECH-LOADING SMALL-ARMS
Year: 1876

page_text: PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by Thomas Tipping Lawden and John
Thomas at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents on the 27th May 1876.
THOMAS TIPPING LAWDEN, of Birmingham, in the County of Warwick, Gun
Manufacturer, and JOHN THOMAS, of Birmingham, aforesaid, Gun Maker. "IM-
PROVEMENTS IN BREECH-LOADING SMALL-ARMS."
Our Invention has reference to those kinds of breech-loading small-arms called
drop-down guns, and to that class of drop-down guns in which internal or concealed
hammers are used; and our said Invention consists of the several arrangements or
combinations of parts herein-after described for cocking the internal or concealed
hammers of the said guns on withdrawing the sliding bolt to unfasten the barrels
for charging.
Our improvements are especially fitted for use in combination with sliding bolts
of the construction described and represented in the Specification of Letters Patent
granted to one of us, namely, the said John Thomas, on the 15th day of November
1871, No. 3091; but our improvements may be used with sliding bolts of other
constructions.
According to one of our improvements, we prolong the short upper arm of the
hand lever on the under side of the gun by which the sliding bolt is worked, the
said short arm passing completely through and projecting beyond the slot in the said
bolt. Upon the extreme projecting end of the said short arm of the hand lever we
joint a horizontal arm, by which last-named arm the hammers of the gun at the
back of the break-off are cocked. The said cocking arm projects from the short arm
of the hand lever towards the back of the break-off, and is situated immediately
opposite the noses of the said hammers when the latter are in their discharged
positions. On moving the thumb plate end of the hand lever towards the muzzle
end of the barrels for the purpose of withdrawing the sliding bolt and unfastening
the said barrels the cocking arm on the extreme end of the short arm of the hand
lever is moved towards the butt end of the gun, and the said cocking arm by acting
upon the noses of the haminers raises the said hammers to full cock, the said
cocking being effected simultaneously, or nearly so, with the unfastening of the
barrels.
Or instead of the cocking arm described a horizontal slide working in the
break-off and actuated by the short upper arm of the hand lever may be used for
the same purpose. This cocking slide is situated above and parallel to the sliding

page_text: bolt by which the barrels are fastened down, the extreine end of the short arm of
the hand lever working in a slot in the cocking slide. When the hand lever is
moved to unfasten the barrels the short arm of the lever besides operating the bolt
also operates the cocking slide, and the latter by acting on the noses of the hammers
raises the said hammers to full cock.
Or the following arrangement of parts may be employed for cocking the hammers
on withdrawing the sliding bolt to unfasten the barrels:-Fixed to the inner side of
each of the tumblers of the hammers is a cross rod or peg, the said rods or pegs
being situated below the centres on which the said hammers turn. Between the said
haminers is a slotted link, one end of which link works on the said cross rods or
pegs, and the opposite end is jointed to the long or lower arm of the hand lever
which works the bolt, the said slotted link being jointed a little below the centre
on which the hand lever turns. On moving the hand lever to unfasten the barrels,
the slotted link, acting on the pins or pegs on the tumblers of the hammers, turns
the said hammers on their centres, and thereby raises them to full cock. On the
hand lever being returned to its fastening position, the slotted link slides on the
cross rods or pegs leaving the hammers in their cocked positions ready to discharge
the gun.
Or the cocking of the hammers may be effected by the action of the strikers on
the unfastening of the gun. In this arrangement I attach to each striker a lateral
piece in slots, in which the extreme upper end of the hand lever working the sliding
bolt engages. When the hand lever is moved to unfasten the bolt, the upper arm
withdraws the strikers, and the back ends of the strikers, by acting on the noses of
the hammers, cock the said hammers. On returning the hand lever to its fastening
position the strikers are slightly arvanced by the short arm of the lever.
The several arrangements described for cocking the haminers may be worked
either by a hand lever on the under side or upper side of the gun.