CERTAIN IMPROVEMENTS IN BREECH-LOADING FIRE-ARMS
Year: 1865

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to William Pringle, of Birmingham, in the County of
Warwick, Machinist, for the Invention of "CERTAIN IMPROVEMENTS IN
BREECH-LOADING FIRE-ARMS."
Sealed the 25th May 1866, and dated the 1st December 1865.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said William Pringle at the
Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the
1st, December 1865.
CERTAIN
I, WILLIAM PRINGLE, of Birmingham, in the County of Warwick,
Machinist, do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention for "
IMPROVEMENTS IN BREECH-LOADING FIRE-ARMS," to be as follows:-
This Invention relates to those kinds of breech-loaders where a metallic or
other kind of cartridge is used carrying its own ignition.
My improvements consist of a breech piece attached, or permanently fixed
to the barrel; having a parallel hole in which a breech block is made to work
vertically, by side levers, inside and outside of the said breech piece. The
mode of action is by pulling the outside lever, which lowers the breech block,
and by the same or continuous motion comes against a bar or slide fixed to the
same side, which has an inside projection working in a slot, and which when
in its place lies behind the flange of the cartridge. The other end of the said
bar or slide is caused to come in contact with a pin or other projection on the
hammer, by which means the said hammer is raised to half or full cock; so

page_text: that by one action the breech block is lowered, the cartridge case withdrawn,
and the hammer raised. A spring inserted in the said bar or slide brings it
and the lever back to their normal positions, and raises the breech block after
another cartridge has been inserted in the chamber. The hammer does not
strike directly upon the cartridge, but upon a rod or bolt inserted in the said
breech block. There is also provided a spring on the side of the breech piece
with a pin in the end thereof, which falls into a recess in the block, and which
determines the proper height or depth it should rise or fall. The ordinary
gun lock is dispensed with, as the tumbler is formed by the cock being attached
by a swivel to the main spring at the bottom of the breech piece.
This Invention can be applied to either military or sporting guns, to small
or large bores, or to the conversion of the Enfield rifle. The breech block
may be made of any required length to suit the cartridge which it may be
desired to use.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, filed
by the said William Pringle in the Great Seal Patent Office on the
1st June 1866.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, WILLIAM
PRINGLE, of Birmingham, in the County of Warwick, Machinist, send
greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the First day of December, in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and sixty-five, in the twenty-ninth year of Her
reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto me,
the said William Pringle, Her special licence that I, the said William Pringle,
my executors, administrators, and assigns, or such others as I, the said
William Pringle, 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 "CERTAIN IMPROVE-
MENTS IN BREECH-LOADING FIRE-ARMS," upon the condition (amongst others) that
I, the said William Pringle, my executors or administrators, by an instrument
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

page_text: Patent Office within six calendar months next and immediately after-the date
of the said Letters Patent.
.
NOW KNOW YE, that I, the said. William Pringle, do hereby declare
the nature of my said Invention, and in what manner the same is to be
performed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and by the following
statement (that is to say) :-
This Invention relates to those kinds of breech-loaders where a metallic or
other kind of cartridge carrying its own ignition is used, and is applicable for
either central or rim fire.
My improvements consist of a breech piece attached or permanently fixed
to the barrel, having a parallel hole in which a breech block is made to work
vertically, by means of side levers, fixed inside and outside of the said breech
piece. The mode of action is by pulling the outside lever, which lowers the
breech block, and by the same or continuous motion it comes against a bar
or slide fixed to the same side, having an inside projection working in a slot,
and which when in its place lies behind the flange of the cartridge. The other
end of the said bar or slide is caused to come in contact with a pin or other
projection on one side the hammer, by which means the said hammer is raised
to half or full cock; so that by one action the breech block is lowered, the
cartridge case withdrawn, and the hammer raised. A spring inserted in the
said bar or slide brings it and the lever back to their normal positions, and
raises the breech block after another cartridge has been inserted in the chamber.
The hammer does not strike directly upon the cartridge, but upon a rod or bolt
inserted in the said breech block. There is also provided a spring on the
side of the breech piece, with a pin in the end thereof, which falls into a
recess in the block, and which determines the proper height or depth it should
rise or fall. Or as a modification of this part of my Invention I sometimes
prefer to screw a pin through the breech piece. The ordinary gun lock-is
dispensed with, as the tumbler is formed in the cock; the said cock. being
attached by a swivel to the main spring at the bottom of the breech piece.
This Invention can be applied to either military or sporting guns, to small
or large bores, or to the conversion of the Enfield rifle. The breech block may
be made of any required length to suit the cartridge which it may be desired
to use. I also provide a lengthening piece for the cleaning rod, by making the
said piece hollow and screwed at one end thereof, in such manner that when not
required for use it can be inverted and screwed upon the rod without adding
to its length, or requiring to have a place provided in the gun for its carriage.
my Invention
may be better understood I have annexed Drawings
referring thereto, which I now proceed to describe:-
That

