Ships – Boats – boat component – or attachment – Hunting
Reexamination Certificate
2000-07-25
2001-10-16
Sotelo, Jesus D. (Department: 3617)
Ships
Boats, boat component, or attachment
Hunting
C114S343000, C224S406000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06302052
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to a horizontal shotgun and/or rifle rack assembly and, in particular, to a horizontal shotgun and/or rifle rack for use in hunting boats which: (a) can hold two shotguns, two rifles, or a shotgun and rifle in horizontal positions adjacent the side of a boat and generally below the gunwale (gunnel) of a boat where the shotgun(s) and/or rifle(s), although out of the way of the hunters in the boat to prevent the accidental discharge of or accidental damage to the shotgun(s) and/or rifle(s) by the hunters, are readily accessible to the hunters; (b) supports the shotgun(s) and/or rifle(s) above the bottom of the boat so that the shotgun(s) and/or rifle(s) do not get wet from water in the bottom of the boat; and (c) keeps the shotgun(s) and/or rifle(s) from getting lost if the hunting boat capsizes.
Hunting for water fowl, such as but not limited to duck hunting, is frequently carried out from within a hunting boat. While hunting boats may have other configurations, typically, hunting boats are flat bottomed boats with shallow, curved, side walls about thirteen inches in height. Over the years, there has been a need: for carrying shotguns and/or rifles in such boats in a way that reduces the chance of an accidental discharge of a shotgun or rifle; for keeping the shotgun(s) and/or rifle(s) out of the way when not in use to prevent damage to the shotgun(s) and/or rifle(s); for keeping the shotguns or rifles from getting wet if there is water in the bottom of the boat; for providing a shotgun or rifle rack assembly that does not interfere with the hunter when a shotgun or rifle has been removed from the rack and is in use; and for securing the shotgun(s) and/or rifle(s) to the boat so that the shotgun(s) and/or rifle(s) are not lost if the boat overturns, capsizes or is bumped into while traveling across the water.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,876,078, issued Apr. 8, 1975, and entitled “Portable Gun Rack” discloses a portable gun rack for mounting a gun in duck blinds, deer stands and the like. While suitable for mounting guns in duck blinds, deer stands and the like, the portable gun rack of the '078 patent is not suitable for mounting a gun in a shallow hunting boat. With the portable gun rack of the '078 patent receiving the butt end of the stock and the forward end portion of the gun stock to hold the gun in the rack, as shown in
FIG. 1
, and with the clamp for securing the rack to a duck blind or deer stand located at the upper end of the gun rack, the height of the portable gun rack of the '078 would be to great for mounting shotgun or rifle within a shallow hunting boat. U.S. Pat. No. 3,952,878, issued Apr. 27, 1976, entitled “Gun Stand” discloses a portable gun stand to be mounted in the ground which engages the rifle at the butt end of the stock and near the forward end of the barrel. U.S. Pat. No. 4,089,423, issued May 16, 1978, and entitled “Rifle Stand” discloses a gun stand to be mounted in the ground which engages the butt end of the stock and a midportion of the stock. U.S. Pat. No. 4,144,971, issued Mar. 20, 1979, and entitled “Gun Caddy” discloses a gun stand to be mounted in the ground which engages the butt end of the stock and the barrel of the shotgun. U.S. Pat. No. 4,159,588, issued Jul. 3, 1979, and entitled “Apparatus for Supporting Sporting Guns During Testing Intervals” discloses a frame for supporting a gun in a downward inclined position and for cooling the gun barrel. U.S. Pat. No. 4,450,989, issued May 29, 1984, and entitled “Gun Rack for Motor Vehicles” discloses a gun rack for supporting guns horizontally with elastic retaining means and end plates for mounting the gun rack on the back window of a vehicle such as a pickup truck. U.S. Pat. No. 4,582,203, issued Apr. 15, 1986, and entitled “Fishing Rod Holder”, discloses two brackets for mounting a series of fishing rods along side each other. U.S. Pat. No. 5,078,279, issued Jan. 7, 1992, and entitled “Gun Rack” discloses a gun rack with an elastic hold down member which is permanently attached through its base unit
11
by means of screws or bolts to vertical surfaces which holds a gun in a horizontal position. U.S. Pat. No. 5,676,257, issued Oct. 14, 1997, and entitled “Gun Rack”, discloses a gun rack with a locking mechanism for mounting by bolts through apertures
24
and
26
to a wall. U.K. patent application no. 2170994 A, published Aug. 20, 1986, and entitled “Gun Security Systems”, discloses a lockable gun rack, to be permanently attached to a vertical surface, which engages the gun at the butt end of the stock, at a midportion of the stock rearward of the trigger guard, and at the forward end of the barrel. U.S Des. Pat. No. 272,785, issued Feb. 28, 1984, and entitled “Set of Brackets for Mounting on a Wall for Supporting Horizontally Oriented Fishing Rods”, discloses two brackets to be mounted on a wall with a fastener that has cradles open at one side for supporting fishing rods. U.S. Des. Pat. No. 365,717, issued Jan. 2, 1996, and entitled “Portable Gun Rack”, discloses a wire gun rack.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The horizontal shotgun and/or rifle rack assembly of the present invention provides an economical, efficient, safe, and easy to use solution to the problems associated with transporting and using shotgun(s) and/or rifle(s) in hunting boats, especially flat bottomed hunting boats with low sidewalls. The gun rack assembly of the present invention holds two shotguns and/or rifles in substantially horizontal positions within and adjacent a side of a boat so that the guns are out of the way of the hunters in the boat, protected by their location from potential damage, and secured to the boat when not in use to keep the guns from being lost should the boat overturn.
The gun rack assembly includes first and second racks to be mounted forward and aft of each other on a side of a boat to receive, support and removably retain barrels and butt stocks of two shotguns and/or rifles. The first and second racks each having upper and lower, upwardly opening, U-shaped gun cradles for receiving, supporting and removably retaining barrels and/or butt stocks of two shotguns and/or rifles and supporting two shotguns and/or rifles horizontally one above the other. The upper and lower gun cradles on each of the racks each have side portions extending upward from an intermediate bottom portion and an upper opening and the lower gun cradle on each rack is spaced below the upper gun cradle on each rack a distance sufficient to permit a shotgun or rifle to be easily placed in and removed from the lower gun cradles. Preferably, each of the gun cradles has a mechanism for closing the opening of the gun cradle and keeping a shotgun and/or rifle supported by the gun cradle from falling out of the gun cradle in the event a boat on which the gun rack assembly is mounted overturns.
The first and second racks each have mounting brackets for removably securing the first and second racks, e.g. by clamps, to a gunwale of and within a boat with the upper gun cradles of the racks spaced below the gunwale so that a shotgun or rifle retained in the upper gun cradles of the racks is supported within the boat generally below the gunwale and out of the way of the hunters within the boat and with the lower gun cradles spaced above a bottom of the boat so that a shotgun or rifle retained in the lower gun cradles of the racks is supported above the bottom of the boat to keep the gun from getting wet. The mounting brackets for removably securing the first and second racks to a gunwale of and within a boat space the upper and lower gun cradles inward from a side of a boat a distance sufficient to keep shotguns and/or rifles retained in the upper and lower gun cradles from contacting the curved side of a boat.
REFERENCES:
patent: D. 272785 (1984-02-01), Rumbaugh
patent: D. 365717 (1996-01-01), Cardenas
patent: 3876078 (1975-04-01), Gomes et al.
patent: 3952878 (1976-04-01), Gorham
patent: 4089423 (1978-05-01), Gorham et al.
patent: 4144971 (1979-03-01), Balibrea
patent: 4
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