oscarsdad Posted January 24, 2011 Report Share Posted January 24, 2011 Bit of an odd question, but I thought someone on here might know... I work for a company which makes bomb disposal robots which are used all over the world including our boys in Iraq and Afghanistan. I am responsible for developing a new vehicle and on this vehicle we have a semi-auto shotgun mounted... I need to carry out some safety testing to make sure that the gun is not fired when we dont want it to i.e. by vibration causing a trigger pull. The gun obviously has a manual safety which will have to be off throughout operation as the vehicle could be 1000m plus from the operator - what I need to make sure is that the gun does not go off whilst driving across rough terrain to a device. The gun is mounted on the vehicle and basically a solenoid is used to pull the trigger - it is this that I need to make sure does not vibrate and pull the trigger. I have looked for blank which are available for bird scaring but they are only available in big quantities and also I dont think I could carry out the testing in the factory then because of good old H&S... Is there any way I could use an empty cartridge and detect a trigger pull from a witness mark on the firing cap? Does anyone know where I could get an inert empty cartridge from? Thanks in advance for any ideas! Anthony Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sitsinhedges Posted January 24, 2011 Report Share Posted January 24, 2011 This is a wind up Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
al4x Posted January 24, 2011 Report Share Posted January 24, 2011 you could just cut them empty lead and powder and use the primed cartridge, get a little bang but nothing much Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
oscarsdad Posted January 24, 2011 Author Report Share Posted January 24, 2011 Seriously, it is not! I am programme manager for the new vehicle...some customers (not UK MOD) have shotguns mounted on their robots and use them to open doors etc when in buildings... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EMcC Posted January 24, 2011 Report Share Posted January 24, 2011 Why not get a friendly shotgun owner to give you a few cartridges and empty them out leaving just the primer. That will be heard if struck but would not cause too much bother or harm to anybody. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sitsinhedges Posted January 24, 2011 Report Share Posted January 24, 2011 Why not get a friendly shotgun owner to give you a few cartridges and empty them out leaving just the primer. That will be heard if struck but would not cause too much bother or harm to anybody. He owns shotguns, that's why I said it was a wind up among other things Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
oscarsdad Posted January 24, 2011 Author Report Share Posted January 24, 2011 I have plenty of cartridges myself...H&S dictates that I am not allowed things that go bang in our little test facility at the back of the factory...hence why I was thinking of a witness mark from the firing pin being visible on the cartridge Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gixer1 Posted January 24, 2011 Report Share Posted January 24, 2011 (edited) why not just buy a pack of those sticky white circles used for wall year planners and stick it over the fired cartridge with the primer drilled out.....if the sticker is pierced then it has fired... :blink: EDIT TO SAY - it doesn't have to be white! Edited January 24, 2011 by gixer1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Beardo Posted January 24, 2011 Report Share Posted January 24, 2011 how about a laser 12g boresighter - if it's on, then it's fired! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MJN Posted January 24, 2011 Report Share Posted January 24, 2011 it wouldn't go bang so much as POP ! use a used cart and put a dab of white paint on the primer cap ! M. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
oscarsdad Posted January 24, 2011 Author Report Share Posted January 24, 2011 why not just buy a pack of those sticky white circles used for wall year planners and stick it over the fired cartridge with the primer drilled out.....if the sticker is pierced then it has fired... :blink: EDIT TO SAY - it doesn't have to be white! Thanks! that is the sort of thing I was looking for! I will give that a go and drill out a fired cart. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paul223 Posted January 24, 2011 Report Share Posted January 24, 2011 you could just cut them empty lead and powder and use the primed cartridge, get a little bang but nothing much doctor the carts as above then spray the inside of the primer with wd40, leave it soak for a while and test it in your gun, the oil should render the primer useless, then a strike will be seen as a normal indent in the primer Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
oscarsdad Posted January 24, 2011 Author Report Share Posted January 24, 2011 Thinking about it I am going to try as a first attempt a snap cap with tippex on the firing cap...marked tippex = fired gun. Thanks for the help guys... PS. for those doubters whether I am making this up...if you were to type 'wheelbarrow robot' into google, you may see what I am working on (or probably an older version of it)... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Beardo Posted January 24, 2011 Report Share Posted January 24, 2011 nice! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hyflier Posted January 24, 2011 Report Share Posted January 24, 2011 You dont have to drill out the cartridge, the old primer will pop out with a pin punch from the inside Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
billytheghillie Posted January 24, 2011 Report Share Posted January 24, 2011 Thanks! that is the sort of thing I was looking for! I will give that a go and drill out a fired cart. or even correction fluid (tippex) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HDAV Posted January 24, 2011 Report Share Posted January 24, 2011 Why not speak to the proof house in brum and get them to run live testing for you? Issue i see is testing with dummy rounds you don't get the same scenario as you do in the field, simple answer is use a spent cart with some engineer blue on the primer........ But this wont test for taking a robot with 7+ capacity magazine out to a target firing a round or 6, then trundling back to the operator with a chambered round (dangerous scenario!) I would question the use of a Semi auto and suggest a Pump with electro/mechanical loading system (linear actuator?) which can be used to hold the bolt back in transport "mode" i suppose you could do this with a semi and use an electromechanical system to open the breach and make the weapon safe. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
webber Posted January 24, 2011 Report Share Posted January 24, 2011 1. Use another solenoid or pneumatic cylinder / actuator to operate the guns own safety catch. 2. Use a snap cap lightly smeared with engineers blue, if the firing pin strikes the snap cap you will see a witness mark on the snap cap. webber Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
oscarsdad Posted January 24, 2011 Author Report Share Posted January 24, 2011 nice! thats the one...but the one I am responsible for is an improved version! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Doggone Posted January 24, 2011 Report Share Posted January 24, 2011 You'll know if it has fired, because the action wont be cocked. Andy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andy H Posted January 24, 2011 Report Share Posted January 24, 2011 If it's the same as REME bomb disposal the shotgun will be a sawnoff Browning A5. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
oscarsdad Posted January 24, 2011 Author Report Share Posted January 24, 2011 If it's the same as REME bomb disposal the shotgun will be a sawnoff Browning A5. Same use, but this is overseas customer...it is a browning though Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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