US2341299A - Firearm - Google Patents

Description

Patented F eb. 8, 1944 s FIREARM y `lohn E. Sweany, Sonoma, Calif., assignor to Remington Arms Company, Inc.,

of Delaware a corporation Application December 30, 1939, Serial No. r311,775

(Cl. Lft2-69) 8 Claims.

This invention relates to firearms and particu#l larly the re control mechanism thereof.

In the use of shoulder and hand guns it is deA sirable that the action of the trigger and the ring mechanism be such that the trigger pull will be smoooth and that the person using the same as he pulls the trigger will not be aware of the precise moment at which the gun will re. Previously this has required a smoothness of iinish of the operating parts or a design that eliminates notches or uneven places over which one of the parts must be pulled by the trigger. It is likewise necessary that a sufficient force be required to be exerted upon the trigger to insure safety in the use of the weapon so that it will not re before the user wishes to re the gun or has it vaimed properly. For safe purposes it is generally considered that a trigger pull of three pounds is the minimum desirable. It is also necessary that the parts be so arranged and constructed that the gun will not be accidentally fired by a sudden jar or by dropping. The invention contemplates an improvement in previous triggers by the provision of a mechanism in which the trigger has a very small travel and in which there is no perceptible movement after the trigger has been pulled suiciently to release the firing mechanism. Excess movement after the trigger has released the ring mechanism and the usual free movement accompanying the same, due to the fact that the tension ofl the striker spring and the friction of the surfaces is not being pulled against` causes the user of the gun frequently to pull the gun momentarily 01T the desired aiming point, resulting in poor marksr'nanship. The movement of the parts in the operation of the invention is such as to give the desired smooth trigger pull with the minimum of machining and fitting of the parts.

With these and other objects in view the invention comprises certain novel devices and arrangements of devices representative embodiments of which are shown in the accompanying drawing.

In the drawing:

Fig. 1 is an elevation partially in section showing one form of trigger mechanism mounted in a conventional firearm.

Fig. 2 is an elevation partially in section showing the details of the trigger mechanism of Fig. l.

Fig. 3 is an elevation partially in section showing the details of a modification of the trigger mechanism of Fig. 1.

Fig. 4 is an elevation partially in section showwill continue to its ineffective ing the details of another modification of the trigger mechanism of Fig. 1.

Fig. 5 is a fragmentary view of the spring and auxiliary sear of Fig. 4 showing the relation of the partsas the auxiliary sear is rotated. A

In the conventional rearm, a striker or other impact means', usually operated by a spring, is employed to cause a ring pin to strike. the primer of la cartridge placed in the chamber of the gun. In a bolt action rifle, for example, o peration of the parts, such as the opening of the bolt, pulls the striker backward and compresses the striker spring. A sear holds the striker or impact firing device in a vcocked position in readiness for releasing to re the cartridge. The sear in turn is operatively connected to a triggerv'in such a Way that when the trigger is'pulled, the sear releases the impact firing means, allowing it to go forward to cause the cartridge to be red. The sear, which contacts the striker or impact firing device inA this invention, may be pivotally mounted in such a manner that the force ofthe striker spring acting upon the sear tends to rotate the sear to an inelective position, thereby releasing the striker. An intermediate means is provided to hold the scar in its effective position against the action of the striker spring, and a trigger with associated mechanism disengages the auxiliary sear when the trigger is pulled. Means are employed to limit the motion ofthe trigger -so that the movement thereof will be small and the motion `after the sear has been released will be substantially nil. The auxiliary sear, once it has been released by the trigger, position under the inuence of the movement of the pivoted sear. It is to be understood that Where the word striker is used herein, that itmeans any spring pressed ring device used to cause the ring of the cartridge. It is also to be understood that the fire control andtrigger mechanism disclosed herein may be applied to any of the conventional type firearms, either shoulder` or hand guns.

