US2169083A

US2169083A - Automatic firearm

Info

Publication number: US2169083A
Application number: US148073A
Authority: US
Inventors: William L Swartz
Original assignee: Colts Manufacturing Co Inc
Current assignee: Colts Manufacturing Co Inc
Priority date: 1937-06-14
Filing date: 1937-06-14
Publication date: 1939-08-08
Anticipated expiration: 1956-08-08

Description

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AUTOMATI C FIREARE V etented .ngg 9 to @oits Patent Fire .a

, Manufacturing Company, Hartford, Go., a corporation oi onnecticut .eppneanon .une it, i937, senti no. nacre l@ Si.

One object of the invention is to provide a firearm including a reciprocable bolt and mechanism for preventing doubling, that is, the ring of more than a single shot upon a single operation of the trigger, with means on the bolt which may be adjusted so as to render the doubling preventing means operative or inoperative to permit'the firearm to be selectively operated in either a semi or fully automatic manner.

30 Another object of the invention is to provide a firearm having a reciprocable bolt, a ring member, trigger mechanism, and a disconnector constituting a connecting means between 'the trigger mechanism and sear and normally operable by the bolt to prevent doubling of shots.

` with means for rendering the disconnector inoperative for preventinggdoubling whereby the firearm may be selectively operated in either a semi or fully automatic manner.

g@ From this speciiication further objects and advantages of the invention will be apparent to those skilled in the art.

In the accompanying drawings I have shown the embodiment of the invention which I now 25 deem preferable, but it will be understood that ,the drawings are intended for illustrative purposes only and are not to be relied upon as de? :ning or'limiting the scope of the invention, the claims forming a part of this specification being 3@ relied upon for that purpose.

' In the drawings:

Fig. 1 is a side elevation of a. rearm having incorporated therein the principles of the invention.

35 Fig. 2 is an enlarged sectional view of the rear portion of the gun taken on the line Z-- o' Fig. 8 with the parts adjusted for semi automatic operation.

Fig. 3 is a view similar to Fig. 2 but showing 4@ the parts in the positions they occupy after the bolt has moved rearward a short distance.

Fig. 4 is a view similar to Fig. 3 but with the parts adjusted for fully automatic operation.

Fig. 5 is an enlarged bottom plan view ofthe g5 bolt with certain parts broken away to show a section taken on the line of Fig. l with the parts adjusted for fully automatic operation. 1 Fig. 6 is an enlarged side view of the bolt with certain parts broken away to show asection so taken on the linel of Fig. 5. j

Fig. 7 is an enlarged side elevation of the rear portion of the framey with certain parts omitted.

Fig. 8 is an enlarged sectional view taken on the line 8 8 of Fig. 7, but also showing the bolt just ggA prior to reaching its-breecl'iedv position.

Fig. -9 is a view similar to Fig. 3 but showing the position of the parts after the bolthas reached its breeched position.

Inautomatic iirearms it is usual practice to provide means for preventing doubling of shots,

and more particularly itis the practice to pro- 6' vide such means in automatic pistols. However, in certain instances it is desirable to operate the nrearm in a fully automatic manner, that is, the gun continues to automatically eject, load, and m ldre as long as the trigger is held in ring 'position and the supply ci cartridges in the magarine remains unenhausted.- I have provided a novel and emcient construction in which the means for preventing doubling ci shots may be rendered operative or inoperative as desired so that the firearm may be selectively operated in either a semi or fully automatic manner.

