Rapid fire mechanism for firearms

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

This invention relates generally to an improved firearm. In one aspect it relates to a firearm which has reduced recoil action when fired. In another aspect it relates to a firearm which has in increased rate of firing capability.

In what follows the term firearm is intended to refer to both handguns (pistols) and rifles which may be of the semiautomatic or fully automatic type. The term firearm is intended to also comprise fully automatic machine guns. For clarity, the present invention will be described as it relates to applications in semiautomatic handguns. However, the invention may also be adapted to rifles and machine guns.

There are many uses for handguns that include sport, police and military use, and personal self-defense. In the sport known as action or combat shooting, an individual is presented with a series of targets that simulate combat and/or self-defense scenarios. Another type of shooting sport is fixed-target shooting. Police and military personnel also participate in these sports as part of training exercises. In these activities the objective is to hit the target or targets as many times as possible in a given period of time with as high an accuracy as possible. The preferred (and in some sports required by rule) handgun for these activities is of the semiautomatic type wherein each round (bullet) is automatically loaded from a magazine into the gun barrel. However, the trigger must be pulled and released each time the gun is to be fired. In a fully automatic firearm the ammunition is discharged in rapid succession by pulling and holding the trigger only once.

Two important characteristics of semiautomatic handguns are i) minimum recoil, and ii) minimum cycle-time. Other important factors are the gun weight and fire power.

When a gun is fired the explosion of the gunpowder in the ammunition casing or shell creates a forward force on the bullet that propels the bullet out of the gun barrel. Basic physics requires that an equal and opposite force be exerted rearward by the bullet on the gun. This force is referred to as recoil. The portion of the recoil that is sensed by the gun user is referred to as “felt” recoil. The felt recoil is less than the total recoil because automatic and semiautomatic guns contain a spring or springs which absorb some of the energy released when the gun is fired.

Because the gun barrel wherein the recoil force is applied is usually slightly above the wrist of the user, a moment is created about the wrist that tends to rotate the gun barrel upward after firing. In a semiautomatic gun the result is that the gun must be re-aimed before it can be fired again. Excessive recoil can also lead to wrist injury after repeated use. It can be appreciated, therefore, that minimal felt recoil is a desirable attribute for guns since it will reduce the time required to re-aim the gun.

Efforts to reduce felt recoil have resulted in the development of compensators. A compensator is a modification to the gun barrel wherein a small hole is formed in the top of the barrel near the barrel discharge. When the bullet passes the hole a jet of high-pressure gas within the barrel is emitted from the hole. The jet produces a downward force on the end of the gun barrel that counteracts the recoil moment. Compensators have the problem of obscuring the sight of the gun as well as safety problems since the gas jet is hot. Compensators also require a longer barrel that adds weight to the gun.

The cycle-time is the time between successive firings of the gun. In a semiautomatic handgun, for example, the cycle consists of: i) pulling the trigger which fires the bullet, ii) ejection of the empty shell casing from the barrel, and iii) loading of a new round from the magazine (usually in the gun handle) whereby the gun is ready to be fired again. The cycle-time in a semiautomatic handgun is usually faster than the ability of the user to re-aim the gun and fire again. Therefore, the limiting factor in the firing rate is the proficiency of the user.

In a fully automatic gun, such as a machine gun, the limiting factor in the cycle-time is primarily the speed at which the empty shell casing is ejected from the gun and the speed at which a new round can be loaded from the magazine into firing position. The ejection process is controlled by an ejector mechanism that is automatically activated when the gun is fired. The ejector is activated by the gun slide which is a spring-loaded member that is driven rearward by the impact of the explosion of the ammunition. During the rearward motion of the slide, the ejector is activated and ejects the empty shell casing from the gun. Under the action of the slide spring, the slide is first halted and then driven forward returning it to the firing position. At the rear-most position of the slide the magazine is opened and a new round is forced upward (from the magazine in the handle of the gun) into the gun bolt. During the forward motion, the slide rams the round forward into the gun barrel whereby the gun is ready to be fired. The duration of the motion of the slide therefore defines the cycle-time of the gun.

