Classifications

• • F—MECHANICAL ENGINEERING; LIGHTING; HEATING; WEAPONS; BLASTING
  • F41—WEAPONS
  • F41A—FUNCTIONAL FEATURES OR DETAILS COMMON TO BOTH SMALLARMS AND ORDNANCE, e.g. CANNONS; MOUNTINGS FOR SMALLARMS OR ORDNANCE
  • F41A3/00—Breech mechanisms, e.g. locks
  • F41A3/12—Bolt action, i.e. the main breech opening movement being parallel to the barrel axis
  • F41A3/14—Rigid bolt locks, i.e. having locking elements rigidly mounted on the bolt or bolt handle and on the barrel or breech-housing respectively
  • F41A3/16—Rigid bolt locks, i.e. having locking elements rigidly mounted on the bolt or bolt handle and on the barrel or breech-housing respectively the locking elements effecting a rotary movement about the barrel axis, e.g. rotating cylinder bolt locks
  • F41A3/18—Rigid bolt locks, i.e. having locking elements rigidly mounted on the bolt or bolt handle and on the barrel or breech-housing respectively the locking elements effecting a rotary movement about the barrel axis, e.g. rotating cylinder bolt locks hand-operated
  • F41A3/22—Rigid bolt locks, i.e. having locking elements rigidly mounted on the bolt or bolt handle and on the barrel or breech-housing respectively the locking elements effecting a rotary movement about the barrel axis, e.g. rotating cylinder bolt locks hand-operated the locking being effected by rotating the operating handle or lever transversely to the barrel axis
• • F—MECHANICAL ENGINEERING; LIGHTING; HEATING; WEAPONS; BLASTING
  • F41—WEAPONS
  • F41A—FUNCTIONAL FEATURES OR DETAILS COMMON TO BOTH SMALLARMS AND ORDNANCE, e.g. CANNONS; MOUNTINGS FOR SMALLARMS OR ORDNANCE
  • F41A3/00—Breech mechanisms, e.g. locks
  • F41A3/64—Mounting of breech-blocks; Accessories for breech-blocks or breech-block mountings
  • F41A3/66—Breech housings or frames; Receivers
• • F—MECHANICAL ENGINEERING; LIGHTING; HEATING; WEAPONS; BLASTING
  • F41—WEAPONS
  • F41A—FUNCTIONAL FEATURES OR DETAILS COMMON TO BOTH SMALLARMS AND ORDNANCE, e.g. CANNONS; MOUNTINGS FOR SMALLARMS OR ORDNANCE
  • F41A35/00—Accessories or details not otherwise provided for
  • F41A35/02—Dust- or weather-protection caps or covers
• • F—MECHANICAL ENGINEERING; LIGHTING; HEATING; WEAPONS; BLASTING
  • F41—WEAPONS
  • F41C—SMALLARMS, e.g. PISTOLS, RIFLES; ACCESSORIES THEREFOR
  • F41C33/00—Means for wearing or carrying smallarms
  • F41C33/06—Containers for carrying smallarms, e.g. safety boxes, gun cases