The principles ci the invention are adaptable to many types of firearms but for the purpose of this specification I have illustrated an application thereof to an automatic pistol of the type shown in U. S. Patents Nos. 984,519 andh 1,0'Z0582. As shownin the drawings forming a part of this specicaton, the pistol comprises a frame or receiver l, a barrel 2, a reciprocabie slide or breech bolt 3, a firing pin d, an ejector e, a grip o, a trigger and a firing member or hammer d. In the pistol illustrated the grip is adapted to hold a magazine t containing a plurality of cartridges which may be successively fed into the chamber of the barrel, nred, and ejected upon operation of the trigger mechanism and automatic reciprocation of the bolt. l

The firing pin is slidably mounted in a hole it in the holt and is biased to retracted position by .35'

a spring i i abutting at one end against a shoulder i2 on the ring pin and at the other end against a portion of the bolt. Rearward movement oi the iiring pin is limited by a stop i3. It is apparent A0 from the drawings, see Fig. 2, that the :tiring pin is of such length that when the hammer is in its uncooked position, it may rest, against the stop it without moving the firing pin sufncientiy to cause its forward end to project beyoud the front face oi the bolt 3. When the gun is intentionally discharged the haer delivers a blow to the rear end of the firing pin and the momentum of the pin causes it to be projected beyond the front iace oi' .the bolt to re the caru 50 tridge primer.

The hammer is pivotally v:mounted in the frame hya pin itt-and is, through alink it, biased in a clockwise direction by a main spring (not shown). The body of the hammer is bi- 5g,

furcated and has a shoulder I6 formed thereon, and preferably has a safety, or -half cock, recess I1 formed therein. For reasons which will be apparent hereinafter, the hammer is also preferably formed with a surface thereon such as shown at I8. The firing mechanism illustrated includes a bifurcated4 sear |3pivotally mounted in the frame by a pin 2li.. The sear is biased' in a counter clockwise direction by a sear spring 2| and is adapted to engage with the shoulder I6 on the hammer to hold the same in cocked position.

A trigger bar 22 is secured to the trigger 1 and is slidably mounted in the frame. shown in Fig. 2, the upper edge of the rear end of the trigger bar is positioned to move in a plane below the edge of the lower end of the sear. In order that retraction'of the trigger may serve to move and release the sear, a member is provided which constitutes a connecting means between the trigger bar and the sear.

'In the illustrated construction a disconnector 23 vnormally functions to so connect these elements and, as will be later apparent, it may also serve to prevent doubling of shots. ,The disconnector is mountedbetween the legs of the bifurcated sear on the pin 20 which passes through an aperture 24 in the'disconnector. As this aperture is larger than the pin 20, the disconnector may pivotally and slidably move relative to the frame and sear. The lower end of the disconnector is provided with means, such as the laterally projecting wings 25, which are normally adapted to engage with the lower ends of the legs of the sear. A spring 26 presses against a cam surface 21 to urge the disconnector upward and in a counter clockwise direction, and asthe disconnector presses against the' trigger bar, the latter is thereby biased to its non-firing, or forward, position. The top of the disconnector normally projects above the top of the frame.

As shown in Fig. 2, the lower portion of the disconnector constitutes a connecting means between the trigger bar and the sear when the disconnector ls in the position shown in this figure. :If this lower portion of the 'disconnector 'is moved downwardly from the position of Fig. 2 to that of Fig. 3, the wings 25 will no longer be in a position to engage the sear and consequently the trigger can no longer move' the sear to, or hold it in, itsl hammer releasing position. If such' downward movement takes .place automatically upon each reciprocation of the bolt the gun will operate in a semi-automatic manner, and conversely, if the sear engaging means on the disconnector does not move out of alignment with the lower end of the sear following each shot, the sear may be held in itsreleasins position by the trigger and the gun will operate in-a fully automatic manner.

