US2551166A - Safety mechanism for firearms - Google Patents

Description

W. C. ROEMER ETAL SAFETY-MECHANISM FOR FIREARMS May 1,1951

3 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed Dec. 31, 1946 .ihunHulhEunrl l. l

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Mayl, 1951 K W. C. ROEMER ETAL SAFETY-MECHANISM FOR FIRERMS 5 Sheets-Sheet 5 Filed Dec. 31, 1946 Patented May 1, 1951 UNITED STATES .TENT GFFI'C Lines, Hamden, Conn., assignors to; Olin Industries, Inca, New Haven, Conn., a. corporation of Delaware Application December- 31, 1946, Seral'No; 719,578

(c1. ltgz-'70)l is claims.

The present invention relates in generali to. iirearrns and more particularly to safety-mechanisms for firearms to prevent inadvertent' discharge of the latter.

An object of the invention is to provide animproved safety-mechanism for firearms wherein the safety-mechanism is operated automatically to lock the ring-mechanism each time the action is closed.

A further object of the invention is to provide a superior action-operated safety-mechanism for rearms.

A further object is to provide a bolt-action firearm with a superior safety-mechanism which automatically locks the trigger as the bol-t is being moved into` breech-closing position, and man-ually-operatedv means cooperativelyassociated with the safety-mechanism to move thev latter out o-f engagement With the trigger so as to permit manipulation of the trigger after the bolt is locked in breech-closing position.

A still further obj eet of the invention isV topro-u vide a superior bolt-operated automatic safetymechanism for firearms which', when moved intoV operative position by the bolt, will remain there-- in until manually released; andI manuallyoperated means cooperatively associated with the safety-mechanism to indicate thel safe and1v firing positions respectively of the latter and' to renderit inoperative so as to permit the firearm to be red after thebolt is locked in breech-- closing position.

A still further object of the invention is tol prof vide a firearm with a superior action-operated automatic safety-mechanism which is character-'- ized by its elementary structure and its simplie-- ity and economy of manufacture.

With the above and other objects in` view, as will appear to those skilled in the art from the present disclosure, this invention includes all features in the said disclosure which are: novel over the prior art.

In the accompanying drawings, in Whichcer-` tain. modes of carrying out the present. invention are. shown for illustrative purposes:

Fig. I is a broken view in: side elevation and'. partly in section ofi an upturn-and-pulflbacki bolt-y action rearm in which the present invention is: incorporated, the stock andasso'ciated parts bee' ing omitted and the: safety-mechanism being.l

shown in its l-ring position;

Fig.. 2 is a sectional end elevation on line 2-2: of Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 is a sectional end elevation on line 31-*f3rI of Fig. 1;

Fig.. 4L is. similar to Fig.. L but shows the posi-` tions which. the elements. of. the safety-mecha: nism assumeI as the breech-:bolt isi moving into breech-closing. position;

Fig.. 5 is a. view:v corresponding: to Fig 4s. but. showing they positions which they elements of. the safety-mechanism. assume. when the bolt is locked inA breechfclosing position;

Fig. 6 is a bottom view of the breech-bolt partly inl section and showing the. relative; posi-:.1 tions of the safety-'operating cam-slot sleeve-element. of the breech-bolt and1 arr ele-- ment of the safety-mechanism when. the: sleeve has been rotated into thebreechebolt-locking'" position of Fig. 1.;

Fig; 'Z isa fragmentary View of. the breechebolt;

shown in Fig; 6 but with the sieeve-element oi?! the breech-bolt in its unlocked position of Fig; 4L the cam-slotoi. the; sleeve being shown out ot engagement. with the element of the. saiety= mechanism.;

Fig. 8 is a perspective View` of the; breech-bolt sleeve showing the safety-operating cam-slot. therein;

Fig. 9 is a perspective view of the scar-andtrigger unit including the sear=notcli which is formed as an integral part'- of the trigger.;

Fig. I-0` is'- a perspectiv` View of the novei safety-slide-of this inventi' Fig. 1i islaperspectiveview oithe-nger-piece for manually operating'the slide of the safetyef mechanism'.`

The safety-mechanism of the present inverrn tion issuitable for use in connection with varices iii-'earmstructures but the particular rearrfi herein chosen forl illustration is of the so-ca-lle'clA upturnandpullback' bol'taction type. The

said firearm includes a receiver 2'0- of tubular form intoI the forward end of whichthe` r'ear' of a barrel 2| isthreaded.- The receiver Ellis also provided. with an axial bolt-receiving passagey 22", the forward upper portion oiiwhi'ci is intersected by a loading-and-ejection opening 23;.

