30 
FOREST AND STREAM 
[Jan. 7, 1911. 
R Morgan . 
17 
09 
18 
°3 
G Bates . 
90 
OQ 
17 
17 
H D Bergen . 
J Voorhees . 
22 
22 
18 
22 
ii 
21 
20 
17 
H W Dreyer.. 
W H Ryder. 
J Weisbacker . 
16 
19 
18 
16 
18 
11 
15 
19 
14 
21 
23 
Hudson Gun Club. 
\i'I ER n EY rF I l.' Y ’ , Np J an - —With a straight score, 
Mr. D. D. Engle, started the ball rolling for 1911, at 
the Hudson Gun Club grounds this morning, and fin- 
- lllgh gun , wlth an average of 92 per cent. Billy 
O linen was the runner-up and finished with 87 per 
cent. * 
1 here was quite a gathering- of trapshooters from the 
Clarendon Gun Club who journeyed to our grounds to 
witness a team match between three shooters from each 
club for a suitable purse and dinners for ten friends of 
the winning team. The Hudson boys were victorious, 
winnmg by 34 targets. There was also a number of in¬ 
dividual matches shot Detween several of our members 
to-day. It seemed as though every shooter at the 
grounds this morning had a chip on his shoulder waiting 
for it !o be knocked off. First it was Burlington and 
Geary who had to call it a draw after each shooter broke 
out of 50. 
Next to face the firing line were the Cherry brothers. 
There was nothing to it after the first 50 targets shot, 
and Lou was returned a winner by 15 birds. Burlington 
and Kelley were the next two that tried for fame. Two 
^-target events were enough for them, so they adjourned 
to the club house to talk it over, and make way for Doc 
Groll and Joe Whitley, who each shot at 25 targets 
A h h' i vm “ ,ng .&■ the narrowest of margins, one bird, 
ihe Doctor is willing to bet that he can clean Whitley 
up the next time they come together. 
Che morning was dark and cloudy, with very little 
wind blowing, but the rain that started about 11 A M 
made things very disagreeable for the boys to stand 
outside and shoot in it. 
Jan. 15 is our next club shoot date. W r e start to 
shoot our club prizes on that date, and request the 
attendance of every member that can possibly attend. 
Targets: 
D D Engel. 
H T Burlington......." 17 
J 
Craft . 
Dr Groll ... 
W 
O’Brien 
.T 
Putney .. 
A 
P Lane .. 
11 
Pape .... 
J 
Leary .... 
E 
G Allen.. 
W 
Emmons 
.1 
Pape .... 
T 
Kelley ... 
J 
Young .. 
1 
Whitley . 
W 
Lewis .. 
L 
Cherry .. 
E 
Cherry .. 
P 
Western 
Team shoot, 50 birds per man: 
Claradon G. C. 
F Allen . 35 
W Lewis .35 
J Whitley .29— 99 
25 
25 
25 
25 
25 
25 
25 
22 
24 
21 
23 
17 
15 
23 
10 
12 
18 
16 
19 
19 
19 
14 
IS 
17 
14 
16 
20 
14 
21 
is 
22 
21 
22 
22 
14 
22 
IS 
19 
i7 
19 
10 
17 
20 
15 
14' 
10 
12 
17 
18 
17 
15 
16 
IS 
17 
16 
19 
16 
14 
is 
20 
19 
20 
23 
23 
22 
18 
13 
18 
15 
21 
IS 
20 
20 
21 
if) 
19 
20 
18 
16 
21 
19 
15 
17 
21 
16 
IS 
IS 
15 
11 
ii 
15 
11 
10 
9 
10 
i9 
22 
11 
11 
15 
.. 
Hu 
dson G. 
C. 
R Bodie . 41 
W O’Brien .48 
T Kelley . 44—133 
Secretary. 
Freehold Gun Club. 
