Patent Application
20110174185
The present invention relates to improvement(s) concerning a premeasured charge, for use in a muzzleloading or black powder firearm(s), in which the premeasured charge is contained within a generally flammable container or the container is otherwise coated with a flammable coating so that the premeasured charge is substantially consumed upon discharge of the firearm(s).
An important aspect when using a traditional muzzleloading or black powder firearm is to facilitate quick, reliable and consistent reloading of the firearm following discharge. As is conventionally known in the art, a desired volume of gunpowder propellent is loaded in either the muzzle end or the breech end of the barrel of a gun, depending on the design of the firearm. During loading of the muzzleloading firearm, the charge, the sabot and/or the patch (wad), if necessary, and the projectile, in that order, are all loaded through the discharging end of the barrel—sometimes the sabot and/or patch (wad) may be omitted. The muzzle loaded contents are all then typically packed toward the breech end of the firearm using a ramrod to ensure a consistent loading and seating pressure of the propellant and the projectile and the seating reduces the chances of a potential over pressure situation in the barrel of the firearm because of an air gap forming between the propellant and the projectile.
As is well known in the art, the propellent was typically a loose granular gunpowder, e.g., a mixture of charcoal, potassium nitrate and sulfur. Early powders were dangerous to handle and tended to foul the barrel bore of the firearm. That is, after one or more firings of the firearm, the user would typically have to clean the bore of the barrel using a device which scrapes or wipes the inner bore surface of the barrel to remove debris therefrom. If such cleaning was not periodically performed or performed improperly, the interior bore of the barrel build-ups a layer of residue of unconsumed propellent and such residue can lead to corrosion, malfunctioning of the firearm and clogging of the ignition or flash channel.
For a number of years, black powder was the only propellent used in muzzleloading firearms, and eventually black powder substitutes, such as those sold under the trade names PYRODEX, BLACK CANYON, CLEAN SHOT and AMERICAN PIONEER, are now commonly utilized. For more than the past 30 years, black powder and black powder substitutes have been compressed into pellets of various shapes and sizes, e.g., pelletized, to facilitate ease of loading of firearms. However, such pelletized premeasured charges are often quite brittle and have a tendency to break apart when being handled and/or loaded and may not burn completely or correctly if compressed too much.
Wherefore, it is an object of the present invention to overcome the above mentioned shortcomings and drawbacks associated with the prior art propellent charges used with muzzleloading firearms.
Another object of the present invention is to design a premeasured charge which facilitates both handling and loading of the same while minimizing the possibility that any of the premeasured charge will be lost during such handling and/or loading.
A further object of the invention is to provide a combustible pre-measured charge which avoids spillage of the gun powder which typically can occur when measuring loose granular powder into the muzzle end of a barrel.
Yet another object of the invention is to provide a combustible pre-measured charge in which an internal chamber of the combustible container is generally only partially filled, e.g., is only filled between about 50% to about 100%, and more preferably 70% to about 85% with a desired charge of granular powder, depending upon the type of container so as to minimize the possibility of tearing, ripping, perforating or otherwise damaging the container forming the consumable premeasured charge.
A still further object of the invention is to provide a combustible pre-measured charge which has a sufficiently thin and flammable exterior surface which ensures that the combustible pre-measured charge in substantially instantaneously ignited and consumed upon discharge for the firearm.
A further object of the present invention is to design a completely self contained premeasured charge which assists with trapping a small quantity of ambient air, within the breech end of the barrel and between the loose granular gun powder, following loading of the barrel with the premeasured consumable charge and a slug or a bullet (and possibly a sabot and/or the patch (wad)) to be discharged by the firearm, to facilitate substantially complete combustion of the consumable charge.
Another object of the invention is to provide a premeasured consumable charge which facilitates propagation of the flame, generated by the percussion cap or other ignition device, and assists with distributing the propagated flame over the entire exterior surface of the consumable premeasured charge and thereby facilitates ignition of the consumable premeasured charge upon discharge of the firearm.
A still further object of the present invention is to ensure burning of the exterior surface of the consumable exterior container as well as the propellent charge, following ignition, so as to facilitate a shorter time span that the end user must wait before safely reloading the firearm with another consumable premeasured charge for a subsequent firing. The elimination or minimization of unburnt particles also tends to lead to better accuracy and consistency when using the firearm.