Mounted in the bolt-receivingpassage 22l of the receiver `2f] with capacity' for` reciprocatior'r` therein is a cylindrical bolt- 24a The cylindrical?- bolt 24 is ofA coriventional:v construction and is described more iully' in Patent: No. 22,174,971' Crockett,. October' 1939'. Briey', however, the. bolt comprises: a ming-plunger 25, the? forward end of which.` is adapted! toC project through an..

eccentric. firing-points aperture; in the tace'.` oli the bolt; The ming-*plunger spring-pressed for@ wardlyl in the. bolty by theiorce of a coilespring 26 which. is mounted. inl a. concentrici axial. bora 21 in the rear end of the bolt, the rear end of the coil-spring 26 being retained therein by a plug 28 secured in the rear extremity of the bore 21 by a transverse pin 29. The forward end of the spring 26 is arranged to engage the Shoulder 30 of a cooking-projection 3| which extends downwardly from the underside of the firing-plunger. I'he firing-plunger 25 is also formed on its underside and forwardly of the cooking-projection 3| with a second projection 32 having a forwardly-facing Sear-shoulder 33 which is adapted to be engaged by a rearwardlyfacing shoulder 34 of a Sear-notch 35 formed upon the forwardly-extending substantiallyhorizontal reach 36 of the sear-and-trigger unit of the firing-mechanism generally designated by the reference character 31. Rearwardly of the projection 32, the bolt 24 is reduced in diameter to provide a cylindrical shoulder 90 Vand a cylindrical bearing-surface 38 for a breech-bolt operating-sleeve 39 which is rotatably mounted on the reduced rear-end portion 38 of the bolt and held from moving longitudinally thereon by the aforesaid shoulder 99 and a retaining-sleeve 4D, the latter being secured to the reduced rear end of the bolt by the aforesaid transverse pin 29. The breech-bolt operating-sleeve 39 is provided adjacent its forward end with a laterally-projecting operating-handle 4| which terminates in a ball-grip 42; and at its rear end with a camslot 43 which intersects the rear edge of the sleeve and is adapted to cooperatively engage the cocking-projection 3| of thespring-pressed ring-element to cock the latter in the usual manner by the upturn movement of the operating-handle 4|. The forward edge of the cylindrical bolt-operating sleeve 39 presents a substantially-square shoulder 44 which is intersected by a substantially-triangular-shaped safety-operating cam-slot 45. The leg 46 of the triangular cam-slot is substantially straight, whereas, the hypotenuse 41 of the triangular cam-slot is slightly arcuate and its cam-surface 48 slopes upwardly and outwardly, as indicated clearlyV in Fig. '1.

Referring to Fig. 9, the sear-and-trigger unit 31 embodies, in addition tothe scar-shoulder 34 ofthe Sear-notch 35,` a cartridge-ejector blade 49 formed at the forward extremity of the reach 36. The rear end of the sear-and-.trigger unit comprises a substantially-horizontal safety-slide supporting-ledge 50 having a trigger-release notch at its rearmost extremity. Formed substantially intermediate theopposite ends of the supporting-ledge 50 is an aperture 52 drilled or otherwise formed in the ledge and projecting downwardly substantially vertically into that portion of the sear-and-trigger unit which corresponds to the linger-piece orv trigger per se 53. The aperture 52 is adapted to vaccommodate a Sear-trigger spring 54 and plunger 55, the upper end ofl the latter being resiliently held by the spring 54 above the surface of the supportingledge 5|),` as indicated in Figs. 1, 4 and 5. Projecting upwardly from the forward end of the supporting-ledge 56 and formed as an integral part of the Sear-trigger' unit is a tongue 56 which is provided with a transverse aperture 51, adapted to receive a pin 58 for pivotally mounting the Sear-trigger unit in the' receiver 2|),A as indicated in Figs. 1 and 2. Provided in the tongue-portion 56 of the trigger-Sear unit 31 is a second transverse aperture 59 which is spaced below and somewhat forwardly ofthe pivot-pin aperture 51 and in which is secured a limit-pin 60, one

assign 4 end of which is flush with its respective face of the scar-trigger unit, the opposite end projecting laterally beyond its corresponding face of the trigger-Sear unit, as shown clearly in Figs. 2 and 3, and for the purpose hereinafter described.

