4.5" long, 3" tall. Something like this
www.amderringer.com/m1.html . Only WWI era technology would only allow a single shot of that power, in a gun that size.
Even more edit! Here's a good example of a very tiny single-shot derringer, which is available in either .45 ACP or .357 magnum.
members.aol.com/wsp45/images.html Modern technology, but also similar in concept. Something about that size in .45 would probably be doable with WWI level technology.
Also, the description should probably be changed a little. For a regular soldier (as opposed to an undercover operative or whatever), such a weapon would only be of use for either escaping or committing suicide, if taken prisoner. A medium/large sized automatic or revolver would be more practical as a weapon of last resort.
It was really a combination of all those factors. They didn't have the technology to make consistent bullets of the proper design. And they lacked the knowledge of basic physics and basic anatomy to actually design anything good. People back then had all kinds of crazy-quilt ideas about how bullets work.
There were two main beliefs. The one more popular in America was that the bullet's energy was all turned into heat inside whatever is shot (which is true). They thought that this meant a bullet would burn a hole through things, and that in a person, it would boil away water and make a steam explosion. Actual physics tells us that even the most powerful firearm will increase temperature by about a half a degree.
The one more popular in Britannia was that the heavier the bullet, the greater the "shocking" effect, and that even more "shock" would be generated by a bullet which does not exit. Thus leading to the British military using things like a 200 grain .38 SPL bullet at 550 fps (practically rock-throwing velocity), and the .455 Webley with a 300 grain bullet at also 550 fps. This is the exact opposite of what creates a strong pressure wave.
Both "theories" assumed that bullet size was irrelevant, only whether or not it exited. They both also assumed that bullets were somehow exempt from the need to hit a vital organ. A hit in the shoulder or stomach which did not exit was assumed to be better than a hit in the heart which did exit. I think this was due to all the lead-based paint and leaded gasoline and canned food sealed with lead, etc.
Given that this will be in a fantasy/steampunk setting, it's highly likely that medical technology and knowledge of physics will be substantially worse than in the real world, and thus effective bullet designs will be an impossibility. Magically enhanced bullets (something like one of them Black Cubes, perhaps) could certainly exist, though.
Also see below for typical performance of older designs.
The main problem is the Garand itself is way too technologically complex for that kind of technology level. A semi-automatic high-powered rifle is completely beyond what people had at that time, without making it very large and heavy. If you've got a man-portable semi-auto rifle, assault rifles are not too far behind at all.
For that kind of technology level, you've got a few choices for the kind of thing you want, though. Slide-action (pump-action) and lever-action rifles are pretty fast to fire (slide-action rifles never became popular in America because of the failings of one particular model, which were corrected quickly. But first impressions and stuff...). The drawback is that lever-actions and pump-actions cannot use as powerful a round as a bolt-action. edit: I know someone's going to say that shotguns are plenty powerful. That may be true, but shotguns are only about as powerful as an intermediate caliber rifle, and only operate at about 11,500 PSI, compared to 50,000 to 65,000 PSI for the typical high-powered rifle.
Certain bolt-action rifles are very quick to fire too, notably the Swiss Schmidt-Rubin straight pull designs, and the British Enfield. The Schmidt-Rubin straight pull design, as the name implies, is simpler to operate than the typical bolt action. Just pull the handle back, then push forward. None of this twisting and rotating nonsense. The Enfield design was also very fast to fire, despite the conventional operation, because the bolt handle was located behind the trigger. It was also possible to fire very rapidly (by bolt action standards) by keeping the hand on the bolt and pulling the trigger with the middle finger.
On the other hand, both the Enfield and the Schmidt-Rubin have more problems operating under harsh conditions than a bolt-action rifle of the Mauser design. Mostly that if the rifle is operated in an unusual position (lying on your side, hanging upside down from a snare, whatever), or if it's operated improperly (brain fart under stress), they may jam up and require several tens of seconds to fix. A Mauser type design doesn't have those problems.
www.african-hunter.com/it%27s_all_in_the_claw.htmFinally, it would be within that technology level to come up with a semi-automatic or fully-automatic submachine gun which fires pistol ammunition. Machine pistols were already around at the time, like the Mauser something or other pistol.