Yet another object of the present invention is to ensure a quicker and more complete ignition of the propellent charge to facilitate use of the consumable premeasured charge in “short barrel” rifles and pistols.
Yet another object of the present invention is to provide a method of forming a generally completely consumable premeasured charge, from granular gunpowder, which following conventional loading of the consumable premeasured charge within a firearm, generally has a uniform density along the entire axial length of the consumable premeasured charge and this, in turn, promotes faster and more complete ignition of the premeasured consumable charge upon discharge of the firearm.
A still further object of the invention is to provide a consumable pre-measured charge of loose granular powder which has improved ballistic characteristics in comparison to other types of compressed charges.
A still further object of the present invention is to coat an exterior surface of the container or other packaging for the consumable charge with a waterproof and/or water resistant material, which is also relatively flammable, so as to render the consumable premeasured charge water resistant and/or waterproof while, at the same time, not inhibiting combustion of the pre-measured charge.
A still further object of the present invention is to provide a consumable container, which is typically manufactured from a flammable material such as paper, cellulose, etc., which is relatively thin, flexible and flammable so as to readily ignite and burn upon detonation of a suitable percussion cap, e.g., a 209 primer or a number 11 percussion cap, for example. As a result of such ignition by the percussion cap, the exterior surface of the combustible container rapidly ignites and facilitates spontaneous combustion of the remainder of the container as well as the loose granular gun powder encased therein.
A still further object of the present invention is to utilize a loose granular powder so as to provide better ballistic characteristics and also improve flame propagation and combustion of all of the gun powder contained within the muzzle end of the barrel.
In the following description and the appended claims, the term “ignition device” is used to generally refer to one of a percussion cap, a musket cap, a flint, etc., or some other discharging or igniting device for a muzzleloader or a black powder firearm. It should be further noted that this invention can be used with a black powder firearm utilizing modern cartridges that have a percussion cap integrated therein. The term “grain”, as used herein, is intended to mean velocity equivalent and not weight.
The invention will now be described, by way of example, with reference to the accompanying drawings in which:
Turning now to
The packet 4 has an outer surface, shell or wall 6 and is normally sealed at a first end thereof 8, e.g, crimped, glued, etc., while the opposite end 10 is normally open (see
As shown in
In order to improve the integrity of the packet 4 forming the completely premeasured charge 2, preferable the interior chamber 12 of the packet 4 is only filled with gun powder 14 with amount which fills approximately 50 to 95-100% of the volume of the interior chamber 12 (see
It is to be appreciated that the packets 4 can be filled either by hand or by either an automated or a semi-automated apparatus, machine or equipment. If either an automated or a semi-automated filling procedure is utilized, then the equipment must be properly modified to facilitate packaging of an explosive product. The inventors have determined that if the packets 4 are filled by hand during either a manual or a semi-manual filling process, this generally has the advantage of better control over the filling process.
With reference now to
The completely consumable premeasured charge 2, manufactured from the cigarette rolling paper 16, is typically either rolled or filled, in a manner similar to the conventional way that cigarettes are manufactured. However, due to the granular nature of gun powder, both opposed ends of the rolled or filed completely consumable premeasured charge 2 must be sealed to prevent the loose gun powder 14 from falling out from either opposed open end. For example, immediately following rolling or filling of the completely consumable premeasured charge 2, both opposed ends of the completely consumable premeasured charge 2 are one of twisted close (see
As shown in
With reference now to
As shown in
The capsule 20 generally has a wall thickness of between 0.001 and 0.1 inches, preferably approximately about 0.015 inches or so and is preferably made from a semi-flammable or a flammable combustible material such as nitrocellulose or nitrocellulose blended with one of acetone, caphfur and/or IPA (isopropyl alcohol). It is to be appreciate the overall length and type of material from which the capsule 20 is manufactured must be sufficiently flammable such as to promote combustion of the loose granular gun powder 14 contained therein.
It is to be appreciated that the container 4, forming the consumable premeasured charge 2, can be manufactured from a variety of other materials and may have a variety of other shapes and/or sizes. The important aspects for the container 4, for forming the consumable premeasured charge 2, is that the container be: (1) a generally closed container which has sufficient integrity to retain the granular gun powder therein, (2) sufficiently combustible or be able to be coated with a combustible substance, and (3) shaped and sized to contain a sufficient amount of gun powder while still being loadable within a gun barrel. For example, the container 4 may also possibly be a plastic bag, a thin wall tubing or liner which is coated with a nitrocellulose coating.
