Spring Type Spear Projecting Gun

Abstract

A spear gun with plural spear projecting device having a trigger housing and sear housing releasably secured each to the other and permitting rotation of one with respect to the other so that a launching station is obtained. A barrel is connected with the sear housing which contains at least one spear receiving opening. A trigger actuates a sear which in turn initiates the launching of a spear. The spear gun has a line drop mechanism that is permitted to rotate freely when the trigger is displaced, thus releasing a line that is tethered to a spear. To prevent rotation of the sear housing with respect to the trigger housing, a locking device is provided.

Description

BACKGROUND, OBJECTIVES AND BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The majority of commercially available spear guns are capable of projecting only a single spear. After the single spear has been launched, immediate need often arises for a second spear. By the time the launched spear is recovered and the gun reloaded, the need for the second spear often disappears. It is also true that the availability of a second spear for the gun minimizes diver fear particularly when stalking large fish.

There are a number of spear guns having plural spear projecting means commercially available, however these guns are usually difficult to load and are designed to launch each spear from a different position with respect to the barrel of the gun. This, of course, makes aiming the weapon somewhat difficult.

The present invention is a spear gun capable of projecting a plurality of spears all from the same location with respect to the trigger housing and barrel of the gun so that a high degree of accuracy is achieved. This is accomplished by rotatably joining the trigger housing with a sear housing and connected muzzle through the use of a connecting rod so that a first spear can be fired from the upper portion of the barrel, the barrel can be rotated and a second spear can be fired from that same location.

The spear gun comprising the present invention includes a trigger housing and a sear housing releasably secured to the trigger housing capable of rotation with respect thereto. A barrel is connected to the sear housing which also contains at least one spear receiving chamber with which a sear communicates. A trigger engages the sear which in turn initiates a propelling means, preferably one or more resilient slings secured to the muzzle of the barrel and extending to the housed spears.

Accordingly, it is a primary object of the present invention to provide an improved spear gun capable of firing more than one spear without reloading.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a spear gun of the type described which permits the firing of a second spear from the same relative location with respect to the trigger housing and barrel of the gun as the first. A further object of the present invention is to provide a spear gun of the type described having a trigger housing and a sear housing which are fixedly rotatable each with respect to the other.

Still another object of the present invention is to provide a spear gun of the type described in which the trigger housing contains a slotted connecting rod cooperatively and selectively receiving the sear upon displacement by the trigger.

These and other objects of the present invention will become more apparent after a consideration of the following detailed specification taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings wherein like characters of reference designate like parts throughout the several views.

FIGURE DESCRIPTION

FIG. 1 is a side elevational view of the spear gun comprising the present invention containing a pair of spears which are armed for discharge by a plurality of resilient slings.

FIG. 2 is a side elevational, sectional and fragmentary view of the trigger housing and sear housing of the spear gun constituting the present invention.

FIG. 3 is an end elevational, sectional view of the trigger housing of the present invention taken along the lines 3--3 of FIG. 2.

FIG. 4 is an end elevational, sectional view of the sear housing of the present invention taken along the lines 4--4 of FIG. 2.

FIG. 5 is an end elevational, sectional view of the sear housing of the present invention taken along the lines 5--5 of FIG. 2.

FIG. 6 is a perspective, sectional and exploded view of the connecting rod and sear spring utilized in the rotatable connection of the trigger housing with the sear housing.

FIG. 7 is a side elevational view of the muzzle of the present invention.

FIG. 8 is a plan view of the muzzle of the present invention illustrated in FIG. 7.

FIG. 9 is an end elevational view of the muzzle of the present invention shown in FIGS. 7 and 8.

FIG. 10 is a perspective view of a preferred form of a resilient sling utilized in the operation of the present invention.

FIG. 11 is a side elevational view of the exterior of the right half portion of the sear housing.

FIG. 12 is a perspective view of the line drop mechanism in cooperative engagement with the stopper rod and line drop stopper.

FIG. 13 is a plan view of the line drop stopper shown in FIG. 12.

FIG. 14 is an end elevational view of the line drop stopper illustrated in FIGS. 12 and 13.

FIG. 15 is a plan view of the line drop plate assembly mounted on the exterior surface of the sear housing shown in FIG. 11.

FIG. 16 is a side elevational view of the trigger housing showing the bayonet lock which secures the trigger housing to the sear housing to form a safety mechanism for the weapon.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

Referring now to the drawings, there is shown in FIG. 1 a spear gun generally designated 20 incorporating the present invention. The spear gun 20 includes a trigger housing 22, a sear housing 24, a barrel 26, a muzzle 28 and one or more resilient slings 30 suitably secured to the muzzle 28 and to one or more spears 32 provided with a plurality of slots 34 to cooperatively receive the slings.

