GB2350881A

GB2350881A - Barrel jacket assembly

Info

Publication number: GB2350881A
Application number: GB9913469A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Stefan Gamble
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 1999-06-10
Filing date: 1999-06-10
Publication date: 2000-12-13
Anticipated expiration: 2019-06-10
Also published as: GB9913469D0; GB2350881B

Abstract

An outer sleeve 61 is held under compression around an inner tensioned barrel 62 by means of a pair of locking nuts 64 via an elastic or spring compression washer 63. Said outer sleeve and inner barrel are spaced apart by vented baffle spacer rings 65 and allow propellant gas evacuation by means of inner barrel and outer sleeve venting holes 67,68. Said venting holes have progressively increasing diameters in opposite directions from a point along the barrel corresponding to the maximum velocity point 66 (MVP) of a fired projectile.

Description

2350881 GUN BARREL JACKET ASSENBLY This invention relates to firearms,

firearm silencer and flash suppressor technology.

Current gun barrel design is basically a heavy one piece primitive concept, and normal screw on silencers and flash suppressors extends the length of the weapon beyond practical usage.

Current design one piece rifled barrels are heavy,-to give rigidity and upon usage they resonate with limited control along their length (e.g. as in an increasing coiled sine wave) from the moment of a propellant's ignition till the last moment of (and after) the projectile's exit from the barrel mouth. It is for this reason that a short carbine-type barrel is often as accurate as a long ',sniping" type barrel, in that the projectile leaves the barrel before the occilations become too great.

These coil sine wave movements along the barrel's length absorbs energy from the projectile by means of friction occurring as the projectile attempts to take a straight path, but is influenced by the relative external off-axis movement of the surrounding barrel wall, causing further distortion of the cross section of the projectile and thus resulting in propellant pressure leaks between the projectile's circumference and barrel wall.

Also when the projectile exits the barrel, the following pressurised gasses are suddenly released causing an audibly and visually locatable loud and unnecessary bang and flash.

According to the present invention there exists a thin walled inner barrel around which is fixed a thinner walled outer sleeve, held apart by means of vented baffle spacer rings by method which is already known. The outer sleeve is anchored at the breech end of the barrel and tightened down upon by a pair of locking nuts and elastic or spring compression washer located at the threaded muzzle end of the inner barrel, thereby creating a damped mechanical tension, structural rigidity and resistance to barrel bore expansion under firing pressure.

There are seven main purposes for this invention.

The first purpose of this invention is to restrict lateral barrel oscillation which degrades accuracy by the method of creating structural tension, compression and damping in the barrel assembly.

The second purpose is to improve propellant gas seal and thereby increase projectile velocity. It is logical that if the barrel is restrained from flexing laterally,Ahere will be less energy lost to friction and the deformation of the projectile, providing a more stable and linear flight path along the length of the barrel, with a better gas seal and greater exit velocity resulting in a flatter trajectory whilst also increasing projectile impact.

The third purpose is to make an improved, less locatable and quieter firearm with decreased muzzle flash and noise by the method of controlling the gradual escape of propellant gasses, resulting in less sudden gas exit pressure release effects following the projectile's exit of the barrel.

The inventor acknowledges that he is not the first to conceive of boring gas escape holes into a barrel assembly, thereby allowing escape of gas propellant pressure before the exit of the bullet and makes no claim for this point. However, he is the first to gradually release this pressure and to realise this concept efficiency at no power loss to the projectile. Furthermore, the gas escape holes in this application are angled for preferred acceptance to ease the exit of the gas flow.

The fourth purpose is to make for a lighter and stronger firearm barrel by substituting mass for structural rigidity.

The fifth purpose is to provide a power take-off for an automatic ammunition feed loading mechanism.

The sixth purpose is to provide a firearm with a cooler external barrel for handling purposes.

The seventh purpose is to provide a firearm with a more constant lower temperature assembly to minimise overheating and tolerances.

