British 669
Revolver Fire-arms; Apparatus for Manufacturing Projectiles.
LETTERS PATENT to William Harding, of Forest Hill, in the County of . Kent, for the Invention of “ Improvements in Revolver Fire-arms and in Apparatus for Manufacturing Projectiles.”
Sealed the 25th September 1858, and dated the 29th March 1858.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said William Harding at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the 29th March 1858.
I, William Harding, of Forest Hill, in the County of Kent, do hereby declare the nature of the Invention for “ Improvements in Revolver Firearms and in Apparatus for Manufacturing Projectiles,** to be as follows:— This Invention has for its object improvements in revolver fire-arms and in apparatus for manufacturing projectiles; and relates, first, to the arrangement of the locks of revolver fire-arms, with a lock arranged, according to my Invention; the fire-arm to which it is attached may be discharged either by raising the hammer by hand so as to cock the piece previous to discharging it by pulling the trigger, or the piece may be discharged without previously cocking it, or by a continuous pull on the trigger. This object is attained in some locks now commonly manufactured, but according to my Invention it is obtained in a more simple manner by the following arrangements of parts :— The hammer is raised by a claw attached to the upper end of the trigger lever and passing under the hammer to a notch formed therein, into which it drops, and when the trigger is pulled the hammer is raised until the notch in the hammer arrives at such a position that it slips off the claw and the hammer descends. When the hammer is raised by hand it is retained either at half or full cock by another claw or inverted sear, which is mounted on a pin or axis in front of the axis of the hammer, and which drops into notches formed on the hammer. When the trigger is pulled to discharge the piece the tail end of the claw which raises the hammer comes in contact with the retaining claw or inverted sear and raises it out of the notch on the hammer.
The Invention also consists in an improved method of arranging the rammers of revolver fire-arms. For this purpose the plunger, to enter the revolving chambers, slides in a hole formed in the frame immediately under the barrel, and it is actuated by a lever pin jointed to the frame at a point just over the plunger. The lever is continued beyond its axis, and is at this point bent at an acute angle, so as to act suitably on the back of the plunger. For the purpose of manufacturing projectiles of lead or other soft metal, I employ apparatus consisting of a chamber of the form of the projectile to be formed. From the side of this chamber a portion is removed and at this point a steel cutter is fixed to it tangentially. To produce a projectile the end of a rod of lead is introduced into the chamber, and by revolving it, the cutter is caused to remove the superfluous metal; when the end of the rod is brought to the proper form, another cutter, projected forwards by a spring, is allowed to descend to separate the projectile from the rod.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, filed by the said William Harding in the Great Seal Patent Office on the 29th September 1858.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, William Harding, of Forest Hill, in the County of Kent, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters Patent, bearing date the Twenty-ninth day of March, in the year of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and fifty-eight, in the twenty-first year of Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto me, the said William Harding, Her special licence that I, the said William Harding, my executors, administrators, and assigns, or such others as I, the said William Harding, 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 “ Impbovements in Bevolvee Fibe-aems and in Appabattjs foe Mantjfacttjbing Pbojectiles,” upon the condition (amongst others) that I, the said William Harding, 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 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 Harding 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 thereof, that is to say:—
This Invention has for its object improvements in revolver fire-arms, and in apparatus for manufacturing projectiles ; and relates, first, to the arrangement of the locks of revolver fire-arms, with a lock arranged according to my Invention ; the fire-arm to which it is attached inay be discharged, either by raising the hammer by hand, so as to cock the piece previous to discharging it by pulling the trigger, or the piece may be discharged without previously cocking it, by a continuous pull on the trigger. This object is attained in some locks now commonly manufactured, but according to my Invention it is obtained in a more simple manner by the following arrangement of parts:—The hammer is raised by a claw attached to the upper end of the trigger lever, and passing under the hammer to a notch formed therein, into which it drops, and when the trigger is pulled, the hammer is raised until the notch in the hammer arrives at such a position that it slips off the claw, and the hammer descends. When the hammer is raised by hand, it is retained either at half or full cock by another claw or inverted sear, which is mounted on a pin or axis in front of the axis of the hammer, and which drops into notches formed on the hammer; when the trigger is pulled to discharge the piece, the tail end of the claw which raises the hammer comes in contact with the retaining claw or inverted sear, and raises it out of the notch on the hammer.
