Aircraft Browning cocking toggles

[woodsy]

I have attached a couple of photos of two toggles I have. The first appears to be a Armourer made example using some webbing and a Bren sling hook, although the pouch appears to be factory made and designed to be attached somewhere by the eyelets along the sides. This would be for wing guns where the 'Plumber' can easily drop the hook over the cocking handle from above.

The Mosquito had its Browning guns in the nose and that toggle is quite different. The steel plate fits nicely over the cocking handle but the pulley block clearly hooks over something to get the proper purchase.

Britplumber can hopefully answer this but it may need a trip to the base library!

[woodsy]

While watching the Rugby World Cup over a glass of bourbon, I have been pondering the Mosquito cocking system. Given that planes have very little spare space, I would imagine that the Mosquito had an access panel on either side of the nose that exposed the guns but there would be no excess space behind them as all the cockpit controls would be there. I am assuming that there was some vertical strut behind the guns that would serve as an anchor point for the pulley. The guns could then be cocked by pulling the toggle forwards.

Any confirmation or shooting down of my theory would be welcome! ;D

[britplumber]

I think the mosy one looks like the hool part of the pulley fits over the recoil/buffer tube at the back of the gun. his would make sence as the wire rope looks just long enough to fit to the tube with enough left to cock it. Any less cable and it would be of no use.

[woodsy]

Thanks Chris! You are spot on! ;D I tried it on the gun and found that it worked best with a 45 degree forward pull. Pulling straight out at 90 degrees dislodged the hook and jammed the cable. I have since seen a photo of the side doors and the Mossie gun bay is quite accessible for almost the full length of the four.303 guns that sit in a row across the nose.