Note : Les descriptions sont présentées dans la langue officielle dans laquelle elles ont été soumises.
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This invention relates -to l~and-held firearms, ~speci-
ally sporting or hunting guns or bullet-firing rifles
Hand-held or small Eirearms are kno~7n, which are fitted
with a so-called breech block. Such a breech block requires a
relatively large amount of space in the lock casing, so that the
lock casing is relatively open towards the back, This limits the
strent~th of the casing, and its resistance to the stress caused by
the firing of a cartridge. This leads to a situation in which a
weapon, e.g. a sporting rifle is suitable only for cartridges of
a restricted calibre. In the case of sporting rifles, however,
cartridge chambers are desirable from which large calibre cart-
ridges may be fired.
An object of the present invention is to provide a hand-
held firearm, especially a sporting or hunting gun, such as a
bullet-fir-ng rifle, which is suitable especially for large-
calibre cartridges, and in which the lock mechanism is of great
simplicity and therefore of great reliability.
According to the present invention, a firearm comprises
a casing defining a recess, said recess being in part defined by a
nair of upper spaced bridge members extending between front and rear
portions of the casing, a lateral opening below said brldge members
opening into said recess, a breech block, means mounting said breech
block in said recess for pivotal movement toward and away from said
lateral opening, said breech block being supported against rearward
moveme~-nt by the rear portion of the casing, a cartridge chamber
opening in a direction toward said recess, means for firing a cart-
ridge located in said cartridge chamber, and a trigger mechanism for
operating said firing means, said trigger mechanism being located
beneath said cartridge chamber.
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Such a design of the lock mechanism results in a
flrearm which is suitable not only Eor Eiring large-
calibre cartridges, but results in an overall compact
form, and the weapon can be made considerably shorter
than hitherto/ while retaining the conventional length
of barrel In this way, improved handling of the weapon
may be achieved. Because of the -Eact that there are
located in the lock casing bridge members which are
continuous from the forward portion of said casing as far
as the portion behind the breech block, the breech block
itself is housed in an extremely rigid and compact casing.
It is therefore capable directly of absorbing extremely
high forces, such as occur upon firing of a cartridge.
The bridge members impart to the lock casing a high degree
of stability. The lock mechanism at the same time is ;~
rendered very compact by reason of the fact that the barrel
is extended right to the back, so that, when the lock ;~
mechanism is viewed from the side, the barrel terminates
behind the trigger. This means that the trigger mechanism,
seen from the side, lies in front of the rear end of the
barrel. This leads to shortening of the overall length of
the weapon, so that it may be more easily and safely handled.
According to a further feature of the invention, the
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pivot block is mounted to pivo-t around a spindle adjacent
its lower end. In this case, the block may embrace the
spindle by means of an externally-open slot; a snap
closure device, e.g. a spring-locking mechanism, being
provided at least at one side of said open slot, and
extending below the axis of the spindle. This enables
the pivot block to be withdrawn from the recess in the
lock casing,- whilst providing a satisfactory pivotal
support. This secures the weapon against unintentional
or accidental use by third parties in a very simple and
effective way. When the pivot block is removedJ the weapon
cannot be made ready to fire. This also provides protection
against theft or the like.
Advantageously, said spindle for the pivot hlock .is
designed as a tube or sleeve7 which houses the striker pin.
Thus, the striker pin may have at its traillng end an
extension provided with an adjustable stop which interacts
with a spring-loaded cocking lever whose handle is directed
towards the front of the tYeapon. The striker pin can thus
be cocked by turning the cocking lever in the direction of
the butt of the weapon, so that this can be done safely.
The cocking lever further enables favourable leverage to
be obtained.
The limit positions of the pivot block may be defined
by a snap~action catch. For this purpose, a spring-biased
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snap bolt may be located in the pivot block be-tween its
pivotal axis and the firing pin,
Ejector mechanism may have an ejector part for grlpping
behind a cartridge rim, and designed as a slide or pusher
member, upon which a spring-loaded bolt act:s Said pusher
member may be provided with a guide parallel thereto, so
that it may be moved in a direction plano-parallel to itselE.
When the pivot block is swung out or opened, movement of
the pusher member, and thus, ejection of the cartridge is
enabled, by the fact that, on a face of the pivot block
facing the ejector slide, there is provided a recess adapted
to the contour of said slide. As soon as the pivot block
adopts its open position, the ejecting movement of the pusher
member is automatically initiated. The pusher member can
then slip into the corresponding recess in the block. In
this way, the block is secured in its open position. When a ~-
new cartridge is inserted into the chamber of the barrel, the
pusher member is pressed back into the ready position against
the action of its spring.
