Patent Application
20250093119
The invention generally relates to a firearm and to a method for reducing firearm barrel rise and more particularly, to a firearm having at least one exhaust port which more efficiently allows material, such as gases, unburned powder, powder residue, and bullet particulates to be communicated from the firearm bore directly to the ambient environment in which the firearm resides, while concurrently minimizing the generation of bullet particulates, and to a method for more efficiently removing material such as gases, unburned powder, powder residue, and particulates from the barrel of the firearm.
The term “firearm”, as used throughout this Application, generally refers to any type of apparatus having a barrel through which a projectile (by way of example and without limitation, a bullet or shot charge) is driven. It should be appreciated that the terms “projectile” and “bullet” are interchangeably used in this Application and each of these terms mean a tangible member, object, or item which is selectively discharged or “shot” from the muzzle of a firearm and which is typically directed at a target. Non-limiting examples of such firearms include pistols (such as a commercially available GLOCK® 19 semi-automatic pistol), rifles and shotguns. The GLOCK® firearms are produced by Glock Ges.m.b.h. in Austria.
These firearms typically include cartridges, each of which comprises a casing which houses a projectile(s) (e.g., at least one bullet or shot charge), an ignition device, and propellant substance. The cartridges are typically and sequentially fed into the firing chamber of the firearm, the ignition of which is controlled by a trigger which actuates a firing assembly. The cartridge which resides in the firing chamber contains the next bullet which is to be selectively fired from the firearm.
Typically, when the trigger is selectively engaged or “pulled” by a user, a firing pin is made to strike the cartridge (residing in the firing chamber), thereby causing the cartridge, containing the propellant substance or selectively ignitable material, to ignite, thereby causing the contained projectile to exit the casing and to be “fired” down the barrel of the firearm and, in the case of semi-automatic or automatic weapon, further causing the now empty or “spent” casing to be ejected from the firearm and the next loaded cartridge placed into a firing position. Repeating firearms such as revolvers, bolt, lever and slide actions, and the like, have differing mechanisms and methods to accomplish the placement of the next cartridge into the firing position, and/or the ejection of the spent casing, such being well known in the art.
That is, the ignition of the propellant causes the generation of relatively fast-moving gaseous material and the relatively fast-moving gaseous material propels the bullet or projectile(s) (which is (are) now free from the casing) down and through the barrel of firearm (in a direction to the muzzle end of the firearm), until the projectile(s) exits the firearm from the muzzle.
In operation, these firearms are typically aimed in order to try to have the projectile(s) hit an intended target. It is very important to have and to maintain a correct aim of the firearm in order to ensure that the intended target is hit by the fired projectile(s). Movement of the firearm caused by its firing will undesirably make it much harder for the user to maintain or regain the desired aimpoint or aim trajectory path. That is, once the firearm is fixed or aimed on a target, movement resulting from its firing may undesirably cause the fired projectile to miss the target or strike the target at a different location than was intended by the firearm user. The greater the dislocation which is caused by the firing of the firearm, then the greater such compensation must be, which undesirably makes it more difficult for the user to properly hit the target as the user must resight or reposition the firearm onto the target as the trigger is re-engaged (for the next firing) and the firearm is again activated by selectively pulling the trigger in the foregoing manner.
While these firearms do allow for the selective “firing” of projectiles, they exhibit a relatively large amount of “rise” of the barrel when fired. This barrel rise occurs as a result of the recoil generated by the firing of the firearm and is typically experienced at the “muzzle portion” or “muzzle end” of the barrel (the “muzzle portion” or “muzzle end” of a firearm is that portion of the barrel which is furthest away from the user and which includes and is proximate to the actual “muzzle” which is defined as the open end of the barrel through which the projectile exits the firearm and travels toward the target). For example, the “muzzle portion” or “muzzle end” of the barrel or of the firearm, may be defined as about one-third of the length of the barrel starting at the muzzle and moving toward the trigger. The recoil occurs, once the trigger is selectively engaged by the user, thereby requiring the user to actively compensate for such barrel or muzzle rise in order to accurately bring the weapon back to its aim point or aim path for additional shots to be fired. Barrel rise is oftentimes referred to as “muzzle rise” because it is the muzzle portion of the barrel which typically experiences the most rise.
