Talk:Coilgun

message: A Coilgun is also to be found in "The Neutronium Alchemist", volume 1 of the "Night's Dawn Trilogy". Known as a "Gaussgun" in the book, it is the only man portable weapon effective against possesed humans, until other weapons are developed later in the series.
the gauss weapons in x-com 2 can be fired above and below water, which makes them a valuable dual-purpose weapon
-Lordraydens 05:15, 16 March 2006 (UTC)
replies: text: Also the mention of Half-Life makes it seem that the gun only helps you move around the map and that it is not used for fighting. 24.196.115.179 19:10, 8 August 2007 (UTC)
thread_title:  In Science Fiction 

message: A while back it was decided that if we must include lists of anime that feature weapons like this that it belongs in a separate article - electromagnetic projectile devices (fiction). That's a better place to add new material of that type. Chris Cunningham (not at work) - talk 12:38, 28 April 2009 (UTC)
thread_title:  A note on this 

message: Under the Construction-heading is the following phrase: 
:"A large current is pulsed through the coil and a strong magnetic field forms, pulling the projectile to the center of the coil. When the projectile nears this point, the coil is switched off and a next coil can be switched on, progressively accelerating the projectile down successive stages."
However, under the Operation-heading it says:
:"The gun starts with all of the magnets turned on, and then turns them off one by one before the shell reaches them."
So which is it? --ZeroOne 15:44, 13 May 2006 (UTC)
replies: text: Coils are not typically called magnets, they're called coils. It can be either—the first is called multi-stage, and the second is called single-stage. [Mac Δαvιs] ❖ 08:38, 8 May 2007 (UTC)
replies: text: I changed the word "magnet" to "coil" where appropriate. Have you got any reference to the multi-stage and single-stage terms? It would make a good addition to the article. --ZeroOne 22:02, 26 August 2006 (UTC)

text: Generally, it won't be either, it will be 2-3 coils at any given time, with the closest coil switched off just as the projectile reaches it and the next coil 2 or 3 down being switched on at the same time, in order to maintain continuous acceleration.  Timing is also adjusted to account for the fact that it takes time (milliseconds) for power to stop flowing in the coil and the magnetic field to collapse - you want the field to collapse before the projectile passes the center of the coil, or else the coil then acts as a brake on the projectile, and throws the timing off on subsequent coils.  From what I've read, the timing isn't as critical as it is with Gauss guns, however. -- Acehunter 20:30, 31 January 2007 (UTC)
thread_title:  All magnets on at the start or switching each one on when needed? 

message: The 'Operation' section asserts that the coilgun can be made arbitrarily long, implying that a railgun cannot be arbitrarily long. Is this true? I don't see why a railgun of arbitrary length couldn't be made. Squiddy | (squirt ink?) 12:44, 5 July 2006 (UTC)
replies: text: No one explained anything, so I just removed the section now. --ZeroOne 22:02, 26 August 2006 (UTC)
replies: text: Railguns need to be short, because the power requirements increase with length.  A long railgun requires very high current, which causes 2 major problems - erosion of the rails due to vaporization from the heating caused where the current passes from rail to payload (and from payload back to the other rail) and arcing between the rails from the voltage (higher voltages are required for greater acceleration - this is more of an issue in an atmosphere, and less so in space). Acehunter 20:35, 31 January 2007 (UTC)
thread_title:  advantage of coilgun over railgun 

message: I did two science fair projects on coilguns... complete with animations of how they work... i'll add pictures when I get the chance. Blacklint 04:13, 25 July 2006 (UTC)
replies: text: I just created an image (:Image:Coilgun.png) using Blender. I take suggestions on how to improve it. However, I'd still like to see your images too, anyway. :) --ZeroOne 00:06, 25 August 2006 (UTC)
replies: text: Great image, but isn't the coil usually a single continuous? How should we compromise coil density, with image prettyness? — [Mac Davis](talk) (SUPERDESK|Help me improve)03:39, 19 September 2006 (UTC)
replies: text: You mean there would only be one single coil? I have never seen a reference to such a gun. I also think that the main point is illustrated best when the coils are simple — not overly long and not overly dense. And, oh, I replaced the static image with an animation. --ZeroOne (talk | @) 21:49, 16 October 2006 (UTC)
thread_title:  I could add pictures 

message: Does anybody mind if I add a picture of completed coilgun? possibly:
single stage coil gun 1
or
single stage coil gun 2 
Lima-1 06:53, 27 December 2006 (UTC)
replies: text: Not at all as long as they are your own. --TTLLOGIC 01:48, 2 April 2007 (UTC)
thread_title:  Adding picture of a completed coilgun 

message: is it possible to have a coilgun where the projectile is pushed instead of pulled? or both, so that the projectile is pulled towards the coils in front of it while being pushed away from the coils behind it? Skullers 18:39, 22 January 2007 (UTC)
replies: text: Pushing is done, but it's unstable- the projectile tends to crash into the barrel. A combination of pushing and pulling is optimum, but you need more pull than push.- (User) WolfKeeper (Talk) 20:32, 6 February 2008 (UTC)
thread_title:  reversing polarity? 

