IMPROVED MACHINE GUN
Year: 1887

page_text: "
AN
I, JOHN BOWDEN of 4. Lyndhurst Street Canton, Cardiff, in the County of
Glamorganshire, Mariner do hereby declare the nature of my invention for
IMPROVED MACHINE GUN to be as follows:-
"3
My invention consists of five barrels mounted in line with each other, and spreading
out towards the muzzles fan shape, the whole of the barrels being connected together
at the breech as in one piece.
The process of loading the said five barrels, is at the breech, which breech
is so constructed that it permits the loading of each barrel at the same time.
The barrels incline from the centre fanshape, right and left or otherwise, which may
be varied to any radius, to permit the spreading of the shots from the barrels at the
different ranges.
To load the said machine gun, I prefer to open the breech by means of four long
eccentric rods or levers connected to a lever which lifts the breech or breech
saddle up to permit the cartridges or ammunition to be passed through sideways.
The diameter of the bore may be of various sizes, the bore being rifled with two
twisted grooves.
The barrels fit in seperate chambers constructed in the breech blocks, when forcing
home the charges, which said charges fit close on a shoulder to prevent them becoming
jammed in the chamber.
The breech blocks are of such a length to permit a portion entering the chambers
of the barrels, the remainder portion extending from the barrels for support.
The breech blocks are worked by means of a lever arm with one end proved with
cog teeth, to work the cog wheels on the shaft and attached to the rear end of each
block is a shaft being placed horizontal, through the breech with five cog wheels
fixed on the said shaft and is constructed to make one revolution to ram home the
charge and a reverse revolution to withdraw or open the breech blocks; when the
blocks are forced home and the breech closed, the backs of the blocks are supported
by a portion of the breech being filled up or locked to prevent the blocks being

page_text: blown back when the gun is discharged, the breech saddle being fitted with a locking
screwed bolt to prevent the breech saddle from being blown upwards when the said
gun is discharged, and at the end of the breech saddle a breech screw is attached
which said screw binds or locks the whole of the blocks to the chambers to prevent
the blocks from blowing back and the breech saddle from blowing upwards when the
said
gun is discharged.
The gun will be provided with an elevating lock screw.
The repeater of the gun is constructed in sections, each section being sufficiently
large enough to contain six rounds of ball ammunition, and a section screwed on to
the base, these said sections are to be ignited by time fuzes and fired seperately if
required.
One round of rifle balls at five hundred yards distance will cover an area of fifty
square yards.
I prefer to fire the gun by friction, so that in each breech block is placed a friction
bar which is forced into the explosive composition by means of a spring hammer
over each block on which is attached a lever, this said lever being the means by which
the is fired..
Tun
gun is provided with a magazine or bursting chamber in the interior of the rear
end of the breech, this said magazine or bursting chamber is exploded by means of
withdrawing a pin or from a friction tube, to disable the gun when it is likely to fall
in the hands of an enemy.
Dated this Fourth day of October One thousand eight hundred and eighty seven.

page_text: 1, JOHN BOWDEN, of 4 Lyndhurst Street, Canton, Cardiff, in the County of
Glamorganshire, "Mariner" 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 :-
My invention consists of five barrels, more or less, mounted in line with each other
and spreading out towards the muzzles, fan shape, the whole of the barrels being
connected together at the breech as in one piece.
The process of loading the said five barrels is at the breech, which breech is so`
constructed that it permits the loading of each barrel at the same time.
The barrels incline from the centre fanshape, right and left, or otherwise, which
may be varied to any radius, to permit the spreading of the shots from the barrels at
the different ranges.
To load the said machine gun, I prefer to open the breech by means of four long
eccentric or cranked rods, or lovers, connected to a lever handle, which lifts the breech
or breech saddle up, to permit the cartridges or ammunition to be passed through
sideways.
The diameter of the bore may be of various sizes, the bore being rifled with two
or more twisted grooves.
The barrels fit in separate chambers constructed in the breech; and when forcing
home the charges by the breech blocks, which said charges fit close on a shoulder, to
prevent them becoming jammed in the chamber. The breech blocks are of such a
length to permit a portion entering the chambers of the barrels, the remainder portion
extending from the barrels for support.
The breech blocks are worked by means of a spindle, with cog wheels, working on
a ratchet attached to each of the breech blocks; the shaft or spindle being placed
horizontally through the back portion of the breech, with five cog wheels fixed on the
said shaft, and is constructed to make one revolution to ram home the charge, and
a reverse revolution to withdraw the empty cartridge case, by the clips on the breech
blocks, and to open the breech.
When the breech blocks are forced home, and the breech saddle closed, the backs
of the blocks are supported by a portion of the breech being filled up or locked, to
prevent the blocks being blown back when the gun is discharged, the breech saddle
being fitted with a locking screwed bolt to prevent the breech saddle from being blown
upwards when the said gun is discharged; and at the end of the breech saddle, a
breech screw is attached, which said screw binds or locks the whole of the blocks to
the chambers to prevent the blocks from blowing back, and the breech saddle from
blowing upwards when the said gun is discharged.
The gun will be provided with an elevating lock screw.
One round of rifle balls at 500 yards distance will cover an area of fifty square
vards

