As another Lame Cherry exclusive in matter anti matter.....
It is interesting of history how even inventors of renown are passed over. In July of 1836, William Greener submitted to the British military, a hollow musket ball which was created as an expansive bullet or round ball for advance warfare, and ease of loading.
The military dismissed the invention.
In 1841, William Greener invented an expansive bullet which was not accepted by the British Government.
In 1849, Captain Minié, had adopted by the French an expansive bullet which was later adopted by the British, based upon the 1843 published work by Mssr. Delvigne:
“In order to avoid too great friction I grooved the cylindrical surface of the bullet; but, whilst I thus increased the windage of the body of the projectile, I reserved, at the two extremities of the cylindrical part, two circular rings of a diameter almost equal to that of the calibre. These two rings fixed accurately in the bore, secured the perfect position of the axis of the bullet, which the blow of the ramrod then forced tightly. In case of foulness, they easily gave way to the blows of the ramrod, and the axis of the bullet remained in the required position. The hollowing of the sides of the bullet gives besides the means of fixing on the cartridge without increasing the diameter of the calibre. But during these investigations, I made an important discovery, which was, that the gas produced by the ignition of the powder, rushing into the vacuum formed at the base of the bullet, expanded it and forced it into the grooves. I here give the idea, a new one, as I think, and recommend its application to such as occupy themselves with the effect of fire-arms and powder. The following, however , must be avoided: if the hollow is too deep, the expansion is too great, and the consequent friction enormous; sometimes even the gas will traverse the bullet, and consequently the projectile is deprived of a proportionary amount of velocity; if too small, the expansion does not take place.”
William Greener. Gunnery in 1858 / Being a Treatise on Rifles, Cannon, and Sporting Arms
Few reading this will even know that in America, a musket ball was adopted which saw use in the American Civil War. It is found on all the battlefields, and it is known as the Mini ball. Yes it is the same ball which Captain Minié had introduced to the world and was apparently a William Greener design.
As the quote states, the force of the gunpowder exploding, would cause the thin skirt of the bullet to expand at the base and thereby seat it into the rifling, which would cause it to spin which made it more stable in order to shoot further.
Rings in the bullet helped as gas seals for the powder exploding.
Many Americans were slaughtered by this round.
Before the Mini, there was simply the round ball with a patch of cloth, which is what Daniel Boone shot. It was about one half the weight of the mini and did not kill as effectively.
In the modern era, the muzzle loader shoots the Maxi ball, which is an even more grande evolution of bullets in being heavier, and now having plastic seals in the rings, and the French sabot, for the base to seat against the rifling.
If the British had simply used William Greener's bullet, no one would know of the French Mini ball. There would not be the play on words though of Maxi ball if it was the Greener ball from the start.
It does though show how invention is stolen after being rejected, and the person doing the prototypes never got the credit in history.
Bill Gates never invented the computer. He just assembled pieces of other people's work and called it Microsoft.
It is the way it usually goes.
agtG