Referring to Fig. 10, the principal element of the automatic safety-mechanism of this invention is indicated generally at 6| in Fig. 10 and comprises a sheet-metal slide consisting of a U-shaped saddle-portion 62 having spaced parallel side walls 63 and 64 and a top wall 65. Formed integrally with and extending rearwardly from the rear edge of the top wall 65 of the saddle-portion is an elbow 66 having a substantially-vertical depending trigger-locking arm 61 terminating in a substantially-square edge 68. The wall 63 of the saddle 62 has an integral forwardly-extending panel 69 which is provided with a substantially-rectangular slot 16 intersecting its upper edge. The opposite wall 64 of the saddle is provided with an integral forwardly-extending reach 1|. The reach 1| comprises an upwardly-projecting leg-portion 12 having a nose-portion 13 at its upper extremity which projects upwardly at substantially right angles to the longitudinal axis of the slide and has spaced parallel edges 16, the upper rear corner of the nose 13 being provided with a relief-notch indicated generally by the reference character 14 and comprising a substantiallyhorizontal flat 15 terminating at its rear end in the substantially-vertical rear wall or shoulder 11 of the nose 13, the lower end of the rear wall 11 being blended by a substantially-90 radius into the substantially-horizontal upper edge 18 of the leg 12. The upper edge 18 of the leg 12 is provided with a substantially-rectangular clearance-slot 19 which is forwardly of and considerably larger than the slot 16 in the opposite wall 63 of the saddle. As shown clearly in Fig. 10, the clearance-slot 19 comprises substantiallyvertical front and rear edges 36 and 8| respectively and a bottom edge 82, for the purposes hereinafter described.

Referring to Figs. 1, 4 and 5, the slide 6| of the automatic safety-mechanism is adapted to be mounted on the slide-supporting ledge 5U of the Sear-trigger unit 31 and to this end, the saddle 62 of the safety-slide is engaged over the ledge 50 with the opposite walls 63 and 64 of the saddle engaging on opposite sides respectively of the Sear-trigger unit. It will be noted, however, that the underside of the top wall 65 of the saddle does not slidingly engage the ledge 5U of the Sear-trigger unit but is held above the ledge 50 in vertically-spaced relationship thereto by engagement of the upper end of the spring-mounted plunger 55 with the underside of the top wall 65 of the saddle. Further, as assembled on the Sear-trigger unit, the laterally-proj ecting end of its transverse pin 60 is adapted to engage in the rectangular clearance-slot 19 of the reach 1| of the safetyslide. The latter is thus enabled to move forwardly and rearwardly with respect to the seartrigger unit, its longitudinal movement in either direction being limited by engagement of the projecting end of the pin 60 with the vertical edges and 8| respectively of the slot 19. Moreover, it will be noted that when the safety-slide is mounted on the scar-trigger unit the elbow 66 of the vslide is resiliently held in engagement with the underside of the receiver and constitutes, in effect, a fulcrum about which the slide mayenjoy limited pivotal movement. More particularly,

the nose 'i3 at the forward end of the slide, is free to swing downwardly. It will be noted Ahow.-

ever, that in the normal position of the slide, the.

lower edge 82 of the slot i9. of its reach 'il is resi'liently held in engagement with the projecting end of the transverse pin 50 by the force of the spring-loaded plunger 55 acting on the safetyslide 6! forwardly of its fulcrum-.elbow 66, as a consequence of which the slide has nov pivotal movement upwardly or in a. counterclockwise direction from its position, as seen in Figs. 1, 4 and 5.

Referring to Figs. 2, 3 andk l1, the safety-slide 6i of the safety-mechanism is adapted tobe cooperatively associated with the manually-operated linger-piece 83 which is provided at one end with a knurled finger-engaging lip 841 and at its opposite end with a substantially-.rectangular key 85. Intermediate the opposite ends of the fingerpece 83' is an aperture S5 adapted to receive a screw 87 which is threadedly engaged in an aperture in the receiver wall and by which the fingerpiece 83 is pivotally secured to the outer wall of the receiver. As assembled on the receiver, the` finger-engaging lip 3d is uppermost and the key 85 is adapted to extend downwardly and inwardlyV into. engagement with the rectangular slot 10 of the safety-slide. Thus, by swinging the fingerpiece v forwardly and rearwardly manually, the safety-slide Si may be moved both rearwardly and forwardly respectively. Conversely, longitudinal movement of the slide rearwardly and forwardly respectively will impart pivotalmovement to the ringer-piece 83, the finger-engaging lip 84 of which is associated with suitable indices such as, for instancathe letters S and F engraved or otherwise formed in the adjacent wall of the receiver, to indicate the safe and firing positions respectively of the safety-slide 6|.

