Army Musket

IntroI am doing this report on the M1 Garand for Mr.Walker 182's History Class. The Garand is a fascinating World War II semi-automatic rifle. In the sub-sections below I will describe the developement history of the gun, the service history, and info on different versions. I wanted to add diagrams of the M1 rifle but the pictures are copyrighted and I was not able to download but the diagrams could be found at <a href="http://www.chestnutridge.com/gchart.asp">http://www.chestnutridge.com/gchart.aspDevelopment HistoryThe origins of the United States Rifle, Caliber .30, M1 begin around August, 1900, when Captain O.B.

A few years of development and a patent later, the minie` ball was ready for combat. In the 1850's, James H. Burton, a master of arms, made a few alterations such as slightly lengthening the bullet and thinning the walls of the hollow base. These alterations made the minie` ball much easier and cheaper to mass-produce; this is what was used by the blue and gray's out on the battlefields.

The American Revolution was and still is one of the most important wars in the history of our country. The soldiers were completely disorganized when it came to warfare, and they didn’t have any form of “established” uniform or even army for that matter, but they still got the job done, and they still had a basic almost “toolset” that they had used in order to get the job done. They had their gun and ammunition, their bladed weapon, and their essentials for survival: canteen, utensils, food, et cetera. The Colonial army and the state militias were outfitted very differently, though. The Colonial army was more organized

The soldiers of the 36th New York were first issued smoothbore Springfield Model 1849 muskets, but these outdated firearms were later replaced with Lorenz Rifle Muskets imported from Austria. (Regimental History)

-the springfield rifle was one of the most popular rifles in the civil war on both the North and the South

In any time period, wars rely heavily on having weapons at one’s own disposal. During the colonial era, the main weapon used in war were muskets. Although Muskets were relied upon, muskets were slow to be made, and repairs were timely.There was no system for making “batches” of muskets. Each musket was individually made by a gunsmith where each part fits only that specific musket. A man named Eli Whitney, born in Westborough, Massachusetts, 1765, changed that. Whitney innovated the musket making system, making parts interchangeable from one musket to another. This made musket making and repairs less costly and more speedy, inspired machinists to make interchangeable parts for other products, and paved the way for mass production.

Although the M-16 was very easy to use in the field, some of the U.S. Armies Special Forces used a gun very similar to the M-16. The XM-177E2 or more commonly the "colt commando" or the CAR-15, had telescoping stock for easy handling and could be used more like an SMG instead of an assault rifle which made the CAR-15 a great choice for combat situations where fighting would be extremely close. Although it was popular with Special Forces the CAR-15 saw very limited use with normal battalion units.

The M4 was developed and produced for the United States government by Colt Firearms, which has an exclusive contract to produce the M4 family of weapons

Since new military technology was quickly emerging in the early 20th century, and brought many stalemates in war. While Thompson did succeed in inventing a submachine gun, it had no demand since the first world war ended right when Thompson managed to create “a first of its kind” invention. With no combat use, the gun was marketed as an escalation of power over current police weapons. However, nothing prevented the “bad guys” from getting their hands on it. Inadvertently, the Thompson Gun became a weapon of terror. Because of the gun’s notorious profile, it soon became a staple in every action film at the time. Soon, with the pass of the National Firearms Act and Motion Picture Production Code,, it became difficult for criminals to acquire

8 million of these have been made which is a relatively small number when compared with the AK-47s 100 million (Phillip Killicoat, 2006). From 1955 or the Vietnam War the closest thing to competition was the M16. But was dominated by the AK-47 due to the reliability of the AK and the ease of production verses the clinical M16 with jammed repeatedly, causing stoppages and therefore the ability not to fire.

Despite the changes in battle tactics over the past hundred years, it is still the basic weapon of modern armies. It is the primary weapon in both spearheading attacks or defending the front lines. They have constantly evolved to meet new challenges. Today’s combat rifles are among the most accurate and reliable weapons on the modern battlefield.

The AR-15 was smaller and lighter than the AR-10, and weighed 5.5 pounds empty, and 6 when fully loaded with a 20 round magazine. In 1958, however, rain water caused the barrels to burst, causing for the Army to press for a larger round. Cold water testing still continued in Alaska. In continued testing against the M-14 and Ak-47, it was found that the AR-15’s small size and light weight allowed for it to be brought up much quicker. Colt Firearms bought the rights to the AR-15 in December of

Although protective equipment is so important for the safety of soldiers, advances in weapons is what wins wars. The United States military is constantly designing new weapons for soldiers because with each new threat, a new counter is needed. As for weapons used to take the enemy out, there are infinite possibilities of weapons that could be designed for that area weaponry. The Unites States military is trying to design weapons that no other country has so that the enemy won't know what hit them and would have no defense for it. Basic rifles and shotguns are the most common types of guns in the military because of how easy they are to use and can be used from just about any distance. The

Before the discussion begins on the creation of the firearm, its evolution and its overall contribution to war and combat, we must acknowledge its very origins; gunpowder. The origins of gunpowder trace back to the nation of China, it “ironically was created in the quest for immortality/around A.D. 850” (Whipps, “How Gunpowder Changed the World”). Though it was intended for an alternative purpose, this newfound explosive powder was soon incorporated into China 's weaponry and also became the leading factor in how weapons came to be created. To give insight on the composition of gunpowder, also known as black powder, this powdered substance is composed of three substances, charcoal, sulfur and saltpeter. The charcoal that’s in gunpowder is a “fuel” which means that its sole purpose is to be burned (Helmenstine,”Gunpowder Facts and History”). But the burning of charcoal itself obviously isn’t enough to produce that explosive property that gunpowder is known to have, when burning charcoal “the reaction would be slow, like a wood fire” (Helmenstine, “Gunpowder Facts and History”). Saltpeter, also known as “potassium nitrate” is the oxidizing agent that exists in gunpowder. An oxidizing agent in terms of combustible substances is simply a chemical compound that produces “extra oxygen” in order to strengthen/increase the rate at which the overall substance burns (Helmenstine, “Gunpowder Facts and History”). In the case of gunpowder, saltpeter (potassium nitrate) feeds oxygen to

Line infantry helped at the time due to the weapons used then, but in modern combat, the tactic has become obsolete. During the American Revolution, weapons were not reliable or advanced enough to be used in quick combat where targets could be moving. The first firearm to be used in the American Revolution was the Brown Bess musket and weighed around 10.5 pounds, and was most effective within 50 yards, but could be used by a skilled musketeer up to 175 yards. It took a long amount of time for the musketeer to reload the weapon if once it was fired. A rifleman could shoot up to 2-5 rounds per minute, leaving them vulnerable to rush attacks.