In accordance with the broader aspects of the invention I provide means on the bolt by which the elements of thegun which prevent doubling '1i-ay be rendered operative or inoperative'at the lection of the user. When the principles of the invention are applied to a firearm which includes'means of the general type illustrated for preventing doubling of shots, the bolt and disconnector are preferably provided with portions whose positions relative to each other may be adjusted. The adjustability provided is such that the portions may be positioned so as to be engageable upon reciprocation of the bolt to automatically move the disconnector to a position in which the sear is free from control by holding the latter. .includes a portion 34 The bolt has a groove 28 formed in the bottom surface thereof into which the top of the disconnector may project during ,reciprocation of the bolt (see Fig. 2). In this groove I- provide means which may be adjustably positioned to engage or to not engage with the top of the disconnector as the bolt reciprocates. The now preferred construction of such a means is shown at 29 and comprises a leaf spring member `having` one end fixed in recesses in the side walls of the groove 28 and having an enlarged camming head 30 formed on the other end. The resiliency of the member 28 tends to move the camming head 30 toward the top of the groove 23. Various means .may be provided for moving the camming head to and holding 1t in a position 1n which a 1s adapted to engage and depress the disconnector upon reciprocation of the bolt. I have shown a camming member 3| which is slidably positioned in a groove 32 in the bolt and which is adapted to cooperate with a laterally projecting lug 33 on the camming head for so moving and 'I'he member 3| preferably which projects through an opening 35 in the bolt so as to be readily accessible for adjusting the position of the member in the groove 32. I'he member 3| is slidably held in the bolt by a pin 35 which serves to prevent .the forward portion from swinging out- ,ward from the bolt, the rear end of the member being held in place as shown in Fig. 5 by the rearward extending portions thereof which are positioned on opposite sides of a portion 31 of the bolt. The member 3| may be removed from the bolt when desired by simply withdrawing the pin 36, springing the forwardend of the member outward, and then sliding it forward. The camming member may also be provided with means for holding it in either of its two positions. In the construction illustrated a spring latch 3l is pivotally mounted on the member 3|, the forward end of the latch being alternatively engageable in recesses 39 in the bolt to hld the member 3| in either its forward or rearward position. It is apparent that if the camming member 3| is in its rearward position. as shown in Figs. 5 and 6, 1t will be out of engagement with the lug 33 and thus permit the lcamming head to lie adjacent the top of the groove 2l,` and that if it be moved to its forward position it will move the camming head to the position shown in Figs. 2 and 3.

While not strictly essential, an automatic auxiliary sear is preferably provided which will function .to hold the firing member in its cocked position until the bolt is in its breeched, or forward, position. Ihave illustrated on'e form of construction for an automatic sear, reference being had to Figs. 1, 4, 7, 8, and 9. The surface I8, above pointed out, is provided on thehammer with which an automatic sear 4l, pivotally mounted in an aperture 4| in. the frame, is

' adapted to engage when the hammer is rotated is positioned in a guide groove l2 infthe frame in which a rib d3 on the bolt is adapted to slide. The rib 4331s preferably cut away as shown at dei to form a relief d5 and a cam surface dt. The

automatic sear is biased to its hammer engaging end of the automatic sear will be moved into and held in engagement with the hammer during such periods as thelupper end ci the fear may move outwardly into the' relier @35. .d the bolt moves to its breeched position the upper end of the sear d@ will be cammed inwardly by the cam surface $35 on the bolt to thereby free the hammer from restraint by the automatic sear. i

When the principles of the invention are applied to` a pistol, the Agrip is preferably formed so as to permit an auxiliary shoulder stock to be secured to the portion 5i thereof in any desired manner. Such a stock may be advantageously used to help steady the gun when it is being recl fully automatically.

`The operation of the pistol as a semi-automatic firearm may be readily understood from yFigs. 2 and 3. For operation in this manner the camming member 3l is placed in its forward position so that it holds the camming head t@ in the position shown in these figures, this being accomplished by moving the latch 3b to its forward position of Fig. 1. Assuming that the pistol is cocked, as shown in Fig. 2, with the upper end of the sear i9 engaging the shoulder l@ on the hammer, retractionof the trigger and consequent rearward movement of the trigger bar will rotate the disconnector in a clockwise direction and in so rotating the wings thereon will engage with the lower end of the sear to eect e. similar rotation oi the sear to release the hammer. After the cartridge has been fired the bolt will automatically move rearward and in so doing the disconnector will be moved downward as the vcamming head 3d engages with itiI and the wings 25 will be moved out of engagement with the sear I9; this action will taire place even though the trigger is held in .retracted position. At this stage of the operation, shown in Fig. 3, the sear will be free from any control by the trigger and will be biased by the spring 26 to engage with the shoulder ES on the hammer when the latter has been rotated by the bolt to 4its fully cocked position. When the bolt moves rearward beyond the position of Fig. Sthe camming head 30 moves out of engagement with the disconnector, but, as the lower end of the sear i9 has already moved to the position ci Fig. 3,

