Ship's Locker: Out of the Closet

Fundamentally, I have no problem with this, and was rather surprised when I noted that text.

And then, realized I had made the presumption that the advanced combat rifle is using caseless ammunition, when it logically wouldn't, considering the cost of the ammunition, and the rather inexpensiveness of it's procurement.
 
You have three problems with caseless:

1. You have a chemical mixture that needs to be robust enough to not break off or deform in the normal loading/function of the firearm.

2. It has to burn up in it's entirety.

3. The receiver can't become hot enough to cook off the remaining rounds.

One loophole that I can think of, is that you have a single shot, breechloading firearm, and, just for the fun of it, have a paper cartridge.
 
I just figure that by this point, especially at TL9 and 10, the manufacturing ability has figured it out to within the error rate of modern cased ammo.
That way we can have ACRs and AC pistols.
 
That was my presumption.

But then, I started backtracking, and I realized, I couldn't find any text that stated the advanced combat rifle used caseless ammunition.
 
That's the thing.

I was pretty sure it was caseless, and I also tried to figure out why I had that assumption.

Revolver magazine would resolve all issues, but limits capacity.

So should multi barrel, but now you add complexity and weight.
 
That's the thing.

I was pretty sure it was caseless, and I also tried to figure out why I had that assumption.

Revolver magazine would resolve all issues, but limits capacity.

So should multi barrel, but now you add complexity and weight.

I think I'll keep assuming caseless, in order to reduce cost, weight and needing to go into detail.
 
To be fair, tripling the cost of advanced combat rifle ammunition from half a starbux (it's probably cheaper, depending on the cost of the magazine and integrated battery) to one and a half starbux each), and, let's say, doubling the cost of the rifle itself, to two kilostarbux, doesn't really unduly burden the purchaser, to switching to a caseless variant.
 
It's also likely that the trigger has advanced to electrical ignition.

One variant that I can think of, is that it wouldn't be a solid propellant, but liquid or gas, that fills the chamber.

Though the issue with that would be if the explosive effect is equal or greater than solid.
 
2300AD had binary propellant.

They didn't mention how they stopped the action getting so hot you could brew tea on it.
 
It's likely a closed system, except for the barrel.

You could:

1. Use the barrel as a heat sink.

2. Transfer the heat to the bullet, which would make it a hot shot.

3. Immediately get rid of the gas before it can substantially heat up the receiver.
 
Barrels already are heat sinks, the issue is with cooling the action, are you proposing active cooling moving the waste heat to the barrel?

How do you transfer the heat to the bullet? By what mechanism? More andvavium?

Then it can't push the bullet out of the barrel...
 
It's either that, or active cooling.

The bullet has to expand to fit into the rifle grooves, and we'll assume due to the increased range, higher muzzle velocity, which means less time spent in the barrel.

Instead of lead, some exotic material that soaks up heat quickly.
 
Active cooling adds mass and complication to the weapon.

Higher muzzle velocity requires more energy which means more waste heat.

So more anvavium
 
Stick the cooling can into the buttstock.

And that could be the issue.

If you want automated fire with caseless ammunition, you'll have to add gimmicks that allows that, without creating conditions that will cook off naked explosive cocktails, that squash their exposed parts next to each other like a Conga line, almost certain to set off a chain reaction.
 
So more stuff to carry - now you need ammo and cooling cans

Thermodynamics usually is

So yet more anavavium

Why not just say it is A gift from the Culture and be done with it.
 
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