Gurojet rocket pistol
Getting acquainted with history small weapons, you can find a lot of interesting and unusual developments that attract increased human attention. One such example is the right rocket pistol Gurojet. Created in the early 1960's by the designers of the American company MB Associates, the pistol really fired miniature missiles.
To be precise, the development of MB Associates engineers was not a gun in the truest sense of the word. It was a very peculiar launcher for launching small solid-fuel rockets or rockets, made in the form factor of a standard self-loading pistol. It is known that several rocket pistols could end up with the US military in Vietnam. However, they themselves acquired weapons, and the use of an unusual pistol in combat conditions was episodic. At the same time, the model also did not “take off” in the civilian market, since back in 1968 the federal government banned the use of weapons with a caliber of more than 12 mm in the civilian sector, which essentially put an end to the entire development even without taking into account a large number of obvious the flaws of the Gyrojet rocket pistol.
Mainhardt Biehl Associates engineers turned to the idea of creating an unusual weapon because of the desire to combine low noise when shooting and high efficiency of the used ammunition in one sample. With the successful development of the project, the weapon would definitely find its niche in the market, being in the arsenal of fighters of various special units. To achieve these goals, weapon designers Robert Maynard and Arthur Biel decided to turn to non-standard ammunition. Ammunition for unusual weapons were small-sized missile shells, which were made of stainless steel. To launch unusual cartridges, the designers created a multi-charge launcher, which outwardly resembled a gun of impressive size with a striking detail in the form of a perforated barrel. Holes were needed for the removal of powder gases, but at the same time they created big problems with the use of weapons. The shooter constantly had to ensure that the barrel was not clogged with foreign objects, dirt or sand. The length of the gun was approximately 300 mm.
The Gurojet launcher itself was made of aluminum, while the pads on the pistol grip were wooden. The impromptu pistol received an integral store designed for 6 missiles, its location was classic - in the pistol grip. The store equipment could be carried out only by individual reactive cartridges and was carried out through a back-sliding cover located at the top of the weapon. This created great inconvenience for the shooter, so he could not just take and replace the store with a new one, which reduced the rate of fire of the gun. A fixed drummer was installed in the rear of the launch tube - the barrel, and a trigger was located in front of the store.
At the moment when the shooter pulled the trigger, the trigger pivoted on its axis up and back, after which it hit the head of a small rocket. From the influence of the trigger, the miniature rocket moved backward, and the capsule located in its rear part was pierced by a fixed, fixed drummer. Then the powder charge ignited and the process of accelerating the rocket along the barrel began. During movement, the rocket turned the trigger in the opposite direction, carrying out its cocking. At the same time, the shooter could cock the trigger manually, for this he could use a special lever located on the left side of the gun - the launcher.
As ammunition for the Gurojet rocket pistol, small missiles (rocket bullets) with a pointed tip of the caliber 13 mm (cartridge 13x50 mm) were used, stainless steel was used for their production. The defeat of targets by reactive bullets occurred as well as conventional pistol bullets due to the influence of kinetic energy. In this case, the burning time of the powder charge in the rocket munition was about 0,1 seconds. At the time of departure from the barrel of the pistol-launcher, the speed of the rocket bullet was only 30 m / s, which is a very low value. The main problem was that the bullet reached its greatest power at a noticeable distance from the pistol, which made it less effective in close combat. This was due to the design feature - the missile ammunition dispersed smoothly.
As noted above, at the exit from the barrel, the jet bullet had a speed of only 30 m / s, at a distance of 7 meters the speed increased to 300 m / s (for comparison, the initial velocity of a bullet of the not-so-powerful weapon in the world - Makarov’s pistol is 315 m /from). The bullet reached its maximum speed and kinetic energy at a distance of approximately 20 meters by the time of the complete combustion of the powder gases, then its speed was 380 m / s.
One of the problems of the ammunition was the lack of a stabilizing rocket during the flight of the tail. Although experiments were conducted in this direction, such ammunition for Gurojet was never created. At the same time, the tested ammunition had very low accuracy, which was hardly satisfactory. When firing at distant targets, a significant dispersion of the impact of rocket bullets, which were stabilized in flight only by rotation due to the deviation of part of the powder gases in the radial plane, made the weapon ineffective and inaccurate. According to the manufacturer at a distance of 100 meters, the bullet deflection was from two to three meters, and in some cases was even more impressive.
