From:	Sebastian Wiers m0ng005e@*********.com
Subject:	Gas Venting
Date:	Wed, 22 Sep 1999 00:26:23 -0500

> >> Something I'm wondering here. Gas Vent systems and silencers are
> >> completely opposite in the way they treat compressed air, right?
> The
> >> silencer using the compressed air to muffle the shot, and the gas
> vent
> >> using the air to handle recoil, or something like that? So how the
> >> heck can the Ranger Arms sniper rifle have a combined silencer/gas
> >> vent-II?

The problem is that "venting" vector hypersonic gas in a direction
opposite to recoil motion. I suppose it could (possibally) vent / vector
the gas into a sourouding baffke, but that seems inconvienient. The more
likely method would be to use and "internal vent" that turned some of the
gas energy into mechanical energy, which is something most automatics do,
more or less well. That could work with a silencer.

> > Gas Vents direct the gas in a way to stop the weapon "climbing".
> >Silencers expand and cool down the gas to prevent the bullet from
> going
> >hypersonic and producing the "crack" _and_ to alter the sound of a
> fired
> >shot to make it harder to detect the firing of the weapon.
> > With the Ranger Arms SM-3, the gas vent would just be located
> >behind the silencer.

If it vents gas behind the silencer, isnt't that gas going to make a
bunch of noise?

> OK, I'm no firearms expert, but wouldn't that mean that a combined gas
> vent/silencer system *is* possible? Or did FASA kinda make an 'oops'
> with the rules here? Or is it that the silencer on the Ranger Arms is
> less effective than a 'true' silencer? Does a sniper rifle even need
> one? My reasoning being that you don't exactly hear the CRACK of a
> rifle from 700 meters off and say, "Ah-hah! I heard gunfire!" That
> sniper can be anywhere, and at 700 meters, you're a bit far from any
> sort of retaliation small arms can offer unless, of course, it's
> another sniper rifle.

You may not worry about the target hearing the sound, but if your
sniping from a book depository, you don't want the depository employee's to
hear you and call the cops...

Mongoose