Safety device for revolvers

#This invention concerns the firearms in general and refers in particular to a safety device for breech loading guns, such as cylinder loading handguns, that is revolvers.

#In revolvers the ammunitions are inserted, as is known, into respective chambers provided in a revolving cylinder which is mounted on the frame of the gun. The cylinder may by rotated both mechanically, intermittently to move round, after each shot, to place a new cartridge in line with a firing pin driven by the hammer of the firearm, and freely, by hand at the moment of access to remove the fired shell cases and to load further ammunition.

#The mechanical rotation of the cylinder is caused by the hammer which interacts with a cylinder blocking lever or bolt. This cylinder blocking lever, thrust by a spring, normally remains in an active interception and blocking position of the cylinder at the point in which it has stopped. But the cylinder blocking lever is moved into an idle position, that is neutral, releasing the cylinder by means of the hammer when it turns, passing through an intermediate safety or half-cocked position, between a rest position after each shot and a cocked or rearming position for the next shot.

#The invention will be described more in detail in the course of the present description and reference will be made to the indicative and not limitative drawings, in which:

#FIG. 1 shows a cross-section view of a part of a revolver with trigger and hammer released, in the safety position, ready for successive re-arming;

#FIG. 2 shows the same view as in FIG. 1, but with the hammer in the intermediate safety, half-cocked position for releasing the cylinder so that it can turn;

#In said drawings there are represented a part of the body or frame 11 of a revolver with a cylinder 12 for the cartridges, a cylinder blocking lever or bolt 13, a hammer 14, a trigger 15 and a firing pin 16 controlled by the hammer.

#The cylinder 12 is assembled on the frame, turning on a respective axis of rotation 12′. It can be turned both at set intervals, operated by a mechanical device, not shown, but however well known, associated with the hammer, to bring each cartridge, one after the other, in line with the firing pin, and revolve freely, idle, when released by the cylinder blocking lever 13.

#The cylinder blocking lever 13 is the rocking type; it is assembled on an oscillating pin 13′. On one side of said pin, the cylinder blocking lever has a blocking nose 17 made to engage recesses in the external surface of the cylinder 12, setting the angular positions so that the cartridges are in line with the firing pin and, on the opposite end, a tail 18 turned towards the hammer 14. A thrust spring 19 is connected to the cylinder blocking lever 13, which acts to hold normally the nose 17 in an active blocking position of the cylinder. The cylinder lever 13, through its tail part 18, is on the other hand movable by the hammer, as will be explained later, opposing the action of said spring 19, in an inactive position for releasing the cylinder 12 to enable the latter to rotate, both mechanically for set distances, and manually freely.