The speed of the slide is primarily a function of its mass. In conventional designs, the force exerted by the gun frame on the slide by for halting its rearward motion is the primary source of felt recoil. In many designs the slide will actually impact upon the frame during the rearward stroke and create a large felt recoil force.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present invention is predicated on a semiautomatic or fully automatic gun that reduces felt recoil and significantly reduces the cycle-time. The improvement is achieved by a novel dynamic balancing mechanism that isolates the gun slide from the frame (handle) when the gun is fired and thereby reduces felt recoil. The mechanism also ejects the spent shell casing and brings the gun to battery (reloads) more rapidly than conventional designs thereby reducing cycle-time and increasing the maximum firing rate (i.e. shots per minute).

The dynamic balancing is achieved by replacing the conventional single mass slide with a dual mass slide and “bolt” combination. The relative motions of the slide and bolt are timed in a way that isolates the slide from the frame whereby the slide does not impact (collide) with the gun frame and, therefore, does not impart a large felt recoil to the hand of the user. The slide and bolt are slidingly coupled and both are free to move rearward (towards the gun handle) and forward relative to each other. The slide and bolt are coupled with a spring (referred to as the bolt spring). The movement of the bolt relative to the slide is limited by forward and rearward stops on the slide. As in the conventional design the slide is slidingly coupled to the frame of the gun with a second spring (referred to as the slide spring) interposed therebetween. Although the ranges will vary from gun to gun, the bolt will typically have one-fourth to one-half the mass of the slide.

The felt recoil is reduced by timing the motion of the bolt relative to the slide whereby some of the recoil force induced by the explosion of the ammunition is absorbed within the itself thereby balancing the gun and reducing felt recoil. Whereas in conventional designs comprising a single mass slide wherein the slide impacts the gun frame imparting a large felt recoil force thereto, in the present design the slide and bolt are isolated from the frame and thus never impact the frame thereby reducing recoil. The bolt and frame are slidingly coupled to the frame in the forward and rearward directions and the term “isolated” refers to isolation in the direction of recoil force (i.e. rearward towards the gun handle).

In the present invention, the explosion of the ammunition initiates the rearward motion of both the slide and the bolt. However, because the bolt is lighter it moves rearward much faster than the slide. The masses of the slide and bolt (as well as the bolt and slide spring stiffnesses) are sized to optimize the timing of these motions so that:

i) the bolt moves rearward much faster than the slide and collides with the slide before the slide has undergone significant movement whereby the rearward motion of the bolt is halted (neither part has contacted the frame, i.e . both are isolated from the frame),

ii) the bolt now moves forward as the slide continues to move rearward so that the forward bolt momentum cancels some of the slide rear-ward momentum,

iii) the bolt impacts the slide and halts the slide rearward movement before the slide collides with the frame whereby the slide does not impart an impact force on the frame (as inconventional designs), and

iv) both the bolt and the slide move forward together and return to the firing position at the same time whereby the gun is ready to be fired again.

The collisions described in i) and iii), can be regarded as “internal” collisions since they occur between the bolt and slide only, which are isolated from the frame (in the manner described in the preferred embodiments below).

Whereas in the conventional design the force of the explosion is exerted on a single mass slide, in the present dual mass system the force is exerted on the much lighter bolt. Under this force the bolt is driven rearward much faster than the conventional single mass slide design. During the rearward stroke the bolt activates the ejector and extracts the empty shell. At its rear-most position, the bolt opens the magazine for admitting a new round into the gun which is rammed into the barrel by the forward motion of the bolt and the gun is ready to be fired again. The forward motion is induced by the bolt spring which is brought into compression during the rearward stroke. Thus the rearward and forward motions of the bolt define the cycle-time of the gun. Because the bolt has significantly less mass than the slide of the conventional design, the cycle-time is significantly reduced.

The following sequence of events summarize the cycle of the gun. The rearward motions described being induced by the rearward reaction of the exploding ammunition, and the forward motions described being induced by the bolt and slide springs.

