The First Patent Machine Gun: The Puckle Gun
By Joseph McClain · Originally published July-August 2024 · pp. 54–58
The First Patent
Machine Gun
The Puckle Gun By Joseph McClain
“The Machine can be made to Discharge Grenade Shells as well as Bullets.”
and U.S. Department of Justice write a letter from the Firearms Technology Industry Service Branch (FTISB) rendering an opinion. All had to be organized and executed in perfect sequence to get the gun to the United States. These issues were finally moving forward when one after another, each one derailed.
Shipping At the time Belgium had experienced a series of gun-related terrorist acts. As a result, the Belgium government had closed its borders to imported guns. I was afraid that Belgium would also close its borders to out-going guns and lock the Puckle Gun up. I asked Victor Huff to pick the gun up and take it to his home in England. This was not a good idea. With the strong English gun laws there was a fear the British would declare the Puckle Gun a national heritage item and seize it. Ultimately, we were able to get the gun on a plane to the United States.
Crate Building What’s the big deal? Import regulations dictated the type of wood had to be “certified” and sprayed for bugs. I had to hire an international cabinet maker to build and certify the box. Finding a cabinet maker and the materials to build the cabinet was costly, both in money and time. For shipping considerations, this meant that the anticipated crate weight and size doubled; again, more cost.
International Export Companies
Figure 1. The original patent for the Puckle Gun.
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Originally, I hired an export agent in Belgium to arrange pick-up of the crate containing the Puckle Gun and put it on a plane for the United States. All was great until I decided to switch the shipping point from Belgium
The cylinder is pulled back, ready to be replaced. (Puckle Gun photography by Michael Fullana.)
Rear view of the gun and flint firing mechanism.
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to London and then to the United States. This meant that I had to change shipping agents and find an agent in London to arrange shipment to the United States. Shipment was delayed for months, but it was completed.
Dutch / England Officials For reasons I previously stated, Belgium Customs got excited when the paperwork indicated “Machine Gun.” Before anything could delay the shipment again, I quickly moved it to England. There, English Customs saw “Machine Gun” on the paperwork and held it up until customs shippers were able to explain why it was not deactivated. Satisfied, English Customs released the box for shipment and alerted the U.S. Government that a machine gun was on its way to the United States.
ATF and The Firearms Technology Industry Service Branch (FTISB) Fortunately, I know a few ATF agents and requested a determination letter for the 1715 machine gun. ATF uses a point system to make a determination. My gun was too old, had an obsolete ignition system, and used obsolete ammunition. As a result, ATF was kind enough to furnish me with a letter of determination for the Puckle Gun. I put copies of the letter in the box with the paperwork and issued a copy of the letter to my attorney and the ATF office in Miami. In doing so, I thought I had covered every possible problem. I was wrong.
U.S. Import Customs and Homeland Security The Puckle Gun made it to the United States and was placed in a small U.S. Customs office in West Palm Beach, Fla. Agents from both Customs and Homeland Security had a major issue with the Puckle Gun because the paperwork indicated,
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“Machine Gun.” When I showed up to claim my box, Homeland Security, with the help of Customs, wanted to arrest me. I asked both agencies if they had read the documentation. Both said they had inspected the gun and read all the paperwork but in reality, they had not. To stay out of jail and move forward, I had my import attorney and the Miami ATF work with the Customs Office and get the Puckle Gun cleared for release. This added another couple of days onto the entire process, but finally, after all the roadblocks, I took possession of the Puckle Gun!
In Conclusion I don’t believe that Mr. Puckle was the original developer of the first machine gun of this type, but that he bought, traded, or stole the idea from someone else. He seems to have earned his living as a notary public and authored a book called The Club.2 The fact that Mr. Puckle patented the gun only, without the tripod, makes this gun significant to the evolution of the machine gun. In my opinion, if he had developed the gun, he would have known how important creating the first portable, folding-leg tripod would have been to the success of the Puckle Gun. He did not. Therefore, in my opinion, he was not the original
developer and should have patented the tripod as well. I believe that a line of thought for creation began with the Puckle Gun and the Collier Pistol, followed by other inventors to the Colt patent, all information relating to development of today’s revolver. Final thought: In my life as a collector, I was told by an old collector that I should never count my guns or tanks. The reason is that when my wife asks me, “How many guns or tanks do you have?” I can say, “Honey, I only need one more!” Bibliography Chamberlain, W.H.J. and Taylerson, W.F. “The Puckle Guns” American Rifleman Vol. 137, No. 6, June 1989, p. 31. Hogg, Ian V. “Percussion and the Breech Loader” The Story of the Gun, Bath Press, 1996, pp. 55-56. Endnotes: 1.
Chinn, George M. The Machine Gun: History, Evolution, and Development of Manual, Automatic, and Airborne Repeating Weapons. US Government Printing Office, Washington D.C.
Puckle, James. The Club; or, A Gray Cap for a Green Head. A Dialogue Between a Father and Son. 1713. London.
Photographs from the Original Article
Captions and credits appear in the article text as originally printed.