message: If someone has time, there needs to be an article on Gauss guns.  I edited the coilgun page to reflect the difference between the two - they are not the same.  Both weapons attract the payload, but Coilguns use solenoids and Gauss guns use electromagnets.  See: This Page for details.
Someone would also need to edit the Magnetic_accelerator_gun disambiguation page.
Acehunter 20:20, 31 January 2007 (UTC)
replies: text: Also, since there is a difference, why does "Gauss Gun" redirect to here?  It makes no sense. O0drogue0o 11:12, 13 February 2007 (UTC)
thread_title:  Need an article on Gauss guns 

message: I replaced the linkfarm with a link to DMOZ per spam concerns. Please discuss any additional links on this talk page, thanks. RJASE1  Talk  00:42, 15 April 2007 (UTC)
replies: text: could you please add this link: http://www.wonkolabs.com/?page_id=22 I also filled out the "suggest a link" page.Wonkothe31337 05:07, 16 April 2007 (UTC)
thread_title:  External links 

message: A coil gun is NOT a -> "type of magnetic accelerator gun (MAG) or magnetic accelerator cannon (MAC)." 
Where did these terms come from? Google them. You can only find them in science fiction or from a few hobby websites.
This does not belong here without some sort of reference.
:I agree, they seem to be complete neologisms added by one user. The railgun article got rid of these a while ago, so I've changed the lead section to remove them. --Bob Mellish 09:27, 24 May 2007 (UTC)
thread_title:  Intro 

message: There's no difference between a Gauss or Coil gun. Saying the former uses an electromagnet whereas the latter uses a solenoid is analogous to saying one uses a pen while the other uses a Biro. The term electromagnet (IE pen) encompasses the term solenoid (IE Biro). A solenoid is a specific kind of electromagnet just as a Biro is a specific form of pen (as opposed to a fountain pen or quill et cetera). From wikipedia: "An electromagnet is a type of magnet in which the magnetic field is produced by the flow of an electric current" thus a solenoid is an electromagnet. Further down the page it gives a concise definition of solenoid: "A coil forming the shape of a straight tube (similar to a corkscrew) is called a solenoid; a solenoid that is bent so that the ends meet is a toroid." The trouble here is that the terms electromagnet and solenoid aren't well understood - and worse somewhat ambiguous. An inductor by the wikipedia definition can be a solenoid, as can a transformer winding. The difference is in their operation: an inductor is  mostly used either to oppose changes in current, while a solenoid moves its own core. The electromagnets used in this manner (to move a ferromagnetic object) are solenoids. 
If a Gauss gun used electromagnets in a different manner then they could be deemed separate, but both Coil gun and Gauss gun use electromagnets to attract a projectile for acceleration. There's no requirement that either type have this electromagnet mounted any specific way. There's no difference between the two I can see, so I'm editing the article to reflect that. 59.167.90.13 15:30, 28 September 2007 (UTC)
replies: text: Exactly.  It's the common linguistic issue that can be summed up like this: All solenoid are electromagnets, but not all electromagnets are solenoids.  But quite frankly, whichever method they use it does the exact same thing in the same (general) way.  Trying to make some false distinction between Gauss and Coil is like trying to argue that there is a technical difference between an essay written with a black bic pen and the exact same essay written with a black generic-store-brand pen. --Human.v2.0 01:21, 20 October 2007 (UTC)

text: That definition simply makes Gauss Guns a particular form of coilgun. Whether you mount one at the end, or the middle, or any position along the barrel, it's still a coilgun. It's still a coilgun if you mount multiple coils along the barrel. To be a coilgun it has simply to be a device intended to accelerate a projectile using an attracting (or conceivably repelling) electromagnetic coil. If the 'gun' accelerated the projectile using an electromagnet that wasn't a coil one could argue that the gun technically isn't a [i]coil[/i]gun, but that's truly a semantic argument. By the definition you provide, which is unsourced and hence unusable, a Gauss Gun is a particular form of coilgun with the coil at the end of the barrel. If you source the definition and prove it's reasonably widespread in acceptance then add a section that notes the Gauss Gun is a particular planform of coilgun. Alternately you can get into deep semantics and argue that a Gauss Gun is separate if you use un-coiled electromagnets at the end of the weapon et cetera but does that achieve anything? 121.44.255.108 (talk) 15:28, 16 May 2008 (UTC)
thread_title:  Coil Gun/Gauss Gun 

