blog reflection

What I’ve done

I've posted different steps in the evolution of the bullet and artillery ammunition throughout the years. I've posted pictures of the different kinds of bullets to help give a visualization. 

My best post and why it’s good

My best post is probably "the word 'bullet' is derived..." because I worked hard on that one, and had more info. than the other ones. I was also still in the beginning stages of this project so I was feeling good about it.

What I’d like to improve on

I would like to improve on keeping up with my posts in due time, and to keep the info. accurate and chronological.

What I’ve learned about myself as a learner

I need to keep track of things with a schedule and I can forget things easily.

Where I’d like to go

I want to be more involved in my blog and take time to work on it more. I also don't just want to make it a blog filled with info., I want to make it a personalized blog with my own ideas involved.

The four components of a round of artillery ammunition. 

1. the fuse

2. the projectile 

3. the propellant

4. the primer

1. Fuses are the devices that trigger the artillery ammunition. 

2. The projectile is the munition or the "bullet" fired downrange.

3. The propellant propels the projectile to the target.

4. Upon being struck with a huge force, a primer reacts chemically to produce heat, which ignites the propellant and fires the projectile. 

Artillery Ammunition:
The first documented record of artillery with gunpowder propellant used on the battlefield was on January 28, 1182. General Han Shizhong of the song dynasty used escalade and Huochong to capture a city in Fujian. These vase like cannons were initially cast in iron or bronze around a core.

A round of artillery ammunition comprises of four components:
1. the fuse 
2. the projectile
3. the propellant 
4. the primer

This is a modern cartridge: 

1.  the bullet/projectile

2.  the case; holds all parts together

3.  the propellant (ie: gunpowder)

4.  the rim; a place to grip the casing to remove it from the chamber once fired

5.  the primer; ignites the propellant

     Between 1854 and 1857 Sir Joseph Whitworth conducted a series of rifle experiments and proved the advantages of an elongated bullet. In 1882 Major Eduard Rubin invented the copper jacketed bullet - and elongated bullet with a lead core in a copper jacket. The surface of lead bullets fired at a high velocity may melt due to hot gases behind the bullet. Because copper has a higher melting point and hardness, copper jacketed bullets allow greater muzzle velocities. 

The word "bullet" is derived from the French word "boulette" which basically means little ball.  The original musket bullet was a spherical lead ball.

Musket Ball

These musket balls were no more than one inch in diameter. 

Among the first pointed/"conical" bullets were those designed by Captain John Norton of the British army in 1823. His bullet had a hollow base. The British Board of Ordinance rejected it because spherical bullets had been in use for 300 years. Then William Greener, an English gunsmith, invented the Greener bullet in 1836. It was very similar to Norton's design, except that the hollow base was fitted with a wooden plug. Unfortunately it too was rejected for military use because, being two parts, it would be too complicated to produce. In 1847, Claude-Etienne Minie introduced the soft lead minie ball. This too was similar to the Greener bullet. In the American Civil War roughly 90% of casualties were caused by the minie ball.

The first bullet was made by Smith and Wesson. They patented the 22 rim fire cartridge on August 8th, 1860. Originally, bullets were made of metal, stone, or purpose-made clay balls. But before Smith and Wesson made the 22 rim fire cartridge, bullets were made as sling ammunition for hunting and other various activities. 

These are lead sling bullets from Athens, in 4th century BC. 

Finally, when firearms were developed these stone or metal bullets were placed in front of a propellant charge of gunpowder at the end of a closed tube. From 1500 to 1800 bullets changed very little. They remained small spherical lead "rounds," only changing slightly in diameter. 

Like I discussed in my last blog, I will be adding in either artillery ammo or tank ammo into my Genius Hour. I have decided to add artillery ammo because of it's advancement in technology throughout it's history. 

In this picture, is one of the first kinds of artillery, used in the Civil War. These cannons were highly inaccurate, so they needed a round that could explode but cover a wide range of ground. The evolution of the artillery shell began here during the Civil War. 

Also, the modern day bullet may not seem as impressive as something like artillery, but it has come a long way since it was first produced. 

BULLET EVOLUTION

Since Mr. Reyes, my English teacher, has commented on my blog he brought up a good point. I could do this project on other projectiles such as artillery shells, and ammunition for various military vehicles. I am considering broadening my "horizon" on this project. I will include the evolution of tank ammo or artillery ammo. Including these will help me be able to research more than just bullets. I will have more information and more things to blog about.

This is just a sample of how diverse ammunition is for artillery and tanks. You may not know it by just looking at it but these shells each do different things when fired out of a cannon. No matter how different they may be, they still make a huge "BOOM" when they ignite.

The project plan for my Genius Hour is the evolution of the bullet. 

Growing up in my childhood, I have always been fascinated by the military and all of it's technology and history. With a very specific project like this I had to come up with something not too broad and still something I wanted to learn about. Just by looking looking at this picture you can see that bullets have changed so much throughout time. I wanted to research the history to find how we got to the modern day bullet.