Developed in the 1960's, the unique Gurojet rocket pistol left its mark on weapons history. During tests at distances up to 55 meters, the energy of a miniature rocket fired from a pistol was approximately twice the energy of a bullet that the shooter sent to the target from a Colt M1911 pistol (chambered for 11,43x23 mm). The weapons complied with the main declared requirements - low noise when firing, virtually no recoil, powerful lethal force of ammunition. When firing from a Gurojet rocket pistol, the soundtrack was reduced only to a quiet hiss of a flying rocket. This could include ease of operation and repair due to the small number of parts, including moving parts. This positive qualities of the pistol ended.
The unusual weapon had a large number of obvious disadvantages that outweighed the advantages. The pistol created by the designers of MB Associates proved to be ineffective in close combat, since the missiles needed time to gain speed. This practically excluded the use of the Gуrojet rocket pistol as a last-chance weapon at minimum firing distances, as pistols are often used in real combat conditions. In addition, the "improvised bullets" had a large spread due to the lack of stabilizers, and the pistol itself was distinguished by its impressive dimensions. Also, experts attributed the disadvantages of an unusual weapon to low reliability and a small store capacity (only 6 missile rounds). One of the problems was the frequent misfires of new weapons. During the tests, approximately one misfire was noted for every 100 shots, this exceeded all the values allowed in the arms business. It is worth emphasizing here that such misfires were recorded during firing in virtually ideal conditions; with real combat use of weapons, their number could increase significantly. At an important moment, the weapon could simply let the shooter down, for which in battle people pay with their own lives.
All of the above has long cooled the interest of gunsmiths in similar weapon models. Until in the 2018 year, enthusiastic designers from the American company TAO Fledermaus developed and tested several rocket bullets created using 3D printing. The first tests could hardly be called successful, but the designers of TAO Fledermaus have not yet lost interest in developing such ammunition.
To be precise, the development of MB Associates engineers was not a gun in the truest sense of the word. It was a very peculiar launcher for launching small solid-fuel rockets or rockets, made in the form factor of a standard self-loading pistol. It is known that several rocket pistols could end up with the US military in Vietnam. However, they themselves acquired weapons, and the use of an unusual pistol in combat conditions was episodic. At the same time, the model also did not “take off” in the civilian market, since back in 1968 the federal government banned the use of weapons with a caliber of more than 12 mm in the civilian sector, which essentially put an end to the entire development even without taking into account a large number of obvious the flaws of the Gyrojet rocket pistol.
Gyrojet Pistol Device
Mainhardt Biehl Associates engineers turned to the idea of creating an unusual weapon because of the desire to combine low noise when shooting and high efficiency of the used ammunition in one sample. With the successful development of the project, the weapon would definitely find its niche in the market, being in the arsenal of fighters of various special units. To achieve these goals, weapon designers Robert Maynard and Arthur Biel decided to turn to non-standard ammunition. Ammunition for unusual weapons were small-sized missile shells, which were made of stainless steel. To launch unusual cartridges, the designers created a multi-charge launcher, which outwardly resembled a gun of impressive size with a striking detail in the form of a perforated barrel. Holes were needed for the removal of powder gases, but at the same time they created big problems with the use of weapons. The shooter constantly had to ensure that the barrel was not clogged with foreign objects, dirt or sand. The length of the gun was approximately 300 mm.
The Gurojet launcher itself was made of aluminum, while the pads on the pistol grip were wooden. The impromptu pistol received an integral store designed for 6 missiles, its location was classic - in the pistol grip. The store equipment could be carried out only by individual reactive cartridges and was carried out through a back-sliding cover located at the top of the weapon. This created great inconvenience for the shooter, so he could not just take and replace the store with a new one, which reduced the rate of fire of the gun. A fixed drummer was installed in the rear of the launch tube - the barrel, and a trigger was located in front of the store.
