US Government As Represented by the Secretary of the Army

Ford Motor Company Limited

Ford Aerospace & Communications Corporation

Clifford E LaFever

William J Washburn

John H Peck

Hugh B Thompson

A buffered bolt assembly is disclosed for use in an automatic weapon. A b is received in a sleeve on a bolt carrier and is movable therein both axially and rotationally. One or more cam pins on the bolt are received in respective cam guides in the sleeve to control the bolt's rotational position as a function of its axial position. The aft end of the bolt is provided with at least one and preferably two aftward-projecting bolt extensions, for which corresponding slots are provided in the aft surface of the sleeve. When the bolt carrier and bolt are in the battery or firing position, the bolt extensions protrude through their respective slots. The bolt extensions are of such a length that during the recoil stroke of the bolt assembly, the aft ends of the bolt extensions are flush with the rear outer surface of the aft wall of the sleeve. When the rearward motion of the bolt carrier is stopped by the collision of the stationary buffer with the aft surface of the sleeve, the bolt extensions impact the buffer simultaneously with the sleeve, decelerating the bolt at the same rate as the bolt carrier. During the following forward stroke, the buffer also accelerates both the bolt and the bolt carrier simultaneously. As a result, the load on the latch and the cam pins is reduced.

Buffered bolt assembly

A machine gun ammunition loading system employs cantilevered support memb on a magazine holding a leading round of belted ammunition supported above a cover of the magazine. The cover of the magazine includes mating parts which permit sliding engagement below the machine gun. When fully mated, the cantilevered members, with the leading round between them, are inserted into the receiver in a loading position from whence charging can be performed by single-handed motion of an operator while upright and walking.

Machine gun ammunition loading system

A termination accumulator for a machine gun has a handling conveyor passing through a supply channel, a bypass channel, and a return channel. The supply channel leads to a feed system of a machine gun. The bypass channel has its other end connected to a return conveyor leading from the feed system. A gate is mounted at the junction of the bypass channel and supply channel operably between two positions, one position directs ammunition on the handling conveyor onto a supply conveyor leading to the feed system and a second position directs ammunition on the handling conveyor through the bypass channel. Upon release of a trigger mechanism operably connected to the gun, the gate moves from its first position to a second position such that the feed system continues its forward operation to clear itself of any live ammunition therein. The handling conveyor maintains a forward mode directing ammunition in to the bypass channel. A reversing mechanism reverses the handling conveyor to retrieve live ammunition from the bypass channel after the feed system is cleared of all live ammunition such that the live ammunition accumulated in the termination accumulator can be then fed to the feed system during the next operation of the machine gun.

Termination accumulator

This specification discloses an ammunition round and a method of firing the ammunition round. Consecutive and reproducible firing of a primer charge and a main propellant charge is accomplished as a result of the physical movement of a divider physically separating the primer charge from the main charge. Firing of the primer charge causes movement of the divider, initiates movement of a projectile within the ammunition round, and, when the combustion gases of the primer charge are in communication with the main propellant charge, causes firing of the main propellant charge.

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Mission Viejo, CA, United States of America

Clifford E LaFever