Referring now to Fig.y 1 in detail, Hl is a conventional barrel having a chamber ll into which a cartridge l2 may be inserted, a rimre cartridge of the conventional type being shown for thel purpose of illustration. A firing pin i3 is capable of being driven forward by a striker spring it acting through the striker or other mea-ns l5, upon release of the striker by the sear l5. As pointed out, however, this sear may contact any type of spring pressed mechansim. used to re the cartridge. For purposes of illustration, a conventional rotating bolt l'I is shown which contains the striker and spring parts just described and which can be rotated and drawn backwardly to extract the cartridge, eject it and to open the chamber for the loading of new cartridges either by hand or from the magazine 66. A receiver I8 may have the barrel I fastened thereto in any conventional manner, the receiver carrying the bolt and its component parts just described. A stock I9 is provided which has a rearwardly extending part 20 of a conventional type Aand onto which the receiver and associated parts are held by the bolts 2l and 22. A trigger guard 23 is provided which surrounds the trigger 24. A frame 25 is tted into the receiver and aperture in the stock, said frame carrying the trigger, sear and related parts about to be described. It is to be understood, however that the frame is not necessary for the proper functioning of the invention, as the parts may be mounted directly in the receiver or in any other desired manner. The sear pivot pin 2liy may be used to support the frame in position Ain the gun, and at the forward end of the frame a sear housing pin 21 may be employed to hold the front end of the frame in position and may also have otherdesired functions, such as to hold the ejector in position.

l Referring more particularly to Fig. 2 which is a sectional view of the trigger mechanism shown in Fig. 1, the sear I6 is pivotally mounted on sear pivot pin 26, the engagement of the face 28 with the striker shoulder 30 being such that the force of the striker spring I4 tends to rotate the sear I6 in a counter-clockwise direction or to ineffective position. A stop pin 3l may be provided to limit the movement of the sear in an upward direction, and a sear spring 32 tends to move the sear to its effective position, said spring being adjustable by the screw means 33. An auxiliary sear 34 is pivoted at 35 and the face 36 thereof engages the face on shoulder 31 of the sear I6 to hold the sear in its effective position. The auxiliary sear spring 38 tends to rotate the auxiliary sear in a clockwise direction and to effective position blocking the movement of the sear. The screw 39 serves as an adjustable means for the auxiliary sear spring 38. The trigger 24 is pivoted at 40 and is connected to the auxiliary sear by means of the connecting link 4|, said connecting link fitting into an aperture 42 in the auxiliary sear 34 and in aperture 43 in the upper end of the trigger 24, the fit in these apertures being a loose fit for the purpose that will appear presently. The movement of the trigger 24 is limited by the trigger adjusting screw 44 and the trigger stop screw 45. In operation, assuming that the striker has been retracted and is held in cocked position by the sear in readiness to be fired, the auxiliary sear 34 will contact the face 31 of the sear, holding the sear in its effective position. Upon pulling the trigger 24, the movement thereof will be transmitted through the loose connecting link 4| to the auxiliary sear 34, rotating the auxiliary sear in a counter-clockwise direction against the tension of auxiliary sear spring 38. As the face 3B of auxiliary sear leaves the face 31 of the sear, the striker spring will rotate the sear in a counter-clockwise direction and towards the ineffective position. The auxiliary spring 38 will allow the auxiliary sear to continue its rotation in the counter-clockwise direction under the influence of the sear as it continues its downward movement, even though the trigger has been stopped by the trigger stop screw 45, the loose connecting link 4I and its loose mounting in the apertures 42 and 43 of the auxiliary sear tation of the auxiliary sear.

and trigger, respectively, allowing this further ro- In the adjustment of the trigger mechanism, the striker is placed in the cocked position, the trigger stop screw 45 retracted and the adjusting screw 44 advanced until the trigger mechanism is released. At this point, the trigger stop screw 45 may be tightened so that the trigger will only move to the point at which the sear is released. Then the adjusting screw 44 can be retracted to give the desired trigger movement which, as can be seen, may be very smal although the movement of the trigger can be adjusted to any amount desired. Adjusting screw 39 may be adjusted so as to give the desired pull necessary on the trigger to release the sear. The relation of the surfaces 35 of the auxiliary sear and the surface 31 of the sear may be such that a substantially sliding motion takes place as the trigger is released, giving a smooth action to the mechanism. These surfaces are made parallel, as shown, when at rest and are arranged so that the sliding motion is substantially between smaller surfaces. The angle of contact of the striker and the sear is made such that the component of force directed downwardly and acting between surfaces 36 and 31 is small. The force acting between said surfaces is also lessened by the sear spring 32. If desired, by rearrangement of parts, the contact between the sear and auxiliary sear may be made to occur at a greater distance from the pivot point 26 of the sear than the point of Contact of the sear and the striker. This would then give a still smaller load between the faces as the moments about the pivot 26 would be the same and the lever arm to the point of contact of 3f and 31 greater than the other arm with the resultant smaller force existing therebetween. In the forms shown in Figs. 3 and 4 such an arrangement of lever arms is found. These factors combine to give a smooth trigger pull and allow adjustment of spring 38 to accurately give that desired.

