Patent Application
20160209145
Any and all applications for which a foreign or domestic priority claim is identified in the Application Data Sheet as filed with the present application are hereby incorporated by reference under 37 CFR 1.57.
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to barrels for firearms and, in particular, concerns a barrel for a firearm such as a semiautomatic pistol that has a dimpled surface for heat dissipation and reduced friction and an improved recessed barrel exit for accuracy.
2. Description of the Related Art
Firearms typically include a plurality of components including a barrel through which a slug travels a receiver that houses the unfired cartridge and the firing pin assembly that fires the cartridge, a trigger assembly that engages with the firing pin assembly, a magazine which can hold multiple cartridges and a grip assembly that permits the shooter to hold the firearm. One common type of firearm is a semi-automatic pistol such as the pistols sold by Glock, Smith and Wesson etc.
Many of these types of pistols typically have a slide assembly that houses the barrel and the barrel is pivotable with respect to the receiver so that the barrel can be moved during the recoil of the firearm to facilitate reloading of the firing chamber during semi-automatic operation. This occurs when the slide assembly retracts backward after the weapon has been fired to then cycle forward to reload the firing chamber for subsequent firing.
Barrels can in some instances become heated during multiple firing which can result in the barrel becoming deformed and less accurate. A further issue that occurs with semiautomatic firearms is that the barrel can frictionally engage with the slide which can hinder proper operation of the slide.
Yet another issue that occurs with these types of firearms is that the barrel of a pistol is relatively short and the interface between the end of the interior chamber of the barrel and the outside environment can be relatively disruptive. As the firearm is fired, high pressure hot gasses are propelling the bullet or slug down the barrel. At the end of the barrel, the gasses hit the outside environment which can result in turbulence that can affect future flight performance and accuracy of the bullet in its ballistic trajectory.
From the foregoing, there is a need for a barrel assembly that has reduced resistance to heating and friction and provides a better exit of the barrel to facility accuracy of the bullet.
The aforementioned needs are satisfied by the barrel for a semiautomatic hand gun and a handgun incorporating the same. In one implementation, the outer surface of the barrel is covered by a plurality of indentations or dimples that are arranged in offsetting columns or rows extending down the length of the barrel. The dimples can be of varying depths but in some non-limiting embodiments, the depths are 0.015 inches and the diameters are in these non-limiting examples 0.375 inches with the center of the dimples being in these examples 0.250 inches apart. It will be appreciated that variations to these dimensions can be made by those skilled in the art without departing from the sprit or scope of the present invention.
The aforementioned needs are also satisfied by the barrel crown which features an initial crown comprising a cylindrical ring comprising the crown that is angled outward and begins adjacent the end of the rifling of the barrel. A circular pocket is then formed so as to have a wider diameter than the cylindrical ring which further recesses the cylindrical ring. The cylindrical ring is preferably angled so as to provide a smooth gas flow path of the gasses to reduce turbulence at the barrel end atmosphere interface. In one non-limiting example, the cylindrical ring is angled at approximately 45 degree angle and has a depth of approximately 0.027 inches. However, a person of ordinary sill in the art will appreciate that these dimensions can vary without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention. In one implementation the outer diameter of the ring or crown is approximately 0.400 inches and the outer diameter of the cylindrical pocket is 0.471 inches. The pocket provides protection for the interior surfaces of the crown and cylindrical ring by recessing these surfaces into the barrel thereby lessening the risk of these surfaces being scratched or otherwise damaged. In one non-limiting implementation, the pocket has a depth of 0-1018 inches but it will be appreciated that various changes and substitutions into the dimension can be made by those skilled in the art without departing from the present teachings.
Reference will now be made to the drawings wherein like numerals refer to like parts throughout.
As shown, the barrel 120 includes an outer cylindrical surface 132 that has a plurality of indentations or dimples 134 that are formed therein. In one embodiment, the dimples are equally spaced apart at a distance of “C” and in varying depths of “A” per row. The dimples 134 are formed in one exemplary embodiment by a rotary cutting tool dictated by its ball end shape feature the diameter “B” but the present teachings are not limited to this method of formation. As shown, the dimples 134 are arranged in offset rows to increase the number of dimples on the outer surface 132 of the barrel component 102.
Advantageously, the outer surface 132 of the barrel 120 includes regions 140a and 140b that are not dimpled. The undimpled region 140a is located adjacent the firing chamber 114 and the undimpled region 140b is located adjacent the end 126 of the barrel 120.
The dimpled surface in the context of a semiautomatic pistol has at least two advantages. One advantage is that the dimples creates a greater surface area of the rifled barrel part 120 of the barrel component 102 which increases the amount of area that can dissipate heat. As is understood, the firing of cartridges causes the barrel to heat which is dissipated through the outer surface 132 of the barrel. Increasing this outer surface area improves heat dissipation.
A further advantage occurs in the context of semiautomatic pistols that operate in the manner described above. By dimpling the surface, the amount of surface area of the outer surface 132 of the barrel part 120 of the barrel component 102 that is slidably engaged with the slide 104 is reduced. This results in a reduction in the frictional engagement between the slide 104 and the barrel component 102 which results in smoother operation of the firearm 100 due to the reduced surface area contact.
A further feature of the barrel component is the crown portion 130. The crown portion 130 is located adjacent the outer end 126 of the barrel and is interposed between the riflings 124 and the end 126 of the barrel 120. As shown in
The angled portion 150 defines an angled surface 151 that has an angle, in one embodiment of approximately 45 degrees and extends circumferentially about the interior path 122 of the barrel 120. The angled portion 150 provides a pathway for gasses to be vented outward from the interior path of the barrel at the barrel atmosphere interface which reduces turbulence on the slug or bullet as it exits the barrel 120.
The flat portion 152 has a flat surface 153 that extends preferably perpendicularly away from the axis of the barrel path 122 and the straight portion 154 has a straight surface 155 that extends substantially parallel to the axis of the barrel path 122. Both the surfaces 153 and 155 extend substantially circumferentially around the barrel path 122. As shown in
The flat portion 152 and straight portion 154 basically define a recess that recesses the angled portion 150 from the outer end 126 of the barrel. By recessing the angled portion 150 from the end 126 of the barrel, the surfaces of the angled portion 150 are less likely to be damaged or scratched which reduces the likelihood of turbulence being introduced into the path of the gasses exiting the interior path 122 of the barrel. Moreover, the recess also reduces the potential of damage to the rifling as well.
Although the foregoing has shown, illustrated and described various embodiments, implementations, components and uses of the present invention, it will be apparent that various substitutions, modifications and changes to the form of the apparatus and the uses thereof may be made by those skilled in the art without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention. Hence, the scope of the present invention should not be limited to the foregoing but should be defined by the appended claims.
| Number | Date | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 62104607 | Jan 2015 | US |