1. the gun is fired and the bolt and slide begin to move rearward with bolt moving much faster than the slide

2. the bolt activates ejector and ejects spent shell

3. the bolt internally collides with the slide which halts the bolt rearward motion before either the bolt or slide collide with the frame

4. near rear-most position the bolt opens the magazine and admits new round into the gun, the slide continues to move rearward

5. the bolt moves forward while slide moves rearward thereby canceling some of the slide momentum and absorbing much of the energy of the explosion and reducing felt recoil

6. the bolt internally collides again with the slide and halts the slide rearward motion before the slide collides with the frame, the bolt and slide begin to move forward together

7. during forward motion, the bolt rams a new round into firing position in the gun barrel

8. the bolt and slide return to firing position

In a semiautomatic gun, events 1 through 8 would occur each time the trigger is pulled, and the limiting factor in the rate of firing (shots per minute) is the speed at which the user can re-aim the gun. The mechanical speed of the cycle is generally much faster than human factor of re-aiming and the proficiency of the user determines the firing rate.

In a fully automatic gun, events 1 through 8 would repeat continuously for as long as the trigger is pulled and held, thus, the firing rate is determined by the mechanical speed of the gun. Experimental tests described below indicate that the present dual mass system significantly increases firing rate.

From the forgoing it can be appreciated that the present design accomplishes the objectives of i) reducing felt recoil by isolating the slide from the frame by timing the relative movements of the bolt and slide, and ii) reducing cycle-time by speeding the ejection and reloading process.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1

is a side view of the present invention as embodied in a semiautomatic handgun.

FIG. 2

is a top partial sectional view taken along section

2

—

2

in FIG.

4

.

FIG. 3

is a sectional frontal view taken along plane

3

—

3

of FIG.

4

.

FIG. 4

is a side sectional view taken along plane

4

—

4

in

FIG. 2

showing the gun in the firing position.

FIGS. 5

a

through

5

f

are side sectional views showing the relative movements or the gun components over one cycle after the gun is fired.

FIG. 6

is a top sectional view taken along plane

6

—

6

in

FIG. 4

illustrating the ejector mechanism.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

The present balancing mechanism will be described as applied to a semiautomatic handgun. However, it will be appreciated by those of skill in the art that the invention may be applied to fully automatic guns as well. The term gun is intended to include semiautomatic and fully automatic handguns, rifles, and machine guns.

The overall structure of the gun will first be described followed by a description of the balancing mechanism and the principles of operation. Preferred embodiments of the firing mechanism and ejector mechanisms will be described. However, these may be any number of the those practiced in the art and, therefore, are not intended to limit the scope of the invention which is directed at a timed dual mass system for reducing felt recoil and increasing firing rate.

Handgun Components

As seen in

FIGS. 1 through 4

, semiautomatic handgun

10

comprises the components of frame

11

, barrel

12

, bolt

13

, and slide

14

. As best seen in

FIG. 3

, frame

11

has race

16

which mates with groove

17

of slide

14

for slidingly securing the slide to the frame. Frame

11

has secured thereto rod

15

(see

FIG. 4

) which has compression spring

18

disposed around the rod at one end and in contact with slide

14

at the opposite end. The slide has hole

19

wherein slide spring

18

is inserted. Spring

18

limits the rearward motion of the slide with respect to the frame when the gun is fired as described later. Barrel

12

and bolt

13

are slidingly disposed within slide

14

.