The trigger lever, which is located directly underneath
the firing pin, may have on its face facing the striker pin,
a pivotally mounted intermediate lever. A pressure point
position of the trigger lever is obtained by the fact that
there is provided between the intermediate lever and the
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trigger lever a groove, which is preferabl~ provided on
the trigger lever itself. When the -trigger ]ever is
pivoted, it thus has a degree of play before it acts on
the intermedlate lever, whereupon the pressure point is
marked, The degree of play may be adjusted. This i9
easily achieved by the location in the trigger lever of
an adjustable set screw, which can project to a greater
or lesser degree into the said groove.
Embodiments of the invention will now be described,
by wa~ of example, with reEerence to the accompanying
diagrammatic drawinys, in which:-
Fig, 1 is a fragmentary longitudinal sectional view
of a sporting gun in the form of a bullet-firing rifle
according to the present invention, showing mainly the
lock mechanism thereof;
FigO 2 is a section on the line II-II of ~ig. 1,
showing the pivot block closed; `~
Fig. 3 is a section on the line II~II of Fig, 1,
showing the pivot block pivoted outwards; ;~
Fig. 4 is a section on the line IV-IV of Fig. 3;
Fig. 5 is a side elevation of the sporting rifle to
a reduced scale, and
Fig, 6 is a longitudinal sectional view of a match
pistol having a pivot block according to the invention.
A small firearm 1 shown in Figs. 1 to 5 is a sporting
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~ln or ~ullct-firin6 rl~le havlng ~ barrol 2, ~ lock
mccllanism 3, a stock 4, and R butt 5. Screwed to tlle
lnn~r cnd o~ the barrel 2, in which a cartrid~e chamber
is locatcd, there is a lock casing 7, in which the lock
mocllallism 3 is substantially housed. The lock casing 7
ll~s n recess 8 open at th~ sid~ in wllich a pivot block 9
fol-millg a lock is pivotally mounted. Thle portion of the
lock casin~ screwed to the barrel 2 is connected at its
rear portion 7a by two bridge-like straps 10 and 11, so
t~lat the pivot block 9 is supported by its rear surface by
the rcar part o~ the lock casing. The pivot block 9 is
provided with a handle 12, and can be pivoted around a
projecting spindle 13, and by means of an externally-open
slot 14 it embraces the spindle 13. On at least one side
of the slot 14, there is a snap catch 15 mounted on the
pivot block 9 and gripping the spindle 13. The catch 15
m~y conslst of a bolt 16 loaded by a sprlng 17. The ~olt 16
is so locatcd that it projects inwards beneath the axis of
the spindle 13 into the open slot 14. When plvoted outuards 9
the block 9 may be removed from opening 8 in the direction
of the longitudinal axis by pressing back the spring bolt lS.
This affords protection a~ainst unintentional use of the
weapon by third parties.
The spindle 13 is desi~ned as a tube or a sleeve, in
which a leading portion of the striker pin 18 is located.
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In the pivot block 9, there is a longitudinal groove 19,
in which there is located a rocker arm 21 which is rockably
mounted on a pin ~0. The rocker arm 21 abuts a -firing
pin 22~ which is loaded by a spring 23, and is capable of
acting on a cartridge 24. The striker pin 18 is loaded by
a compression spring 25, within the sleeve 13, and has
an extension 26J on whose end there is provicled an adjustable
stop`27. Beneath the extension 26 there is a cocking
lever 28 pivotally mounted on a transverse spindle 29, and
which is operable against the action of a spring bolt 30,
which is pivotally mounted pn the stock 4. The cocking
lever 28 has at one end a handle 28a) projecting into an
opening 31 in the stock 4. The arm 28b of the lever is
designed as a fork, and interacts with the stop 27 on the
extension 26 of the striker pin 18. The striking or ;~
leading end of the pin 18, in the uncocked position, can
act upon the rocker arm 21.