page_text: I prefer to fire the gun by friction, so that in each breach block is placed a friction
bar which is forced into the explosive composition by means of a spring hammer,
situated in the breech saddle, over the breech blocks, in which is attached a lever, this
said lever is struck by the hammer in the breech saddle, the lever presses forward the
friction bar into the explosive composition, thus being the means by which the gun
is fired.
The gun is provided with a magazine or bursting chamber in the interior of the rear
end of the breech, this said magazine or bursting chamber is exploded by means of
withdrawing a pin or from a friction tube, to disable the gun when it is likely to fall
into the hands of an enemy.
And in order that my invention may be thoroughly understood, I now proceed to
describe the accompanying drawings thereof, reference being had to letters and figures
marked thereon.
Figure 1. is the side view of the gun, with the lines dotted in to denote the position
of the various portions when the breech saddle is lifted upwards.
The barrels marked A, on the breech R, with the breech saddle marked B, the
trunnions D, with a breech locking screw inside the swell or screwed socket E to hold
the saddle against the swell C, the breech screw being worked by the handle F, the
openings at the back for the ratchets to travel through are marked H, and the bursting
chamber marked I, and the handle for firing the gun marked J, which works the
shaft or spindle K this said handle being supplied with a small catch which works on
the notched plate L, this plate regulating the firing of the different barrels. The
handle M, is fixed to the spindle or shaft marked N, on which shaft the cog wheels
are fixed to work the ratchets on the breech blocks. The handle O, being pressed
downwards, lifts the levers or eccentric rods, marked Q, P, thereby raising the saddle
to permit the opening of the breech, by reversing the handle M to run back to the
rear the ratchets F", to draw back the breech blocks B', and at the same time to draw
back the cartridge case by the catches D', which said case passes through the holes
marked K¹.
Figure 2. is a view of the top of the gun.
Figure 3. is a sectional view of the interior of the different parts of the gun, which
describes the portions situated at the breech frame I', with the cog wheels marked J',
to work the ratchets F, with the shaft N running on bearers L', & the lever arm in
the breech block projecting upwards marked H¹.
Figure 4 is a section on line a, b, showing the front of the breech block B', with
firing pin C, the cartridge extractor's D' and the lever's H', on the breech I'.
Figure 5. is a view of the underside of the breech saddle situated over the breech
blocks, with grooves V.
gun
Figure 6. is a view of the interior showing the means by which the is
discharged, by a pin collar A' fixed on the spindle K the pin pressing on the end of
the lever U, which said hammer works on a pin, resistance being given to force the
knock down of the hammer by the spring E', this said hammer striking the lever H¹
held upwards by the spring F, and forcing the firing pin C into the cartridge.
Figure 7. represents the front view and the top view of the extractors D¹ on the
breech block B¹.
Like letters refer to like parts in each of the figures. J the handle. R breech.
U the hammer. V semi-circular grooves. D¹ cartridge case extractor. E' springs.
Fratchets. H' lever arm. I breech frame. J' cog wheels. K¹ holes in breech.
L bearers.
Having now fully described the nature and object of my invention and the manner
in which the same is to be performed, I claim as new and novel the following
:-
First The combination of five or more or less barrels fitted to a breech, with a
breech saddle, with the breech blocks with ratchets, and worked backwards or forwards
by the cog wheels, and constructed in the manner herein described and according to
the accompanying drawings.
:
Secondly The combination of the mechanism in the breech saddle worked by the

page_text: revolution of the shaft or spindle, to strike the lever mechanism in the breech block,
to fire the gun, substantially herein described and according to the accompanying
drawings.
Thirdly: The combination of the levers and handles for raising and lowering the
breech saddle, and the breech screw for fixing the saddle when in its stationary
position, substantially herein described and according to the accompanying drawings.
Fourthly: The combination of the mechanism of the extractors at the end or sides
of the breech blocks to withdraw the empty cartridges, substantially herein described
and according to the accompanying drawings.
:
Fifthly The combination of the rear end of the breech, being a bursting chamber,
which may be exploded by a friction tube or by any other means, to disable the gun,
when it is likely to fall into the hands of an enemy substantially herein described and
according to the accompanying drawings.
:
'
Sixthly I claim to make the gun in any size, or of any number of barrels, or
adopt any other trivial alteration in the mechanism substantially herein described.
T
071 L
T
1000
J. P. BAYLY,
18, Fulham Place, W.,
Agent for the Applicant.