The operation of the improved safety-mechanism may be described briefly aS. follows:

In Fig. 1 the breech-bolt 24 is shown in breechclosing position, in which position, it hasbeen locked by turning down the operating-handle 4 L The ring-element has been cocked and is held in cocked position by engagement' of the searshoulder 33 of the firing-element withY theshoulder 34 of the Sear-notch 35 in the scar-trigger unit. It will be clear that the force of theseartrigger spring 54 acting on the plunger 5.5 to

thrust the latter upwardly into engagement with the saddle of the safety-Slide 6I rearwardly of the Sear-trigger unit; pivot-pin 58, tends to hold the forward end or* reach of the scar-triggerV unit upwardly, whereby the respective shoulders 33 and 34 of the ring-element and scar-trigger unit are resiliently held in mutual engagement, the latter being capable, however, of disengagement by pulling the trigger 5.3 rearwardly to dis'- place the Sear-shoulder 311 of the trigger. Moreover, the thrust ofthe plunger 55 acting. on the safety-slide 6| forwardly of its fulcrum-elbow. 66 tends to urge the forward end or nose 13 of the safety-slide upwardly into cooperative engagement with the cam-slot 45 of the bolt-operating sleeve 39, the fulcrum G6 of the trigger-locking arm 61 being held in engagement with the; underside of the receiver-unit. However, in Fig. 1, the safety-slide 6| has been moved into a position such that the Sear-trigger unit 37 is free to be pivoted downwardly about its pivot 58 to disengage the respective scar-engaging surfaces of the ring-element and Sear-notch. To this end, the linger-piece 83 of thesafety-mechanism has. been swung forwardly or clockwise manually', tl'iereby moving the safety-slide 6I rearwardly and posi.- tioning the lower edge 68 of the trigger-locking arm 61 opposite the trigger-release notch 5l: in the rear extremity of the ledge 50, whereby the trigger 53* is unlocked and may be pulled rearwardly, as indicated by the broken lines in Fig. 1,` to release the ring-element 25.

After the trigger has been pulled and the cartridge red, the firearm is reloaded in the customary manner by grasping the ball-terminal 42 of the operating-handle di and pulling it. upwardlyI and rearwardly. Referring again to Fig. l, when the breech-bolt 24 was locked in breechclosing position, the nose 'i3 of the safety-slideI 6| was engagedv in the triangular cam-slot 45 of the. operating-sleeve 39. Consequently, when the roperatin i,fsleeve is rotated to cock the firingelement and withdraw the. breech-bolt from breech-closing position, the adjacent edge 'la of the nose i3 is engaged and displaced downwardly by the sloping cam-surface @8 of the. camslot 5', which action pivots the safety-slidey Si downwardly clockwise about its fulcrum-elbow 66 against the resistance of the spring-mounted plunger 55, the upper edge of the nose 1.3 riding' on the. periphery ofthe forward end of the rotating operating-sleeve. On retracting thev bolt, the periphery of the bolt-operating sleeve rides off of the nose 73 of the safety-slide, whereupon the. spring-mounted plunger snaps the nose of they safety-slide back up into its normal position. It will be. noted, however, that. the safety-slide'l` has. not. been displaced' longitudinally from its firing position of Fig. l.

Assuming the bolt has been fully retracted byv the bolt-operating handle and the fired cartridger ejected by engagement with the ejector-blade 49 of the scar-trigger unit, a new cartridge may beloaded into the chamber of the barrel. As the bolt is advanced toward chamber-closing position, the shoulder 'I7 of thesafety-slide El. is engaged, rst, by a bolt radius. 88 which may' bedescribed as that cylindrical surface of revolution which blends the flat 89 on the bottom of the bolt 24 with the flat 960 of a cylindrical bolt-l shoulder 90 formed at the forward end of the reduced rear end 38 of the bolt, whereby the nose 'l3` of the safety-slide is again cammed downwardly slightly against the resistance providedby' the spring-pressed plunger 55 as the bolt moves' forwardly. Asa consequence of this action, the flat 900 of the cylindrical shoulder 9i) of the bolt moves. into the relief-notch 'M of the safetyslide nose. 13, with the iiat 'l5 of the latter in engagement with the flat 900 of the cylindrical bolt-shoulder 9d.

