US2679192A - Recoil reducing device for firearms - Google Patents

Description

May 25, 1954 F. H. sEELEY ET AL 2,679,192

RECOIL REDUCIN DEVICE FOR F'IREARMS Filed March 25, 1949 Patented May 25, 1954 UNITED STATES ciauz Frank H. Seeley and Edward W. Petri, Fort Plain, N. Y.

Application March Z3, 1949, Serial No. 83,002

1 Claim.

Our invention relates to rearms and particularly to rearms of the type, such as rifles and shotguns, which are red from the shoulder. Firearms of this type, except those of the smallest gauges and calibers, produce, when discharged, a recoil force of substantial magnitude which in all instances is unpleasant and, where many rounds are fired consecutively, as in trap, Skeet, or target shooting, severely bruises the shoulder of the shooter.

The principal object of our invention is to provide an extremely simple device which can be built as a part of, or readily attached to, any rifle or shotgun, and which will function substantially to reduce the recoil force developed upon a discharge of the rearm.

We accomplish this object by means of the 'novel elements and the combinations and arrangements thereof described below and illustrated in the accompanying drawing in which- Fig. 1 is a fragmentary, side elevation view of a rie or shotgun, with portions broken away, illustrating our device, in longitudinal section, attached thereto with the parts in normal position before ring;

Fig. 2 is a view similar to Fig. 1 but showing the parts in the position to which they move when the gun is fired;

Fig. 3 is a` View of Fig. 1 as seen through the plane 3 3; and

Fig. 4 is a fragmentary longitudinal section of a modication of our device.

Referring to the drawing, and rst to Figs. 1, 2 and 3- I is the fore-end and 2 the barrel of either a rie or shotgun. Secured to the under side of the barrel, by brazing or other means (not shown), and in spaced, substantially paralleldisposed relation thereto is our recoil reducing device which is represented generally by the numeral 3.

The device comprises an elongated tube which, as illustrated in Figs. 1 and 2, is internally threaded at each end and closed at the front by the threaded plug 5 and at the rear by the threaded plug 5. The tube 4 may be about 6 or '7 long and of an outside diameter approximating the outside diameter of the gun barrel. The inside diameter of the tube, in the case of a shotgun, may approximate the inside diameter of the barrel oi' the gun but, in the case of a rifle, the

-inside diameterof the tube will generally be substantially larger than the inside diameter of the barrel. Slidably mounted in the tube 4 is a piston 1, having a head 8 and an elongated skirt able means, so that a space I I is always maintained between the head of the piston and the .plug 6 when the piston is in its rearmost position. A passage I2 provides communication between the bore of the barrel 2 and the space I I. A light, helical compression spring I3 is biased normally to hold the piston 1 against the projection I0 of the plug 6.

The spring I3 extends into the piston, as shown t in Fig. l, and is maintained substantially coaxial with the tube l by the projection I 4 on the plug 5. The plug 5 is provided with passages I5 extendingA axially therethrough and providing communication between the interior of the tube d and the atmosphere. Intermediate its ends, the tube d is also provided with a plurality of ports or openings shown in Figs. 1 and 2 as circumferentially-spaced, longitudinally-extending, slots It which provide communication, through the passage I2 and the tube 4, between the bore of the gun and the atmosphere after the piston l, as it moves forwardly in the tube d, has passed thereover.

As pointed out above, the parts are normally in the position shown in Fig. 1 but, when the gun is fired, some of the gas generated by the ex'- plosion of the powder, and which is ordinarily trapped in the barrel of the gun behind the bullet or shot charge until the bullet or shot charge leaves the muzzle of the gun, will escape through the passage I 2, as soon as the bullet or shot charge passes the opening from the barrel into said passage. This gas, which is under very high pressure, will enter space II in the tube 4 between the head 8 of the piston and the plug 6 and will drive the piston forwardly in the tube to the position shown in Fig. 2. Air, which would normally be trapped in the tube 4 in the space between the plug 5 and the piston 7, will be discharged through the passages I5 in the plug 5, and also through the ports IE5 until the piston 'l moves past the ports. Thereafter, the air will be discharged only through the passages l5 in the plug 5, but after the piston l passes the ports I6, the gases resulting from the explosion of the powder will be discharged through these ports.

When the gun is red, the inertia of the bullet or shot charge and the fricticnal resistance offered to its passage toward the muzzle of the gun is suicient to start the development of the recoil force which tends to move the entire gun assembly rearwardly a small fraction of an inch before the bullet or shot leaves the muzzle. The recoil force however, develops to a maximum when the bullet or short charge leaves the barrel or, in other words, at the time of the muzzle blast. Before the bullet or shot charge reaches the muzzle of the gun, and before the recoil force has developed to a substantial magnitude, the gases resulting from the explosion escape through the passage I2 as soon as the bullet or shot charge moves past the entrance thereto, and these gases entering the space i in the tube i will drive the piston 'i forceably forward against the compression of spring i3 until it strikes the front plug 5, as shown in Fig. 2.