So your realistic choices are a low-powered semi-auto, medium-powered lever or slide action, or high powered bolt action.
edit more: It should probably also be noted that most slide-action and lever-action guns will also jam or otherwise fail if operated in an unusual position, or operated improperly. Also, semi-automatic guns were not as reliable then as they are now. So all things considered, a Mauser style bolt action (perhaps one with the bolt handle located behind the trigger, like an Enfield) would probably be the best bet for a Kai. Or a revolver if they're more of a handgun person.
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The Hague Accords (good on you for getting it right and not saying Geneva Conventions) would not apply in Aon. Unless they do. Wouldn't that be funny if broadhead arrows are also illegal for military use?
Still, that would be pretty silly. The wars in Aon are good versus evil, whereas real wars are not. Also, the Hague Accords and Geneva Conventions were born of the misguided notion that war could be made civilized. In a world where you're fighting true evil, such delusions would not exist; or at least not among military leaders.
Contrary to popular belief, lead bullets do not flatten at velocities below about 1400 fps (.357 magnum velocity and up). See
pw2.netcom.com/~dmacp/photos.html Bullets fired by very old rifles which used paper-patched ammunition, like the old Swiss Verlettis, typically expanded. But old pistol bullets did not.
Jacketing serves to strengthen the outside of the bullet so that it can be propelled faster. Bare lead bullets will get shredded by the rifling (instead of spun) around 1200 fps (magnum pistol range). Paper-patched bullets will come apart around 2000 (.30-30 velocity). Jacketed bullets can be driven to much higher velocity, 5000 fps+. But completely jacketed bullets cannot expand on impact with soft tissues. Leaving the tip uncovered (as in a softpoint) allows controlled expansion at velocities of about 1400 to 3000 fps, depending on design.
Hollowpoints can allow controlled expansion at velocities anywhere from about 600 fps all the way up to 3000 again. But hollowpoints, especially pistol ones, are more sensitive to clogging due to clothing and skin. Here's a picture of some .45 caliber Winchester Silvertips fired into tissue simulant.
www.firearmstactical.com/issues/FTV1N2/images/45ACP%20Win%20185gr%20STHP.jpg The top 5 were fired into bare tissue simulant, the bottom 5 fired into clothed. 4 layers of denim (which is only half as tough as human skin) prevented expansion from occuring 4 out of 5 times. This is very typical of older hollowpoint designs, and affects wounding ability tremendously. There was an incident a few years ago where a cop shot a knife-weilding attacker 5 times in the chest with .45 caliber Federal Hydra Shoks (old design). The guy surrendered, but was still on his feet when the ambulance arrived about 10 minutes later. In court, he said the wounds "felt like bee stings." Data on his treatment in the hospital is not available, but it's very likely that the bullets failed to expand.
www.fbi.gov/publications/leb/2004/oct2004/oct04leb.htm#page_15www.firearmstactical.com/tacticalbriefs/volume4/number1/images/45ACP%20Fed%20230gr%20HSHP%20G30.jpgFinally, .22 LR ammo probably doesn't work as well as you think.
www.brassfetcher.com/Federal%2036%20grain%20Copper%20Plated%20Hollow%20Point%20.html In this test, expansion was little more than a slight crushing of the tip; pretty typical performance for lower grade .22 LR. On the other hand, a modern premium design expands into the classical mushroom shape (at least through clothing it does).
www.firearmstactical.com/test_data/22lr/cci22-32stgr-r2245.htmDespite poor expansion, the Federal 36 gr ammunition does make some good sized holes in squirrels though, according to anecdotal reports. Probably because squirrels are so small, it doesn't really take much.
Maybe in some kind of other country slang, or something, it does. But in American English, it means the bullet hit sideways. In fact, one time I had to return an NAA Guardian to the factory because every other shot keyholed (hit sideways). All I said about the problem was "most shots keyhole." Their solution was to recrown the muzzle (which worked). So the manufacturer obviously was using the same definition. Here's a target with 5 shots from a .22 mini revolver (NAA
again) which keyholes most of the time (the rest are .40 cal, ignore them). Notice that 3 of the 5 circled holes are exactly the shape of a sideways bullet
That is keyholing, and it's dependent on the quality of the barrel.