At the moment when the shooter pulled the trigger, the trigger pivoted on its axis up and back, after which it hit the head of a small rocket. From the influence of the trigger, the miniature rocket moved backward, and the capsule located in its rear part was pierced by a fixed, fixed drummer. Then the powder charge ignited and the process of accelerating the rocket along the barrel began. During movement, the rocket turned the trigger in the opposite direction, carrying out its cocking. At the same time, the shooter could cock the trigger manually, for this he could use a special lever located on the left side of the gun - the launcher.
Missile Pistol Ammunition
As ammunition for the Gurojet rocket pistol, small missiles (rocket bullets) with a pointed tip of the caliber 13 mm (cartridge 13x50 mm) were used, stainless steel was used for their production. The defeat of targets by reactive bullets occurred as well as conventional pistol bullets due to the influence of kinetic energy. In this case, the burning time of the powder charge in the rocket munition was about 0,1 seconds. At the time of departure from the barrel of the pistol-launcher, the speed of the rocket bullet was only 30 m / s, which is a very low value. The main problem was that the bullet reached its greatest power at a noticeable distance from the pistol, which made it less effective in close combat. This was due to the design feature - the missile ammunition dispersed smoothly.
As noted above, at the exit from the barrel, the jet bullet had a speed of only 30 m / s, at a distance of 7 meters the speed increased to 300 m / s (for comparison, the initial velocity of a bullet of the not-so-powerful weapon in the world - Makarov’s pistol is 315 m /from). The bullet reached its maximum speed and kinetic energy at a distance of approximately 20 meters by the time of the complete combustion of the powder gases, then its speed was 380 m / s.
One of the problems of the ammunition was the lack of a stabilizing rocket during the flight of the tail. Although experiments were conducted in this direction, such ammunition for Gurojet was never created. At the same time, the tested ammunition had very low accuracy, which was hardly satisfactory. When firing at distant targets, a significant dispersion of the impact of rocket bullets, which were stabilized in flight only by rotation due to the deviation of part of the powder gases in the radial plane, made the weapon ineffective and inaccurate. According to the manufacturer at a distance of 100 meters, the bullet deflection was from two to three meters, and in some cases was even more impressive.
instead of an epilogue
Developed in the 1960's, the unique Gurojet rocket pistol left its mark on weapons history. During tests at distances up to 55 meters, the energy of a miniature rocket fired from a pistol was approximately twice the energy of a bullet that the shooter sent to the target from a Colt M1911 pistol (chambered for 11,43x23 mm). The weapons complied with the main declared requirements - low noise when firing, virtually no recoil, powerful lethal force of ammunition. When firing from a Gurojet rocket pistol, the soundtrack was reduced only to a quiet hiss of a flying rocket. This could include ease of operation and repair due to the small number of parts, including moving parts. This positive qualities of the pistol ended.
Actress Karin Dor, one of the "James Bond girls" with a rocket pistol Gurojet
The unusual weapon had a large number of obvious disadvantages that outweighed the advantages. The pistol created by the designers of MB Associates proved to be ineffective in close combat, since the missiles needed time to gain speed. This practically excluded the use of the Gуrojet rocket pistol as a last-chance weapon at minimum firing distances, as pistols are often used in real combat conditions. In addition, the "improvised bullets" had a large spread due to the lack of stabilizers, and the pistol itself was distinguished by its impressive dimensions. Also, experts attributed the disadvantages of an unusual weapon to low reliability and a small store capacity (only 6 missile rounds). One of the problems was the frequent misfires of new weapons. During the tests, approximately one misfire was noted for every 100 shots, this exceeded all the values allowed in the arms business. It is worth emphasizing here that such misfires were recorded during firing in virtually ideal conditions; with real combat use of weapons, their number could increase significantly. At an important moment, the weapon could simply let the shooter down, for which in battle people pay with their own lives.
All of the above has long cooled the interest of gunsmiths in similar weapon models. Until in the 2018 year, enthusiastic designers from the American company TAO Fledermaus developed and tested several rocket bullets created using 3D printing. The first tests could hardly be called successful, but the designers of TAO Fledermaus have not yet lost interest in developing such ammunition.
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