James Richard Haskell
| James Richard Haskell | |
|---|---|
| Born | September 17, 1843 |
| Died |
August 16, 1897 (aged 53) Passaic, New Jersey |
James Richard Haskell was an American inventor chiefly remembered for his invention (with Azel S. Lyman) of a multi-charge gun which was intended to increase muzzle velocity by detonating additional propellant charges behind the projectile or shell as it moved up the gun's barrel and was a distant ancestor of the World War II German V-3 "supergun".
In 1854 Haskell began experiments with steel breech-loading rifled cannon and breech-loading small-arms, manufacturing 25 of the former, which were purchased by the Mexican Government.
In 1855 he began experimenting with multi-charge guns in partnership with Azel S. Lyman, who originated the idea of applying successive charges of gunpowder to accelerate the velocity of a projectile.
In 1862, with a French inventor named George Raphael (sometimes reported as Rafael), a supplier of revolvers and swords to the Union army, Haskell invented and constructed a rapid-firing machine gun which became known as the Rafael Repeater. It was mounted on a light artillery carriage and fired standard rifle bullets. Unlike contemporary machine-guns, it did not use a feed hopper or separate cartridge chambers. However, few details remain of how it worked, apart from a mention in a letter from John Ericsson:
By a simple application of transverse reciprocating movements, exact and definite, the cartridge chamber is brought in line with the barrel, a perfectly tight joing being formed without any sliding movement across the joint of junction. Abrasion and wear are thereby prevented. The mode of filling and applying the sliding cartridge chamber is certain and free from all danger.
Rafael secured a meeting with Abraham Lincoln thanks to a letter of introduction from New York governor Edwin D. Morgan and in turn Lincoln arranged that the gun be tested by John A. Dahlgren who did so at the Navy Yard, discovering that the gun's range and accuracy were remarkable. At a range of 1,800 yd (1,600 m), the lateral deviation was described as "very slight", and "nearly all" of 16 shots fired at a target at 600 yd (550 m) were hits. As far as rate of fire went, the gun fired 40 shots in 20 seconds. John Ericsson was impressed, and wrote to Lincoln that
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