Muzzle loading bullet with gas seal

Abstract

A projectile or bullet for a muzzle loading firearm that has a fixedly attached skirt as a gas seal. The projectile is a full-bore bullet that has high velocity and high accuracy and is easy to load. The bullet includes a rear body portion covered with skirt made of a different material than the body to form a gas seal when the projectile is fired. In a preferred embodiment, the skirt material is plastic, paper or nylon. The body portion of the projectile may be covered by a jacket. The nose portion of the bullet may incorporate a ballistic tip. In some embodiments, the rear of the bullet body is indented to allow the expanding gases at ignition to expand the rear of the bullet to further seal the combustion behind the bullet and to further seal the skirt to the bullet.

1 . A projectile comprising: 
 a body with at least a portion having a diameter at least as large as a bore size of an intended firearm; and    a skirt made of a different material than the body and fixedly attached to a rear portion of the body.    
   
   
       2 . The projectile of  claim 1  wherein the body comprises metal and the skirt comprises a non-metal material.  
   
   
       3 . The projectile of  claim 1  wherein the skirt covers at least a portion of a rear portion of the body and at least a portion of the skirt has a diameter at least as large as a bore size of the intended firearm.  
   
   
       4 . The projectile of  claim 1  wherein the skirt is a cylindrical sleeve surrounding a reduced diameter portion of a cylindrical rear portion of the body.  
   
   
       5 . The projectile of  claim 1  wherein the body further comprises a rear portion having an indented surface.  
   
   
       6 . The projectile of  claim 5  wherein the indented surface is concave.  
   
   
       7 . The projectile of  claim 5  wherein the indented surface is conical.  
   
   
       8 . The projectile of  claim 1  wherein a nose portion of the body includes a ballistic tip.  
   
   
       9 . The projectile of  claim 1  wherein the diameter of the body steps down from a fill-bore diameter to a smaller diameter near a nose portion of the body.  
   
   
       10 . A projectile comprising: 
 a body with at least a portion having a diameter at least as large as a bore size of an intended firearm and a stepped down portion having a reduced-diameter portion that is substantially smaller than the bore size; and    a skirt-cup made of a different material than the body and fixedly attached to a rear portion of the body, the skirt-cup substantially covering the reduced-diameter portion.    
   
   
       11 . The projectile of  claim 10  wherein the body comprises metal and the skirt-cup comprises a non-metal material.  
   
   
       12 . The projectile of  claim 10  wherein the rear portion comprises an indented surface.  
   
   
       13 . The projectile of  claim 12  wherein the indented surface is concave.  
   
   
       14 . The projectile of  claim 12  wherein the indented surface is conical.  
   
   
       15 . The projectile of  claim 10  wherein a nose portion of the body comprises a ballistic tip.  
   
   
       16 . The projectile of  claim 10  wherein the diameter of the body steps down from a full-bore diameter to a smaller diameter near a nose portion of the body.  
   
   
       17 . A projectile comprising: 
 a body with a rear portion, a middle portion and a point portion, wherein at least part of the middle portion of the body has a diameter at least as large as a bore size of an intended firearm and the rear portion has a diameter less than the bore size; and    a skirt made of a different material than the body and fixedly attached to the rear portion of the body, wherein the skirt covers at least some of a rear portion of the body and at least a portion of the skirt has a diameter at least as large as a bore size of the intended firearm.    
   
   
       18 . The projectile of  claim 17  wherein the body further comprises a stepped diameter at a point between the middle portion and the point portion.  
   
   
       19 . The projectile of  claim 17  wherein the part of the middle body portion that has a diameter at least as large as a bore size is less than 25 percent of the portion of the skirt that has a diameter at least as large as the bore size.  
   
   
       20 . The projectile of  claim 17  wherein the part of the middle body portion that has a diameter at least as large as a bore size is less than 25 percent of the portion of the skirt that has a diameter at least as large as the bore size.  
   
   
       21 . The projectile of  claim 17  wherein the body further comprises a rear portion having an indented surface.  
   
   
       22 . The projectile of  claim 21  wherein the indented surface is concave.  
   
   
       23 . The projectile of  claim 17  wherein the skirt further comprises a plurality of annular channels in an outer surface of the skirt.  
   
   
       24 . The projectile of  claim 17  wherein a nose portion of the body comprises a ballistic tip.  
   
   
       25 . The projectile of  claim 24  wherein the ballistic tip is hydraulic.  
   
   
       26 . The projectile of  claim 17  wherein the body of the bullet comprises a metal jacket made of a material harder than the material of the body.  
   
   
       27 . A projectile comprising: 
 a body with a cylindrical rear portion, a middle portion, and a point portion, wherein at least part of the middle portion of the body has a diameter at least as large as a bore size of an intended firearm, and the length of the middle portion of at least bore size diameter is less than about 25 percent of the overall length of the projectile that is at least full bore;    a cylindrical sleeve skirt surrounding a reduced diameter portion of the cylindrical rear portion of the body made of different material than the body and fixedly attached to the rear portion of the body, wherein the skirt covers at least some of a rear portion of the body and wherein at least a portion of the skirt has a diameter at least as large as a bore size of the intended firearm;    a metal jacket made of a material harder than the material of the body covering a substantial portion of the body; and    a ballistic tip in the nose portion of the body.    
   
   
       28 . A method for manufacturing a bullet comprising the steps of: 
 forming a bullet body with at least a portion having a diameter at least as large as a bore size of an intended firearm; and    fixedly attaching a skirt made of a different material than the body to a rear portion of the body.    
   
   
       29 . The method of  claim 28  wherein the body comprises metal and the skirt comprises a non-metal material.  
   
   
       30 . The method of  claim 28  wherein the skirt covers at least a portion of a rear portion of the body and at least a portion of the skirt has a diameter at least as large as a bore size of the intended firearm.  
   
   
       31 . The method of  claim 28  wherein the skirt is a cylindrical sleeve surrounding a reduced diameter portion of a cylindrical rear portion of the body.  
   
   
       32 . The method of  claim 28  wherein the body further comprises a rear portion having an indented surface.  
   
   
       33 . The method of  claim 32  wherein the indented surface is concave.  
   
   
       34 . The method of  claim 32  wherein the indented surface is conical.  
   
   
       35 . The method of  claim 28  wherein a nose portion of the bullet body includes a hydraulic ballistic tip.  
   
   
       36 . The method of  claim 28  wherein the diameter of the body steps down from a full-bore diameter to a smaller diameter near a nose portion of the body.