Ballistic cutter
United States Patent Musgrave BALLISTIC CUTTER [76] Inventor: Daniel D. Musgrave, 820l Cataway St, Cabin John. Md. 20731 [22] Filed: Apr. 22, 1974 [21] Appl. No.: 462,649  
 [52] [1.8. CI. 42/90 [51] Int. Cl F4lc 27/00; F4lc 27/02 [58] Field of Search 42/90 [56] References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 655,577 8/1900 Pell et al Steinmetz Musgravc 42/90 FOREIGN PATENTS OR APPLICATIONS United Kingdom 42/90 Apr. 29, 1975 Primary Examiner-Benjamin A. Borcheit Assistant E.\-aminer-C.T. Jordan 5 7 ABSTRACT A ballistic cutter for use with a firearm for cutting wire or other obstacle material. The cutter is mounted near the muzzle of the firearm and positions a strand in line with the barrel for cutting by a bullet. A shield is provided to protect the user. For convenience in transporting and mounting, the cutter may be incorporated into the scabbard of the bayonnet used with the firearm.  
 9 Claims, 6 Drawing Figures BALLISTIC CUTTER The development of obstacle materials, particularly for military use, has been so significant that means must be provided for the individual soldier to counter this threat. The wire cutters presently used are not capable of cutting some of the newer obstacle materials which comprise hardened steel tape with numerous long barbs. A man whose clothing or equipment is hooked on these barbs must be able to cut himself loose. At times it is also necessary to cut sufficient portions of an obstacle to make a breach through which men can pass. This must be done without injuring or exhausting the man.  
  The present invention contemplates cutting obstacle materials by means of an accessory to be used with the soldiers firearm. Such an accessory must be small, light in weight, and convenient to carry.  
  In my U.S. Pat. No. 3,657,835 previously issued, I disclosed a ballistic cutting implement in combination with a bayonet. In a pending application I disclose a shield for such a device, to protect the user from flying debris. The addition of the cutter and shield to the bayonet, while quite workable, makes the bayonet awk&#39; ward for its normal uses.  
  To meet this objection the present invention provides a cutter which can be attached to the bayonet when needed. To add the least possible burden to the user, the cutter may be incorporated as part of the scabbard for the bayonet. This is not essential however, and the cutter can be provided as a separate item, independent of the scabbard.  
  The principal object of this invention is to provide a ballistic cutter in a small, convenient form.  
  Another object is to provide such a cutter in combination with a scabbard.  
  These and other objects of the present invention will be apparent upon reference to the following specification, taken in connection with the accompanying drawings, wherein:  
  FIG. I is a side elevation of the muzzle portion of a typical modern military rifle, with its bayonet fixed and a scabbard enclosing the bayonet.  
 FIG. 2 is a top view of a part of FIG. 1.  
  FIG. 3 is a view of part of FIG. I, with certain components of the device in a different position.  
  FIG. 4 is a transverse section taken in the place indicated by line 4-4 of FIG. 3.  
 FIG. 5 is an alternate construction.  
 FIG. 6 is another alternate construction.  
  Referring now to the drawings in detail FIG. 1 shows the front or muzzle portion of a typical modern military rifle having a barrel 1, a sight bracket 3, a flash suppressor 5, and a bayonet lug 7.  
  A bayonet 9 is fixed at the muzzle of the rifle in the well-known manner. The guard or crosspiece ll of the bayonet has a hole, not visible in the drawing, through which flash suppressor 5 protrudes. The bayonet is also supported on the rifle by a latching arrangement 13, which engages lug 7 in the well-known manner.  
  Affixed to bayonet 9 is its scabbard 15, which would normally be attached to the person of the user by wire hooks l7 engaging eyelets in his cartridge belt or other equipment. The reason for fixing the bayonet and scabbard together on the rifle will be explained later. The scabbard shown has a retaining loop 19 with the usual means for quickly releasing it when it is desired to separate the bayonet and scabbard.  