As earlier explained, when the projectile is fired from a firearm which is hand-held or shouldered, the muzzle portion of the barrel begins to upwardly rise (for example, in a direction away from the ground that the user resides upon) due to recoil caused by its firing. Particularly, the recoil is caused by the propelling of the projectile by the relatively fast-moving gaseous material as well as the emanation of the gaseous material from the barrel. As earlier explained, this “barrel rise” makes it harder for a user to return the firearm so that it is “on target” before or while additional shots are being fired. Of course, the greater the barrel rise, the more difficult it is for the user to return the firearm to a desired target position. To keep the firearm properly aimed at a target the user must actively compensate for the rise while attempting to keep the firearm pointed at the target or bring it back to a properly or desired aim position.
To compensate for this barrel or muzzle rise, current strategies utilize open exhaust ports which have been formed within the barrel to allow for some of the gaseous material to escape from the bore (the “bore” is the internal cavity of the barrel through which the projectile and the gaseous material travel).
These approaches do indeed decrease barrel or muzzle rise, because each of the currently provided port or ports allow a quantity of the gaseous material to escape from the bore, normally in an upward direction as the projectile passes through and leaves the bore. The term “upward” means a direction from the bottom of the firearm toward the top of the firearm. At times, according to prior and current strategies, multiple exhaust ports are employed for this purpose. (i.e., the greater the amount of gaseous material which is exhausted from the bore before the projectile passes through and leaves the bore, the less is the amount of muzzle or barrel rise experienced by the user).
However, using a relatively large number of ports undesirably increases the overall costs of manufacturing the firearm and structurally degrades the barrel, thereby increasing the likelihood of barrel failure and undesirably increasing the likelihood of a catastrophic failure since the gaseous material, which drives the projectile, is initially formed by combustion within the firearm and such combustion may cause a structurally degraded barrel to fail, thereby potentially injuring the operator of the firearm, and ruining and making inoperable the firearm.
Moreover, in these current approaches and strategies, the projectile engages or “hits” the relatively sharp formed edge of each of the formed ports, thereby undesirably creating additional friction and scraping of the bullet as it engages and passes the port(s) during the projectile(s) passage through the bore, thereby undesirably creating a relatively large amount of projectile particulates. That is, engagement of the projectile with these conventional “sharp edged” exhaust ports, causes some of the surface of the projectile to be frictionally “shaved off”. These prior and current strategies (by causing such a relatively larger amount of projectile scraping), causes the path of the bullet to be undesirably altered since the weight and shape of the bullet are often substantially changed during the traversal of the projectile through the bore, thereby decreasing the accuracy of the firearm. That is, any appreciable change in the shape and weight of the fired projectile (as a result of such exhaust port scraping or engagement) will cause the projectile to traverse a different path from that which is expected by the user and which was calibrated by the firearm manufacturer when the manufacturer aligned the firearm sighting mechanism provided as part of the firearm.
Thus, there is a need for a new and improved porting system for firearms which have a reduced barrel rise, and which concurrently minimizes the frictional scraping of the projectile, and therefore a need for a new and improved strategy which overcomes the disadvantages of prior techniques and strategies to minimize barrel rise while minimizing the amount of the projectile which is frictionally scraped off.
The present inventions address these and other needs and provides the various advantages further discussed below.
It is a first non-limiting object of the present inventions to provide a firearm which overcomes some, or all, of the disadvantages of prior firearms.
It is a second non-limiting object of the present inventions to provide a firearm porting strategy which overcomes some or all, of the disadvantages of prior and current firearm porting strategies.
It is a third non-limiting object of the present inventions to provide a firearm having reduced amounts of barrel rise when compared to current and prior firearms.
It is a fourth non-limiting object of the present inventions to provide a firearm having reduced amounts of barrel rise when compared to current and prior firearms and further having reduced amounts of created projectile particulates when compared to those produced by current and prior firearm porting practices, techniques, and strategies.
It is a fifth non-limiting object of the present inventions to provide a firearm having reduced amounts of barrel rise and reduced amounts of created projectile particulates when compared to the barrel rise and projectile particulates produced by current and prior firearms, and which further provides for the direct evacuation or exhaust of gas, particulates, and other material from the bore directly to the ambient environment in which the firearm operatively resides.
It is a sixth non-limiting object of the present inventions to provide a method for reducing firearm barrel rise.
It is a seventh non-limiting object of the present inventions to provide a method for reducing firearm barrel rise and for reducing the amount of created projectile particulates.
