The Science of Small Arms Ballistics

258 Pages·2018·10.038 MB·\258

by  Alvah Buckmore, Jr. (Author)

THE SCIENCE OF
SMALL ARMS BALLISTICS

THE SCIENCE OF
SMALL ARMS BALLISTICS
Alvah Buckmore, Jr.
Ballistician & Theoretician
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Library and Archives Canada Cataloguing in Publication
Buckmore, Alvah, Jr., author
The science of small arms ballistics : both for the academia and the
recreational shooting community / Alvah Buckmore, Jr., ballistician &
theoretician.
Includes bibliographical references and index.
Issued in print and electronic formats.
ISBN 978-1-77188-650-5 (hardcover).--ISBN 978-1-315-14720-8 (PDF)
1. Ballistics. 2. Firearms. I. Title.
UF820.B83 2018 531’.55 C2018-903197-2 C2018-903198-0

CIP data on file with US Library of C ongress
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I dedicate this book to my wife,
Lolita Buckmore

CONTENTS
About the Author .........................................................................................ix
List of Abbreviations ...................................................................................xi
List of Symbols ..........................................................................................xiii
Preface ........................................................................................................xv
Introduction to the Science of Small Arms Ballistics ................................xix
SECTION ONE ...................................................................................................1
1. The Science of Interior Ballistics ..............................................................3
2. A Practical Application to Scientific Experimentation .........................25
3. A Theory of the Asymptotic Function ....................................................45
4. The Theory of Twist .................................................................................55
5. The Theory of Bullet Spin .......................................................................57
6. The Theory of Kinetic Energy ................................................................59
7. Temperature Conversion Formulas........................................................67
8. Bullet Geometry .......................................................................................69
9. Statistics ....................................................................................................73
SECTION TWO ................................................................................................79
10. The Science of Exterior Ballistics ...........................................................81
11. The Field-Effect Theory ..........................................................................83
12. A Theory of the Effect of Field-Effect Over Time .................................91
13. A Theory of the Effect of Gravity over Time .........................................99
14. A Theory of the Effect of Field-Effect Over Trajectory ......................103
15. Theory, Application, and Calculation of Trajectory in Real-Time .....107
16. Wind Deflection ......................................................................................121
17. Air Density in Real-Time ........................................................................123
viii Contents
18. The Speed of Sound in Air .....................................................................127
19. Approximate Time of Flight ..................................................................129
20. Maximum Range of Lethality ...............................................................131
21. Maximum Effective Range ....................................................................137
22. The Correlis Effect .................................................................................143
23. True Minute of Angle .............................................................................147
SECTION THREE ..........................................................................................149
24. The Science of Terminal Ballistics ........................................................151
25. Transfer of Energy .................................................................................153
26. Temperature of Transfer of Energy ......................................................157
27. Reflection of Kinetic Energy .................................................................161
28. Acceptance of Kinetic Energy ...............................................................163
29. Theory of Penetration ............................................................................165
30. Calculating the Expectant Depth of Penetration into Animal Issue ....177
31. Ballistic Reflection Coefficient ..............................................................185
32. Ballistic Reflection Power ......................................................................187
33. Ballistic Penetrating Power ...................................................................189
34. Ballistic Work Function .........................................................................191
Bibliography .............................................................................................193
Index .........................................................................................................195
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Alvah Buckmore, Jr.
US Army Veteran, Small Arms Ballistics Expert
Alvah Buckmore, Jr., was a United States Army
veteran during the time of the Vietnam War. When
he came home to his parents in late 1974, after get-
ting hurt very badly, he urinated with blood thick
as tomato juice and weighed only 108 pounds. The
Veterans Administration immediately took steps to
nurse him back to health as an outpatient patient,
and within four years, he had fully recovered from
the weight loss and several infections. As part of his
method of recovery, he went on a program of hunting, fishing, hiking,
mountain climbing, target practice, reloading ammunition, and worked on
a systematic study of the science of small arms ballistics.
He is a self-taught genuine expert on small arms ballistics with national
and international recognition as a pioneer on this subject. He taught him-
self advanced mathematics and developed the skills and tools to work out
the mathematical relationships of physical phenomena, starting off with
the Theory of Transfer of Energy, Theory of Penetration, Field-Effect,
and the Effect of Field-Effect Over Trajectory and Time. Among several
other new theories in interior, exterior and terminal ballistics, he finally
had enough material to write out an entirely original book on the science
of small arms ballistics, working over a period of more than 20 years. He
has also written and published on electronic radio communications and
human sexuality.