the disconnector cannot move upward to position the wings 25 in front of the sear until the pressure on the trigger is released to permit counterclockwise rotation of the disconnector. As the bolt reciprocated, the automatic sear Il@ was moved into engagement with the hammer and then released from such engagement as the bolt head 30. This permits the head 30 to move tol the top of the groove 28 where it cannot engage and operate the disconnector as the bolt reciprocate's. If the gun'is cocked andloaded, re-

traction of the trigger will release the sear it and permit the hammer to strike the firing pin.

After the cartridge has been ilred the bolt will p move rearwardly but the disconnector will not be operated and consequently the sear 59 remains under the control of the trigger, see Fig. d. As the bolt moves to its full rearward position it rotates the hammer to cocked position and as it moves forward the hammer will be held cocked by the automatic sear d. As the bolt reaches its breeched position the cam surface t@ thereon will operate the automatic sear to release the hammer. The hammer will strike a positive blow on the nring pin to nre the cartridge which has been fed into the barrel chamber. 'libris automatic ring will continue as long as the supply of cartridges in the magazine lasts and the trigger is held retracted'. Yll'he automatic iiring may be stopped at any time by simply releasing thc pressure on the trigger to permit the scar It to operate in the usual manner to hol the lhammer cocked. Alternative forms of the invention willbe apparent to those skilled in the art, and I do not mean to limit myself to any particular embodient except as defined in the claims. `what I claim is: f l. An automatic rearm comprising in coin-` bination, a frame, a barrel, `a bolt automatically. reciprocable upon nrlng, a firing member, a sear tion, trigger mechanism, means for prevemtingH doubling of shots, and adjustable means on the `bolt ad'ecting the operation oi the first-mentioned means for rendering the same operative or inoperative whereby the firearm may be selectively operated in either a semi or fully automatic manner. l

2. .an automatic llrearm comprising in combination, a frame, a barrel., a bolt automatically reciprocable upon ring, a firing member, a sear for holding the nring member in cocked position, trigger mechanism, movable means on the frame for preventing doubling of shots, and means on the bolt movable to and Yfrom a position in which said mst-mentioned means is automatically actuated thereby upon reciprocation of the bolt whereby the nrearm may be selectively operated in either a semi or fully automatic manner.

3. An automatic rearm comprising in com.- bination, a irame, a barrel, a bolt automatically reciprocable upon. ring, a nring member, a sear for holding the ring member in cocked position, trigger mechanism, movable means on the frame for preventing doubling of shots, means on the bolt movable to and from a position in which said mst-mentioned means is automatically actuated thereby upon reciprocation of the bolt, and readily accessible means on the bolt for adjusting the position of said second-mentioned means whereby the rearm may be selectively operated. in either a semi or fully automatic manner.

4. An automatic 4irearrn comprising in combination', a frame, a barrel, a bolt automatically reciprocable from and to breeched position upon ring, a ring member, a scar for normally .holding the firing member in cocked position during movement of the bolt'tobreeched position, trisger. mechanism, a disconnector mounted in the frame. and normally constituting a connecting means betweenY the trigger mechanism and the Sear, said disconnector bgig normally engageable by the bolt upon recip vcation of the latter to be moved thereby to a positiodin which-it is not so positioned as to'connect thetrigger mechanism and the sear to thereby prevent doubling of shots, and means for rendering the disconnector inoperative for preventing such doubling of shots by remaining in a position so as to connect the trigger mechanism and sear throughout the reciprocatory movement of the bolt whereby the rearm may be selectively operated in either a semi or fully automatic manner.