It is an eighth non-limiting object of the present inventions to provide a method for reducing firearm barrel rise, for reducing the amount of created projectile particulates, and for more efficiently and directly exhausting gas and particulates (as well as other material) from the bore of the firearm to the ambient environment in which firearm operatively resides.
According to a first non-limiting aspect of the present inventions, a firearm is provided having an enhanced flow exhaust port.
According to a second non-limiting aspect of the present inventions, a firearm having a barrel through which gas traverses is provided. Particularly, the barrel has an opening which receives a portion of the traversed gas and which allows the received portion of the traversed gas to be directly communicated to the ambient environment in which the firearm is operably deployed.
According to a third non-limiting aspect of the present inventions, a firearm is provided and includes a barrel having an exhaust port which includes an inlet having a first size and an outlet having a second size and wherein the second size is smaller than the first size.
According to a fourth non-limiting aspect of the present inventions, a firearm is provided and includes a beveled exhaust port.
According to a fifth non-limiting aspect of the present inventions, a method for reducing barrel rise of a firearm is provided and includes the steps of creating a structurally enhanced flow exhaust port within the firearm.
According to a sixth non-limiting aspect of the present inventions, a method for reducing barrel rise of a firearm while concomitantly reducing the formation of projectile particulates is provided and includes the steps of placing at least one beveled opening within the barrel.
These and other aspects, features, and advantages of the present inventions will become apparent from a reading of the detailed description of the preferred embodiment of the invention, by reference to the claims, and by reference to each of the included drawings.
Referring now to
Firearm 10 is adapted to be selectively and operatively grasped by the hand 12 of a user and includes a trigger 14, a selectively and reciprocatively movable slide 16, and a barrel 18 having a muzzle portion or muzzle end 20 which is distal or remote from the trigger 14. The muzzle portion 20 includes the muzzle 7. The longitudinal interior cavity 23 of the barrel 18 is conventionally referred to as the “bore”.
The firearm 10, as is known to those of ordinary skill in the art, includes a chamber (not shown) which contains a cartridge and the cartridge includes and encases, a bullet or projectile 22 along with gun powder or another selectively ignitable propellent like substance (not shown). The term “gunpowder”, as used in this Application, refers to any type of selectively explosive or ignitable material. Further, as should be appreciated by those of ordinary skill in the art, the firearm 10 further includes a striker assembly (not shown) which selectively engages the primer placed in the rear of the cartridge (not shown) upon activation of the trigger 14.
In operation, the user moves the slide 16 in a rearward direction 2, away from the muzzle 7, thereby causing the cartridge to be loaded into the firing chamber (not shown). Upon the pulling of the trigger 14, the striker assembly (not shown) engages or strikes the projectile containing cartridge (not shown), which initially resides within the firearm 10 and within the firing chamber (not shown). The striking of the striker assembly (not shown) against the cartridge (not shown), ignites the gunpowder resident within the cartridge and causes a controlled and extremely rapid burning to occur within the barrel 18 of the firearm 10. This generates a relatively fast-moving gaseous material 28 (which may include some of the unburned gunpowder along with powder residue) which moves through the bore 23 in the direction 30 and is effective to move or push the projectile 22, which has become free from the cartridge casing 34, through the bore 23 (in the direction 30) and out of the muzzle 7 of the firearm 10 toward a desired target. In this non-limiting illustration, which is of a semi-automatic firearm, the now empty casing 34 of the cartridge is ejected from the firearm 10 and is conventionally referred to as being “spent”.
According to the invention, the firearm 10 includes at least one exhaust port 40 and the slide 16 further includes at least one exhaust port 42. After the slide 16 is selectively moved, effective to cause the cartridge (not shown) to be loaded into the firing chamber (not shown), and returns to its normal stationary position, the exhaust port 40 and the exhaust port 42 are in direct communication and these communicating ports 40, 42 cooperatively allow direct communication between the ambient environment 44 in which the firearm 10 operatively resides and is operatively deployed, and the bore 23. That is, the communicating ports 40, 42 allows for direct transfer of material residing within or traversing the bore 23 to a location outside of the firearm body 26. Such material, by way of example and without limitation, includes the gaseous material 28, some of the unburned gunpowder which initially was contained in the cartridge, some residue of the gunpowder, and some of the particulates of the bullet or projectile 22 (which is more fully described below).