Referring to Figs. i` and 5, as the bolt 24- con-- tinues vforwardly` into chamber-closing position, the forward edge d4 of the operating-sleeve will be brought into engagement with the substantiallyvertical shoulder T! of the nose-i the safetyslide, whereupon the bolt picks up the safetyslide and moves it forwardly' positivelyl with respect to the scar-trigger unit, which longitudinal movement is permitted by the spacing of the vertical walls 8U and 8l of the clearance-slot 'I9 of` the safety-slide. With the initial forward movement of the safety-slide 6 I, the nger-piece 83, the key 85 of which is engaged in the slot. 'I0 of the safety-slide, will bev pivoted counterclockwise from its former firing position` to a positionl which is initially substantially intermediate its lining and safe" positions, as clearly shown in .'ig. 4. However, to insure safety, the position of the safety-slide 6I with respect to the scar-trigger unit at the time the finger-piece 83 is intermediate its firing and safe positions, is such that the lower end 68 of the trigger-locking arm 61 is actually in engagement with the rear extremity of the ledge 50 of the scar-trigger unit, whereby the trigger is locked, so as to prevent inadvertent release thereof before the bolt is fully locked in breech-closing position. It will be noted that with the respective elements of the bolt, safety-slide and scar-trigger unit in the relative positions shown in Fig. 4, the projecting end of the transverse limit-pin 6D is substantially intermediate the opposite edges 3B and 8l respectively of the clearance-slot 79 of `the safety-slide.

On completion of the breech-bolt locking operation, the additional forward movement of the bolt operating-sleeve 39 serves to move the slide 6I to its extreme forward position, in which position the pin 60 is in engagement, substantially, with the rear edge 8l of the clearance-slot 19, as shown clearly in Fig. 5. Moreover, the fingerpiece 83 has been pivcted ccunterclockwise to its extreme rearward position, thereby uncovering the index mark S on the receiver, so as to indicate that the safety is on. It will be noted, moreover, that the final forward movement of the safety-slide has brought the trigger-locking arm 61 forwardly further along-the ledge 50, the

lower edge 68 of the arm being fully seated thereon, so as to positively lock the trigger; and that the down swing of the operating-handle 4| has rotated the bolt-operating sleeve 39 clockwise and brought the cam-slot 45 thereof substantially opposite the nose 13 of the safety-slide 6 l. The firearm is now cocked for ring, but before doing so, the gunner must manually engage the lip 84 of the finger-piece 83 and pivot the latter clockwise to a position such as to uncover the index mark F on the receiver. In pivoting the finger-piece 83 clockwise, the safety-slide will be pulled rearwardly, thereby moving the triggerlocking arm-6l opposite the trigger-release notch I in the rear end of the trigger-ledge 5B and unlocking the trigger. Since the nose I3 of the safety-slide is substantially opposite the cam-slot 45 of the bolt-operating sleeve, the safety-slide may be moved rearwardly, the only resistance to the retraction of the safety-slide being that which is set up by the camming engagement of the upwardly-and-forwardly-inclined wall of its notch 14 with the bolt radius 88, the coaction of which lowers the upper edge of the nose 13 below and into contact with the bolt-flat 900 against the restraining force of the Sear-trigger spring 54. The resistance provided by the latter to the downward displacement of the nose 13 of the slide constitutes a detent for the finger-piece 83 whereby the latter is prevented from swinging forwardly and rearwardly freely about its pivot 8.1. Having swung the finger-piece 83 forwardly so as to snap the nose 'i3 of the safety-slide into cooperative engagementfwith the safety-operating cam-slot 45 of the operating-sleeve 39, the bolt-firing mechanism and Safety-mechanism are again in the relationship shown in Fig. 1. It will be evident, of course, that until the camslot 45 of the bolt-operating sleeve is opposite the nose 13 of the safety-slide, the latter cannot -be moved to firing position.

From a consideration of the foregoing description, it will be evident that the improved safetymechanism of this invention has few parts, all of which are relatively simple to fabricate and inexpensive to 'manufacturev lvloreover,V the safety-mechanism is superior in performance to safety-mechanisms which have heretofore been used and is characterized by its bolt-operated trigger-locking action, whereby the trigger is automatically locked each time the bolt of the firearm is moved into breech-closing position.