message: I have fired my coil gun a number of times, and here is what happens.  The coil heats up so much that it melts the tape and plastic tube.  I can't use an aluminum tube because of the Eddy current losses.  Does anyone know a good solution for this?  If so, it can be added to the construction section.
:You can use aluminium if you slot it or laminate it.- (User) WolfKeeper (Talk) 20:35, 6 February 2008 (UTC)
replies: text: Please, the talk page is not to be used as a forum. --75.187.254.159 (talk) 00:11, 18 February 2008 (UTC)
thread_title:  Problem with my coil gun 

message: Ok, I think the scope of the article is real, engineering associated with projectile accelerators using contact-less magnetic means, with coils arranged along the barrel.
I've therefore removed all fictional references (which were invariably in-universe anyway) to a separate article which has been linked.- (User) WolfKeeper (Talk) 14:28, 26 June 2008 (UTC)
replies: text: It's fine where it is. The redir tag now explicitly mentions gauss guns, which should suffice. Chris Cunningham (not at work) - talk 16:44, 26 June 2008 (UTC)
thread_title:  Scope of the article 

message: Shouldn't the diode be placed in series with the capacitor? Not across it's terminals.  This will keep current from circulating backwards  —Preceding unsigned comment added by 76.249.41.70 (talk) 23:31, 21 September 2008 (UTC)
thread_title:  Capacitor protection with diode 

message: Perhaps include the links:
http://www.gausspistol.com/index.html 
and http://www.coilgun.ru/ —Preceding unsigned comment added by 81.246.152.106 (talk) 17:20, 5 February 2009 (UTC)
thread_title: Link

message: Proposed external link: http://books.google.com/books?id=7igDAAAAMBAJ&lpg=PA59&pg=PA18. It's an *early* reference in Popular Science Monthly, February 1919. The article itself would be useful for starting a "History" section. arielCo (talk) 21:40, 25 July 2009 (UTC)
thread_title: Early (1919) reference

message: Once can construct a coilgun with an aluminum projectile.  A current is induced in the projectile which the magnetic fields of the coil repel. see: Seog-Whan Kim; Hyun-Kyo Jung; Song-Yop Hahn, "Optimal design of multistage coilgun," Magnetics, IEEE Transactions on , vol.32, no.2, pp.505-508, Mar 1996
URL: http://ieeexplore.ieee.org/stamp/stamp.jsp?arnumber=486539&isnumber=10395  —Preceding unsigned comment added by 134.134.139.73 (talk) 22:56, 10 February 2009 (UTC)
thread_title:  Ferromagnetic projectile is not required 

message: The article currently says "One of the greatest limitations to the coil gun is the rate at which the ferromagnetic projectile becomes fully saturated by the magnetic field" 
While this is surely a theoretical limiting factor and should be mentioned in the article, I'm very skeptical that magnetic saturation actually has much effect on real-world coil guns. You would need a HUGE flux density to saturate a projectile of any significant size. Can anyone provide any references to this actually being a problem in real-world devices?  —Preceding unsigned comment added by 128.227.50.93 (talk) 16:28, 15 March 2009 (UTC)
thread_title:  Magnetic saturation 

message: If you go to Google and search "gauss gun" or "gauss rifle", most of the hits will be about a contraption made of metal balls and magnets, and uses magnetism and kinetic energy to launch one of the balls.  What's the deal with this?  —Preceding unsigned comment added by Kuhfelsen (talk • contribs) 20:15, 19 July 2009 (UTC)
thread_title:  Gauss Gun Confusion 

message: The way this article reads right now, it is damn near impossible to tell if the homebaked rig described gets a sizable weight to Mach 10 or barely moves a metal shaving. Yes, I know wikipedia isn't a cookbook, but how about a sense of scale, people, SCALE! Could someone at least hint at what mass projectile could practically be accelerated to what speed with a properly built coilgun NOT utilizing expensive, specialist, or military hardware? What can a build using the suggested disposable camera parts hope to achieve? Now, if someone had a simple formula for approximating the results without a physics textbook, that'd be just superb... Aadieu (talk) 20:54, 9 February 2010 (UTC)
replies: text: i added a heading about approximating coilgun exit velocity, you could use it to determine ideal results of a given setup. 2601:342:104:1C80:4DAF:ED35:BE5B:5EF5 (talk) 22:18, 17 March 2022 (UTC)
thread_title:  Scale of force/speed achievable w/ household capacitors and materials? 

message: I think it would be a good idea for a short discussion on how this is different from a railgun.  The systems seem very similar, and to be frank, I don't even really see what the difference is (not saying there isn't one, just that I'm not learned enough in physics to understand it without having it spelled out, I have a feeling others are in the same boat as I).  
Thanks
67.142.178.23 (talk) 04:23, 19 December 2011 (UTC)
thread_title:  Differentiation between a coil gun and a railgun 

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