This direct transfer, to the ambient environment 44, according to this invention, purposefully obviates the need to transfer the exhausted material from the bore 23 to another location within the body 26 of the firearm 10 and, as used in this Application, the term “direct transfer” means that the exhausted gas, bullet particulates, unburned gunpowder, residue of the gunpowder, and other material, which may be in the bore 23, purposefully do not traverse and are not placed into any other portion of the body 26 of the firearm 10, but rather are directly exhausted or communicated into the ambient environment 44 from the bore 23 and ejected in such a manner as to use the force of that ejection to lessen or minimize barrel rise.
In the most preferred embodiment of the invention, the size of the opening 400 of the exhaust port 42 (e.g., the term “size of the opening 400” means the total surface area through which material may traverse the opening 400 as the received material is directly communicated to the ambient environment 44) is at least equal to or greater than the size of the opening 100 of the outlet portion 60 of the exhaust port 40 (e.g., the term “size of the opening 100” means the total surface area through which material traverses through the opening 100 of the outlet portion 60 as that material is communicated to the exhaust port or opening 42 which is formed on the slide 16).
The exhaust port 40, according the teachings of this invention, has an inlet portion 62 having an inlet opening 102 and the inlet opening 102 has an overall length 70 and which includes a pair of substantially similar open bevels ends 72, 74 which are disposed along a longitudinal axis 76 of the barrel 18. Each of the bevel ends 72, 74 have substantially similar widths 78 and each of the beveled ends 72, 74 have a respective and substantially identical maximum length 112 from the center 114 of the inlet opening 102. The bevel ends 72, 74 are each part of the inlet opening 102 and material flows through each of the bevel ends 72, 74. The outlet portion 60 integrally terminates into and integrally emanates from the inlet portion 62 and portions 60, 62 are in a communicative relationship (e.g., material traverses the exhaust port 40 by entering the opening 102 of the inlet portion 62 and being communicated to the opening 100 of outlet portion 60 before exiting the exhaust port 40 and being thereafter communicated to slide exhaust port 42 where the communicated material is then directly exhausted into the ambient environment 44 through the opening 400. In the most preferred embodiment of the invention, the size of the inlet portion 62 is larger than the size of the outlet portion 60. That is, the total surface area of opening 102 of the inlet portion 62 (through which material enters the exhaust port 40) is larger than the total surface area of the opening 100 of the outlet portion 60 through which the material, entering the exhaust port 40 through the inlet portion 62, is communicated to the slide opening 42. This size differential, as discussed below, structurally enhances the flow characteristics of the exhaust port 40 in that this size differential structurally causes the velocity of the flow of the material entering the inlet portion 62 to increase as the received material traverses the exhaust port 40 and is communicated to the slide exhaust port 42. The exhaust port 40 is therefore “structurally enhanced” from a flow velocity perspective.
By way of one non-limiting example, when the exhaust port 40 is formed within a commercially available GLOCK® 19 firearm, it has been found that the width 78 is optimally about 0.25 inches and the length 70 is optimally about 0.37 inches. It has further been found that the overall height 90 of the exhaust port 40, when used within a commercially available GLOCK® 19 firearm, is approximately 0.042 inches (when measured along a line connecting the center 117 of opening 100 to point 114) and increasing to approximately 0.130 inches on each of the respective beveled sides 119, 129 due to the circular shape of the barrel 18. Further, the length 93 of the outlet portion 60, when used within a commercially available GLOCK @19 firearm is approximately 0.042 inches along a line connecting the center point 117 of the opening 100 the end of the outlet portion 60 which is closest to the inlet portion 102. It should be appreciated that other length and width dimensions may be utilized for other models or types of firearms or those of differing calibers. Additionally, when formed and used within a commercially available GLOCK® 19 firearm, the length 112 is about 0.060 inches and the angle 120 formed by each of the respective beveled edge portions 72, 74 with the outlet portion 60 is about forty-five degrees.
However, it should be appreciated that in the most preferred embodiment of the invention, the size of the opening 100 formed within the outlet portion 60 is smaller than the size of the opening 102 formed within the inlet portion 62 and that these openings 100, 102 may be substantially circular, oval, or any other desired and respective shape. In perhaps the most-preferred embodiment of the invention, the shape of opening 100 is substantially round. Moreover, the shape of the slide opening 400 may be oval, rectangular, square, or substantially any other desired shape.
