US-12618628-B2 - Forged carbon fiber rifle barrel

Abstract

A method of forming a carbon fiber rifle barrel may include the steps of heating a barrel core to increase the length of the barrel, placing the barrel core inside a mold and holding the lengthened barrel in place, adding a carbon fiber mix to the mold in which the carbon fiber mix includes a blend of resin and chopped carbon fibers, sealing the mold, curing the carbon fiber mix surrounding the lengthened barrel core in which the cured carbon fiber mix holds the length of the barrel core creating a tension on the cooled barrel core which increases a rigidity of the rifle barrel thereby increasing the accuracy of the rifle barrel, removing the rifle barrel from the mold, and finishing the rifle barrel via grinding to a desired finish.

Inventors

• Jeff Hussey

Assignees

• Grey Birch MFG

Dates

Publication Date

20260505

Application Date

20250314

Claims (20)

1. 1 . A method of forming a rifle barrel comprising the steps of: heating a barrel core, wherein the heating increases a length of the barrel core; placing the barrel core inside a mold and holding the lengthened barrel core in tension; adding a carbon fiber mix to the mold, wherein the carbon fiber mix comprises a blend of resin and chopped carbon fibers; sealing the mold; curing the carbon fiber mix surrounding the barrel core, wherein the cured carbon fiber mix holds the tension on the barrel core, and wherein the tension increases a rigidity of the rifle barrel; removing the rifle barrel from the mold; and finishing the rifle barrel via grinding to a desired finish.
2. 2 . The method of claim 1 , wherein the barrel core comprises steel.
3. 3 . The method of claim 1 , wherein the chopped carbon fibers comprise non-continuous forged carbon fibers.
4. 4 . The method of claim 1 , wherein an x-ray detectable material is embedded in the carbon fiber mix.
5. 5 . The method of claim 1 , wherein reinforcing fibers are placed around the barrel core prior to adding the carbon fiber mix to the mold.
6. 6 . The method of claim 1 , wherein the mold is subjected to vacuum pressure during curing.
7. 7 . The method of claim 1 , wherein finishing comprises centerless grinding.
8. 8 . The method of claim 1 , further comprising the step of applying a protective wax coating to the finished rifle barrel.
9. 9 . A method of forming a rifle barrel comprising the steps of: heating a barrel core to grow a length of the barrel core; placing the barrel core or a mandrel comprising the barrel core inside a mold; holding the length of the heated barrel core in place; adding a carbon fiber mix to the mold to surround the barrel core, wherein the carbon fiber mix comprises a blend of resin and carbon fibers; sealing the mold; curing the carbon fiber mix, wherein the cured carbon fiber mix holds the length of the barrel core in place causes a tension on the barrel core when the barrel core cools, and wherein the tension increases a rigidity of the rifle barrel; removing the rifle barrel from the mold; and finishing the rifle barrel via grinding to a desired finish.
10. 10 . The method of claim 9 , wherein the barrel core is heated to a temperature between 200° F. and 600° F.
11. 11 . The method of claim 9 , wherein the barrel core is made of an alloy selected for high thermal expansion properties.
12. 12 . The method of claim 9 , wherein the carbon fiber mix comprises continuous carbon fibers oriented to enhance rigidity.
13. 13 . The method of claim 9 , wherein the tension created on the barrel core improves barrel harmonics.
14. 14 . The method of claim 9 , wherein the mold is pre-coated with a release agent before the carbon fiber mix is added.
15. 15 . The method of claim 9 , further comprising the step of wrapping the cured rifle barrel with a compression tape before finishing.
16. 16 . The method of claim 9 , wherein curing is temperature controlled to achieve a specific rifle barrel core length contraction rate.
17. 17 . The method of claim 9 , wherein the mold is subjected to autoclave curing for improved bonding.
18. 18 . The method of claim 9 , wherein the barrel core is pre-treated with an adhesion-promoting primer.
19. 19 . A method of forming a rifle barrel consisting of: heating a barrel core to grow a length of the barrel core; placing a barrel core inside a mold and holding the heated barrel core length in place; adding a carbon fiber mix to the mold, wherein carbon fiber mix surrounds the barrel core wherein the carbon fiber mix comprises a blend of resin and carbon fibers; sealing the mold; curing the carbon fiber mix, wherein the cured carbon fiber mix holds the length of the barrel core creating a tension on the barrel core when the length of the barrel core decreases due to cooling, and wherein the tension increases a rigidity of the rifle barrel; removing the rifle barrel from the mold; and finishing the rifle barrel.
20. 20 . A replacement rifle barrel kit for a firearm comprising the rifle barrel of claim 19 .