Freehold N. J., Dec. 29.—N. Apgar was high pro- 
fessional with 163; H, H. Stevens, second, with 161 ■ 
- f, a r nn J? S , and Hp Sp Brown . third, with 157 each. 
t- , ,7 ,, Ma( hews was first high amateur with 159: 
rrank Muldoon, second, with 155. Scores: 
Events: 123456789 10 
Targets: 15 15 25 15 15 20 15 15 20 25 
E J Vanderveer. 13 12 16 13 12 17 12 13 17 19 
B M Kling.. v . 13 12 15 12 12 11 11 11 16 7 
E, Muldoon . 14 14 IS 11 15 17 14 14 18 20 
VV J Mathews. 10 9 12 10 8 12 9 9 16 20 
Wm K Mathews.14 12 16 11 10 12 11 12 17 20 
M Conover ..12 10 19 12 10 18 9 13 13 17 
Dr W H Mathews.... 13 12 18 12 12 12 14 14 19 ?5 
B Creighton . 11 11 10 14 11 17 11 9 13 21 
C M Johnson. 10 11 16 12 12 17 10 10 15 20 
G Crawford .10 14 
G Schenck .11 16 .. ” . \ '' 
C Newman . .... is * 
J H Barclay.® 
Broke. 
144 
130 
155 
115 
135 
133 
159 
128 
133 
24 
27 
43 
24 
Professionals: 
N Apgar . 15 14 20 15 12 17 14 13 19 24 163 
J S Fanning. 13 13 18 13 14 19 12 13 19 23 157 
H H Stevens. 12 15 20 13 15 17 14 13 19 23 161 
H L Brown. 14 11 12 12 13 19 14 14 17 23 157 
M. W. Conover, Sec’y. 
Hyde Park Gun Club. 
Cincinnati, O.—With the coming of a New Year in 
\® re ® t . ln trapshooting seems to be reviving a little 
JNothing very startling, but just an indication that tin 
old hustlers are still in the game, and propose to dt 
business once more. On Dec. 31, there were five mem 
bers at the grounds, not a big crowd, but very prom 
ismg after a lapse of two or three weeks, with not ; 
smgle shooter showing up on club day. The day wa: 
chilly, and the light poor, so that it was difficult to sec 
the targets at times. S. Leever, well-known to the base 
ball fans, and not unknown to trapshooters in this sec 
tion, was high with 45. This is his first shoot since las 
spring, and he will be practising until the ball seasor 
opens again. Malloy gets here once in a while, anc 
generally makes good. The trap boys failed to put in 
an appearance, and Dr. Phillip tended trap, while E. W. 
Rugg pulled the lever. The latter was badly shaken up 
in a recent street car collision, and was not in trim to 
shoot. Scott is a new one, or nearly so, but he only 
needs a little practice to enable him to locate the clays 
without trouble. Eustis and Rhodes have not been 
out for a long time, as their scores would indicate. 
The club will start its series of monthly prize shoots 
about the middle of January. These have proved popu¬ 
lar in the past and will be drawing cards in the future. 
S Leever . 22 23—45 Malloy .20 ..—20 
Eustis .20 14—34 Scott . 4 ..— 4 
Rhodes . 12 14—26 
Internal Ballistics. 
DEFINITIONS. 
A gun is a thermo-dynamic machine by which the 
potential energy of the explosive is converted into the 
kinetic energy of the projectile. 
1 he potential of an explosive is the mechanical equiva¬ 
lent of the heat produced, acting on the increased volume 
of the converted charge, by the combustion of the ex¬ 
plosive; the mechanical effect which may be obtained is 
but a part of the potential; the pressure derived is also 
a part only. 
Internal ballistics is a term signifying the effects of the 
combustion of the explosive so far as they relate to the 
gun and to the projectile as long as it is within the gun. 
Therefore internal ballistics comprise—the nature and 
value of the stresses upon the gun barrel and breech; 
friction upon the gun; the pressure upon the base of the 
projectile; the muzzle velocity of the projectile; erosion; 
fouling; recoil; jump and flip. 
The combustion of an explosive is a gradual process, 
and the rise of pressure is gradual, the time varying ac¬ 
cording to the nature of the explosive and in the man¬ 
ner of combustion; but the explosion may be detona¬ 
tion, in which case ignition of individual grains is 
quicker than the travel of the flame, and therefore they 
are not ignited by flame, but are ignited by vibration. 
Detonation of an explosive is a term used by Berthelot 
and others to signify more than ordinarily rapid ex¬ 
plosion; the result of particular conditions, some of 
which will be specified later. 
Wave-pressure is a term applied to the abnormally high 
pressures which occasionally occur; they are the result 
of an unequal confinement of evolved gases. 
