Adjustable gas block for a gas operated firearm

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9506704-B2
Application number	US-201514790660-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Jul 2, 2015
Priority date	Aug 23, 2012
Publication date	Nov 29, 2016
Grant date	Nov 29, 2016

Abstract

An adjustable gas block for a gas operated firearm is provided that offers the user a means by which the volume of gas being directed to the host rifle's operating system can be adjusted. The adjustable gas block provides two positions of adjustment, with the position of use being selected based on whether or not a back pressure increasing device, such as a noise suppressor or a silencer, is mounted on the firearm. A first position provides the optimal volume of gas into the gas operating system for it to operate properly based on its factory configuration and in the absence of a back pressure increasing device. A second position is available for use when the back pressure is increased due to the presence of a back pressure increasing device. The second position exposes a port through which a portion of the volume of gas from the barrel is vented into a secondary chamber prior to being released into the atmosphere. By venting a portion of the gas into a secondary chamber, the amount of gas received by the operating system is reduced to a volume that is substantially equal to the volume of gas that would be received by the operating system in the absence of a back pressure increasing device. No tools are required to select either of the positions provided by the gas block.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. An adjustable gas block comprising:
a housing having a barrel receiving channel and a gas nozzle receiving channel;
a gas nozzle having a bore and at least a first port and a second port, a front end of said gas nozzle being inserted into said gas nozzle receiving channel, and said first port adapted to be in operational communication with a gas port of a firearm barrel; and
an adjustment knob having a central bore which receives the front end of said gas nozzle and is configured to be secured thereto, wherein said central bore has a gas channel formed therein, said gas channel being out of communication with said second port when said knob is in said first position and said gas channel being in communication with said second port when said knob is in said second position, and wherein said adjustment knob is configured to be manually rotated by a user between a first position and a second position to regulate an amount of gas which exits said gas nozzle according to whether or not a back pressure increasing device is attached to the barrel.

2. The adjustable gas block of claim 1 , wherein said gas channel is formed in an inner wall of said central bore.

3. The adjustable gas block of claim 1 , wherein said adjustable gas block has an expansion chamber in communication with said gas channel, said expansion chamber being formed at a front end of said central bore, rotation of said adjustment knob into said second position placing said gas nozzle into communication with said expansion chamber.

4. The adjustable gas block of claim 3 , wherein said expansion chamber is in communication with a through opening in said adjustment knob to allow expanding gases to exit said adjustment knob when said adjustment knob is in said second position.

5. The adjustable gas block of claim 1 , wherein in said first position of said knob, said second port is blocked by the inner wall of said central bore.

6. An adjustable gas block comprising:
a housing;
a gas nozzle partly received in said housing; and
an adjustment knob;
wherein said housing of the adjustable gas block includes a gas port,
wherein an expansion chamber is formed between the exterior of the gas nozzle and an interior of the adjustment knob,
wherein said adjustment knob has a central bore receiving a portion of the gas nozzle,
wherein said central bore has a channel defined therein, said channel being in communication with said expansion chamber, and
said gas nozzle having a bore and at least two ports in communication with said bore, said adjustment knob being rotatable and having an indexing feature to locate the channel in a plurality of predefined positions, the first port being blocked to prevent gas from flowing from the gas nozzle into the expansion chamber when said adjustment knob is in a first predefined position.

7. The adjustable gas block of claim 6 , wherein the adjustment knob includes a gas exit opening which is in communication with said expansion chamber.

8. The adjustable gas block of claim 6 , wherein the plurality of predefined positions includes a second predefined position that places the first port of the gas nozzle in communication with the expansion chamber through said channel in the adjustment knob bore.

9. The adjustable gas block of claim 8 , wherein the first predefined position that blocks the flow of gas into said expansion chamber allows a volume of gas needed to properly operate the gas operated firearm to flow to a gas operating system when a back pressure increasing device is not attached to a barrel.

10. The adjustable gas block of claim 8 , wherein said channel of the central bore is sized to permit venting of an excess volume of gas produced when a back pressure inducing device is secured to a barrel so that only a volume of gas necessary to properly operate a gas operated firearm when a back pressure inducing device is not affixed to the barrel is provided to a gas operating system.

11. The adjustable gas block of claim 10 , wherein the back pressure increasing device is a silencer.

12. The adjustable gas block of claim 6 , wherein said central bore has a channel defined therein on its interior surface.

13. An adjustable gas block comprising: a housing having a barrel receiving channel and a gas nozzle receiving channel; a gas nozzle having a bore and at least a first port and a second port, a front end of said gas nozzle being inserted into said gas nozzle receiving channel, and said first port adapted to be in operational communication with a gas port of a barrel; and an adjustment knob having a central bore which receives the front end of said gas nozzle and is configured to be secured thereto, said adjustment knob configured to be manually rotated by a user between a first position and a second position to regulate an amount of gas which exits said gas nozzle according to whether or not a back pressure increasing device is attached to the barrel, and wherein an inner wall of said central bore has a gas channel formed therein, said gas channel being out of communication with said second port when said knob is in said first position and said gas channel being in communication with said second port when said knob is in said second position.

14. The adjustable gas block of claim 13 , wherein the central axis of the barrel receiving channel and the central axis of the gas nozzle receiving channel are in vertical alignment with each other.

15. The adjustable gas block of claim 13 , further comprising a spring configured to fit on the housing with the spring's ends placed into openings on the housing.

16. The adjustable gas block of claim 15 , further comprising one or more notches on an exterior of the adjustment knob that interface with the spring.

17. The adjustable gas block of claim 13 , further comprising an opening for housing a roll pin at a forward end of the gas nozzle receiving channel.

18. The adjustable gas block of claim 13 , further comprising a slot in the adjustment knob and an opening on the gas nozzle, wherein the slot and the opening align and a roll pin is inserted therethrough.

19. The adjustable gas block of claim 13 , further comprising two tapered holes in the housing and a pair of taper pins received within the two tapered holes.

20. An adjustable gas block comprising:
a housing having a barrel receiving channel and a gas nozzle receiving channel;
a spring configured to fit on the housing with the spring's ends placed into openings on the housing;
a gas nozzle having a bore and at least a first port and a second port, a front end of said gas nozzle being inserted into said gas nozzle receiving channel, and said first port adapted to be in operational communication with a gas port of a barrel; and
an adjustment knob having a central bore which receives the front end of said gas nozzle and is configured to be secured thereto, said adjustment knob configured to be manually rotated by a user between a first position and a second position to regulate an amount of gas which exits said gas nozzle according to whether or not a back pressure increasing device is attached to the barrel.

21. The adjustable gas block of claim 20 , further comprising one or more notches on an exterior of the adjustment knob that interface with the spring.

Assignees

• Lwrc Int Llc

Inventors

• Gomez Jesus S

Classifications

• F41A5/28 Primary

  Adjustable systems · CPC title

• F41A5/18

  gas-operated · CPC title