Description

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS This application claims benefit to U.S. Provisional Application No. 63/565,427, filed Mar. 14, 2024 entitled Forged Carbon Fiber Rifle Barrel. All of the above application is incorporated herein by reference. BACKGROUND Firearm barrels have traditional made of metals and alloys, and in particular, steel. To increase the life of a barrel and the number of rounds that may be fired through the barrel, prior art methods of manufacturing barrels relied upon using increased amounts of steel resulting in a stronger, but heavier barrel. Barrels with increased weight are generally disfavored. Firearms with heavy barrels become more difficult to transport during hunting and military operations. A barrel with increased strength, longer lifespan, and lighter in weight is desirable. A barrel formed from a carbon composite and steel may have an extremely reduced weight and greater service life compared to conventional metal and alloy firearm barrels and may be more accurate due to increased rigidity compared to conventional rifle barrels. SUMMARY This Summary is provided to introduce a selection of concepts in a simplified form that are further described below in the Detailed Description. The Summary is not intended to identify key features or essential features of the claimed subject matter, nor is it intended to be used to limit the scope of the claimed subject matter. In accordance with one aspect, method of forming a rifle barrel may include the steps of placing a barrel core or a mandrel comprising the barrel core inside a mold, placing additional materials around the barrel core or the mandrel, adding a carbon fiber mix to the mold, wherein the carbon fiber mix comprises a blend of resin and carbon fibers, sealing the mold, curing the mold with or without heating, removing the cured barrel core from the mold, and finishing the barrel via grinding to the desired finish. In some examples, a replacement rifle barrel kit for a firearm may include the finished rifle barrel described above. In other examples, a firearm may include the rifle barrel described above. In accordance with another aspect, a method of forming a rifle barrel may include the steps of placing a barrel core or a mandrel comprising the barrel core inside a mold, placing additional materials around the barrel core or the mandrel, adding a carbon fiber mix to the mold, wherein the carbon fiber mix comprises a blend of resin and carbon fibers, sealing the mold, heating the mold to grow a length of the barrel core, holding the heated barrel core length in place, curing the carbon fiber mix, cooling the barrel core, wherein the cured carbon fiber mix causes a tension on the barrel core when the length of the barrel core decreases due to cooling, and wherein the tension increases a rigidity of the rifle barrel, removing the cured barrel core from the mold, and finishing the barrel via grinding to the desired finish. In some examples, a replacement rifle barrel kit for a firearm may include the finished rifle barrel described above. In other examples, a firearm may include the rifle barrel described above. In accordance with other aspects herein, a firearm rifle barrel replacement kit may include a carbon fiber barrel as disclosed herein for use with a firearm, and a set of printed safety and/or installation instructions. In some examples, each component may be combined into a unitary packaging assembly. In other examples, the replacement carbon fiber barrel disclosed herein may include a steel barrel core, and a carbon fiber mix bonded to an exterior of the steel barrel core. In accordance with another aspect, a method of forming a carbon fiber rifle barrel may include the steps of heating a barrel core in which the heating increases a length of the barrel core, placing the barrel core inside a mold and holding the lengthened barrel core in place creating a tension, adding a carbon fiber mix to the mold in which the carbon fiber mix may include a blend of resin and chopped carbon fibers, sealing the mold, curing the carbon fiber mix surrounding the barrel core an din which the cured carbon fiber mix holds the lengthened barrel core in place and holding or creating tension on the barrel core thereby increases a rigidity of the rifle barrel and making the rifle barrel ore accurate, removing the rifle barrel from the mold, and finishing the rifle barrel via grinding or other technique to a desired finish. In some examples, the barrel core may comprise steel or an alloy. In another example, the chopped carbon fibers comprise non-continuous forged carbon fibers. In one example, an x-ray detectable material is embedded in the carbon fiber mix allowing for detection in the event the rifle barrel is destroyed or damaged in combat or other incident and penetrates an individual's body. In yet another example, reinforcing fibers may be placed around the barrel core prior to adding the carbon fiber mix to the mold. In some examp