The generally completely consumable charge 2 contains a loose granular chemical mixture of a propellant, possibly black powder or a black powder substitute which are all collectively referred to herein as gun powder 14. If a black powder substitute is utilized, it typically comprises a mixture of potassium perchlorate, potassium nitrate, a fuel component such as an amino acid or a carbohydrate, e.g., ascorbic acid, sugar, starch, etc., and charcoal (carbon). It is to be appreciated that any other black powder substitute, particularly those containing a fuel component from the carbohydrate family (e.g., sugar, starch, etc.) as a partial or complete substitute for the ascorbic acid fuel component, will also function well. The term sugar is intended to cover, for example, glucose, fructose, dextrose, lactose, simple sugars, etc. The term starch is intended to cover, for example, rice starch, potato starch, dextrin, etc.
A suitable formula for the premeasured completely consumable charge, according to the present invention, comprises a mixture of: about 10-35% by weight of potassium perchlorate; about 25-60% by weight of potassium nitrate; about 25-50% by weight of a fuel component (such as ascorbic acid or some other carbohydrate family composition(s)); and about 0-5% by weight of hardwood charcoal and/or carbon (lamp) black. To improve the power of the consumable premeasured charge 2 and facilitate rapid burning of the consumable premeasured charge 2, the percent by weight of potassium perchlorate is increased toward and approaching about 35% by weight. The inventors have discovered that by slightly increasing the amount of charcoal and/or carbon (lamp) black in the formula, the consumable premeasured charge 2 is slightly easier to ignite, more moisture resistant and more dependable from an ignition perspective. Although the above range is preferred for manufacturing the premeasured consumable charge 2, it is to be appreciated that other currently available types and/or brands of black powder and/or black powder substitutes may also be used to manufacture the consumable premeasured charge 2, as disclosed herein, without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention.
It is to be appreciated that the barrel of a 50-caliber firearm typically has a nominal bore diameter or dimension of about 0.500 of an inch. As such, when an end user places the consumable premeasured charge 2, according to the present invention, which is sized for a 50-caliber firearm within the muzzle end of the barrel, the leading end portion of the consumable premeasured charge 2 is readily received therein.
Once the completely consumable premeasured charge 2 is sufficiently loaded into the muzzle end of the muzzleloader barrel, the end user will then insert the desired bullet or projectile, and possibly a sabot or patch (wad), within the muzzle end of the barrel and “ram” the bullet or projectile, along with the previously loaded propellent charge(s) 2 and, if present, the sabot or patch (wad) toward the breech end of the barrel such that the leading end wall of the charge 2 is positioned directly opposite but closely adjacent the outlet of a flash channel. While the above description only discusses loading of a single propellent charge 2, it is to be appreciated that possibly two or more propellent charges 2 may be sequentially loaded within the muzzle end of the barrel prior to insertion of the desired bullet or projectile and possibly a sabot or patch (wad), to achieve a desired gun powder charge within the barrel as long as the loaded charge does not exceed the rifle manufacturer's prescribed gunpowder load recommendation.
To facilitate shipping and/or handling of the consumable premeasured charges 2, a desired number of the consumable premeasured charges 2 can be packaged together in a desired packaging or a larger storage container for shipment and sale. The desired packaging or the larger storage container, containing the plurality of the consumable premeasured charges 2 therein, is normally packaged with one or more portable transport containers to facilitate safe and dry transport of a completely consumable premeasured charge 2. When discharge of the firearm is desired, a user will typically remove one or more of the consumable premeasured charges 2 from the large storage container and load the same within the firearm.
It is to be appreciated that the packets could be sized to accommodate any desired weight of gunpowder, e.g., a 20 grain charge to 150 grain charge or more. The packets or consumable charges could also be of any desired size so as to be used with any desired black powder firearm or percussion revolver.
It is to be appreciated that the packet could be sized so as to have a slight interference fit with the desired black powder firearm or, if so desired, the packet may have a desired clearance with respect to the desired black powder firearm so as to fall freely toward the breach end of the barrel.
Since certain changes may be made in the above described improved completely consumable premeasured charge and method of manufacturing the same, without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention herein involved, it is intended that all of the subject matter of the above description or shown in the accompanying drawings shall be interpreted merely as examples illustrating the inventive concept herein and shall not be construed as limiting the invention.
| Number | Date | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 61296106 | Jan 2010 | US |