In operation, after the engagement of the trigger 14, gaseous material (including perhaps some unburned gun powder and gun powder residue) 28 is generated, in the afore-described manner. The generated gaseous material (and perhaps some unburned gun powder and gun powder residue) 28 moves (e.g., actually pushes) the projectile 22 within the bore 23 in the direction 30 toward the muzzle 7. A portion of the gas 28 (and other previously identified material) enters the inlet portion 62 (through opening 102) and is communicated to the outlet portion 60 where it is directly discharged into the ambient environment 44 (through the communicating outlet opening 100 and the slide opening 400) and without passing through or entering another portion of the body 26.
Because the size of the opening 102 of the inlet portion 62 is larger than the size of the opening 100 of the outlet portion 60, the exhaust port 40 structurally enhances the velocity of the flow of the material that enters the exhaust port and thereby allows relatively larger amounts of the gaseous material 28 (and other material resident in the bore 23) to be received and exhausted faster into the environment 44, before the projectile 22 leaves the bore 23, than is experienced by current or previous firearms having exhaust ports. That is, since the size of the outlet 60 is smaller than the size of the inlet 62, the speed of the received material (entering inlet 62) increases as the received material traverses the exhaust port 40 and exits the outlet portion 60. Thus, the exhaust port 40 allows more material (such as the gaseous material 28 and included gun powder residue and unburned gun powder) to be exhausted into the ambient environment 44 than do current and prior strategies as the projectile 22 passes through and leaves the bore 23. Thus, the novel design of the exhaust port 40 (having dissimilar inlet and outlet sizes) is much better at countering muzzle rise than the past or current strategies and techniques. The smaller size of the outlet portion 60 with respect to the size of the inlet portion 62, produces a venturi like effect which allows the received material, such as gas 28 and perhaps some unburned gun powder and gun powder residue, to increase their respective velocity as the entire received material traverses the novel exhaust port 40. Exhaust port 40 is therefore a structurally enhanced flow exhaust port.
That is, the increase in speed of the received and exited material along with the increase in the overall amount of material which is vented from the bore 18, before the projectile 22 leaves the bore 18, produces a force which counters the rise of the muzzle portion 20 of the barrel 18.
Thus, firearm 10 experiences significantly less muzzle rise or barrel lift than do prior or current firearms and such a relatively low amount of muzzle rise or barrel lift makes the firearm 10 easier to use and thereby improving accuracy. Such accuracy is exhibited on the second and following shots because much less effort is needed to return the firearm 10 to the desired initial aiming position.
Further, and independently of the previously described muzzle or barrel rise improvement feature of the current inventions, because the novel exhaust port 40 utilizes the bevels 72, 74, less particulates 140 of the projectile 22 are created than in current and past approaches. That is, should the projectile 22 actually engage the beveled surfaces 72, 74, the rounded and curved shape of these beveled surfaces 72, 74 causes a significantly lesser amount of projectile shavings to be created than is experienced with current and prior firearms having current and prior exhaust port strategies. Reducing such particulates, increases the likelihood that the shape and weight of the projectile 22 would not appreciably change and thus the projectile 22 would actually follow the expected desired trajectory sought by the user of the firearm 10.
Further, the configuration of the exhaust port 40 (e.g., the size of the outlet portion 60 being smaller than the size of the inlet portion 62), allows the exhaust port 40 to exhaust the created particulates 140 significantly faster than they are or would be exhausted by prior or current firearms and porting strategies and techniques, and thus more of the formed particulates 140 are exhausted as the projectile 22 passes through and leaves the firearm 10 than is experienced by current porting strategies, thereby further reducing muzzle rise. The porting of these formed particulates 140 also contributes to increasing the previously described barrel rise countering force.
It should also be realized that, as used throughout this Application, the term “bevel” is meant to generally refer to being generally rounded, curved, and having an absence of any appreciable straight edges or surfaces. Thus, the beveled portions 72, 74, of the inlet opening 102, may be of substantially any desired shape as long as they are substantially curved and round and each of the portions 72, 74 may be similar or dissimilar in size and shape. It should further be appreciated, that in other non-limiting embodiments, there may be no beveled portions 72, 74 but rather just the utilization of a larger sized inlet 62 and a smaller sized outlet 60. And it should further be appreciated that in yet other non-limiting embodiments, there may be no structurally enhanced flow exhaust ports. That is, in these other non-limiting embodiments, the size of the outlet and inlet portion of the utilized exhaust port may be substantially similar but the inlet portion may have at least one beveled portion. The point to be made is that the beveled invention may be independently used from the structurally enhanced flow exhaust port invention and that the structurally enhanced flow exhaust port invention may be used independently from the beveled invention. Of course, as described earlier, these inventions may be utilized together as well in perhaps the most preferred embodiment of the invention.