The trigger housing 22 and sear housing 24 are best illustrated in FIG. 2. These housings are rotatably joined by an adjustable connecting rod 36 (FIG. 6) provided with a slot 38 in the upper wall 39 of the hollow end 41 of the rod within which resides a sear spring 40. Spring 40 is appropriately seated and secured by means of a pin 42 within end 41 of rod 36. Spring 40 has a flared end 43 too wide to pass through slot 38, however the upper portion 45 is shaped to extend slightly through slot 38 and above the upper wall 39 as shown in FIG. 2.

Connecting rod 36 also contains a slotted opening 44 which houses a pin 46 movably securing the trigger hammer 48 extending through slot 38. A trigger biasing spring 50 is housed within the upper portion of the pistol grip 52 of trigger housing 22 and continuously urges trigger hammer 48 vertically in the position shown in FIG. 2. A trigger adjustment screw 54 permits positioning of the trigger hammer 48 to achieve more or less trigger sensitivity according to the desires of the operation. Additional adjustable features include threading the remaining end of the connecting rod 36 and applying a nut 56 which, when rotated, will critically position the connecting rod with respect to the trigger and sear housings.

Sear housing 24 is essentially a cylindrical chamber receiving connecting rod 36 and a pair of substantially flat sears 58 pivotally connected by pins 60 to the interior of the housing. The rearward end 61 of spear 32 extending into one of two formed recesses 63 contains a notch 62 which meshes with the upper edge of the sear 58 so that the spear 32 will be retained in the sear housing until sear 58 is pivoted about point 60 and is thus removed from engagement with notch 62 of the spear.

The forward portion of sear housing 24 is secured in any convenient manner to barrel 26 which is formed from wood, fiberglass or other equally suitable material. Barrel 26 contains two grooves 64 arcuately shaped to accommodate two spears 30 in the manner shown in FIG. 5.

Sear spring 40 is so designed that its upper portion 45 continually biases the unpivoted end of sear 58 to keep the sear in an upwardly pivoted position cooperatively engaged with the groove 62 of spear 32. A spring engaging ledge 63 is integrally formed in trigger hammer 48 and will urge the upper portion 45 of flared end 43 against sear 58 so long as the gun is in the cocked position thus preventing wear on the spring and providing a safety for the weapon. When trigger hammer 48 is pulled rearwardly to fire the gun, a sear engaging portion 68 of trigger hammer 48 engages the unpivoted end of sear 58 (as ledge 63 is withdrawn) and overcomes the bias of spring 40 to pivot the sear downwardly and thus disengage the sear from notch 62. When in this condition, the spear may be removed from the sear housing and will be forcefully discharged from the gun if suitable propelling means are used.

As shown in FIG. 1, a plurality of resilient slings are connected from sling engaging slots 34 along one edge of said spear to an indenture 70 formed in muzzle 28 which, through a small opening 72 permits the releasable securement of one or more slings to the spear gun. The gun can be varied in propelling force by the action or withdrawal of rubber slings to each spear. For example, two or three rubber slings can be attached to the same spear to provide a greater propelling force for the spear. Where such power is not needed or desired, the number of slings for each spear can be reduced.

The trigger housing and sear housing can rotate each with respect to the other through 360 degrees. The two housings are releasably secured against rotation by a line drop stopper 106 which will be described in detail subsequently. A large washer 78 remains fixed to trigger housing 22 and prevents wear due to friction between the two housings because of continual rotation.

To operate the spear gun comprising the present invention, two spears are sequentially placed in grooves 64 on the upper and lower edge of barrel 26 and urged rearwardly into the sear housing 24 to cooperatively engage the sears 58. Each spear can be placed in the sear housing at the top of the barrel to obtain the latching benefit of the sear spring 40. When the first spear is loaded, the barrel 26 is rotated 180.degree. and the second spear is inserted while sear spring 40 biases sear 58 upwardly in engagement with notch 62 of spear 32. Connecting rod 36 rotates within sear chamber 24 so that sear spring 40 always engages the upper spear. The lower spear is held by its cooperating sear since the lower wall 65 of the hollow end 41 of rod 36 is not slotted. Once the resilient slings 30 have been secured from the muzzle to the slots 34 on the side of each spear, the tension of the slings will also assist in retaining the cooperative engagement between sear 58 and spear notch 62.

Forming the barrel 26 from wood or fiberglass provides an additional advantage in that the gun, when empty, will float. This provides a marker to indicate the diver's location so that he can be picked up or traced by companions. The housings are preferably constructed from aluminum to avoid any deterioration from the constant exposure of the metal to water. Obviously, other suitable materials are available for these housings which will offer the same advantages. It has been found advantageous to place a relatively soft rubber cap 80 over the rear threaded end of connecting rod 36 to prevent abrasion or damage to the user or other equipment by contact particularly during the firing of the gun when some recoil is experienced.