As best seen in

FIG. 2

, slide

14

has two rods

20

a

and

20

b

which act as guide rods for the sliding motion of bolt

13

relative to the slide. The rods are secured to slide

14

in holes

25

a

and

25

b

at one end and holes

26

a

and

26

b

at the other end. The rods are held in place by flathead machine screws

28

a

and

28

b

which are threaded into the ends of the rods. Bolt

13

has projections

21

a

and

21

b

with holes

22

a

and

22

b

, respectfully drilled therethrough. Rods

20

a

and

20

b

pass slidingly through the holes for guiding the bolt motion as will be described. Bolt springs

23

a

and

23

b

(see

FIG. 2

) are compression springs which are in contact with slide

14

at

24

a

and

24

b

on the backside of the springs and in contact with the bolt projections at

21

a

and

21

b

at the front of the springs. The bolt springs are always in compression and therefore exert a forward force on the bolt with respect to the slide. In the firing position (i.e. before the gun is fired) the bolt is held in compression against the slide at interface

27

. The rear portion of bolt

13

is of rectangular cross section. The rear portion of slide

14

has a rectangular cavity which is open at both ends in which the bolt may slide uninhibited forward and backward. The sliding motion of the bolt with respect to the slide is limited in the forward direction by projects

21

a

and

21

b

contacting the slide at interface

27

, and in the rearward direction with springs

23

a

and

23

b

in full compression whereby the springs bottom-out.

Barrel

12

has circular front end

31

which passes slidingly through barrel hole

32

in slide

14

for securing the barrel to the slide. The rear of barrel

12

is of square cross section and fits slidingly into a square cavity (see

FIG. 3

) formed in the center of bolt

13

in front of bolt surface

33

(see

FIG. 4

) for support and aligning the rear of the barrel with respect to the bolt and the slide.

The components comprising the barrel

12

, bolt

13

, and slide

14

will each move with respect to frame

11

and with respect to each other when the gun is fired as described below. However, each component is slidingly secured to the frame as follows. Referring to

FIG. 4

, spring

18

exerts a forward force on slide

14

with respect to frame

11

. The slide motion with respect to the frame is guided by race

16

and grooves

17

as has been described. Bolt springs

23

a

and

23

b

are very stiff compression springs and tend to hold bolt

13

against slide

14

as illustrated at interface

27

. The bolt springs exert a forward force on the bolt with respect to the slide and an equal and opposite rearward force on the slide with respect to the bolt due to contact with the slide at

24

a,b

. Thus the slide/bolt combination is induced to move forward under the action of slide spring

18

. The forward motion of bolt

13

is limited by barrel

12

and pin

37

(referred to as the slide release pin) which is secured to frame

11

. Bolt

13

exerts a forward force at the rear of barrel

12

at barrel breech

38

. Barrel

12

has cam

39

with follower pin

41

which is secured to frame

11

. The forward force on the barrel forces the rear of the barrel upward on the cam which acts to hold barrel lugs

42

and bolt lugs

43

in engagement. The forward motion of the barrel is limited by pin

37

secured to frame

11

, which in turn limits the forward motion of the bolt/slide combination due to contact at breech

38

and lugs

42

and

43

as shown in FIG.

4

.

Gun

10

further comprises firing mechanism comprising hammer

48

, sear

49

, sear lever

50

, trigger

51

, and firing pin

52

disposed slidingly in hole

53

in the rear portion of bolt

13

. End

54

of pin

52

is disposed away from round

56

in the breech of the barrel by compression spring

57

. Stop

58

is secured to the rear of bolt

13

and limits the rearward movement of the firing pin which may slide in hole

59

of the block. In the cocked position, hammer

48

is pulled rearward and held in position by sear

49

which pivots downward about pin

64

to engage pawl

60

of the hammer. The firing mechanism is activated be pulling trigger

51

rearward which causes the rear of the trigger to rotate upward about pin

61

whereby trigger lever

62

contacts the forward end of sear lever

50

. The forward end of the lever is pushed upward causing the back part of the lever to rotate about pin

63

downward and contact the front of sear

49

. Sear

49

pivots upward and becomes disengaged from hammer pawl

60

whereby the hammer is released to strike end

66

of the firing pin. Hammer

48

and frame

11

have a torsional spring (not shown) interposed therebetween which induces the hammer into the firing position when the hammer is released. With hammer

48

cocked (as shown in FIG.

3

), end

66

of the firing pin protrudes slightly out of stop

58

. When the gun is fired hammer

48

is released and will strike end

666

and the momentum imparted to the pin will force pin end

54

into the rear of round

56

thereby detonating the primer in the round. The firing mechanism used in the present invention may be any of the conventional types used in the art. The above description of the firing mechanism is by way of illustration only and is not intended to limit the scope of the present invention which is predicated on a firearm with reduced recoil and cycle-time.