Stresses .—The stresses upon a gun are a radial stress 
or ‘pressure”; a tangential stress, or hoop tension, 
which tends to split the barrel open longitudinally, being 
similar in its action to the force which bursts the hoops 
of a barrel; a longitudinal stress. 
Recoil is the movement of the gun longitudinally in the 
reverse direction to that taken by the projectile. “Jump” 
and “flip” are secondary movements—vertical and lat¬ 
eral respectively—and are dependent both upon the 
charge used and the position of the shooter in firing. 
THE BALLISTIC ACTION OF AN EXPLOSION. 
The object of exploding a charge of gunpowder within 
a gun barrel is to move a load from a condition of rest 
and impart to it a certain velocity; it is obtained by the 
gradual expansion of the explosive as it decomposes b> 
burning. This gradual expansion, by moving the bullet 
and so enlarging the chamber in which the powder is 
exploding, reduces the mechanical effect of the com¬ 
bustion. Instead of the 43 tons pressure to the square 
inch obtained by exploding black gunpowder in a con- 
• vessel, but a fraction results when the same powdei 
is fired in a small arm under ordinary conditions; much 
of the energy is used up in producing heat which is 
absorbed. 
There are other causes, in addition, so that compara¬ 
tively little of the total latent energy—or potential—of the 
explosive is converted by burning into kinetic energy in 
the projectile; with the most favorable conditions this 
energy is conveyed in a manner which mav be likened to 
a vigorous push against the base of a yielding bullet; 
with unfavorable conditions, is of the nature of a crush¬ 
ing blow. 
Time for the translation of the energy is all-important; 
a greater percentage of kinetic energy is derived from 
slow-burning powders, greater local pressure from those 
whose decomposition is most rapid. The nature of the 
work required of a gun, therefore, necessitates the use 
o* t comparatively slow burning powders. 
\\ ork ’ is the result of a force acting upon a body 
through a distance; the product is termed “foot-pounds.” 
.The unit of work called the foot-pound is that amount 
which is performed in raising a weight of lib. through a 
distance of 1ft. against gravity. If lib. be raised 2ft., 
" un, ts °f work are done; if 41bs. be raised through 5ft, 
then 20 units of work, expressed as 20 ft.-lbs. Energy is 
the expression used to define the work contained in a 
moving body, such as produced by falling from a cer¬ 
tain height, and signifies its weight and velocitv. Elim¬ 
inating the loss of energy in overcoming frictional and 
other resistances, the work done by the pressure of the 
explosive on the bore of a gun must equal the energy 
contained in the projectile. The formula for ascertaining 
iv v 2 
the energy is Ps =r-, where P is the mean thrust in 
j 
pounds exerted over a length of the barrel; s feet, on 
the base of the projectile; v the muzzle velocity of the 
projectile in feet per second; and w its weight in pounds, 
and g gravitation units. Example: What is the average 
thrust or pressure on the base of a Martini-Henry bul- 
, • Length of bore — 33in.; of powder charge, 2in.; 
the difference, 31m., will be the distance through which 
the pressure of the explosive acts on the base of the 
bullet. The bullet weighs 4S0grs., or lb., and its 
7000 
muzzle velocity is 1,315 foot-seconds; therefore 
460 
- X (1315)2 
31 tow 
P X — =-= 712.64 lbs. 
12 2 X 32.2 
Example: What is the muzzle energy of the Lee- 
Metford bullet? Weight of bullet = 215grs. = — lbs.,. 
7000 
muzzle velocity, 2,000 f.s.: 
215 
--X (2000) 2 
w v 2 7000 
Energy =-= --— 1,907 ft.-lbs. 
. 2 g 64.4 
Energy increases as the square of the velocity; thus, it 
the weight of the bullet is constant, and its velocity 
doubled, the energy is four times as great. The momen¬ 
tum of a body, whose weight is w lbs., moving with a 
w v 
velocity v foot-seconds is- (seconds-pounds), and may 
g 
be defined as the quantity of motion in a moving body. 
Supposing a projectile to be traveling at the rate of 
1,000 ft. per second, and its weight to be 1 lb., it would 
have the same momentum as a ^-lb. shot traveling at 
the rate of 2,000 ft. per second, but the energy of the 
%-lb. shot would be double that of the 1-lb. shot.” 
