The aegis & intelligencer. [volume] (Bel Air, Md.) 1864-1923, 1902-11-28
SMOKELESS POWDER.

OHChELEOS 4 Wv LEN.
Appropos to the present cunning sea-
son we publish the following letter from
Recreation, on the subject of smokeless
powder, which was written by r. R.
Raymond, 1st Lieutenant Corps of En-
gineers U. S. A.
an. E. B.. in August Recreation, asks
why the so-called shot gun smokcless
powder cannot be used in rifle, and
why smokclcss powder can not be usedin
muzzle loader. If NJ. E. B. will place
small quantity of black powder on piece
of board and ignite it with n match, he
will observe that it burns with flash
and puff. The same experiment with
smokeless powder will give an entirely
different result The smokeless powder
will burn tiercely, with intense heat, tora
much greater time than the black powder.
Therefore, we say smokeless powder is
slow burning. When powder is ignited
in confined space, the gas evolved can
rot escape, and it causes pressure. All
powders burn more rapidly the greater
the pressure, but smokeless powder in
creases its rate of burning much faster
than does black powder. Therefore
under great pressure smokeless powder
| burns faster and acts more violently than
| black powder. In shot gun the powder
is confined until the pressure has risen to
the point where it is able to force the
charge of shot aad wads out of the shell,
unfolding the crimp of the shell at the
same time After this the charge OF shot
passes through the smooth barrel With
| comparatively little resistance. In rifle,
the powder is confined until the bulletcan
be forced through the barrel, and the
pressure necessary to force the metal OF
the bullet into the grooves OF the rifle is
naturally much greater than that re-
uuired to move the shot i'll Il shot gun.
This is especially true when long jacketed
bullets are used in a small bore rifle.
Shot gun powder is so made by the man
ufacturer that it burns at the properrate
when confined in shot gun. If subjected
to tic greater confinement of Il rifle, the
pressure, being greater before the bullet
moves. will cause the powder to burn too
fast, and the pressure willincrease. This
increase pressure will increase the rate OF
burning, and the pressure will again run
up; to such a degree that damage to the
rifle and its operator is almost certain to
occur.
"Rife smokeless powder is made to
burn at the proper rate i'll a rifle, and can
not develop its power i'll the lesser de-
gree of confinement of the shot gun The
same explanation holds for shot gun
smokeless powder in a muzzle loader,
where the absence of the crimped shell
causes the confinement to be too slight
even for shot gun smokcless powder.
Therefore the quick burning black powder
will give better results.
For every gun each different kind of
bullet will require powder load different
either in kind or quantity o! powder to
produce the best possible result in each
case This is why so many riflcmen ex-
pertinent with their ammunition, and
why their conclusions vary so widely.
There is one popularity of smokelcss
powder that is responsible for many
disaster to experimentcrs, and that is the
tremendous increase of pressure developed
for a comparatively small increase in the
powder charge. 1t cannot be too strong
" urged that the greatest charge Of
smokeless powder recommended by the
makers for given gun must never lie
exceeded BY means of extra strong
testing barrels these makers have de-
termincd the greatest safe charge, and
they know what they are talking about.
Do not put your guess up against their
knowledge, or something may drop.
"The question is sometimes asked, why
smokeless powder is better than black.
Apart from its greater cleanliness and
the absence of smoke it will actually do
more work, for it gives off more gas at a
much greater temperature. The value of
the extra heat will be appreciated ifyou
place tightly corked empty and dry
bottle in the fire. In few minutes the
expansion ofthe air in the bottle will blow
the cork out with pop. Just so the gas
from the powder will expand more the
hotter it is.
ain high power rifle black powder
cannot give pressure so high as smoke
less. for the space occupied by the gases
increases as the bullet moves forward,
and the powder cannot burn fast enough
to keep the pressure up. Under great
pressure smokcless powder burns rapidly;
hence it can keep up the pressure better
than black powder can.
I'm some guns the pressure from black
powder runs higher than the pressure
from smokeless, yet the velocity of the
shot is less with the black powder. This
is the case with shot guns. The reason
is that the work done inpushing the shot
through the barrel and giving it 4 veloci-
| ty is measured by the force exerted, multi
piled by the distance over which the force
| dClS. Illus Liz "olh upHS III OliS
pound feet is exactly the same as that
done in lifting pounds one foot. The
higher pressure of the black powder,
acting through only part of the length
of the barrel, can really DO less work and
produce less velocity than the lower
pressure of the smokeless, which, being
better sustained, works over longer
path.
This again explains why a gun made
for black powder is not always safe to
use with the lower pressure of smokeless
powder. The gun is made thick at the
breech for the high pressure of black
powder, and the walls of the barrel near
the muzzle are thin because the pressure
has fallen off by the time the shot
reaches those parts; whereas the well
sustained pressure of smokeless powder,
while perfectly safe at the brecch, may
burst the outer parts of the barrel.
Modern guns are made safe for both
kinds ofpowder.
"The statement is sometimes made
that black powder should be FUSED inlong
barrels, and nitro powder should be used
in short ones. This is an error. The