Patent ID: 8356543

Claim:
A firing mechanism for a firearm, said mechanism comprising: a fire control housing defining a longitudinal bore; a bolt assembly movably disposed in said longitudinal bore of said fire control housing, said bolt assembly comprising a bolt body and a locking head movably disposed at said bolt body, said locking head configured to simultaneously rotate and longitudinally translate relative to said bolt body; a first rotational engaging member disposed along an inner surface of said longitudinal bore of said fire control housing; a second rotational engaging member disposed along an outer surface of said locking head, said second rotational engaging member of said locking head configured to engage said first rotational engaging member of said fire control housing to initially permit rotational motion and to subsequently permit longitudinal translation of said locking head relative to said fire control housing when a longitudinal force is applied to said locking head; and wherein a forward end portion of said bolt body is configured to abut the rear end of a bullet cartridge so that firing the bullet cartridge imparts a rearward longitudinal reaction force against said forward end portion of said bolt body, said rearward reaction force causing said bolt body to move rearwardly relative to said locking head, which imparts rotational motion to said locking head, which causes said second rotational engagement member of said locking head to initially rotate relative to said fire control housing and to subsequently translate rearwardly relative to said fire control housing due to engagement with said first rotational engaging member of said fire control housing, to thereby impart a dwell time between firing of the bullet cartridge and substantial rearward movement of said bolt assembly relative to said fire control housing.