The weapon was a sight. It rested between two carriage wheels, like a small cannon. Richard J. Gatling’s invention has placed six heavy rifled barrels in circular fashion around a central axis, a design somewhat like a revolver in reverse, with the barrels spinning, rather than a cylinder behind them. A hand crank on the right side rotated each barrel through its firing sequence, as ammunition was fed from a canister above. The term ‘machine gun’ had not yet entered military jargon or public imagination, but here was the forerunner: the 1862 Gatling, the first reasonably reliable weapon that could provide continuous rifle fire. It needed only to be debugged and for the ammunition industry to catch up. Although in contest with the Union Army’s current contractor who developed the United Repeating Gun, The Gatling Gun Company had entered an agreement with the Colt Patent Firearms Company, in Hartford, Connecticut. With the capacity to handle large orders, Gatling distributed 100 guns to the american army in August 1866. Although improvements to the weapon had been matched by advances in ammunition manufacturing, Gatling stated, “the machine gun was not of practical use until the metal cartridge had been perfected and that was not till after the war was ended”. The “war” being the …show more content…
Through technical intelligence and the dedication of enormous resources, Stalin’s military had developed a firearm with promise to be the standard weapon for legions of socialist workers and peasants. Thus, a weapon made for every man. A rifle suited for modern war and could be readily mastered by conventional conscripts and violent revolutionaries alike. It pushed Soviet small-arms development ahead of the West and if it weren’t for the complicated set of circumstances, the Ak-47 would have been a less significant weapon, merely an evolutionary leap in automatic arms that became one nation’s principal infantry
In conclusion, Samuel Colt was one of the most innovative gunmakers of his time. Samuel Colt made the revolving cylinder and he had a rough time getting his company started. Also he made many quality guns and sold them to the soldiers. Last he armed the U.S army. So what would you do without Samuel Colt’s innovation in weapons?
Meyerson, Joel D. “Machine Gun.” World Book Advanced. World Book, 2014 Web. 3 Feb. 2014.
During the years leading up to and during the American Civil War there were a number of advancements in firearms technology. This paper will focus on a few of those advancements, namely the inventions of the Minié ball, the Spencer and Henry repeating rifles, and of the Gatling gun.
The weapons of choice of the United States consisted of the Colt 1911 and the M1 Garand. The Colt 1911 was a huge caliber pistol with a .45 ACP scorching down the barrel. It packed a huge punch when it hit you, but only at close quarters, its effective range was only 246 feet. The M1 Grand also was a big caliber with the 30-06 Springfield, that rifle could break your shoulder if you were not careful. It had great range; it was effective up to 3,954 feet.
A popular weapon used by both sides was the rifle. Rifles were invented before the Civil War and were greatly used in the War of 1812. However, more types were built and a larger amount was used during the Civil War. Rifles added a spin to bullets for a greater accuracy at longer ranges. Using this weapon, soldiers could fire 400 yards away, as opposed to the average 80 yards (Robertson 50). Rifles were the fastest and hardest weapon of the time. Rifles allowed their bullets to be shot harder and faster towards its target. New inventions, used by the Union more than the Confederate, included Parrott rifles. They were composed of iron. Robert Parker Parrott, an American soldier and inventor, created these weapons, hence the name Parrott rifles. Despite its name, the Parrott rifle was actually a cannon. Its size ranged from 10 to 300 pounders. It was not favored by most because it was considered unsafe (“Civil War Artillery”). Because of its bulkiness and heaviness, it seldom led soldiers to inaccuratel...
Soldiers were ordered to load and they would take a cartridge and rip it open. Sometimes they would open them with their own teeth. After they opened it, they poured powder into the pan of the firing mechanism to fill it up. They would pour the main portion of the powder down into the barrel, and then they folded paper and put it into the barrel and dropped the ball at the top. They used the ramrod under the barrel of the musket to...
This was the self contained brass cartridge. It contained an ignition source called a primer, an amount of powder and a bullet. Early cartridge guns were converted percussion rifles. The first repeating rifles were the Henry and Spencer, the Henry had a fifteen shot internal magazine and the Spencer a seven round removable magazine this meant multiple could be carried. Repeaters were not limited to rifles though handguns such as the famous Colt Single Action Army were a common favorite among both civilians and military personnel. The industrial revolution boosted the firearms industry. It allowed gunsmiths who formerly would cut rifling and make parts by hand using saws and files to now use vertical mills and lathes to improve both output and precision. Barrels became easier to rifle and take to size using lathes and mills allowed sights to be manufactured much easier. The next major evolutionary step in the firearms industry was the bolt action rifle. A bolt action provides a tighter seal at the breach than other actions allowing higher pressure cartridges and a farther effective range do to increased velocity The first bolt action used by the U.S. military was the Krag-Jorgensen a Norwegian rifle with a internal side loading magazine. It was thought by many that the Krag was was an exceptional piece of equipment but during the Spanish - American War it was proved otherwise. Spaniards armed with German Mausers a rifle with a
My conclusion is that I would not want to be shot by any of these guns. They used very heavy ammunition that devastated what ever it hit. I guess that is why the American Civil War was called the bloodiest war of all time. Not only are you trying to kill your opponent, you are trying to kill a fellow American which must of been tougher. Also, if we adopted the Gatling gun, I feel that the war would of been over a lot faster than it was. To be able to fire 250 to 300 rounds in one minute is devastating. That gun was very mobile because it could be moved around by the horses because it was on wheels.
A majority of weapons used in World War II were improved weapons from World War II. Most guns increased in power and abilities. In World War II people thought that pistols were useless but this was proved wrong due to the fact that the U.S. Mi...
The next real step in the evolution of the gun came during the Civil War. Rifles were invented that ...
Starting out in 1872, the .45 Colt hit the market. A joint development between Colt's Patent Firearms Manufacturing company, and Union Metallic Cartridge Company created a black powder revolver round that captured the eyes of many. This round was soon introduced into the army. Progressing steadily, it soon became a complete bullet rather than a black powder round. Sadly, the wars the army was facing became more grueling and advanced which is why the .45 Colt was replaced by a stronger bullet to satisfy the needs of the Army. Even with this replacement, the .45 Colt still continued claiming popularity. Serving it’s time for our county helped gain fame for this bullet. The desire...
weapon used rim fire copper-cased cartridges instead of the steel-chambered paper kind. Though this model did not see service, it was adopted officially in 1866. The military was so pleased with the performance of the Gatling gun that it has been used in every battle since it was invented to this day and has been continuously upgraded and improved. Having received government approval, Gatling began to sell his guns throughout the world. This was a big mark in Richards’s future, he had gone from working in the fields to developing a gun that is used throughout the military of the world.
These kinds of weapons were impractical for military use, but attracted many people to the arms race for weapons that could sweep the battlefield. “They had limitations in practice, among them slow re...
Smirnov, Yuri, Vladislav Zubok. “Nuclear Weapons after Stalin’s Death: Moscow enters the H-Bomb Age.” Cold War International History Project. March 1994.
The Browning M2 .50 caliber machine gun is better known as the 'Ma Duce' to those who have had the pleasure of firing this heavy barrel machine gun. In 1919 John M. Browning developed the M2 .50 cal as an anti-aircraft weapon. The M2 was first introduced into the United States Military in 1933 and is used by many militaries through out the world today. Since 1933 there have been little changes made to this weapon system. The BMG (Browning Machine Gun) is a crew served, belt fed, air-cooled, recoil operated machine gun capable of firing in single shot or fully automatic.