Since the piston 7 is of substantial weight, when it strikes the plug in the front end of the tube Ll, as shown in Fig. 2, the blow will tend to drive the entire gun assembly forward in the direction opposite the recoil force, thereby reducing the effect of the recoil on the shoulder of the shooter.

In Fig. 4 we have shown a modification of our device in which the tubular element t is provided with external threads ii' at the front end which cooperate with the internally threaded closure cap IB having air passages i5! extending therethrough similar to the passages i5 in the plug 5. There is some advantage in using a. closure cap of the type shown at i3 rather than a plug of the type shown at 5 since it provides a slightly longer forward run of the piston with the same length tube. The rear end of the tube i is closed by the threaded plug 2U.

Extending longitudinally of the tube 4 and coaxial therewith is a cylindrical rod 2l which is merely supported in a recess 22 in the cap I8 and in a recess 23 in the plug 2i?. The head 24 of the piston 25 is provided with a centrally-disposed opening therein through which the rod 2i passes so that the piston has a sliding t both in the tube 4 and on the rod 2i. .The rearward movement of the piston within the tube 4 is limited by the collar 26 on rod 2l, and the piston is normallyV held against the collar by means of the light, helical spring 27.

Adjacent the plug 25, the tubular element 4 is provided with a passage 2S which is adapted to provide communication between the bore of the barrel of the gun and the tube when the device is brazed or otherwise secured to the barrel. The tube is also provided with gas discharge ports 29 which function in the same way as the ports I S shown in Figs. l and 2 but which are here shown as round.

The lugs Si! and 3i which are brazed or otherwise secured to the tube i are adapted to be brazed to the barrel of the gun for securing our device thereto; and lugs 36 and 32 shown in Figs. 1 and 2 serve the same function. The device shown in Fig. 4. functions in the same way as eX- plained above in connection with the device shown in Figs. 1 and 2, and therefore no further `explanation seems necessary.

It will be obvious that, when the powder charge in any gun is ignited, the gas pressure developed in the barrel of the gun is very high and that this pressure diminishes as the bullet or shot charge i take advantage of the higher gas pressure which develops in this zone.

From the foregoing and a consideration of the drawing, particularly Fig. 2, it will be apparent that both the spring i3 and the spring 21 are of such character that they do not prevent the piston Si from striking the closure element at the forward end of the tube in which said piston is slidable. Furthermore, the ports IG or the ports 29, through which the gases resulting from the explosion of the powder are discharged, are not opened until just before the piston 9 strikes said closure element. Thus, the piston 9 is driven under high pressure substantially throughout its forward movement.

While we have described our invention in its preferred embodiment, it is to be understood that the words which we have used are words of description rather than of limitation and that changes, within the purview of the appended claim, may be made without departing from the true scope and spirit of our invention in its broader aspects.

What we claim is:

A recoil reducing device for a firearm of the type which is iired from the shoulder; said device comprising an elongated, cylindrical tube, a rod within and coaxial with said tube, a piston of substantial mass in said tube slidably mounted on sai-:1 rod, means forming a closure for each end of said tube, a light helical spring around said rod cooperating' with said piston for Vnormally but yieldingly maintaining said Piston adjacent one end of said tube, means cooperating with said piston when in normal position for maintaining it in spaced relation to said adjacent end oi said tube, and means on said cylinder adapting it to be secured to the barrel of said 4drearrfi in closely spaced, parallel disposed relation thereto; said tube being provided with a lateral opening in a zone intermediate the normal position of said piston and the end o1" said tube adjacent the normal position of said piston and adapte-d to communicate with a passage through said barrel in a zone intermediate the ends thereof for the flow o gas from said barrel to said cylinder upon a discharge of said iirearm when said tube is secured to said barrel, and also with openings adjacent the other end of said tube for the passage of air, and ports intermediate the ends thereof for the discharge of gas; said ports being disposed to provide communication between the interior of said tube and the atmosphere for the discharge of gas therethrough only when said piston is closely adjacent the end of said tube remote from its normal position.

References Cited in the le of this patent UNTED STATESPATENTS Number Name Date 515,064: Unge Feb. 20, 1894 1,469,918 De Maine Oct. 9, Y1923 1,749,137 Hudson Mar. 4, 1930 1,786,207 Hudson Dec. 23, 1930 2,393,627 Garand Jan. 29, 1946 FOREIGN PATENTS Number Country Date 661,830 Germany June 28, 1938 203,985 Switzerland July 1939 OTHER REFERENCES The Coast Artillery Journal, May-June, 1945, pp. 32-36.

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