  The sheath portion of scabbard 15 may be made of plastic or any other suitable material. The open end of the sheath is reinforced by a ferrule 21, preferable of metal, with the usual type of plate 23 which serves to complete the assembly. Not visible in the drawings is a bushing inside ferrule 21 which prevents the bayonet from rattling when carried in the scabbard.  
  Mounted on ferrule 21, in line with the hole in guard 11 which accepts the flash suppressor of the rifle, is cylinder 25. In FIG. 1 the flash suppressor is protruding through guard 11 and extends the full length of the cylinder, which is perforated with several lateral holes 27.  
  The cylinder may be attached to the ferrule by any suitable method such as welds 29 and 33. Mounted on top of the cylinder, by any suitable method such as welds 35 and 36, is windlassing lug 37, which extends forward some distance from the cylinder and terminates in a spherical detent 39.  
  It should be pointed out that the drawings are illustrative only, and that for clarity, certain parts are not drawn to the same scale as others. This remark particularly applies to lug 37 which in actual practice, would be of a diameter substantially equal to the lateral thickness of the sheath.  
  Pivotably mounted on ferrule 21 by means of hinge 41 is shield 43. A similar shield 45 is mounted on the other side of the ferrule by another hinge (not shown). Closing the gap between the two pivoting shields at their tops is another small shield 47, which is affixed by any convenient method, such as welding, to the top of cylinder 25 near its front. Any of the usual mechanical methods can be used to attach the pivoting shields to the hinges and the hinges to the ferrule.  
  The top front portion 49 of the sheath of the scabbard can serve as a guide to lead material to be cut into the proper position between lug 37 and the corresponding top portion 51 of the sheath, in a manner to be described later.  
  If necessary the said portion SI of the sheath can be reinforced by extending ferrule 2i foward to broken line 52 in FIG. 3. The said portion 51 cooperates with lug 37 to engage material to be cut in the following manner.  
  Assume that a strand to be cut has been guided by the top 49 of the sheath to a location between lug 37 and the corresponding portion 51 of the sheath. If the rifle, with the bayonet and scabbard as shown in FIG. 1 is now rotated about its longitudinal axis, lug 37 and sheath portion 51 will exert a windlassing force on the strand, and will thereby aline a part of it with the bore of the rifle. It is immaterial in which direction the rifle is rotated. The strand is cut by discharging a bullet from the firearm.  
  The above cutting procedure can best be understood by reference to FIG. 4 which shows the relationship of the lug and the sheath. But in FIG. 4 the shields are folded whereas when cutting they would be open as shown in FIG. 1 and FIG. 2. The blade of the bayonet, which supports the sheath during cutting, is indicated by numeral 10 in FIG. 4.  
  The shields are provided to protect the user from any debris from the cutting process which might be thrown toward him by the impact of cutting. They are extended as shown in FIG. 1 and FIG. 2 when cutting, and folded as shown in FIG. 3 and FIG. 4 at other times. Suitable detents (not shown) are provided to hold them in each position. It will be noted that cutting is prevented if the shields are not extended.  
  It is readily apparent that the shields could be made larger, if desired, to meet certain conditions. Military obstacle wire is now normally installed slack, but if in the future it should be installed in a condition of tension, larger shields might be needed to protect the user against flailing of the ends, when cut.  
  It is not necessary that the cutter be incorporated into a scabbard. FIG. 5 shows a simple cutter which can be made as an accessory for a firearm. Cylinder 53 slides over the flash suppressor of a rifle and is secured there by tightening wing bolt 55, against the suppressor. Fixed to the front of the cylinder is a shield 57 having a hole 59 through which bullets may be discharged from the firearm. A pair of windlassing plates 61 and 63 extend forward from the shield, terminating in detents 65 and 67 respectively. A guide 69 extends forward from plate 63 to assist in leading a strand to be cut into the space between the plates. The principal of cutting is the same as that described earlier, but the shield is not adapted for folding.  