Also according to the present invention there is bored into the inner barrel a series of vent holes, becoming increasingly larger towards the muzzle end, starting through the inner barrel from the point where the projectile has achieved its maximum velocity point (MVP). There is a second series of increasingly larger vent holes bored into the outer sleeve, starting down-breech of maximum velocity point and increasing in size towards the breech anchor end.

The inner vent holes increase in size from the maximum velocity point towards the muzzle allowing rapid evacuation of the air in front of the projectile in the barrel therefore easing its passage. Once the projectile passes a vent hole point, the greater pressure of the following propellant gasses are gradually bled off, out of the inner barrel into the space between the inner barrels outer wall and the outer sleeve inner wall, then through vented baffle spacing rings to the breech end, and exiting via the outer barrel vent holes, thereby gradually releasing the propellant gasses pressure, and attenuating noise and lessening gas sudden exit effects.

AI.

A specific embodiment of the invention will now be described by way of example with reference to the accompanying drawing in which:- Figure 1 shows in cross section, a side elevation of the main barrel, the outer sleeve, the locking nuts, the elastic material or spring compression washer, the inner barrel ventilation holes and the outer barrel ventilation holes.

Referring to the drawing figure 1 the barrel jacket assembly comprises of, an outer compression wall (61) anchored at the breech end by locating screws (69), the inner tensioned main barrel (62), a compression washer or elastic material washer (63), locknuts (64) and silencing baffle spacer rings (65), between the inner barrel (62) and outer sleeve (61).

Also referring to drawing Figure I the assembly is held under calculated tension by locknuts (64) via a spring compression washer (63) held to suitably torqued compression, causing tension and damping along the length of the inner barrel (62) and compression and damping along the length of the outer sleeve (61).

The resulting stress created in the structure increases it's rigidity for any given barrel assembly weight. This rigidity is further enhanced by the locating effect of the baffle spacer rings (65), which also limit barrel expansion under firing pressures.

:S- Also the semi-tensioned spring compression washer (.63) allows only limited heat expansion caused longitudinal movement and also acts as a damper.

Also referring to drawing Figure 1 the outer sleeve (61) and inner barrel (62) are both vented by their own series of holes becoming increasingly larger in opposite directions as they move away from the projectile maximum velocity point (MVP)(66). The first series of vent holes (67) starting at the projectile's maximum velocity point (66) in the inner barrel (62) and increase in size towards the muzzle end, and the second series of vent holes (68) are in the outer sleeve (61), starting just prior to the projectile's maximum velocity point (66) and increasing in size towards the achored (69) breech end of the assembly.

Claims

A thinner than normal walled inner barrel around which is fixed a thinner walled outer sleeve, held apart by means of vented baffle spacing rings of known application.

The tensioning element of this design is an outer sleeve anchored at the breech end of the barrel by a known method and compressed down upon to a suitable torque by a pair of locking nuts via an elastic or spring compression washer located at the threaded muzzle end or breech end of the tensioned inner barrel. The silencing element of this design is that there are bored into the inner barrel a series of vent holes starting from the point from where the projectile has achieved its maximum velocity and increasing in size towards the muzzle. An outer set of vent holes are bored into the outer sleeve starting down breech of the projectile's maximum velocity point and increasing in size towards the breech anchor end.

As in claim I but with the tensioning element of the design used independently of the silencing element of the design.

As in claim 1 but with the silencing element of the design used independently of the tensioning element of the design.

7 4. As in claim 1 and 3 but with the inner and outer vent holes bored at suitable angles for bias in propellant gas flow direction and to assist the escape of exhaust propellant gasses.

5. As claimed in claim 1,2,3 and 4 but using the remaining space between the inner barrel and outer sleeve of the barrel jacket assembly's breech end to achieve a power take-off for operation of an automatic ammunition feed for loading.

6. As claimed in claim 1, 2 and claim 3 but using the space between the inner barrel outer wall and outer sleeve inner wall with an induced cooling system.

7. A barrel jacket assembly substantially described herein with reference to Figure 1 of the accompanying drawing.

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