Referring now to Fig. 3, a modification of the form shown in Figs. l and 2 will be described. A frame 45 thereof performs a similar function to the frame 25 of the modification in Figs. l and 2, and may be held in place in the gun by the pivot pin 26 and sear housing pin 21 or in any other suitable manner. The sear 41 is similar to the sear I6 of Figs. 1 and 2 and is acted upon by the striker in a similar manner, which tends to rotate it to the ineffective position. An auxiliary sear 48 is provided to prevent the movement of sear 41 to ineffective position until o-perated by the trigger. The sear 48 has a surface 49 which contacts the surface 5l) of the sear 41. A pin 5I serves to guide the auxiliary sear 43 in its sliding movement and is located substantially underneath the point of contact of the auxiliary sear and the sear, thus requiring a positive sliding movement by the trigger to release the sear. The extension 52 of the auxiliary sear 48 fits into a suitable aperture 53 in the end 54 of the trigger 55, said trigger being pivoted at 56. A spring 51 is attached at one end to the auxiliary sear 48 and at the other end to the end 54 of trigger 55, said spring tending to pull the auxiliary sear towards the end 54 of the trigger 55, but being yieldable for the purpose which will appear presently. The trigger 55 has a spring 58 which is integral therewith and may be made by machining a slot in the solid material of the end 54 of the trigger 55, thereby separating the free end therefrom, and may be heat treated if necessary to impart the proper spring tension thereto.

An adjustable screw 59 with aconical point. 60 bears against the free end of the spring 58 and the. tension exerted upon the trigger 55 may be adjusted by moving the screw 59 toward or away from the spring. An adjustable trigger stop 6l and adjustable trigger means S2 is provided similar to those described above for Figs. 1 and 2, and the trigger is adjusted in a like manner. In operation, as the trigger 55 is pulled, the motion thereof is transmitted to the extension 52 of the auxiliary sear 8, forcing it to the left, as viewed in Fig. 3, until such point is reached that the surface 49 slides 01T of the surface 50 of sear lil, allowing the striker spring to move the sear away from the line of movement of the impact iring device. At this point, the movement of the sear downwardly, acting upon the sloping surface d3 o f the auxiliary sear 48, will tend to move the auxiliary sear still further, and movement thereof takes place because of the spring 5'! and loose connection at 53 in the upper part of the trigger 55, the trigger having been stopped by stop means 5l immediately upon the release of the sear lil. It is seen that a smooth sliding action is provided with a small movement of the trigger only, the auxiliary sear being carried further because of the yielding connection between the auxiliary sear and the trigger. The spring also serves to return the auxiliary Sear to effective position.

As noted above for Figs. l and 2, the force exerted by surface 59 of the Sear upon surface 49 of the pivoted sear is small due to the angle of engagement of the striker with the sear and the sear spring 6l. the point of contact of surfaces 49 and 50 is more remote from the pivot 25 than is the point of engagement of the sear with the striker, thus further reducing the pressure existent between surfaces 49 and 5l). y

A still further modification is found in Fig, 4 wherein the sear E@ is pivoted at 26 in a manner similar to that shown in Figs. 1 to 3, and is urged downwardly by the action of the striker spring when it is cocked. A sear spring 65 tends to move the sear upwardly to eiective position, but is weaker than the striker spring and the angles of engagement are such that the striker spring will overcome this upon the release of the sear.

An auxiliary pivoted Sear 68, pivoted at 59, engages surface 'lll of sear 64 at 1l. A connecting link or strut 'l2 is loosely mounted in appropriate apertures 73 and 'ld in the auxiliary sear 68 and trigger 15 respectively. A spring l5, which may be in the form of a substantially circular a wire, slidably passes through an aperture 'l'l extending through the auxiliary sear 68. The opposite end of the spring is xed and may be l'attached to an adjustable means 'I8 by having the end of the spring turned around a reduced portion 'i9 of the screw 18. The spring may be made square or other equivalent shape if desired. The trigger 'l5 is provided with a trigger adjusting means 8D anda stop pin 8|. The action of these is similar to that previously described for Figs. l to 3 inclusive. The stop pin 8.! may be tightly iitted into an aperture, such as 82 in the trigger i5, there being provided a suitable abutment 33 against 'which it acts. In the adjustment of this type of stop means, the stop pin is inserted in aperture 82 and allowed to extend further than the final adjusted position requires, the t being such that the pin remains in place. Then the adjusting means 8S is advanced until the mechanism releases the striker, the stop pin having contact- As is shown in this modification x ed the abutment 83 "and there lbeing vsuilicient force'exerted by screw 80 to force the pin into the aperture-82. Consequently, when the striker isrelefased, the stop pin 8l will-occupy the correct position in the aperture 82 and in relation to abutment 83 so that the trigger will `not move after release of the striker. It is apparent that in the event readjustment is necessary that the pin 8| may be again driven outwardly and the operation repeated, the fit between the pin and aperture being such that the force exerted on the trigger in firing the weapon will not disturb the relationship.

