Offset firearm selector switch

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9829262-B1
Application number	US-201615144562-A
Country	US
Kind code	B1
Filing date	May 2, 2016
Priority date	Mar 15, 2013
Publication date	Nov 28, 2017
Grant date	Nov 28, 2017

Abstract

A safety assembly for a rifle having a pistol grip extending from a receiver, the receiver having an operative safety shaft rotatable between a safety position and a fire position, the shaft positioned above and rearwardly of the trigger, and above and forward of the pistol grip. The shaft rotatable 90 degrees between a safe position and a fire position, a thumb engagement handle having an angled gripping portion angled from the shaft downwardly and rearwardly for the fire position and rearwardly and upwardly in the safe position, whereby the positioning allows that when the firearm is operated and the user grips the pistol grip, the user does not need to release and/or rotate the pistol grip to switch between fire and safe positions of the safety shaft with the thumb of the gripping hand.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. A rifle firearm, comprising:
a receiver with a pistol grip, a trigger forwardly of the pistol grip, a safety selector switch rearward of and above the trigger, the safety selector switch having a fire position and a safe position, the safety selector switch comprising:
an operative shaft extending through the receiver and rotatable 90 degrees between a safe position and a fire position,
a thumb engagement handle fixed to an end of the shaft, the thumb engagement handle extending vertically and downwardly when the safety selector switch is in the fire position and horizontally and rearwardly when the safety selector switch is in the safe position, the thumb engagement handle comprising a thumb pad with an outwardly facing flat pad surface and an inwardly facing surface confronting an exterior receiver side wall surface, the thumb pad configured as a plate and having an outermost periphery with a generally triangular shape with one corner of the triangular shaped plate at the end of the shaft and the sides of the triangular shaped plate adjacent to the one corner of the triangular shape plate diverging away from the one corner, wherein when the safety selector switch is in the fire position a forward peripheral edge of the triangle shaped plate and extends vertically from the end of the shaft downward, a rearward peripheral edge of the triangle shaped plate extends from the shaft downward and rearwardly, and a lower peripheral edge of the triangle shaped plate extends horizontally, the thumb pad further comprising an elongate thumb engagement rib extending outwardly from the triangular shaped plate, wherein when the safety selector switch is in the fire position, the elongate thumb engagement rib having an arm portion that is at the rearward peripheral edge of the triangular shaped plate and that extends the length of the rearward peripheral edge, the arm portion projecting outwardly from the triangular shaped plate, the outwardly facing flat pad surface extending from the arm portion forwardly to the forward peripheral edge of the triangular shaped plate, the thickness of the arm portion projecting from the triangular shaped plate being greater than the thickness of the triangular shaped plate at the outwardly facing flat pad surface, the arm portion being straight and extending downwardly and rearwardly at an angle measured from vertical of between 25 to 50 degrees, whereby when the safety selector switch is in the fire position, the arm portion extends upwardly and rearwardly from the operative shaft.

2. The firearm of claim 1 , wherein the arm portion is covered with ribbing, the ribbing extending longitudinally on the arm portion and providing a gripping surface.

3. The firearm of claim 1 , wherein the operative shaft has an axis and wherein the arm portion has an axis extending lengthwise with respect to the arm portion and the arm portion axis is in alignment with the axis of the operative shaft.

4. The firearm of claim 1 , wherein the selector switch is in the fire position, the generally triangular thumb pad having one side parallel to the primary axis and having one corner of the triangle proximate the end of the shaft, having another corner of the triangle positioned below and distal from the end of the shaft, and having a third corner position rearward of the another corner and rearward and below distal from the one corner.

5. A safety mechanism for a firearm having a spring-loaded hammer and a sear rotatable to lock the hammer in a cocked position and to disengages the hammer to allow the hammer to rotate and strike a firing pin, comprising:
a safety shaft defining an engagement surface, wherein shaft is rotated between an engaged position in which the engagement surface engages the sear to prevent rotation of the sear defining a safe position and a disengaged position in which the engagement surface is positioned to allow the sear to freely rotate defining a fire position; and
a thumb engagement handle affixed to the end of the safety shaft for manually rotating the safety shaft between the safe position and fire position, wherein the thumb engagement handle comprises a thumb pad configured as a plate and with the outer periphery of the plate having a right triangular shape defining a right triangularly shaped plate, the thumb engagement portion further having a straight arm portion that follows a side of the triangularly shaped plate opposite a right angle corner of the triangularly shaped plate, the straight arm portion projecting outwardly with respect to a flat outwardly facing surface on the thumb pad.

6. The firearm of claim 5 , wherein the lever arm and the triangular shaped plate defining a rearward recess region for readily receiving a knuckle of a user's thumb.

7. A rifle firearm, comprising:
a receiver with a pistol grip;
a safety shaft extending into the receiver and accessible out of the receiver from a side wall surface, the safety shaft having a trigger obstructing position and a trigger release position,
a lever switch affixed to an end of the safety shaft for manually rotating the safety shaft between the obstructing position and the trigger release position, wherein the lever switch comprises, as viewed when in the lever switch is in the trigger release position, a thumb pad configured as a plate extending parallel to the side wall surface, the thumb pad having a forward positioned triangular shaped outwardly facing flat surface below the safety shaft, a straight arm portion projecting outwardly with respect to the outwardly facing flat surface and positioned exclusively rearwardly of the outwardly facing flat surface, the arm portion having a thickness greater than the thumb pad at the outwardly facing flat surface arm portion positioned at an angle equating to between 4:00 and 5:30 on a clock face when the safety shaft is in the trigger release position.

8. The firearm of claim 7 , wherein the arm portion is angled rearwardly and upwardly when the lever switch is positioned in a horizontal orientation to present an angled surface along the length of the angled gripping portion for applying a rearward force to rotate the lever switch into a vertical orientation.

9. The firearm of claim 7 , wherein the arm portion has ribbing thereon for providing a gripping surface.

10. The firearm of claim 7 , wherein the lever switch has a generally triangular outwardly exposed portion of the thumb pad defined by the lever arm and a rearward peripheral edge of the thumb pad when the lever switch is in the trigger release position, the lever arm and thumb pad defining a thumb knuckle receiving region.

Assignees

• Vista Outdoor Operations Llc

Inventors

• Suttie David W
• Laack Christopher D

Classifications

• F41A17/80

  Thumb-operated sliding safeties mounted on the upside of the stock, e.g. for shotguns · CPC title

• F41A17/20 Primary

  Grip or stock safeties, i.e. safeties disengaged by clasping the grip or stock (thumb-operated sliding safeties F41A17/52, F41A17/62, F41A17/70, F41A17/80) · CPC title

• F41A17/46 Primary

  Trigger safeties, i.e. means for preventing trigger movement (F41A17/02 - F41A17/40 take precedence) · CPC title

• F41A19/45

  for catching the hammer after each shot, i.e. in single-shot or semi-automatic firing mode · CPC title