Handgun

10

also comprises magazine

46

having spring

47

and ammunition (rounds)

48

. Spring

47

exerts an upward force on the ammunition and automatically loads the gun as will be described.

Balancing of Handgun

The firing of the handgun and the interaction between the slide, the bolt, the barrel and the frame whereby the gun is balanced and cycle-time reduced will be described. The sequence of events over one cycle of firing will be described in relation to

FIGS. 4 and 5

a

through

5

f

. It should be noted that the mass of slide

14

is preferably between 2.5 to 5 times and most preferably between 3.5 to 4.5 times that of bolt

13

so that more force is required to move the slide than the bolt. Note also that part of the firing mechanism has been omitted from

FIGS. 5

a

through

5

f

for clarity.

In

FIG. 4

the gun is fired and the explosion of the ammunition exerts a rearward force on the bolt

13

at surface

33

which causes the bolt to move rearward as illustrated in

FIG. 5

a

. Lugs

42

and

43

remain engaged and barrel

12

moves rearward with the bolt. Because the bolt and barrel are free to slide with respect to slide

14

, and the slide is significantly heavier, the slide stays essentially stationary over the short time interval from

FIGS. 4

to

5

a

. The round has left the barrel leaving spent shell casing

65

which moves rearward with the bolt.

As seen in

FIGS. 5

a

and

5

b

, barrel

12

has upward facing cam

67

(see

FIG. 4

) which contacts the bottom of pin

41

and forces the rear of the barrel downward as it moves rearward. The motion of the barrel is halted with the rear of the barrel hung on pin

41

as shown in

FIG. 5

b

. The collision of the barrel with pin

37

(which is secured to frame

11

) creates only a small amount of felt recoil because the mass of the barrel is small. The downward motion uncouples lugs

42

and

43

and bolt

13

continues to move backward while barrel

12

is stationary and hung on pin

41

. The uncoupling of the bolt and barrel serves two purposes. First, it creates an opening between the bolt and the barrel wherein the spent shell casing may be ejects and a new round loaded into the barrel from the magazine. Secondly, it creates an opening

68

around the outside of the barrel whereby some of the exhaust gas from the explosion may be released whereby the pressure in the barrel rapidly drops. This improves the safety of the gun. Because the slide is significantly heavier than the bolt, the slide stays essentially stationary during the interval from

FIGS. 5

a

to

5

b

. Thus all of the energy imparted to the gun from firing the gun has been transferred to the bolt with some of the energy stored in springs

23

a

and

23

b

which are being compressed as the bolt moves rearwards with respect to the slide. Note also in

FIGS. 5

a

and

5

b

that the rearward motion of the bolt has forced hammer

48

back whereby sear

51

engages hammer pawl

60

to re-cock the gun.

As illustrated in

FIG. 5

c

, the continued rearward motion of the bolt activates the ejector mechanism (described below) which ejects the empty shell casing

65

out of the side of the gun. Continued bolt rearward motion shown in

FIG. 5

d

opens the magazine and spring

47

forces new round

71

into space

72

created between bolt

13

and barrel

12

.

In

FIG. 5

d

, bolt

13

is at its rear most position and subsequently under the action of springs

23

a

and

23

b

begins to move forward once round

71

is in position. At this point, springs

23

a

and

23

b

have bottomed-out against slide

14

at

24

a

and

24

b

. and the rearward motion of bolt

13

is halted by colliding with slide

14

. However, slide

14

has only just begun to move rearward on race

16

due to forces exerted by springs

23

a,b

(as well as the bolt collision) and, therefore, neither the slide nor the bolt have collided with frame

11

. Thus in

FIG. 5

d

, bolt

13

has begun to move forward and slide

14

has begun to move rearward.