Definitions

• the present invention relates to the field of bolt action firearms.
• Bolt action firearms typically rifles have a bolt for manually controlling the opening and closing of the breech.
• the bolt houses the firing mechanism, and also includes lugs at the front or rear which serve to lock the bolt in place when cocked.
• Manually operated bolts typically include a handle movable between a cocked position (for firing) and decocked position (for insertion of a new shell into the breech).
• turn-bolt designs are used, wherein movement between the cocked and decocked positions is accomplished by rotation of the handle about the bolt.
• Alternatives, such as straight pull designs are known but less commonly used.
• the bolts should be (and in some jurisdictions must be) removed from the firearm, decocked and then transported separately. This raises the potential for damage to occur to the bolt itself.
• the bolt is susceptible to physical knocks, bumps and scratches.
• the manual decocking of the rifle bolt, once removed from the firearm places unwanted hand oils onto the bolt which detract from the intended lubrication of the bolt.
• the bolt is also generally susceptible to damage due to dust, grit and grime.
• the present invention accordingly provides a firearm bolt protector, for a bolt having a handle movable relative to the bolt between a cocked and a decocked position, the protector including: a sleeve for protecting the bolt, and a formation which cooperates with a corresponding formation on the bolt to prevent rotational movement of the bolt within the sleeve, such that the handle can be moved between the cocked and decocked positions whilst the bolt is within the sleeve.
• the protector includes means to hold the bolt within the sleeve when the handle is in the decocked position.
• This is preferably an aperture at an end of the sleeve shaped to allow the bolt to be inserted or removed with the handle in the cocked position, but to hold the bolt within the sleeve when the handle is in the decocked position.
• the protector has an open state, in which both ends of the sleeve are open. This allows for easier cleaning of the inside of the sleeve.
• One end of the protector may therefore have a removable end cap, allowing an end of the sleeve to be opened for cleaning and closed during use.
• FIGURE 1 is a perspective view of a protector according to the present invention with a bolt
• FIGURE 2 is a cutaway view of the protector shown in Figure 1;
• FIGURE 3 is a cross-sectional view through section 3-3 of the protector shown in Figure 1;
• FIGURE 4 is a cross-sectional view through section 2-2 of the bolt shown in Figure 1;
• FIGURE 5 is a perspective view of the bolt and protector shown in Figure 1, with the bolt inserted into the protector with the handle in the cocked position;
• FIGURE 6 is a perspective view of the bolt and protector shown in Figure 5, with the handle of the bolt in the decocked position;
• FIGURE 7 is a perspective view of the sleeve and end cap of the protector in a disassembled state.
• Figure 1 shows a firearm bolt protector 10 according to the present invention, for a turn-bolt 20 having a handle 22 movable between a cocked and a decocked position.
• the protector 10 includes a sleeve 12 for receiving and protecting the bolt 20.
• Figure 2 shows a ramp 14 provided on the inside of the sleeve 12.
• a recess 16 runs along the middle of the ramp 14 (best shown in Figure 3).
• Figures 1 and 4 depict the profile of the bolt 20, which includes a receded section 24 and a ridge 26 running along the bolt axis.
• the ridge 26 slides into the recess 16. The formations on the sleeve and bolt thereby cooperate to prevent rotation of the bolt within the sleeve.
• the bolt 20 can be inserted into or removed from the sleeve 12 with the handle in the cocked position. Once inserted, the corresponding formations of the bolt and protector cooperate to prevent rotation of the bolt within the sleeve, thereby allowing the handle 22 to be rotated relative to the bolt into the decocked position, as shown in Figure 6. This can be accomplished whilst the bolt 20 is within the sleeve 12, and whilst holding the protector 10 still. It avoids the need to hold the bolt 20 itself by hand, which places unwanted hand oils on the bolt.
• a generally L-shaped aperture 18 at an end of the sleeve 12 allows the bolt 20 to be inserted or removed with the handle 22 in the cocked position. However, once the handle 22 is in the decocked position ( Figure 6), it is held within the sleeve 12. It must be turned back to the cocked position before the bolt 20 can be removed.
• protectors may be designed for each type of bolt such that the protector has a formation which cooperates with the corresponding formation on the type of bolt it is intended to protect.
• the precise shape of the aperture may be altered to accommodate bolt handles of different shapes or thicknesses, or which move further or in different ways when moving between the cocked and decocked positions.
• the shape of the aperture 18 will need to accommodate other bolt features, such as the safety catch.
• the end of the sleeve 12 having the aperture 18 is, in this embodiment, always open.
• the other end includes an end cap 30 which is removable as shown in Figure 7 to move the protector into an open state.
• the end of the sleeve includes a threaded section 19, onto which the end cap 30 can be screwed or unscrewed. When the end cap 30 is unscrewed, both ends of the sleeve are open which allows for easier cleaning of the inside of the sleeve.
• the protector 10 may be formed of any material, but is preferably formed from a solvent resistant plastic such as polypropylene.

Landscapes

• Engineering & Computer Science (AREA)
• General Engineering & Computer Science (AREA)
• Aiming, Guidance, Guns With A Light Source, Armor, Camouflage, And Targets (AREA)
• Organic Low-Molecular-Weight Compounds And Preparation Thereof (AREA)

Applications Claiming Priority (2)

Publications (2)

Family

ID=38474531

Family Applications (1)

Country Status (3)

Families Citing this family (16)

Family Cites Families (13)

• 2007
  • 2007-01-16 AU AU2007222878A patent/AU2007222878B2/en not_active Ceased
  • 2007-01-16 EP EP07700081A patent/EP2005102A4/de not_active Withdrawn
  • 2007-01-16 WO PCT/AU2007/000035 patent/WO2007101292A1/en not_active Ceased

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