Improvements in Guns and Projectiles.
Year: 1898

page_text: Date of Application. 7th Apr., 1898-Accepted, 14th May, 1898
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
[Communicated from abroad by THE DYNAMITE ORDNANCE AND ARMAMENTS COMPANY,
of 15 Wall Street, New York, in the State of New York, United States of
America.]
Improvements in Guns and Projectiles.
I, WILLIAM GEORGE HEYS, of 70, Market Street, Manchester, in the County of
Lancaster, Chartered Patent Agent, do hereby declare the nature of this invention,
and in what manner the same is to be performed, to be particularly described
and ascertained in and by the following statement :-
This invention relates to pneumatic guns adapted for firing high explosives and to
projectiles for such guns. One of the objects of the invention is to simplify the
construction of the gun and the operation of loading and firing; another object is to
provide a gun which will not become unduly heated by rapid firing, and a still further
object is to provide a construction of shell or projectile in which the firing charge, the
explosive and the primer are contained in a single structure or frame whereby the
operator is required to handle but a single piece in loading the gun, and an obvious
advantage, in packing and shipping the aminunition, is obtained.
The invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying
drawing in which;
Fig. 1 represents a longitudinal section of one form of gun and projectile, in place
ready for firing:
Fig. 2 is a sectional view of the projectile in shipping condition.
Fig. 3 is a sectional view of another form of gun, and
Fig. 4 shews a modification of the base of the projectile.
It is preferred to use with the projectile herein described, a gun having an air
compression chamber communicating with the rear of the barrel behind the projectile,
in which the gases generated by the combustion of the charge will compress the air
and re-act upon the base of the projectile, furnishing what is technically known as a
low pressure discharge. I have therefore in this case associated my improved
projectile with a gun of this character although it may be used in other forms
of guns.
In Fig. A represents the barrel of the gun, B the air compression chamber
communicating with the barrel at the rear end thereof: a a breech block of the
usual construction having segments of screw thread with spaces between, whereby
a fraction of a rotation will serve to release it from its scat, and a' the firing
pin. The projectile consists of the usual cylinder C provided with a compartment c
for the dynamite, nitro-glycerine or other high explosive and with the usual
conical forward end c¹ carrying the fuse or exploding cap. The cylinder is
provided with an axial, rearward, tubular extension 2 firmly fixed to the main
cylinder and adapted to carry inside thereof a bag or cartridge of powder p
constituting the firing charge. The charge chamber is separated from the
explosive chainber by diaphragms c c with an air space between preventing
conduction of heat. Upon the outside of the tube c² the vanes v, which direct the