  The purpose of holes 27 in the cylinder is to vent the ballistic gases which pass out laterally from the flash suppressor of the rifle. In FIG. 1 the scabbard is receiving considerable support from the fixed bayonet. It is apparent that if some means were provided to hold the cylinder tightly on to the flash suppressor, in an emergency, the scabbard with its cutter might be mounted without the bayonet. Any known mechanical device such as a threaded bolt entering the cylinder wall and bearing against the flash suppressor will accomplish this result.  
  The wire hook type of equipment hanger shown at 17 in FIG. 1 has been used in the U.S. Army for many years. It is not intended for quick release. In the standard scabbard the canvas portion to which hook l7 and loop 19 are attached is riveted to ferrule 21, although this is not visible in the drawings. In order that the scabbard may be quickly removed from the person for cutting, some type of quick mechanical release can be substituted for the aforementioned rivets. It would then be desirable to add some simple latch to retain the sheath on the bayonet during cutting, as the friction of the bushing inside ferrule 21 might be insufficient. In FIG. 1, loop I9 is performing this function. Such retaining latches are well-known in the bayonet art.  
  In the U.S. Army, at present, one standard scabbard is used with two dissimilar standard bayonets for two different standard rifles. Either of these bayonets can be inserted into the scabbard in two different orientations. FIG. 6 shows schematically how dual mounting and engagement means can be provided on one scabbard to permit cutting with either of two different rifles, with their different bayonets.  
  In FIG. 6, guard II, scabbard l5, cylinder 25, lug 37 and detent 39 correspond exactly to the same parts in FIG. 1. Three of those parts have been duplicated on the other side of the scabbard. They are cylinder 25A,  
 lug 37A and detent 39A. It will be assumed that they are dimensioned to cooperate with a different bayonet than that shown in FIG. 1. The scabbard diagrammed in FIG. 6 would then serve as a cutter in cooperation with either bayonet, but when used for cutting it would be necessary to choose the proper orientation of the bayonet in the scabbard, so as to permit mounting the two together on the rifle. When the bayonet is merely being carried in the scabbard, it is immaterial in which orientation it happens to be. Although not shown in FIG. 6, it is obvious that the shield means would have to be enlarged to shield the additional cutter.  
  It is not intended to limit the disclosure to any particular combination of rifle, bayonet and scabbard. The utility of the invention is not limited to the embodiments illustrated, which are exemplary only.  
 What I claim is: i  
  l. A ballistic cutter comprising: a scabbard adapted for mounting in a fixed position relative to a muzzle of a firearm; engagement means on said scabbard for positioning material to be cut in alinement with a bore of said firearm; and shield means on said scabbard positionally adapted for deflecting particles moving toward the rear of said firearm.  
  2. A ballistic cutter as set forth in claim I further characterized by said scabbard being adapted for enclosing a bayonet fixed on said firearm.  
  3. A ballistic cutter as set forth in claim 2 further characterized by retaining means latching said bayonet with said scabbard.  
  4. A ballistic cutter as set forth in claim 1 further characterized by said shield means being adapted for folding to a position where it prevents use of said engagement means for positioning material to be cut.  
  5. A ballistic cutter as set forth in claim 1 further characterized by means for attaching said cutter to the person of the user for transport, said attaching means being adapted for release when the cutter is to be mounted on a firearm.  
  6. A ballistic cutter as set forth in claim 1 further characterized by said cutter having a cylindrical sleeve positionally adapted for encompassing a muzzle device of said firearm, said sleeve having lateral vents therein.  
  7. A ballistic cutter as set forth in claim 1 further characterized by a sheath of said scabbard being positionally adapted to guide material to be cut toward said engagement means.  
  8. A ballistic cutter as set forth in claim I further characterized by said scabbard being adapted for mounting in fixed positions relative to the muzzle of either of two dissimilar firearms, and by second engagement means for positioning material to be cut located on said scabbard opposite to said first engagement means.  
  9. A ballistic cutter as set forth in claim 1 further characterized by said scabbard being adapted for enclosing any of several dissimilar bayonets, in either of two opposite orientations.