Thus, the firearm 10 of the present invention has more efficient and better porting as well as reduced particulate residue than is found in current and prior firearms employing porting strategies.
It is to be understood that the various inventions are not limited to the exact construction or embodiments which have been illustrated and described above, but that various changes and modifications may be made without departing from the spirit and the scope of the inventions as set forth in the subjoined claims.
Further, it should be realized that while only one exhaust port 40 has been shown and described, there is substantially no limit on the number of such ports 40 that may be used within a firearm, as long as the utilized number of such ports do not dangerously degrade the structural integrity of the bore 23 or barrel 18 or reduce the ultimate velocity of the projectile 22 to an unsatisfactory extent.
Further, it should be appreciated that the exhaust port 40 may be formed anywhere within the barrel 18 between the chamber which contains the cartridge prior to its firing and the muzzle 7. Thus, in some alternate embodiments of the inventions, the use of slide exhaust port 42 is obviated and the exhaust port 40 exhausts material, such as the gaseous material 28, directly to the ambient environment 44 without passing through any other portion of the body 26 of the firearm 10. Additionally, the inlet 62 and outlet 60 may have different shapes or they may have substantially identical shapes and that nothing in this description shall be construed to limit the exact shapes of the inlet 62 and the outlet 60 to what has been shown and described within this description.
Further, and referring now to
Once the barrel 18 of the firearm 10 is held within the CNC machine, one next indicates or inputs, to the CNC machine, the position of the top dead center point 5 of barrel 18 and further specifies, or inputs to the CNC machine, the position of the center point 3 of the barrel 18. Particularly, this step is needed in order to have the formed exhaust port directly centered on the top dead center point or portion 5 of the barrel 18. Once the foregoing positions are input into the CNC machine, the muzzle 7 is identified with an edge finder and this position is also input into the CNC machine. Next, a commercially available 0.250″ diameter carbide drill is used to drill an opening 200 in the barrel 18 (i.e., at the previously identified top dead center point 5).
By way of example and without limitation, an angle shank cutter 340, such as commercially available part #992016-C3 made by the Harvey Tool Company of Rowley, MA, may then be utilized. Particularly, selectively positioning the cutter 340 to be and remain on the previously identified center point 5 of the barrel 18, the cutting tool 340 is lowered through the hole 200, which was made by the carbide drill, in the direction 205 and into the inner diameter of the barrel 18 enough to clear or penetrate the bore 23.
Next, the cutter tool 340 is moved about 0.062″ to the rear of the barrel 18 (distal or away from the muzzle 7) in the direction 202, and the tool 340 is raised, in direction 203, until the tool 340 makes contact with the barrel 18. Then at a feed rate of about 2 ipm (inches per minute), the tool 340 is moved upward (in the direction 203) about a distance of 0.062″ to achieve one beveled portion of the exhaust port 40.
The cutting tool 340 is then dropped back toward the center 3 of the bore 23 (in direction 205) and the tool 340 is then moved a distance of about 0.062″ toward the muzzle 7 in the direction 210 and the tool 340 is raised, in direction 203, until the tool 340 makes contact with the barrel 18. Then at a feed rate of about 2 ipm (inches per minute), the tool 340 is moved upward (in the direction 203) about a distance of 0.062″ to achieve the second beveled portion of the exhaust port 40. In this manner, substantially equal bevels, such as bevels 72, 74 are created to the fore and aft of the desired port, such as the exhaust port 40, along axis 76. Then the cutting tool 340 is moved to the center of the hole 200 and the tool 340 is raised, in direction 203, until the tools 340 clears the barrel 18.
The foregoing process can be repeated for any additional exhaust port desired in the barrel 18. It should be appreciated that a wide variety of other methods and strategies may be utilized to selectively form the exhaust ports, such as exhaust port 40, within a firearm, such as firearm 10 and that nothing in this description is meant to limit the selective formation of the exhaust port 40 to any particular methodology or strategy, including but not limited to that which has been described above and further the specifications may vary depending on the configuration and caliber of the firearm to which these inventions are being added.
