British 2882
Fire-arms and Detonating Compounds.
LETTERS PATENT to George Tomlinson Bousfield, of Loughboro* Park, Brixton, in the County of Surrey, for the Invention of “ Improvements in Fire-arms, and in Detonating Compounds to be used therewith.”—A communication.
Sealed the 26th January 1858, and dated the 17th November 1857.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said George Tomlinson Bousfield at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the 17th November 1857.
I, George Tomlinson Bousfield, of Loughboro’ Park, Brixton, in the County of Surrey, do hereby declare the nature of the Invention for 44 Improvements in Fire-arms, and in Detonating Compounds to be used therewith,” to be as follows:—
The improvement in priming consists in making a compound, hereafter described, and forming the same into small cylindrical, prismatic, or other convenient elongated pieces. These pieces are formed of the fulminate of mercury or other detonating compound used for priming mixed with collodion or dissolved gun cotton, the proportions of which may be somewhat varied, having sufficient of the fulminate for producing an explosion. Instead of the collodion, gun cotton may be used to enclose the fulminate and form spindles, caps, or other formed primings, and then coated with the collodion to form the priming.
To employ the new priming made in cylindrical or similar pieces I make an arrangement of the fire-arm in which I omit the cones and form a recess at the touch-hole of the arm. For revolving fire-arms, instead of forming recesses with cones inserted therein as in the usual way, recesses of small size are made connecting with the vent for this purpose, and to place the recesses in the best position the end of the revolving cylinder may be bevilled at its breech end, and in this bevilled part the small recesses are located. This cylinder when in place fits into the butt of the stock, so as to be covered as far as the bevilled part, the joint between being perfectly fitted by grinding or otherwise. On the side of the stock behind the cylinder I form a small cylindrical chamber, the distance of which from the point where the hammer strikes being the same at the distance of the recesses from each other, so that when the revolving cylinder is in position to be discharged by the action of the hammer, the next succeeding recess will be exactly opposite the mouth of the priming chamber, in which is placed a piece of the priming before described. This priming has a spring behind it that forces it out and projects its end into the recess at the next movement of the revolving breech, that portion of the priming within the recess is thereby cut off, by which it is brought up to the point, when the hammer will strike it. This may be repeated as long as any priming remains in the magazine. To employ the priming with a single-barrel fire-arm, I form a slide which I connect by a link with the hammer, so that when the piece is cocked the slide will be drawn over the recess, and as the hammer is brought down the slide falls back, leaving a piece of priming cut off in the recess.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, filed by the said George Tomlinson Bousfield in the Great Seal Patent Office on the 14th May 1858.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, George Tomlinson Bousfield, of Loughbro* Park, Brixton, in the County of Surrey, send greeting.
WHEB/EAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, ‘by Her Letters Patent, bearing date the Seventeenth day of November, in the year of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and fifty-seven, in the twenty-first year of Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto me, the said George Tomlinson Bousfield, Her special licence, that I, the said George Tomlinson Bousfield, my executors, administrators, and assigns, or such others as I, the said George Tomlinson Bousfield, 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 “Improvements in Fire-arms, and in Detonating Compounds to be used therewith,” (a communication), upon the condition (amongst others) that I, the said George Tomlinson Bousfield, 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.
HOW KNOW YE, that I, the said George Tomliuson Bousfield, 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 consists of a certain new compound priming, and of certain new apparatus for using the same; reference being had to the accompanying Drawing, in which Figure 1 shews a section of the stock and cylinder of a revolving breech fire-arm with the mode of attaching the primiDg apparatus thereto; Figure 2 is a perspective view of the revolving breech; Figure 3, the stock, with the revolving breech removed; Figure 4, the priming chamber; Figure 5, section showing the priming apparatus attached to a single barrel, in which the priming chamber moves instead of the breech of the piece; Figure 6 shows the prepared priming.
The improvement in priming consists in making a compound, hereafter described, and forming the same into small cylindrical, prismatic, or other convenient elongated pieces, as seen at Figure 6. These pieces are formed of the fulminate of mercury or other detonating compound used for priming mixed with collodion or dissolved gun cotton, the proportions of which may be somewhat varied, having sufficient of the fulminate for producing an explosion. Instead of the collodion, gun cotton may be used to enclose the fulminate and form spindles, caps, or other formed primings, and then coated with the collodion to form the priming.
To employ the new priming made in cylinders or similar pieces, as seen in Figure 7, I make an arrangement of the fire-arm in which I omit the cones, and form a recess at the touch-hole of the fire-arm. This arrangement is illustrated in Figures 1, 2, 3, in which one form of fire-arm is shewn, but other approved arrangements of repeating fire-arms may be used. Instead of forming the revolving cylinder with cones inserted therein, as is the usual way, recesses a of small size are made connecting with the vent for this purpose. In order to place the recesses in the best position, the end of the revolving cylinder may be bevilled off, as seen in Figure 2, in which the small recesses a are located. This cylinder, when in its place, fits into the stock, so as to be covered as far as the conical part, the joint between being perfectly fitted by grinding or otherwise. On the side of the stock behind the cylinder I form a small chamber b, the distance of which from the point where the hammer strikes being the same as the distance of the recesses d from each other, so that when the revolving cylinder is in position to have one of the short barrels discharged by the action of the hammer, the next succeeding recess will be exactly opposite the mouth of the priming chamber b9 in which is placed a piece of the priming shewn in Figure 4. This priming has a spring c behind it that forces it out and projects its end into the recess at the next movement of the revolving cylinder, and that portion of the priming within the recess is thereby cut off, by which it is brought up to the point where the hammer will strike it. This may be repeated as long as any priming remains in the magazine.
To employ the priming with a single-barrel fire-arm, I form a slide, as seen in Figure 5 ; this I connect by a link with the hammer, so that when the piece is cocked the slide will be drawn over the recess, and as the hammer is brought down the slide is moved back, leaving a piece of priming cut off in the recess.
What I claim in the above-described Invention is, first, the employment of gun cotton or collodion combined with percussion powder, in the manner and for the purposes set forth.
I also claim the formation of the priming into strips, either cylindrical or otherwise, as described.
I also claim the recessed revolving cylinder combined with the magazine, as described and represented, or the equivalent thereof, in revolving or repeating fire-arms and in single-charged fire-arms.
I also claim the sliding cut-off priming apparatus for the single barrel, as specified, employed with the priming above claimed made in strips.
In witness whereof, I, the said George Tomlinson Bousfield, have hereunto set my hand and seal, this Thirteenth day of May, in the year of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and fifty-eight.
GEO. T. BOUSFIELD. (l.s.)
Witness,
W. S. Harrison,
New Court, St. Swithin’s Lane.