In operation, assuming that the striker is cocked and held in place by the sear 64, a pull on the trigger will tend to rotate the auxiliary sear 68 through the loosely'mounted connecting link l2. As soon as surface l! has passed the edge of Il), the sear will rotate -about its pivot and the downward movement thereof will rotate auxiliary sear 68 further about its pivot, the loosely mounted connecting link 'l2 allowing this without further movement of trigger 'l5 which, in the preferred adjustment, will stop at the instant the sear is released. I

The spring'l, as previously stated, is slidably held in the aperture 'll of the pivoted sear 58. Referring particularly now to Fig. 5, the full lines indicate the position ofthe pivoted sear when in the eiective or holding position for the sear 54. When the trigger is pulled the pivoted sear 68 is rotated counter clockwise, the motion of the trigger being transmitted through the loosely `mounted link l2, whereby the spring will be flexed upwardly as at 18, shown exaggerated in dotted lines in Fig. 5, the spring sliding through the aperture as depicted. It is noted that the aperture 11 of the pivoted sear is close to the pivot 69, so that the rotating motion of the pivoted sear imparts considerable bend to the spring. The iiexingr of the spring puts a tension upon the pivoted sear tending to return it to its original position. As soon as the sear has been returned upwardly by the sear spring 65 after the parts have been cocked or are in their red position, the spring 16 will return the pivoted sear 6-8 to its eiective or holding position for the sea-r 64 because the spring will tend to straighten out and cannot 'so do until the pivoted sear has returned to the initial position. The aperture through the pivoted sear closely approximates the diameter or size of the spring 'I6 so that the rotary motion of the pivoted sear will properly ex the spring l5. The opposite end of the spring 'I6 is held as described by the adjusting screw '18, and by moving the screw 18 downwardly (as viewed in Figs. 4 and 5), it is apparent that more tension is placed upon the pivoted sear, tending to return it to its effective position, which therefore will require more pressure to be placed upon the trigger to release the pivoted sear and thus govern the pull necessary to be given the trigger.

As it has Ipreviously been explained in connection with Figs. l to 4, the force existent between surfaces 'lll and l will be small so that the trigger pull will be smoothand the force necessary to be exerted thereon may be accurately governed by the tension placed upon spring 16 by means of the adjusting screw '18. In each of the modications of Figs, l to 5, the bolt may be taken from the gun by pulling on the trigger, thereby releasing the auxiliary sear and .jerking the bolt backwards, the usual stop, such as shown in Loomis, No. 2,125,350, thereon forcing the sear downwardly and allowing its withdrawal from the gun. Similarly, when it is desired to return the bolt to the gun, the trigger may be -held displaced and the bolt put into the gun, the

sear again allowing the passage thereover by the bolt stop.

If the parts are mounted in a frame as shown, it is apparent that they may be assembled and adjusted in part independently of the gun into which they are to be placed.

It is evident that the engaging surfaces of the various parts may be made square, if desired, and without particular care in the finish thereof due to the sliding action of the parts.

It can be seen therefore that a trigger mecha-- nism has been provided herein which may bc easily constructed and assembled and yet has all of the desirable attributes of a trigger mechanism required on a weapon to be used for accurate Inarksmanship. The smoothness of pull required, the small force existent between the faces to be disengaged, the ease of adjustment. the small travel necessary, the lack of overtravel, and the inherent safety of the trigger make it particularly desirable for weapons to be used where accurate marksmanship is required.

It is to be understood that the specific embodiments of the invention described are typical and illustrative only and are susceptible to embodiment in a variety of forms, all falling within the scope of the appended claims.

What is claimed is:

l. In a firearm, in combination, a spring impelled striker; a sear normally engaging said striker, the sear and striker being so constructed and arranged that the sear is urged away from the striker; a restraining means in contact with said sear; a pivoted trigger; means carried and guided by said trigger for transmitting movement of the trigger to the restraining means, said movement transmitting means being supported by and separably connected to said restraining means whereby the latter may be moved by said sear independently of said trigger; means to limit the movement of the trigger to a relatively small amount; and means on said sear for moving the restraining means after the sear has been released while the trigger is pulled.