From the formula it might be assumed that the energy 
is derived from constant thrust or push on the base of 
the bullet. Of course the action is quite different; there 
is increasing pressure upon the bullet until its inertia is 
overcome, but as it nears the muzzle, and its velocity 
increases, the pressure diminishes. As it is impossible 
to overcome the inertia of a mass save by the applica¬ 
tion of a force for a period of time proportionate to the 
weight, the ballistic value of an explosive depends upon 
the time required for the combustion, which, with black 
gunpowder, may be to some extent regulated by the 
shape, size and density of the grains. By a proper ad¬ 
justment of the powder charge to the weight of the bullet 
and capacity of the barrel, such a pressure is maintained 
upon the base of the projectile as to increase its velocity 
as long as it remains within the barrel. Simple as this 
may seem, it constitutes a large portion of the science 
of gunnery; a theoretically perfect result would be ob¬ 
tained if the last atom of powder were converted into¬ 
gas at the moment the bullet leaves the muzzle. 
M. Berthelot distinguishes the variation in the rate of 
combustion of each kind of explosive by two classes— 
one, the normal explosion, as combustion; the quicker as 
‘detonation’’—but adds that “between the two there may 
exist a series of intermediate modes of explosion. In 
fact, the passage from one class to another is accom¬ 
panied by violent and irregular movements of the 
material, during which the propagation of the combus¬ 
tion acts by a vibratory movement of increasing ampli¬ 
tude, and with more or less velocity.” Black powder is 
computed to generate thrice the amount of radial pres¬ 
sure when the quicker class of combustion occurs. 
Too rapid combustion produces an increase of heat 
and pressure, but the pressure being local—that is, 
confined to the cartridge chamber—it does not act upon 
the base of the projectile for the same distance; con¬ 
sequently the ballistic value is less, while the excess of 
pressure may prove dangerous, and is always detrimental. 
Means are taken to avoid a “detonation” or abnormally 
quick combustion of explosives when used in guns. 
There are various methods by which the explosion of 
the charge, or a part of it, may be retarded after ignition. 
For instance, simply by granulating the powder, and 
proportioning the size of grain to the bore; for, sup¬ 
posing powder similar in all other respects, its conversion 
into gas depends on the rate of ignition of the grains 
and the time of combustion of each grain. The rate of 
ignition depends upon the facility with which the flame 
can penetrate the charge and its heat—that is, on the 
lorm of the grains composing it—and, further, upon the 
hardness of the grains, and the amount of glaze upon 
them; the rate of combustion, on the bulk or size of the 
grains themselves, and their specific gravity. The larger 
and denser the grains, the slower they burn. 
It has been found by experience that greater uniformity 
of action is secured by having all the grains of the same 
size. The burning of the grains first ignited produces 
gas, and the pressure starts the bullet; then the heat 
generated causes the remainder of the charge to burn 
under conditions more favorable to rapid combustion, 
the gases are liberated more quickly, and a greater 
percentage of the explosive is converted into gas; so 
that there is an increasing pressure upon the base of 
the bullet until it shall have attained a proportionate 
velocity. 
THE CLASS OF EXPLOSION. 
Ordinary nitro powders are not readily ignited by a 
flame at a low temperature; a large flame or a hot flame, 
as from a blow-pipe, will ignite any powder, but espe¬ 
cially nitro powders, more quickly. Once ignited, the 
combustion of a few grains produces such heat and 
pressure as to cause a far more rapid explosion of the 
grains contiguous to them, and if the heat increases with 
the combustion, as with some conditions it must then 
eventually a point is reached when the grains do not 
burn, but detonate. Some years ago some experiments 
were carried out by Mr. Teasdale Buckell, who has 
long been editor of Land and Water; by these he ascer- 
tained that, whereas the flash of an ordinary cap would 
Ignite the whole of the grains of black powder furthest 
removed from its base in a 12-bore cartridge case the 
same flash would not ignite the furthest removed grains 
of nitro powder. 
“When a shock sufficiently violent is produced in one 
part of an explosive substance, and if the pressures 
which result from this shock are too sudden to be 
propagated to the whole mass, the transformation of the 
vis viva into heat will take place chiefly in the first por¬ 
tion of the mass. This may thus be raised to a suffi- 
