![]() ![]() The shells were gravity-fed into the breech through a hopper or simple box magazine with an unsprung gravity follower on top of the gun.īy 1886, the gun was capable of firing more than 400 rounds per minute. ![]() The innovative features of the Gatling gun were its independent firing mechanism for each barrel and the simultaneous action of the locks, barrels, carrier, and breech. ![]() The initial Gatling gun design used self-contained, reloadable steel cylinders with a chamber holding a ball and black-powder charge, and a percussion cap on one end.Īs the barrels rotated, these steel cylinders dropped into place, were fired, and were then ejected from the gun. ![]() The lock was simultaneously forced by the cam to move forward and load the cartridge, and when the cam was at its highest point, the cocking ring freed the lock and fired the cartridge.Īfter the cartridge was fired the continuing action of the cam drew back the lock bringing with it the spent casing which then dropped to the ground. Later models eliminated the matting-filled barrels as being unnecessary. The barrels, a carrier, and a lock cylinder were separate and all mounted on a solid plate revolving around a central shaft, mounted on an oblong fixed frame.Īlso in the casing was a cocking ring with projections to cock and fire the gun.Įarly models had a fibrous matting stuffed in among the barrels, which could be soaked with water to cool the barrels down. It was also used by the Pennsylvania militia in episodes of the Great Railroad Strike of 1877, specifically in Pittsburgh.Įach barrel fires once per revolution at about the same position. It was later used in numerous military conflicts, including the Boshin War, the Anglo-Zulu War and the assault on San Juan Hill during the SpanishAmerican War. This configuration eliminated the need for a single reciprocating bolt design and allowed higher rates of fire to be achieved without the barrels overheating quickly. It is an early machine gun and a forerunner of the modern electric motor -driven rotary cannon.Īs the handwheel is cranked, the barrels rotate clockwise and each barrel sequentially loads a single cartridge from a top-mounted magazine, fires off the shot when it reaches a set position (usually at 4 oclock ), then ejects the spent casing out of the left side at the bottom, after which the barrel is empty and allowed to cool until rotated back to the top position and gravity-fed another new round. ![]()
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