Patent ID: 8893696

Claim:
An apparatus for launching subcaliber projectiles, comprising: an elongate barrel, said barrel including an elongate, substantially straight bore communicating between a breech opening and a muzzle opening; a sabot means, said sabot means comprising a sabot sized, shaped and adapted for launch through and out said bore by the breath of the user; a subcaliber projectile means, said subcaliber projectile means comprising a subcaliber round shot containing a magnetically attractable portion, said subcaliber projectile means being sized, shaped, and adapted for launch through and out said bore by thrust transmitted by abutting engagement with said sabot means; and a detent means, said detent means including a detent magnet adapted to produce a magnetic field, said detent magnet disposed in proximity of said bore and thereby configured to permit said magnetically attractable portion of said subcaliber round shot to be brought within influence of said magnetic field when said subcaliber projectile means and said sabot means are fully inserted together within said bore and disposed in readiness for launching, thereby enabling said detent magnet to exert a magnetic restraint upon said magnetically attractable portion and thereby magnetically engage and hold said subcaliber round shot within said bore in proximity of said sabot means pending commencement of launch acceleration; wherein: said detent magnet is configured to release said subcaliber round shot when the pressure of the user's breath received into said bore establishes a pressure differential across said sabot means sufficient to overcome the said magnetic magnetic restraint of said detent magnet as launch acceleration commences; wherein: said subcaliber projectile means is adapted to abuttingly engage said sabot means in such manner that, during launch acceleration, at least one portion of said sub-caliber projectile means is configured to, touch the inner surface of said bore; wherein: said sabot means is adapted to separate from and discard from said subcaliber projectile means after launch acceleration under the influence of atmospheric drag; and wherein: said sabot means and said subcaliber projectile means are adapted to exit said muzzle opening after launch acceleration.