2. In a firearm, in combination, a spring impelled striker; a pivoted scar normaly engaging said striker, the sear and striker being so constructed and arranged that the sear is urged away from the striker, said sear having a planar surface, said striker spring tending to move said sear to ineffective position; a restraining means having a planar surface normally abutting said Sear planar surface; a support for said restraining means, said support lying in a plane substantially perpendicular to one of said planar surfaces; a pivoted trigger; separablesconnections from said trigger to said restraining means whereby movement of the trigger is transmitted positively to the restraining means during initial movement, the separable connections comprising a strut supported by said restraining means and separably connected to one of said parts to be connected; and a spring connected to said restraining means urging said restraining means toward said trigger thereby permitting additional movement of the restraining means by said sear independently of said trigger; and means on said sear for moving the restraining means after the sear has been released while said trigger is pulled.

3. In a firearm, in combination, a spring impelled striker; a pivoted sear normally engaging said striker and having a planar surface, the sear and striker being so constructed and arranged that said striker spring tends to move said sear away from the striker to ineffective position; a restraining means having a planar surface normally abutting said sear planar surface; a support for said restraining means, said support 1ying in a plane substantially perpendicular to one of said planar surfaces; a pivoted trigger; separable connections between said trigger and said restraining means, said separable connections comprising a thrust member supported by said restraining means and normally abutting and supported for movement relative to one of the parts to be connected; a spring member normally holding said part in contact with said thrust member but adapted to yield to enable said relative movement; and means on said sear for movingr the restraining means after the sear has been released while said trigger is pulled.

4. In a firearm, a spring biased striker; a pivoted sear therefor; a spring urging the sear into eective position, said last-mentioned spring being weaker than the first-mentioned spring; a pivoted restraining means for the sear having a spring therefor tending to move the restraining means to effective position; a pivoted trigger; separable connections between said trigger and restraining means, said separable connections being supported and carried by said restraining means and said trigger, whereby said last-mentioned spring can be overcome, thereby rotating the restraining means to ineffective position and releasing the sear so that the first-mentioned spring will move the sear to ineffective position; and means on said sear for moving said sear restraining means independently of said trigger after said restraining means has been moved -by said trigger to Sear releasing position.

5. In a firearm, a spring biased striker; a pivoted Sear therefor, the engagement of the sear and striker being inherently unstable so that the striker spring tends to move the sear to ineective position; a pivoted restraining means for maintaining the sear in effective position; a spring tending to maintain said restraining means in effective position, said spring comprising a wire one end of which slidably passes through ahole in the restraining means close to the pivot thereof; an adjustable holding means for the end of the vwire away from the restraining means, said wire being substantially straight when the restraining means is in effective position and being flexed when the restraining means moved to ineffective position.

6. In a firearm, a pivoted trigger therefor, a tightly fitting pin carried in an aperture in the trigger, an abutment for said pin to limit the movement of the trigger in one direction, a readily adjustable means to limit the movement of the trigger in the opposite direction, said adjustable means being movable to position the pin in said aperture by advancing the trigger and pin against said abutment.

'7. In a firearm, in combination; a spring impelled striker; a pivoted trigger; a pivoted sear normally engaging said striker, the sear and striker being so constructed and arranged that the sear is urged away from the striker; a slidably lmounted restraining means for normally engaging said scar; connecting means between said restraining means and trigger, said connecting means being loosely supported by said trigger to positively transmit initial movement of the trigger to the restraining means; yieldable means connected between said trigger and restraining means to allow movement of the restraining means independently of the trigger and means on said sear to move said restraining means while l the trigger is pulled.

8. In a rearm, in combination; a pivoted trigger; a spring impelled striker; a, pivoted sear nore mally engaging said striker, the sear and striker being so constructed and arranged that the sear is urged away from the striker, said sear having a planar surface; a slidably mounted restraining means having a planar surface abutting said sear planar surface; a. support for slidably guiding said restraining means relative to said sear planar surface, said support lying in a plane substantially perpendicular to one of said planar surfaces; connecting means between said restraining means and trigger, said connecting means being loosely supported by said trigger to positively transmit initial movement of the trigger to the restraining means; yieldable means connected between said trigger and restraining means to allow moving of the restraining means independently of the trigger; and means on said sear for moving the restraining means after the sea-r has been released while the trigger is pulled.

JOHN B. SWEANY.

Images