Cylinder-indexing means for revolvers

Claim 1

In a revolver having a frame, a barrel mounted on said frame, a cylinder with a plurality of cartridge chambers disposed at equal angles about its central axis, said cylinder being mounted on said frame for rotation about said axis, means for indexing said cylinder in order to move each chamber in sequence into alignment with said barrel, said cylinder having a plurality of equally spaced notches corresponding in number to said chambers disposed circumferentially about its periphery, a cylinder lock mounted on said frame for reciprocal movement into and out of locking engagement with said notches and means for urging said cylinder lock into engagement with said notches, said notches being disposed relative to said chambers such that when said lock is fully engaged within one of said notches a corresponding one of said chambers is aligned with said barrel, the improvement in said cylinder-indexing means comprising ratchet means for rotating said cylinder in sequence through a predetermined arc, said indexing means further including a cam-surface on said cylinder lock disposed for engagement with the leading edge of each of said notches, said cylinder being rotated by said ratchet means through said predetermined arc to a position at which said cam-surface engages the leading edge of each of said notches in sequence, said cam-surface facing in the general direction of rotation of said cylinder and being inclined at an angle to the radius of said cylinder at said leading edge such that upon engagement of said cam-surface by the leading edge of any one of said notches, said cylinder is rotated by said means urging said cylinder lock into engagement with said notches until said lock is fully registered with said one notch.