page_text: flight of the projectile, are fixed. The extreme rear end of the tube c² is of skeleton
formation or provided with openings ₫ through which the gases generated by the
combustion of the powder charge, may pass into the air compression chamber B and
the barrel. When the projectile is constructed this open rear end is covered by a
cape which holds the powder charge in the tube, prevents the entrance of moisture
and may be used to retain a firing cap or primer f, in place, the primer being passed
transversely through an opening in the side of the tube c² with its head resting
against the side of the cap e. The projectile will be shipped or handled with the
cap e in place but when it is about to be placed in the gun, the cap e is removed,
the primer taken out and the projectile placed in position in the gun, after which
the primer is put in place on the breech block as indicated in Figure 1, where it will
be directed towards the powder charge in the projectile. In Figure 4 the cap e is
shown provided with primer f and is not intended to be removed from the base of
the projectile when it is inserted in the gun. It is of thin material which the
explosion destroys at the instant of firing. This is simpler and entails fewer acts
upon the operator in loading.
As before stated, the gun is loaded by placing the projectile in the position shown
in Figure 1 or as in Figure 3 where it will be seen that the rear end of the tube c²
communicates freely with the air chamber B. When fired, the primer flashes forward
into the tube c and ignites the powder charge p therein. The rear portion of the
charge burning first, the gases generated escape rapidly rearward into the air
compression chamber and causes the air and gases to bank up therein. The pressure
soon reaches the base of the projectile through the space around the outside of the
tube c² and it commences to move along the barrel. As it does so, the unburnt
portion of the charge continues to burn and adds to the initial pressure which started
the projectile. Thus the final impetus given the projectile is not dependant upon the
expansion of the initially generated gases, since the slow burning of the charge
keeps adding or piling up the pressure immediately behind the projectile as it moves
along the barrel, the principle of the operation being much the same as in the
multi-charge" gun, and many of the advantages claimed for the multi-charge
gun are obtained by the method of firing described herein.
66
Another point of advantage in this projectile is that the burning powder does not
cone in contact, to any serious extent, with the gun, but is confined to contact with
the tube c² of the projectile which goes out of the gun and does not even radiate heat
to any serious extent to the parts of the gun. Only the gases generated by the com-
bustion of the charge come in contact with the breech and adjoining portions of the
gun and they, while being hot are not nearly of the same temperature as the flame
at the point of combustion. In consequence of this, this gun may be fired many
times at short intervals without danger of prematurely discharging the explosive or
disabling the piece.
In other guns of this class, even where the charge is fired into a chamber separate
from the barrel and is caused to burn more or less completely in said chamber, the
heat generated in the walls of the compression chamber is soon conducted to the rear
of the barrel and so prevents rapid continuous firing.
In the gun shown in Fig. 3 the air chamber surrounds the rear end of the barrel
and so affords a more symmetrical formation and one which may be constructed at
less expense than the form shown in Fig. 1, but as before stated the projectile
described may be used in other styles of guns and still obtain many of the benefits of
iny invention.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said inven-
tion, aud in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what I
claim is :-
1. A projectile for guns consisting of a single frame or structure carrying a high
explosive and a firing charge by which the entire structure is discharged from the
gun, constructed substantially as described, and as illustrated by the accompanying

page_text: 2. The combination with the projectile of a carrier for the firing charge, the
carrier being adapted to move out of the gun with the projectile, substantially as
described, and as illustrated by the accompanying drawings.
3. A projectile for guns provided with a hollow tail piece, open at its rear end and
adapted to contain the firing charge, substantially as described, and as illustrated by
the accompanying drawings.
4. A projectile for guns provided with a hollow tail piece, open at its rear end and
adapted to contain the firing charge and having the directing vanes attached to it,
substantially as described, and as illustrated by the accompanying drawings.
5. A projectile for guns, provided with a hollow tail piece, open at its rear end
and carrying therein the firing charge and means for igniting the rear portion
of the charge first, substantially as described, and as illustrated by the accompanying
drawings.
6. A projectile for guns provided with a hollow tail piece, open at its rear end and
carrying therein the firing charge, in combination with a removable cap adapted to
cover the open end of the tail piece, substantially as described, and as illustrated by
the accompanying drawings.
7. A projectile for guns provided with a hollow tail piece, open at its rear end and
carrying therein the firing charge, in combination with a removable cap adapted to
cover the open end of the tail piece, and a cap or primer held in place by the
removable cap, substantially as described, and as illustrated by the accompanying
drawings.
8. The method of firing guns, which consists in moving the firing charge bodily
forward while burning, and directing the generated gases rearward to maintain the
pressure behind the projectile constant, substantially as set forth.
9. The method of avoiding excessive heating of guns in firing, which consists
in ejecting from the gun at each discharge those parts which are subjected to
contact with the burning powder or charge, substantially as set forth.
10. The combination of a pneumatic gun provided with an
air compression
chamber separate from the barrel and a projectile carrying the firing charge and
means whereby the gases generated by the combustion of the charge may enter the
air compression chamber and react on the projectile, substantially as described, and
as illustrated by the accompanying drawings.
Dated this fith day of AnvilÅ TY 1000
W. E. HEYS & SON,
Agents for the Applicants.