In

FIG. 5

e

, bolt

13

is moving forward while slide

14

is simultaneously moving rearward. Round

71

is pushed into the breech

38

of stationary barrel

12

by the forward motion of bolt

13

. The simultaneous forward momentum of the motion counteracts the rearward momentum of the slide and is the key to balancing the gun and reducing recoil as discussed in more detail below.

FIG. 5

f

illustrates the instant the bolt and slide contact each other at interface

27

. The collision in combination with force exerted by spring

18

halts the rearward slide motion. At this instant the slide is at its rear most position and subsequently due to the forward force exerted on the slide by spring

18

the slide begins to move forward. Slide spring

18

, however, has not bottomed-out and therefore there is no impact force exerted on frame

11

(via rod

15

and pin

37

which secured to the frame). Springs

23

a

and

23

b

hold bolt

13

in compression against the slide and the slide/bolt combination moves forward together. The bolt also collides with the breech of barrel

12

at surface

33

(see

FIG. 4

) and begins to push the barrel forward (note that the collision is isolated from the frame. The rear portion of the barrel rides upward on cam

39

and pin

41

whereby lugs

42

and

43

are engaged. The slide, bolt, and barrel move forward together and the gun returns to the firing position illustrated in FIG.

4

.

The important principles underlying the operation of the present balancing mechanism whereby felt recoil is reduced are summarized as follows:

1. When bolt

13

moves rearward and collides with slide

14

(i.e. intermediate bolt springs

23

a,b

bottom-out), the slide has not yet appreciably moved and, therefore, spring

18

has not been compressed from the firing position and the slide is free to move on race

16

. Thus the collision is substantially internal to the gun and no impact force is exerted on frame

11

. This is in contrast to conventional handguns wherein the slide and bolt (i.e. joined in a single mass which slides on race

16

) are integral and the rearward motion is halted when spring

18

bottoms out and an impact force is imparted to frame

11

causing a significant recoil to be imparted to the hand and wrist of the user.

2. The bolt/slide collision halts the bolt movement and the bolt begins to move forward while the slide simultaneously begins to moves rearward due to the collision and the forces exerted by springs

23

a,b

at surfaces

24

a,b

. The forward bolt momentum cancels (balances) some of the rearward momentum of the slide and thereby reduces the recoil force. The effect is predictable using Newton's second law which states that the force on a system is equal to the time rate of change of the momentum of the system as a whole (in this case the entire gun is the system). It is true that the rearward motion of the heavier slide will create some net rearward momentum and therefore some felt recoil force. However, while the bolt moves forward and the slide moves rearward, the net momentum of the gun as a whole is reduced thereby reducing the force on the hand of the user.

3. The forward moving bolt collides with the rearward moving slide at interface

27

. The collision halts the rearward motion of the slide and at this position spring

18

has not been fully compressed and, therefore, no impact force is exerted on the frame. The collision may be thought of as being internal to the gun and creates very little external force on the user's hand.

4. The bolt/slide combination moves very rapidly in the forward direction to return the gun to the firing position.

From items 1 through 3 above, it can be seen that at no point during the cycle (except at the very end of the cycle when the slide/bolt/barrel combination impacts pin

37

which not important as related to felt recoil) does the bolt or slide impart an impact-type force of the frame. Thus, the bolt and slide are always isolated from the frame after firing.

Ejector Mechanism

Referring to

FIG. 6

a

, ejector mechanism

75

comprises ejector plate

76

, extractor

77

, and extractor spring

78

. Ejector

76

is secured to frame

11

and slidingly disposed in slot

79

formed in bolt

13

. Ejector

76

is eccentrically mounted with bolt

13

and is stationary with respect to the bolt. Extractor

77

is pivotally mounted to bolt

13

on pin

81

. At the forward end extractor

77

has clip

82

which engages has rounded frontal edge

83

which detachably engages with groove

84

formed around the rear end on casing

65

. Spring

78

is a compression spring and exerts an outward force on the rear of extractor

77

which acts to keep clip

82

engaged with groove

84

, so that when the gun is fired, bolt

13

and casing

65

move rearward together. As shown in

FIGS. 6

b

and

6

c.