The invention may be carried out in other specific ways than those herein set forth without departing from the spirit and essential characteristics of the invention, and the present embodiments are, therefore, to be considered in all respects as illustrative and not restrictive, and al1 changes coming within the meaning and equivalency range of the. appended claims are intended to be embraced therein.

We claim:

1. A firearm including in combination: a reciprocable breech-bolt having a spring-pressed firing-element; bolt-operating means constructed and arranged to load the spring of said firingelement;l firing-mechanism arranged to releasably hold said spring-pressed firing-element in spring-loaded position; and safety-mechanism having a forwardly-extending deflectable noseportion arranged to extend up into the Vpath of said bolt-operating means so as to be actuated by said bolt-operating means as said breech-bolt isv moved into breech-closing position, the actuation of said safety-mechanism by said forwardly-moving bolt-operating means serving to engage and lock said firing-mechanism so as to prevent the release of said spring-loaded firingelement.

2. A firearm including in combination: a reciprocable breech-bolt having a spring-pressed firing element; bolt-operating means constructed and arranged to load the spring of s aid firing-element; firing-mechanism arranged to releasably hold said spring-pressed firing-element in springloaded position; safety-mechanism having a forwardly-extendingA deflectable nose-portion arranged to extend up into the path of said boltoperating means so as to be actuated by said boltoperating means as said breech-bolt is moved into breech-closing position, the actuation of said safety-mechanism by said forwardly-moving boltoperating means serving to engage and lock said firing-mechanism so as to prevent the release of said spring-loaded firing-element; and manuallyoperable means pivotally secured to said firearm, said means having articulated engagement with said safety-mechanism so as to disengage the latter from locking engagement with said firingmechanism.

3. A firearm including in combination: a reciprocable breech--bolt having a spring-pressed firing-element provided with a scar-shoulder; bolt-operating means constructed and arranged to load the spring of said firing-element and to move said bolt to and from breech-closing p'osition; firing-mechanism comprising a scar-trigger unit mounted on said firearm and provided with a Sear-notch arranged to cooperatively engage the Sear-shoulder of said firing-element to releasably hold said spring-pressed firing-element in spring-loaded position; a shoulder on said bolt-operating means; and safety-mechanism comprising a slide mounted on said seartrigger unit, said slide having a forwardly-extending deectable nose-portion arranged to extend up into the path of said bolt-operating means so asto be engaged by the shoulder of said boltoperating means as the latter moves said bolt 9 into breech-closing position thereby to automatically displace said slide relative to said scar-trigger unit to lock said scar-trigger unit and prevent displacement of said Sear-notch from the Sear-shoulder of said spring-loaded iiring-element.

4. A firearm including in combination: a reciprocable bolt having a spring-pressed ringelement provided with a scar-shoulder; bolt-operating means constructed and arranged to load the spring of said firing-element and to move said bolt to and from breech-closing position; firing-mechanism comprising a scar-trigger unit mounted on said firearm and provided with a Sear-notch arranged to cooperatively engage the Sear-shoulder of said firing-element to releasably hold said spring-pressed firing-element in springloaded position; a shoulder on said bolt-operating means; safety-mechanism comprising a slide mounted on said scar-trigger unit, said slide having a forwardly-extending deflectable noseportion arranged to extend up into the path of said bolt-operating means so as to be engaged by the shoulder of said bolt-operating means as the latter moves said bolt into breech-closing position thereby to automatically displace said slide relative to said Sear-trigger unit to lock said Sear-trigger unit and prevent displacement of said scar-notch from the Sear-shoulder of said spring-loaded firing-element; and manually-operated means pivotally secured to said firearm, said means having articulated engagement with said slide and arranged to displace said slide in a direction opposite to its direction of displacement by the shoulder of said bolt-operating means so as to unlock said Sear-trigger unit.

