doublegunshop.com - home Forums General Discussion DoubleGun BBS @ doublegunshop.com Inventor of Top Lever?

Don't worry about viablity of single bolt guns - they work perfectly well. In facvt, not much looks flimsier than the single top-bolted W.R gun but it works - it was even used in double rifles without incident.

The Purdey bolt with top-lever operation via a Scott spindle has become the most-favoured method of bolting a sporting shotgun since its introduction in 1865 but it is no faster to operate than a side-lever and no stronger than a snap under-lever (either with Purdey bolts) or a rotary bolt.

The combination of looks, ease and speed of operation, stength and longevity are all in its favour but much of its popularity is conservatism - everyone wanted a gun that 'looks right' and matches what everyone else has. thus was so much with the development of the sporting shotgun.

There are of-course, plenty of top-lever operated guns with other bolting systems. They may not have found as much favour as the Scott/Purdey but most of them work pretty well.

I don't think "looks of the inner works" played a very big part in the development of the gun...

One under bolt or two ?
It can only be seen if the gun is took apart.

MP, Thanks for posting the Matthews patent. My Scott apparently use a set-up like Fig 1 as it has the top lever & single sliding underbolt.
It is my personal opinion that on a double bolted gun every effort should me made to insure the rear bolt is actually doing the work. It has approx twice the leverage of the forward bolt thus can hold the force easier. The main advantage of the double bolt would seem to be the longer bearing of the bolt & with the rear lug penertrating it upward force is applied both in front of as well as behind the lug thus lifting the bolt level against it's bearing rather than with a tendency to tip up the leading edge. All very small concerns with a well fitted gun & several highly regarded & quite successful single bolt designs have been used over the years, witness the Parker & Win 21, both single underbolted guns. The further from the hinge, the greater the leverage & the "Flimsier" the bolt can be & still successfully hold the forces. The greater leverage was the principal used in top bolted guns as the WR, Lefever, Alex Brown's rotary bolt etc, all were quite successful.
PS; The more bolts a gun has the harder it becomes to insure each is doing it's share. Buy a "Cheap" gun with multiple bolts & you can rest assured that most likely a single one of them is actually "Doing ALL the Work".

Just to add to the single aspect of lock-up, there was an article in a gun magazine, I wish I could remember which one, on shotgun lock-up. It seems that during firing the forces are "normally" back and up so the tendency is, because the hinge pin being the fulcrum, to keep the gun closed. Very little force is needed to keep the gun closed during firing but the hinge pin takes a beating (perhaps that would explain those worn hinge pins). In fact there was a picture where the author kept the gun closed with thumb & fore finger. In essence the lock-up, keeps the shells from falling out and multiple locking systems look cool and sell but as 2-p states very difficult to have all points make contact. --- John Can.

Just one more reason I don't read gun magazines. I had a friend that used to hunt with a SxS that he had to hold closed when he shot it...I thought he was crazy. Maybe he should've been a gun writer.

On a production gun I can see where the double bolt might be over kill because of the hand fitting needed to get full contact on both bolts.

The top lever as we know it was invented by William Middleditch Scott who was granted patent no. 2752 on October 25, 1865. I have extraced the following from Donald Dallas' book, "Purdey, Gun and Rifle Makers"

"There were actually two parts to the patent, one was an indicator to show if a gun was loaded and the other was the more important part regarding the top lever and spindle. In this patent, Scott used a top lever attached to a vertical spindle. At the bottom of the spindle, a short lever drew back the sliding bolt in the action as the top lever was pushed to the right. Various types of spring were tried until design settled upon a V-spring under the top strap. The essence of the Scott spindle was its robustness, simplicity and convenience. Combined with the Purdey bolt, it would champion all other types of closing action--the reason why it has been in continuous production since its invention."

"A great many people, including writers, assume the Purdey bolt was an integral design of sliding bolt and top lever, both invented by James Purdey. The combination is often referred to as the 'Purdey lever', or 'Purdey action', in ignorance of the two separate parts, taken out by two separate gunmakers, two years apart. The obvious reason for this misinterpretation is that Purdey's from the earliest days of both inventions, used the combination of Purdey bolt and Scott lever in preference to all other types of closing action."

"Another reason for the misinterpretation concerns the licencing and royalty agreements Purdey's had with Scott's. It will be noted from the Scott patent drawing of 1865, that the top lever and spindle are shown in conjunction with the Purdey double bolt. There are several licensing agreements and all are of great interest in showing the workings of the gun trade in the second half of the 19th century.

"The original agreement with W & C Scott & Son to license Purdey's patent no. 1104 of 2 May 1863, was dated 5 April 1867 and had three main conditions. (1) The licence would run for three years; (2) there would be a 20 shillings royalty payment per gun; (3) each gun had to be engraved 'JP Patent'. A reciprocal agreement with Scotts for use of their patent no. 2752 of 25 October 1865 created the bond of Purdey bolt and top lever. On 5 December 1868, this agreement was amended, backdated to 1 July 1868. "James Purdey do hereby agree to grant unto the said W & C Scott & Son, full and free liberty, licence and authority to make, work, use, exercise and authority to make, work, use, exercise and practice the said Invention granted by the said letter Patent....".

"The subtle changes to the agreement were that guns had to be engraved 'Purdey's Patent Bolt' and that Scott were not to suppply guns or actions to Alfred Lancaster, Boss & Co., Stephen Grant, Moore & Grey, Rigby, Thomas Jackson, G H Daw, Alexander Henry, Edward Paton, Wildinson, J D Dougall, Westley-Richards, H J Holland, George Smith, S & C Smith. Obviously Purdey's were licencing these makers as well.

"A further agreement followed to run for five years and ten months (to the expiry of the Purdey patent) from 1 July 1871, Purdey's agreed not to licence any makers in Birmingham or elsewhere, apart from London (any licences so issued would be agreed with Scott and royalties split 50-50).

"Again, Scott's were not allowed to supply London makers. Purdey's licenced a great many London makers at 40 shillings royalty per gun.

"These licencing agreements created not only a bond between Purdey's and W & C Scott, they also created the constant combination of Purdey's snap action patent 1104 and Scott's top lever spindle patent no. 2752. It is no wonder that the misnomer 'Purdey lever' has come about."

That's what I wanted to see...where can you get that book ?

jOe; In answer to your previous ??? about scarcity,units produced #s, production span, I'm afraid I don't have any definitive numbers for any of the above. I have the fortune/misfortune of owning 2 Bonehills in 10 gau. built on the system, not a bad system, I like it, but you will need a strong thumb, I wonder if only Bonehill used this method? You can go to IGC-historical questions- look at Bonehill Matthew Eclipse for some more info. also I believe the first issue of DGC has an article on this type of gun. --- John Can.