At the instant illustrated in

FIG. 6

c

the rear casing

65

has contacted the front of ejector

76

. Continued rearward movement of bolt

13

exposes end

86

of the ejector which imparts an outward ejection force (or moment) on casing

65

which acts to rotate the casing about clip

82

as shown in

FIGS. 6

d

and

6

e

. The force is imparted in a direction to eject the casing out the side of the gun through slot

87

formed in the side of slide

14

(see FIG.

1

). In

FIGS. 6

f

and

6

g

the casing has released from clip

82

and is ejecting from the gun. Spring-loaded pivotal member

77

facilitates the release of the casing from the clip.

Following the ejection of casing

65

, bolt

13

moves rearward and opens magazine

56

for injecting a new round of ammunition into firing position as has been described in relation to

FIGS. 5

d

and

5

e

. As the new round

71

moves into space

72

, bolt

13

reverses direction and begins to move forward and push round

71

into breech

38

of barrel

12

. During this process the round resists slightly the motion whereby rounded frontal edge

83

of clip

82

slides (as extractor

77

pivots on pin

81

) around the outer rim of the groove round the rear of shell

71

to engage the shell for the next ejection cycle. Spring

78

holds the ejector and casing

71

in engagement as the gun is brought to battery (i.e. into the firing position).

The present invention contemplates the use of any compatible ejector system known in the art and the above description is by way of illustration only and is not intended to limit the scope of the present invention.

EXAMPLE

A semiautomatic handgun as exemplified in the description and figures described above has been constructed and tested. A conventional handle, firing mechanism and ejector system (as described above) were employed.

The testing was carried out to demonstrate the efficacy of the present invention as embodied in a semiautomatic handgun. However, it will be appreciated by those of skill in the art that the invention may be equally applied to fully automatic guns including rifles and machine guns and, therefore, the description of the embodiments below are not intended to limit the invention to only semiautomatic handguns.

A .40 caliber semiautomatic hand gun was constructed having the following properties:

Slide (14)

Bolt (13)

Barrel (12)

Frame (11)

Preferred

0.365

0.981

0.260

1.433

Mass (lb)

Most Prefer-

0.150

0.600

0.260

1.433

red Mass(lb)

Preferred

4340 Stainless Titanium

Steel

Aluminum Alloy

Material

Slide Spring Stiffness

Bolt Spring Stiffness

Preferred

9.50

19.0

(lb/in)

Most Preferred

6.29

25.0

(lb/in)

The above data are illustrative of the ranges for a semiautomatic handgun of the size constructed. It will be understood by those in the art that these data will be scaled upward or downward in accordance with size of the handgun, rifle, or machine gun.

Video taped tests have been carried out on the semiautomatic handgun. A vise-grip mount (simulating a human wrist) for supporting the gun handle and means for pulling the gun trigger were constructed so that the gun could be remotely fired and video taped. A Redlake Motion Scope 500 with a film rate of 500 frames/second and a shutter speed of 1/10,000 of a second was used to record the motion of the gun components after firing. The description of the motion as depicted in

FIGS. 5

a

through

5

f

are based on the results of these recordings.

Based upon these data the cycle-time has been found to be between 0.05 and 0.067 seconds. A time range being given as it was not possible to accurately synchronize the impact of the hammer and the end of the cycle with the resolution (in frames per second) of the camera and therefore it was not possible to precisely determine the beginning and end of the cycle. Multiple tests were, however, conducted and these data represent the range of the results. It was possible, however, to accurately record the relative motion of the bolt and slide over the cycle.

The cycle-time data have been used to compute the rate of fire (rounds per minute) that the present invention would yield when applied to a fully automatic gun. The calculation is given by:

Rounds per minute=(1/CT)×60=895 rounds/minute

Where CT=cycle time=0.067 seconds

The above rate can be compared to a conventional fully automatic handgun which typically has a rate of 600 rounds/minute.

The high speed photograph tests also revealed a significant decrease in muzzle rise after firing the present handgun.