5. A bolt-action firearm including in combination: a receiver; a barrel connected to said receiver; a reciprocable breech-bolt mounted in said receiver and having a spring-pressed firingelement; breech-bolt operating-'means arranged to cock said spring-pressed firing-element and to move said breech-bolt into breech-closing position; firing-mechanism comprising a Sear-trigger unit arranged to releasably hold said springpressedr firing-element in cocked position; and safety-mechanism comprising a slide counted freely between said scar-trigger unit and said receiver, ysaid slide having a forwardly-extending deflectable nose-portion arranged to extend up into the path of said bolt-operating means so as to be moved automatically along said Sear-trigger unit by said breech-bolt operating-means as the latter moves said breech-bolt into breechclosing position, the actuationof said safetymechanism'by said forwardly-moving bolt-operating means serving to engage and lock said Sear-trigger unit so as to prevent the release of said cocked ring-element.

6. A bolt-action firearm including in combination: a receiver; a barrel connected to said receiver; a reciprocable breech-bolt mounted in said receiver and having a spring-'pressed Vfiring-element; breech-bolt operating-means yarranged to cock said spring-pressed firing-element and to move said breech-bolt into breech-closing position; iiring-mechanism comprising a Sear-trigger unit arranged to releasably hold said springpressed ring-element in cocked position; safetymechanism comprising a slide mounted freely between said scar-trigger unit and said receiver for reciprocable movement on said Sear-trigger unit, said slide having a fulcrum arranged to engage the underside of said receiver and a forwardly-extending nose-portion arranged to extend upwardly into the path of said bolt-operating means initially to be pivoted downwardly and subsequently to be moved'automatically along said Sear-trigger unit by said breech-bolt operating-means as the latter moves said breech-bolt into breech-closing position thereby to engage and lock said scar-trigger unit and prevent the release of said cocked firing-element; and manually-operated means pivotally secured to said receiver, said means having articulated engagement with said slide and arranged to displace said slide in a direction opposite to its direction of displacement by said bolt-operating means so as to unlock said Sear-trigger unit.

7. A bolt-action firearm including in combination: a receiver; a barrel connected to said receiver; a reciprocable breech-bolt mounted in said receiver and having a spring-pressed firingelement; breech-bolt operating-means arranged to cock said spring-pressed iiring-element andt move said breech-bolt into vbreech-closing position, :firing-mechanism comprising a Sear-trigger unit arranged to releasably hold said 'springpressed firing-element in cocked position; safetymechanismvcomprising a slide mounted freely between said sear-trigger unit and said receiver for reciprocable movement on said Sear-trigger unit, said slide having a forwardly-extending deflectable nose-portion arranged to extend up into :the path of said bolt-operating means so as to'be" moved automatically along said scar-trigger unit by said breech-bolt operating-means asthe latter moves said breech-bolt into breech-closing position thereby to engage and lock said seartrigg-er unit and prevent the release of said cocked' firing-element; a Vlimit-pin carried by said seartrigger unit arranged tocooperatively engage said slide to limit the longitudinal movement thereof relative to said Sear-trigger unit; and a manually-operated finger-piece pivotally secured to `said receiver, said finger-piece having articulated en'- gagement with said slide and arranged to displace said slide in a direction opposite to its direction of displacement by said bolt-operating means to unlock said Sear-trigger unit and to automatical` 1y engage the deflectable nose-portion of said slide in locking engagement with said bolt-operating means.

8. In a bolt-action firearm, the combination with a receiver; a barrel connected to -saidreceiver; a reciprocable breech-bolt mounted in said receiver having a spring-pressed ring-element provided with a Sear-shoulder; breech-bolt operating-means constructed and arranged to load the springof said firing-element and to move said breech-bolt to andfrorn breech-closingposition; ring-mechanism `comprising a scar-trigger unit mounted Vin said receiver and provided with a Sear-notch rarranged to cooperatively engage the scar-shoulder of said `firing-element to relea-sably lholdsa-id spring-pressed firing-element in spring-loaded position; a shoulder on said boltoperating means; safety-mechanism comprising a slide mounted on said Sear-trigger unit, said slide having a nose-portion arranged to be engaged by the shoulder of said Abolt-,operating means as the latter moves said bolt into breechclosing position 'to automatically displace said slide relative to said scar-trigger unit thereby to lock said scar-trigger unit so as to prevent displacement of said Sear-notch from the searshoulder of said spring-loaded iiring-element; resilient means carried by said Sear-trigger unit arranged to engage said slide to hold the noseportion thereof up into the path of movement of the said shoulder of said bolt-operating means;` and manually-operated means pivotally secured to said receiv-er, said means having articulated engagement with said slide and arranged'to displace said slide in a direction opposite to its direction of displacement by the shoulder of said bolt-operating means so as to unlock said seartrigger unit.

