Britain 1625
A.D. 1867, 1st June. № 1625.
Revolving Fire-arms.
LETTERS PATENT to Thomas Poultney, of Baltimore, in the State of Maryland, one of the United States of America, but now residing at the Langham Hotel, in the County of Middlesex, for the Invention of “Improvements in the Construction of Revolving Fire-Arms.”
Sealed the 29th October 1867, and dated the 1st June 1867.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Thomas Poultney at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the 1st June 1867.
I, Thomas Poultney, of Baltimore, in the State of Maryland, one of the United States of America, but now residing at the Langham Hotel, in the County of Middlesex, do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention for “Improvements in the Construction of Revolving Fire-Arms,” to be as follows:—
This Invention relates to that description of revolving fire-arms in which metallic cartridges which carry their own fulminate are employed, and more particularly to that construction in which central-fire cartridges are used.
The Invention consists in adapting to the rotating breech a discharging pin at the rear of each chamber, so that as the breech is rotated the several pins may in succession be brought in front of the hammer or striker; these pins are provided at each end with heads which will prevent them from being displaced accidentally. In order to remove the empty cartridge shells these pins are made capable of an additional endway motion when the charge chamber is open, so that by letting down the hammer on the pins in succession the latter will be driven forward to their full extent and will thus push out the empty cartridge shells. Instead of letting down the hammer to drive forward the firing pins the empty shells may be pushed out by forcing forward the pins by the finger.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, filed by the said Thomas Poultney in the Great Seal Patent Office on the 30th November 1867.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, Thomas Poultney, of Baltimore, in the State of Maryland, one of the United States of America, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters Patent, bearing date the First day of June, in the year of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and sixty-seven, in the thirtieth year of Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto me, the said Thomas Poultney, Her special licence that I, the said Thomas Poultney, my executors, administrators, and assigns, or such others as I, the said Thomas Poultney, 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 the Construction of Revolving Fire-Arms,” upon the condition (amongst others) that I, the said Thomas Poultney, 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 Thomas Poultney, do hereby declare the nature of my said Invention, and in what manner the same is to be per formed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and by the following statement, reference being had to the Drawing hereunto annexed, and to the letters and figures marked thereon (that is to say):—
This Invention relates to that description of revolving fire-arms in which metallic cartridges which carry their own fulminate are employed, and more particularly to that construction in which central-fire cartridges are used.
In the accompanying Drawing Fig. 1 represents a longitudinal vertical section taken through a revolving pistol constructed according to my improvements; in this Figure the several parts are shown in the position they would assume when the hammer has descended on the firing pin in order to explode the cartridge.
Fig. 2 is another sectional view illustrating the mode of pushing out the empty cartridge cases preparatory to reloading the arm.
The Invention consists in adapting to the rotating breech a discharging pins b, b, at the rear of each chamber c, so that as the breech a is rotated the several pins b may in succession be brought in front of the hammer or striker d; these pins b, one of which is shewn detached at Fig. 3, are provided at each end with heads, which will prevent them from being displaced accidentally. he rotating breech a is divided into two parts a and a¹, which are mounted on separate pins e and e¹, as shown in the Drawings, and the cartridges when in place lie partly in a and partly in a¹. The part a of the breech turns on a pin e in the fixed part f of the body of the pistol, and the part a¹ turns on the pin e fixed in the barrel part f¹ of the body, the two parts f and f¹, being hinged together at g, as shewn. Fig. 4 is a front view of the rear half of the revolving breech. In order to facilitate the removal of the empty cartridge shells when all the cartridges have been discharged the firing pins b are made capable of an additional endway motion when the charge chamber is open, as shewn at Fig. 2, so that by letting down the hammer d on the pins b in succession the latter will be driven forward to their full extent, and will thus push out the empty cartridge shells as shewn in the Drawing. Instead of letting down the hammer d to drive forward the firing pins the empty shells may be pushed out by forcing forward the pins by the finger. When all the empty shells have been pushed out full ones may be inserted in their place, and the barrel part f¹ of the arm brought up into the position shewn at Fig. 1, and secured in its place by means of a spring h which catches into a notch made in the fixed part f of the body. It will be seen that the cartridges i, i, are provided with flanges i¹, which rest in countersunk recesses cut in the faces of the two parts of the rotating breech; by this means the cartridges will be prevented from being driven back against the firing pins and prematurely exploded when the two parts a and a¹ are brought together.
Having now described my Invention of “Improvements in the Construction of Revolving Fire-arms,” and having explained the manner of carrying the same into effect, I claim as the Invention secured to me by Letters Patent as aforesaid, the employment of the divided breech chamber a, a¹, each compartment of which is provided with a separate exploding or firing pin, which also acts as a cartridge extractor, as herein set forth.
In witness whereof, I, the said Thomas Poultney, have hereunto set my hand and seal, the Seventh day of October, in the year of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and sixty-seven.
THOMAS POULTNEY. (L.S.)