NationStates Jolt Archive

This thread is completely OOC. Thank you.

Ever since the day I read about IDF's guncruiser with the amazing ability of shelling a whole beach in a matter of moments the concept of high ROF shellfire caught my attention. It wasn't actually deemed possible in modern tech because it required a technique not yet invented in real life. Now, after some brainstorming and looking up various information pools on the internet and my own books about metalworking and such, and my own experience in that profession I've came up with a method how it might be achieved while keeping the method fully MT.

The barrels I designed are not casted, but the liquid metal is injected into the mold from the bottom at high pressure. The scheme shown below explains the process step by step. The building/injection process is expensive because the only perfect conditions, constant high temperature and a maintained vacuum of at least 95%.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v298/fruityloops/hca.jpg


The main liquid metal container. Kept at the necessary temperature to keep the metal/alloy 100% liquid. Three "spoon" like pieces of wolfram keep the metal in motion.
Through this tube the metal is injected into the product mold. This happens at a force nearly equal to the force of #3, creating an artificial density. The metal pushes force #4 up, but very, very slowly. A solid wolfram tubes can be inserted to leave space open for the barrel, and the cooling fluid network and the beeswax* greasing.
The force pushing down the metal, through #2 into the production mold. When the production mold is full, the process of pushing down automaticly ceases to let the cooling process start.
Locking system. 10 Cm before the top of the production mold forcr number 2 is locked, but the injection process continues for about two minutes. By this time the density of the metal has significantly increased.
Hardened armoured solid concrete molds, layered with UHTS on the outside, and heating elements on the inside. Once the heating elements are turned off, the cooling process starts.
10" shells => 10 RPM
6" shells => 30 RPM
3" shells => 70 RPM
2.5" shells => 100 RPM

These numbers are relative, when the mechanism works flawless, you can achieve these statistics. 10" shellfire is about the maximum, because greater size requires a new quick launch and load system, because beltfed shells cannot be greater than 5", otherwise it decreases effectivity and improves the chance on errors and misfires.

When the barrel is done tubes are drilled in by robots for the cooling system, where cooling fluid runs through when the barrel is used in battle, and beeswax sprinklers keep the inside of the barrel smooth. After every salvo of 50 shells, the sprinkler system coats the inner of the barrel with a fine beeswax mist to ease the pressure on the barrel with every shell fired.

*: synethic, industrial grade beeswax.

Now, tell me what you think.

Well I think you're dang smart. >>'

Heh.

OOC: Considering I have no idea as to how the loading mechansim on the gun cruiser would work I have no idea if said system would work with the barrel...

However your molding sysem seems rather solid, it would be expensive and a premature loss of temperature would kill a mold pretty quickly (or at the very least increase the chance of imperfections later). But its by no means impossible and rather well thought out...

Though your barrel system is a bit akward in that it would be cheaper and stronger to just coat the rounds themselves or use a cupo-nickel driving band inorder to reduce wear during high firing rates. Not that it wouldnt work but youll be weakening the barrel for every hole you drill and replaceing injector/sprinkler nozzles would be a pain and a half for a matenience crew.

OOC: The barrels won't be truly massive metal monstrosities, and the barrels will be weaked a tad by the sprinkler and cooling systems, but that too little to take into account. Airpressure or waterpressure can clean the tubes fairly quickly and without the cost, but I agree the whole process takes damn long and is very expensive, but certainly not impractical.

The loading system is still in the drawing phase, but I'm thinking about two rotating shell magazines; upper shell is fired, roates 180°, shell fired, lower magazine is loaded, roates 180° etc.

Thanks for your suggestion about the rounds, I'll keep it in mind when I put this on the production line ICly :).

Ive got an idea for a system that would probably give you a higher rate of fire for larger guns (some where in the order of 5+* rounds a minute for an 18' gun)

Thats about 7.5-10 tons per second/per gun which is a helluva alot of firepower, and it actually works better with an ETC system than a coventional system (i.e lower loading times due to lack of additional powder bags needing to be loaded in behind the main round.) but could easily be done as a conventional system useing combustible electrically detonated rounds.

I'll admit my metallurgy is a bit behind the times but mechanical firing systems and eletrical system are things I work with every day...

*= a guesstimate using an ETC gun Im guessing the actual amount would be closer to 6-7 rounds per minute or higher depending on caliber but 5 rounds is a good base assumption for the system.

Indeed, ETC guns will be the best thing for the larger guns, and for the smaller ones too because powderbags just add unnecessary risk to the whole firing and reloading process. Electrical detonation seems to me a safe and reliable way of detonating the shells.

Your knowledge is appreciated, thank you.

A small bump. In a fancy font!

tag for further analysis.

W.

Ok i just realized with all these Ideas floating around why hasn’t any one sold it to a government, i mean just contact some one say in the US government or Other nation government and sell the idea to them for a pretty penny why not you could make a lot of cash.. im dumfounded as why no one has done that, instead of making it for an fantasy rp you could put it to rl use. I seriously think you should consider selling it to the highest bidder.

ooc: TFU, most, if not all of things on NS are either:

A) 100% bullshit
B) Someone already thought of it.

Yes, MP is right there, I am sure this clever idea has already been thought of. However, certain things like ARSB's equipment is not bullshit rather than very well thought out.