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Almost, but not quite. See the picture right there. It means the bullet hits at a roughly 90 degree angle, while on its way to traveling completely backwards. If at a long enough range that the bullet does spin completely, the hole won't look nearly as unusual.
See above again. Also, modern hollowpoints are incredibly expensive to manufacture. You can buy the cheapies that work as well as the older designs (i.e., barely at all unless you're in a nudist colony) for about as much as FMJ ammo ($10 per 50, roughly), but the actually good designs, which actually work, are comparatively complex and usually cost $20 to $40 per 50. For instance, Winchester Ranger Talons (the next generation Black Talon) use a specially shaped jacket which is scored and pre-stressed so it will split into 6 "petals" on expansion. The tips of these "petals" are triangular and sharp, and are engineered so that while most of the "petal" bends back 180 degrees, the tip sticks straight out. Kind of like a bullet/broadhead arrow hybrid.
www.firearmstactical.com/tacticalbriefs/volume4/number1/images/40SW_WW_180_RA40T-3.jpg www.firearmstactical.com/tacticalbriefs/volume4/number1/images/40SW_WW_180_RA40T-6.jpg (also notice that 5 out of 5 expanded after passing through clothing, way better than the old junky crap)
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Back then, maybe. Actually, from what I read, cast round ball were generally used for hunting and warfare, while muskets which were kept loaded for home defense were usually loaded with broken glass, nails, tacks, gravel, etc. Ouch. I guess the idea was that they wanted to kill an animal or enemy soldier cleanly, while a brigand would be made to suffer.
Anyways, modern projectiles for smoothbore firearms (primarily shotguns) are made so that they are drag-stabilized. That means the tip is heavier than the rear, which makes it travel forwards the entire time, just like a badminton shuttlep e n i s.
I don't know if it's international, but in America, a "keyhole" is an oblong hole caused by a sideways impact, whereas a "cloverleaf" is a very tight grouping where all the bullets go in one irregularly-shaped hole. I guess my target demonstrates both.
Unjacketed rounds are still somewhat in use here, but the general rule is that lead rounds never expand. By the time you get one to the speed where it will, it will also be torn apart by the rifling and come out of the gun in pieces. Paper patching or copper jacketing will help though.
If the target is a person or animal, and the bullet does not expand, yes.
Hollowpoints will always increase expansion speed and amount, unless it gets clogged. If it does clog, it will behave like a softpoint, meaning it will expand if velocity over ~1400 fps, and will not expand if velocity is below that.
Also, ammunition testing is very common. I've linked to several sites which test a lot. Also, the FBI does a ton of testing, as do most other large law enforcement agencies in America.
"Backyard" testing is also pretty common, using either gallon jugs full of water ( http://www.theboxotruth.com), or phone books that are soaked in water (several reports at
www.hipowersandhandguns.com/). Some people have reported very good results with Play-Doh.
And I guess you've never talked to an American hunter. Hunters in other countries are usually much more realistic about that kind of thing. But American hunters seem to be obsessed with the ideal performance of a bullet; expansion to 2X the original diameter, with 100% weight retention. Also with going to bigger and bigger calibers. Nowadays, people here say that .30-06 is insufficient to hunt elk, while the people in Scandanavia continue to (successfully) use their tiny little 6.5mm Swedes to hunt much larger moose.
Although, bullet performance is pretty important. A poorly designed high powered rifle round will simply break into hundreds of tiny pieces, which will not penetrate deep enough to reach the heart and arteries of a deer-sized animal, especially not on a quartering away shot or other difficult angle. Or they won't expand at all, which will result in the bullet making a very tiny hole, which won't kill the animal unless it hits the heart or major arteries squarely.
Finally, you're thinking back too far before WWI. In the "transition" period between muzzleloading muskets and copper-jacketed ammunition, the most common guns used cartridges with paper-patched bullets. Common calibers ranged from .30 cal up to .45 cal. Here's a good history of brass-cased ammunition development in Switzerland.
www.swissrifles.com/ammo/