t. An automatic rearm comprising in comlai` nation, a frame, a barrel, a bolt automatically reciprocable from and to breached' position upon ilring, a firing member, a sear for normally holding the tiring member in cocked position during movement of the bolt to breeched position, trigger mechanism, a disconnector mounted in the frame and normally constituting a connecting` means between the trigger mechanism and thel sear, said disconnector and bolt each including portions normally so positioned relatively to each other that the disconnector is engageable by the bolt upon reciprocation of the latter to be moved thereby to a position in which the disconnector is not so positioned as to connect the trigger mechanism and the sear to thereby prevent' doubling of shots, and means for. changing the relative positions of the engageable portions of the bolt and disconnector so as to prevent the engagement of said portions to thereby render the disconnector inoperative for preventing doubling of shots whereby the firearm may be selectively operated in either a semi or fully automatic manner.

6. An automatic firearm comprising in combination, a frame, a barrel, a bolt automatically reciprocable upon firing, a tiring member, a sear for holding the iiring member in cocked position, trigger mechanism for releasing the sear, a disconnector movable in the frame from and to a position in which it constitutes a con necting means between -the trigger mechanism and the sear, and adjustable means on the bolt movable to and from a position in which said disconnector is automatically actuated thereby upon reciprocation of the bolt whereby the firearm may be selectively operated in either a senil or fully automatic manner.

'1. An automatic ilrearm comprisingin combination, a frame, a barrel, a bolt automatically reciprocable upon firing, a firing member, a sear for holding the ilring member in cocked position,-,

trigger mechanism for releasing the sear, a disconnector movable in the frame' from and to a position in which it constitutes a connecting means between the trigger mechanism 'and the sear, means on the bolt movable to.and from a position in which said' disconnector is'automatically actuated thereby upon reciprocation of the bolt, and readily accessible means for .adjusting the position of said means on the bolt whereby the ilrearm may be selectively operated in either a semi or fully automatic manner.

8. An automatic rearm comprising in combination, a frame, abarrela bolt automatically recipropable upon firing, a firing member, a sear for holding the ilring member in cocked position, trigger mechanism for releasing the sear, a disconnector movable in the frame from and to a position in which it constitutes a connecting means between Athe trigger mechanism and the sear, means .on the bolt movable to and from a position in which said disconnector is automatically actuated thereby upon reciprocation of the bolt, means for adjusting the position of said means on the bolt whereby the firearm may be selectively operated in either a semi or fully automatic manner, and means for moving said second named means to its adjusting positions and for positively holding it in said positions. 9. An automatic firearm comprising in combination, a frame, a barrel, a bolt automatically reciprocable upon iiring, a tiring member, a sear engageable with the tiring member for holding the same in cocked position, trigger mechanism, means for preventing doubling of shots, means on the bolt for rendering the mst-mentioned means operative or inoperative whereby the nrearm may be selectively operated in either a semi or vfully automatic-manner, a second sear for holding the ilring member in cocked position, and means for automatically releasing the secord sear upon movement of the bolt to breeched position.

10. An automatic firearm comprising in combination, a frame, a barrel, a bolt automatically reciprocable upon firing, a tiring member, a sear for holding the tiring member in cocked position, trigger mechanism for releasing the sear, a disconnector movable in the frame from andto a position in which it constitutes a connecting means between the trigger mechanism and the sear, adjustable means on the bolt movable to and from a position in which said disconnector is automatically actuated thereby upon reciprocation ot the bolt wherebysthe firearm may be selectively operated in either a semi or fully automatic manner, a second sear i'or holding the ilring member in cocked position, and means for automatically releasing the second sear upon movement of the bolt to breeched position.

-wrLLIAM L..'swARTz.