.50 Caliber times 6

[avenger2504]

Not sure if this will work unless you are a Facebook user or at least can logon but for those who can check this video out out (You might need to copy and paste):
https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?v=352526954800076

[muddyboots]

that's pretty awesome!

[Wilson]

"Let me hear yer guns! I wanna hear what they sound like! Yang yang yang yang yang yang yang yang yang yang yang."

[maxum96]

AWESOME!


But knowing the cost of ammo, I couldn't help but think about how much that little burst cost them.

[The Inspector]

If you've got good, straight brass. it's pretty cheap to do your own reloads with wax or plastic shell plugs, and I'll bet those were 1/2 or 1/3 loads.
It does give you a true feeling for it must have been like for real.

[JohnTerrell]

Getting ready for Wanaka.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eiChPhNGYJ8
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w3T5QkFg6cw

[oscardeuce]

A nice transferable M2 series will cost you about $25,000 each too.
I am not sure if a lessor load will cycle the M2 series. I kind of doubt it as machine guns are quite sensitive to the load.

[avenger2504]

There was a discussion here how they adjusted the design of the barrel (the end?) to compensate for the lesser loads in the shells, so the recoil mechanism was able to work properly. Or maybe I read it on another forum (egad!). I guess firing using a full load stresses the aircraft structure too much? Or its just less expensive? Anyway, I may not remember this correctly but maybe someone can remind us how its done. I wish they'd load up the nose of the Rod Lewis' A-20J with these puppies and beat up Chino's runway during a PoF airshow while firing away!

Or how about P38! Or a P47 (50 cal. times EIGHT!!)

[oscardeuce]

How can firing a blank from the designed mount over stress an airframe? Especially blanks? If the airframe can't take that stress in the way it was designed, how would the wing itself take the stresses of flight?

[JDK]

There was a discussion here how they adjusted the design of the barrel (the end?) to compensate for the lesser loads in the shells, so the recoil mechanism was able to work properly. Or maybe I read it on another forum (egad!). I guess firing using a full load stresses the aircraft structure too much? Or its just less expensive? Anyway, I may not remember this correctly but maybe someone can remind us how its done. I wish they'd load up the nose of the Rod Lewis' A-20J with these puppies and beat up Chino's runway during a PoF airshow while firing away!

I thought it was the other way around, that the [edit - M-2 series] short recoil arrangement needed a choke and a lower charge to work - as there's no actual shell, the physics of the mechanism won't work with the same dynamics, unless other aspects are adjusted.

But there's better armourers here than me!

How can firing a blank from the designed mount over stress an airframe? Especially blanks? If the airframe can't take that stress in the way it was designed, how would the wing itself take the stresses of flight?

In the case of the P-40 family, I agree it's unlikely. However there are certainly warbirds out there that have had structure removed that was designed in to take the stresses of the armament, and have dummy armament refitted; firing a swapped in working gun would be a problem. It's an unlikely sequence, but not impossible. (An example would be something like a turret structure removed from an A-26 Invader, later replaced with a 'working' dummy turret that is later given real guns, and the surrounding turret support not re-fitted in its entirety.)

As to the second question, there's no direct link between the designed load factoring for armament stresses and recoil and the effects of flight loads except that the former should, most likely, exceed the latter - an overdesign factor. However it would be foolish to rely on that in general as aircraft structures are generally not best designed with that specific kind of excess shock load capability, which by definition of flight loads and armaments work in different directions and extremes to each other.

Or how about P38! Or a P47 (50 cal. times EIGHT!!)

Shallow end. Beaufighter - six .303, four 20mm, and eight ship-busting rockets (and a gun for the observer so he doesn't feel left out...).



But I'll just settle for a flying Beau. Here's hoping!
Regards,

Last edited by JDK on Tue Apr 03, 2012 4:49 pm, edited 1 time in total.

[JDK]

Aaanndd...

One of the great things about WIX is getting to figure out these kind of "who'd care anyway" things with the communal brains trust and then having passionate and pointless arguments about them. Unbeatable fun.







Certainly better than what I should be doing, anyway.

[Dave Hadfield]

Yes, when I was working with Pioneer in NZ to finish the VWoC P-40, they were talking about it.

In my own layman's words, I believe that when firing a blank, there is less gas pressure in the barrel, and not quite enough to power the re-load. Thus they had to choke the barrel a bit to capture more pressure.

Dave

[Ztex]

From what I understand, the gun laws in NZ are very different from the US.
Machine guns are acceptable to own...but you must be vetted by the government and issued a collectors license of sorts, you can't store them in operable condition or ever shoot live ammo through them...but you can shoot blanks for theatrical or re-enacting purposes. etc.

And apparently they are much cheaper.

[oscardeuce]

Would add some complexity as in the US would need to inform the NFA/ATF if moving the NFA firearm across state lines. US law currently allows for private ownership of full auto, short barrel, suppresses and destructive devices if you pay $200 for the tax stamp and pass a background check. Local law enforcement must also sign off on your ownership. Then if you have any more cash after restoring your plane you can buy your NFA gun.
The prices are high because since 1986 no more full auto firearms have been allowed to be imported into the US for civilian use. Since that day add 1 "0" to the price.

The M-2 series is recoil operated. You can restrict the barrel either with a very bulky blank adapter, or restricting the barrel. Barrels are only a few hundred, but I would not risk my $25,000 gun experimenting.

[JDK]

Just a note to say I've corrected the operation system in my earlier post, following oscarduce's correcting note.