Muzzle 28 has two channels 82 cooperatively retaining a forward portion of spears 30 when the gun is in the loaded position. A sight 84 is appended to each channel 82 so that the operator of the gun will fire each spear from the same physical location with respect to the other components of the gun.

To effect immediate recapture of a launched spear, a retrieving line 86 is secured at one end of a sliding ring 88 carried by the shaft of spear 32. The other end of retrieving line 86 is affixed to one end of an elastic band 89. At the other end of the elastic band, a short line is affixed and secured through the aperture 90. The elastic band 89 provides a shock absorber for the weapon when the spear has been launched and all of the retrieving line has been expended.

To retain the retrieving line in a way which will avoid knotting or tangling that line during the use of the weapon, the sear housing is provided with a slot 94 (FIG. 11) in which it is pivotally mounted a line drop mechanism 96 (FIG. 12) having a plurality of arcuately shaped latching elements 98 about which retrieving line 86 may be looped. A stopper rod 100 is threadably secured at one end 102 to trigger hammer 48 and is slideably engageable at the other end 104 with a line drop stopper 106 slideable within a slot 108 in the exterior of sear housing 24. Line drop stopper 106 contains a transverse slot 110 which will permit end 104 of stopper rod 100 to slide within a groove 112 encircling sear housing 24. The line drop mechanism 96 is retained in the slot 94 of sear housing 24 by a line drop plate assembly 114 (FIG. 15).

When trigger hammer 48 is displaced, line drop stopper 106 slides rearwardly within slot 108 in sear housing 24 partially into a continuation of that slot carried by trigger housing 22 to positively secured the two housings against rotation. The displacement of stopper rod 100 by movement of trigger hammer 48 also removes line drop stopper 106 from engagement with one of the arcuately shaped elements 98 of line drop mechanism 96 so that the line drop mechanism 96 can rotate freely (see FIG. 12).

In operation, the retrieving line 86 is extended from sliding ring 88 rearwardly about one of the arcuately shaped elements 98 of line drop mechanism 96 and then forwardly and through eyelet 90 of extending wind 92. When trigger hammer 48 is displaced, the line drop mechanism is permitted to rotate freely at precisely the same moment that the sear 58 disengages spear 30. Thus the retrieving line is released at the instant the spear is launched from the weapon.

The resilient slings 30 are designed to include a junction member 86 of relatively small diameter which joins the two ends of the thicker elastic material 87 forming the body of the sling. The member 87 need not necessarily be resilient and obviously is more freely cooperative because of its smaller diameter with the notches 34 in each of the spears.

A safety mechanism is incorporated in the weapon by the provision of a bayonet lock 116 displaceably mounted through an aperture 118 in the exterior of trigger housing 22. The lock has a plunger 120 extending through aperture 118 which is actuated by a biased lever 122 so that it can be drawn back into the interior of the trigger housing.

Four apertures 124, 125, 126 and 127 are contained in the sear housing 24 to receiver plunger 120 and lock the trigger housing with the sear housing to prevent rotation. When the weapon is in a "fire" condition, plunger 120 will engage, for example, aperture 125 or 127 which will permit displacement of line dropper stopper 106 and will permit displacement of sear 58 by trigger hammer 48. When the sear housing 24 is rotated 90.degree. with respect to the trigger housing 22, apertures 124 or 126 will be engaged by plunger 120, a sear 58 cannot be displaced, and the weapon is therefore inoperative.

Although the invention has been herein shown and described in what is conceived to be the most practical and preferred embodiment, it is recognized that departures may be made therefrom within the scope of the invention, which is not to be limited to the details disclosed herein but is to be accorded a full scope of its claims so as to embrace any and all equivalent devices and apparatus.

Claims

I claim:

1. A spear gun comprising, in combination, a means for projecting a plurality of spears, said means having a trigger housing; a sear housing secured to said trigger housing and selectively rotatable relative thereto; a barrel adjacent said sear housing; spear receiving means formed within said sear housing for receiving at least one spear; at least two sears communicating with said spear receiving means; a trigger selectively engageable with at least one of said sears; a muzzle connected to said barrel; and means associated with said sears and said muzzle to propel at least one spear, said sear housing being selectively rotatable clockwise and counterclockwise relative to said trigger housing from a first spear projecting position to a second spear projecting position, and said trigger housing having a slotted connecting rod cooperatively and selectively receiving one of said sears.

2. A spear gun as claimed in claim 1 further comprising means selectively locking and releasing for rotation said sear housing relative to said trigger housing.

3. A spear gun as claimed in claim 2 further comprising safety means releasably securing said trigger means against displacement.

4. A spear gun as claimed in claim 3, said slotted connecting rod having a sear spring yieldably biasing one of said sears away frm said from connecting rod prior to displacement of said trigger means.

5. A spear gun as claimed in claim 4, said spear propelling means including at lease one resilient sling.

6. A spear gun as claimed in claim 1, further comprising spear retrieving means for retrieving a projected spear.