The "Spinning- Wheel" Gun 



Till-; " spiniiinn-wlu'cl" gun is llic news 

 paptT name which has iiccn j^ixen 

 an odd engine of destruction. 

 The gun consists of a wheel of 

 aluminum and copper construction 

 mounted on ball-bearings supported 

 by a suitable frame. Projectiles 

 are placed in pockets in a groove 

 in the rim of the wheel, which is 

 rotated at a high rate of speed 

 by an electric motor to which 

 it is belted. The projectiles 

 are automatically released by 

 a mechanical device and hurled 

 at the object at which they 

 are sighted. 



The new gun has many obvi- 

 ous faults, any one of which 

 renders it worthless as a weapon 

 of warfare. In the first place its 

 operation necessitates the use of 

 electric current which makes field 

 service practically out of the ques- 

 tion. Even with an ample electric 

 current supply on hand the whee 

 could not be rotatetl with sufficien 

 velocity to hurl the projectiles 

 appreciable distance. It has been fig 

 out that a speed of 

 at least eighteen 

 thousand revolu- 

 tions a minute 

 would be needed to 

 throw a projectile 

 one thousand 

 yards. It would be 

 difficult to get a 

 motor or bearings 

 which would stand 

 such terrific strain. 

 The "centrifugal 

 gun" would neces- 

 sitate the use of 

 spherical projec- 

 tiles, whereas the 

 type which has 

 been found most 

 efficient is long and 

 tapered and has a 

 detonator at its 

 pointed end. 



The gun is de- 

 signed to supplant 

 hand grenades. 



The Gun Consists of a Wheel Constructed of Aluminum and 

 Mounted on a Frame and Rotated at Hish Speed by a 



a.07 



Copper 

 Motor 