9. A Vbolt-action firearm including in combination: a receiver; a barrel connected to said receiver; a reciprocable breech-bolt mounted in said receiver and having a firing-element; breechbolt operating-means arranged to cock said ring-element and to move said breech-bolt into breech-closing position, said operating-means having a shoulder provided with a notch and a handle for locking said breech-bolt operatingmeans in breech-closing position; ring-mechanism arranged to releasably'hold said firing-element in cocked position; a safety-slide having a nose-portion, said nose-portion being arranged initially to be engaged by the shoulder of said breech-bolt operating-means as the latter moves said breech-bolt into breech-closing position to engage and lock said firing-mechanism so as to prevent the release of said cocked firing-element, said nose-portion being arranged subsequently to lie opposite the notch of said breech-bolt operating-means when the latter has been locked in breech-closing position by said operating-handle; and manually-operated means having articulated engagement with said safety-slide to retract the nose-portion of said slide into the notch of said shoulder so as to unlock said Sear-trigger unit.

10. A bolt-action firearm, including in combination: a receiver;y a barrel connected to said receiver; a reciprocable breech-bolt mounted in said receiver and having a firing-element; breech-bolt operating-means arranged to cock said ring-element and to move said breechbolt into breech-closing position; firing-mechanism arranged to releasably hold said iiringelement in cocked position; a safety-slide constructed and arranged to be actuated automatically by said breech-bolt operating-means to lock said firing-mechanism so as to prevent the release of said ring-element; resilient-means carried by said ring-mechanism and cooperatively associated with said safety-slide normally to hold said ring-mechanism in cooperative engagement with said firing-element, said resilientmeans also constituting a detent to control the action of said safety-slide; and manually-operated means having articulated engagement with said safety-slide and adapted to overcome the resistance of said safety-slide detent to unlock said firing-mechanism.

11. A bolt-action rearm including in combination: a receiver-unit; a breech-bolt supported in said receiver-unit and having a firingelement; breech-bolt operating-means arranged to cock said firing-element; firing-mechanism including resilient-means arranged to releasably hold the said ring-element of said breech-bolt in cocked position; and safety-mechanism having a firing-mechanism engaging-portion held resiliently against the underside of said receiverunit by said resilient-means so as Vto permit both pivotal and longitudinal sliding movement of said safety-mechanism relative to said receiver-unit, said breech-bolt operating-means vbeing arranged to engage said safety-mechanism to pivot said safety-mechanism downwardly and move it forwardly longitudinally relative to said firing-mechanism thereby to move the ring- Amechanism engaging-portion of said safetymechanism into abutting engagement with said firing-mechanism so as to prevent the release of said cocked ring-element.

l2. In a firearm including in combination: a receiver; a spring-pressed firing-element having a Sear-shoulder; reciprocable action-means mounted in said receiver and varranged to load the spring of said firing-element; ring-mechanism having a Sear-notch arranged to cooperatively engage the Sear-shoulder of said ringelement to releasably hold said spring-pressed ring-element in spring-loaded position; and safety-mechanism comprising a longitudinallymovable slide constructed and arranged to be slidably mounted on said firing-mechanism beneath said receiver and to be engaged and moved forwardly into locking engagement with said firing-mechanism by said spring-loading actionmeans as the latter is moved forwardly into closed position, thereby to prevent disengagement of the scar-notch of said ring-mechanism from the Sear-shoulder of said spring-loaded firingelement.

13. In a firearm including in combination: a receiver; a spring-pressed firing-element having a scar-shoulder; reciprocable action-means mounted in said receiver and arranged to load the spring of Said ring-element; iiring-mechanism having a Sear-notch arranged to cooperatively engage the Sear-shoulder of said ringelement to releasably hold said spring-pressed firing-element in spring-loaded position; safetymechanism comprising a longitudinally-movable slide constructed and arranged to be slidably mounted on said firing-mechanism beneath said x receiver and to be engaged and moved forwardly into locking engagementl with said firing-mechanism by said spring-loading action-means as the latter is moved forwardly into closed position, thereby to prevent disengagement of the Sear-notch of said ring-mechanism from the scar-shoulder of said spring-loaded ring-element; and a manually-operated lever pivoted intermediate its ends to said receiver, said manually-operated lever having an articulated connection at one end with said safety-slide for manually moving said slide to and from its firingmechanism locking position.

The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Name Date Rice April 24, 1945 Number

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