page_text: Figs. 1 to 14 show various portions of the arrangements in detail; Figs.
15 and 16 are elevations of the breech piece and lock complete (part of the
stock having been removed to show them more clearly). The hammer and
breech block are shown in two different positions in these Figs. Figs. 17
and 18 show the rifle complete; Figs. 19 and 20 show the cleaning rod and
lengthening piece.
a is the breech piece (Figs. 15 to 18) attached or permanently fixed to the
barrel 6, having a parallel hole c, in which a breech block d (see also Figs. 3`
to 5) is made to work vertically by means of a side lever e (Figs: 1 and 2),
which bears against a round-ended recess f, formed in the side of the breech
block d. The breech block d is prevented from rising or falling too far by
means of a pin v, upon the end of a spring wo (Figs. 13 and 14), which enters
a vertical slot x in the breech block d. The levere works upon its centre g,
upon the inside of the breech piece a, and the lever h, by which it is actuated
works upon the outside of the breech piece a, and is pinned fast to the centre
g. A bar (Figs. 9 to 12") slides upon two pins m, m³, screwed into the breech
pieco a, and is kept in its place by means of a spiral spring n pressing against
the pin m lying in the slot o. A protecting cover p (Figs. 7 and 8) is provided
of the same size and shape as the sliding bar. The bar has a projection 9,
which lies behind the flange of the cartridge r and another projections, against
which bears the pint of the hammer u. The hammer u does not strike
directly upon the cartridge, but upon a rod or bolt y (Figs. 3 to 5) inserted in
the breech block d. The cock z is attached by a swivel 1 to the main spring 2,
thus dispensing with the ordinary gun lock.
The action is as follows:- Supposing the rifle to have been fired as in
Fig. 15, the handle or lever h is pulled upwards from the spring catch i,
thereby lowering the breech block d. The lever h now touches the bar 1, and
a further movement causes the projection q of the bar 1 to withdraw the empty
cartridge into the space caused by the lowering of the breech block, the pro-
A fresh
jections of the bar raising at the same time the hammer u.
cartridge being then placed in the barrel the lever h is pushed down behind
the spring catch i, thereby raising and locking the breech block d, and the
rifle is then ready to be again discharged. The lengthening piece a¹ for the
cleaning rod is shown in Fig. 19, screwed on ready for use in cleaning, and in
Fig. 20 it is shown inverted and screwed on the rod without adding to its
length. I desire to remark that with reference to the said lengthening piece,
I do not desire to make any claim, it not having been mentioned in my
Provisional Specification.
Having now described the nature of my said Invention, and the manner in

page_text: which the same is or may be performed, I desire it to be understood that,
without limiting myself strictly to the precise details herein-before described,
I claim as the Invention to be protected by the herein-before in part recited
Letters Patent,—
First, the breech block working vertically as herein-before described, and
the mode of actuating the same by the side levers as herein-before set forth
and described; also, the mode or manner of extracting the cartridge case and
of raising the hammer to half or full cock, as required, by the same motion.
Second, the combination of all the improvements as a whole, substantially
as herein-before set forth and shown in the Drawings hereunto annexed.
In witness whereof, I, the said William Pringle, have hereunto set my
hand and seal, this Thirtieth day of May, in the year of our Lord One
thousand eight hundred and sixty-six.
Witness,
G. R. HOLLAND,
Patent Office,
Birmingham.
W. PRINGLE. (L.B.)