The Invention also consists in an improved method of arranging the rammers of revolver fire-arms. For this purpose the plunger, to enter the revolving chambers, slides in a hole formed in the frame immediately under the barrel, and it is actuated by a lever pin jointed to the frame at a point just over the plunger, the lever is continued beyond its axis, and is at this point bent at an acute angle, so as to act suitably on the back of the plunger. For the purpose of manufacturing projectiles of lead or other soft metal, I employ apparatus consisting of a chamber of the form of the projectile to be formed. From the side of this chamber a portion is removed, and at this point a steel cutter is fixed to it tangentially. To produce a projectile, the end of a rod of lead is introduced into the chamber, and by revolving it, the cutter is caused to remove the superfluous metal; when the end of the rod is brought to the proper form, another cutter, projected forwards by a spring, is allowed to descend to separate the projectile from the rod.
Having thus stated the nature of my said Invention, I will proceed more fully to describe the manner of performing the same.
Description of the Drawing.
Figure 1 is a longitudinal section of a revolver pistol, constructed according to my Invention ; Figure 2 shows an external side view of the same, a is the hammer, b is the mainspring connected to the hammer by the link c. The hammer is arranged to be cocked by pressing back the hammer by the thumb, and then discharged by the trigger; the hammer may be raised and discharged by simply pulling back the trigger. I would however remark, that revolver pistols and other revolver fire-arms, have before been constructed capable of being so used. I do not therefore claim to make revolver fire-arms capable of such double use, but only a peculiar combination of mechanical parts, by which such double action on the hammer may be obtained with greater simplicity, d is the trigger to which is attached a claw e by which the hammer is moved back, when claw e takes into a recess in the hammer below its axis. I would state that the use of a claw attached to the trigger for pulling back the hammer has before been used; I do not therefore claim the same, but at the tail end of this claw beyond (where it is attached by a pin joint), it will be seen that it has a projection beyond its axis, which by coming against an incline /, as the trigger is pulled back, the claw, is tilted out of the recess in the hammer and so releases the hammer. The trigger is pressed on by a spring g, by which the trigger and claw is moved back immediately the trigger is released; h is a hanging claw or inverted sear, which is pressed towards the hammer by the spring t, and there are notches in the hammer into which such claw or sear h enters, when the hammer is pulled back by the thumb, and the hammer may be held either at half or whole cock by the sear h. When the hammer has been cocked, it will be released by the pulling back of the trigger by the tail of the claw e removing the claw or sear out of the notch in the hammer. In order to ram the charges into the several barrels a peculiar arrangement or combination of parts is used, j is a plunger which when moved enters the barrel, which for the time is opposite its end; the plunger / slides in a hole formed in the body of the fire-arm, immediately below the barrel, and it is actuated by a lever Jc, pin-jointed to the frame or body just over the plunger. The lever is continued beyond its axis, and is bent at an angle so as to act suitably on the plunger, for this purpose the bent portion of the lever is slit or forked, so as to pass on either side of the projecting web of the plunger and by the back of lever being curved it presses on the projecting shoulders formed on the sliding plunger; or in lieu thereof, the plunger instead of the lever may be forked.
Another part of my Invention consists of a means of forming soft metal projectiles. For this purpose a block or tool is used, having formed within it a chamber coinciding with the form of the conical or other form of the intended projectile. In a suitable opening or slit on one side is fixed a knife or cutter, the cutting edge of which is made to the profile or outline of one half of the projectile. The end of a rod of lead or soft metal, somewhat larger in diameter than the finished projectile, is introduced, and the tool (thus formed) is caused to rotate quickly, or it may be the rod of metal by which the end as it enters the chamber will be cut into the form corresponding with the interior of the chamber, and when this is accomplished, a second cutter is pressed forward at right angles to the rod of metal, and cuts off the portion within the chamber of the tool. On the going back of the cutter, and the removal of the rod of metal, the finished projectile will drop out if the tool be used vertically, or the finished projectile may be driven out by a suitable stud or pin pressed into the chamber of the tool at its inner end.
Having thus described the nature of my Invention and the manner of performing the same, I would have it understood that what I claim is,—
First, the combination of mechanical parts herein described for actuating the hammer of a revolver fire-arm.
Secondly, I claim the combined apparatus for ramming in the charges of revolver fire-arms.
And, thirdly, I claim the mode herein-described of manufacturing projectiles. In witness whereof, I, the said William Harding, have hereunto set my hand and seal, this Twenty-ninth day of September, in the year of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and fifty-eight.
WILLIAM HAHDING. (l.s.)
Witness,
Fred* Harris.