The ejector mechanism has an extractor 32 engaging
behind the edge or rim 24a of the cartridge 24 in the
barrel. The extractor 32 is carried by a spring bolt 33
which is under the action of a spring 34. The extractor
32 is guided by means of a pin 35 in a bore 36 of the
barrel 2, for movement parallel thereto. In the pivot
block 9 there -is a recess 37, corresponding to the contour
of extractor 32, and in which the extractor 32 engages
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automatically under the prcssure of tlle spring 34, as
soon as the block 9 is in its open position as shown in
Fig. 3. The pivoting angle can be about 50 ~ I`hus,
the cartridge 24 is partly withdrawn from the cartrid~e
chamber so that, when the gun is held up, the cartridge
can slip out of the cartridge chamber, or be removed by
hand. When a new cartridge is inserted9 the extractor 32
- is pushed back into its original position, whereupon the
block 9 can be pivoted back into the closed position. The-
.10 limit positions of-the block 9 are effected.by snap
engagement. For this purpose, there is a s~ring plunger
389 which interacts with notches 39 and 40.
The trigger lever 41 is mounted so as to be pivotable
around a pin 42, and is under the influence of a spring
bolt 43, the trigger lever 41 being located in a known way
within a protective guard 44. On the side of the trigger
lever 41 facing the striker pin 18, an intermediate lever
45 is pivotally mounted on a ~pin 46. The lever 45 can
engage behind projecting stops 18a and 18b on the striker
pin 18. Between the levers 45 and 419 there is a groove
~7~ permitting some play for the pressure-point position
of the trigger lever 41. In the trigger lever 41 there
is also a set-screw 48, which can project to a greater or
lesser degree into the groove 47.. Thus, the degree of play
before reaching the-pressure point of the trigger lever 41
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is to a greater or lesser extent limited. The trigger
lever is :lockable by a sa~ety bolt 49, which may be turne~l
in a known way between a safety p~sition to a .release
position by means of a snap-action handle 50, Fig. 5.
At a suitable point, the striker pin may be provided with
a transverse pin, ~Yhich projects laterally out o~ the
stock o~ the weapon through a longitudinally extending
slot. In this way, the position o~ the pin may be
'felt, indicating whether th~ striker pin 18 is cocked
10 - or not. In'the'case of a~sporting rifle~,~ this -is 'o~
considerable assistance whe'~ the weapon is used in the
dark.
As Fig. 1 shows, the trigger device, cocking device
' `for the striker pin, and-the ejector mechanism are located
beneath the cartridge chamber 6 of the barrel, i.e. th'e
rear portion of the barrel with the cartridge chamber--
extends, seen in side view, to a point behind the trigger.
In this way, the overall length of the weapon may be kept
shorter than hitherto. About ten to twenty millimetres
2Q in overall length can be saved. The weapon is more
compact and easier to handle. The entire lock mechanism
is extremely compact, and is of only restricted length.
Th~ lock casing 7 is also-compact and stable, despite the
opening-8 for the pivot;block-9.- The-remaining bridge-
like straps 10 and 11 lend high strength and rigidity to
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the rear portion of the loc~ casing. Th:is enables the
weapon to be used for the largest possible calibre of
cartridges, e.g. 475 Nitro-Express. The lock mechanism
is compact ln structure, all the devices beincJ housed in
a minimal space.
The weapon shown in Fig. 6 is a match pistol 52,
having a substantially identical lock structure to that
above described. A lock casing 53 is screwed on to the
rear part of a barrel S4, and has a side opening 55, in
which a pivot block 56 i5 located. It is mounted pivotably
on a spindle 57, and has a firing pin 58. An extractor 59
of the ejector mechanism is under the ac-tion of a spring
bolt 60. The opening 55 for the block 56 is defined at the
top by bridge-like straps 61, forming an integral part with
the rear part of the lock casing 53, The pistol is suitable
for a large-calibre cartridge, e.g. 44 Remington Magnum
cartridge.
A trigger lever 62 interacts via a catch 63 with a
nosepiece 64 of a ~iring lever 65, which is pivotally
20 mounted at 66~ A spring 67 acts upon the firing lever 65,
and acts by means of a part 68 upon a pin 69~ which is
mounted eccentrically relative to the pivot axis 66. A
safety bolt is shown at 70, enabling locking of the catch 63
and thus of the trigger lever 62
In this embodiment also, the pivot block 56 is located
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in a rearwardly-closed cas:inc; portion, and can there~ore
absorb considerable ~iring stresses.
The trigger mechanism is located subs-tantially below
the cartridge chamber of barrel 54, and in thi.s example
also the ove.ral:L length of the pistol is, thus, less than
hitherto, The weapon is therefore easier to handle.
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