Bolt action conversion kits and methods

Abstract

The present disclosure relates to kits and associated methods for converting a semi-automatic firearm into a bolt single action firearm, as well as the converted firearm itself. The kit includes a housing (e.g. upper receiver) that accommodates a bolt carrier and a charging handle and a carrier key, if desired. The housing has ends which mount to the existing lower receiver of the semi-automatic firearm to convert the semi-automatic firearm into a manual bolt-action firearm.

Claims

1. A kit for converting a semi-automatic firearm into a bolt single action firearm, the kit comprising: a) a modified bolt action upper receiver configured to be received by a pre-existing lower receiver of the semi-automatic firearm, the modified bolt action upper receiver having a proximal end, a distal end, a right side portion, a left side portion and an elongate upper wall section between the proximal end and distal end, wherein the modified bolt action upper receiver includes a right side charging handle slot defined through the right side portion, a left side charging handle slot extending through the left side portion, and an ejection port, the ejection port intersecting with the right side charging handle slot to form a common opening through the right side portion; b) a modified bolt carrier configured to accommodate a single round of ammunition configured to reside within the modified bolt action upper receiver, the modified bolt carrier including two lateral sides that project toward the left side charging handle slot and the right side charging handle slot; and c) a reconfigurable charging handle configured to attach to either of said lateral sides of the modified bolt carrier and extend through one of the left side and right side charging handle slots, the reconfigurable charging handle including a distal portion configured to be connected to one of the said lateral sides of the modified bolt carrier, an elongate body, and a proximal portion displaced along a length of the firearm proximally from the distal portion of the modified charging handle.

2. A firearm converted from a semi-automatic firearm into a bolt single action firearm using the kit of claim 1.

3. The kit of claim 1, wherein a native gas port in a barrel of the firearm is plugged as a result of installing the kit.

4. The kit of claim 3, wherein the native gas port in the barrel of the firearm is blocked by installing a distal hand guard mount supplied with the kit on the barrel to block the native gas port.

5. The kit of claim 1, wherein each charging handle slot is defined by a complete perimeter including opposing longitudinal top and bottom edges joined by opposing end edges, each charging handle slot intersecting a horizontal plane that is parallel with a geometric centerline of a barrel of the firearm.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE FIGURES

(1) FIG. 1 is an illustrative view of a prior art AR-15 semi-automatic assault rifle.

(2) FIG. 2 is an illustrative view of an AR-15 semi-automatic assault rifle with the bolt action conversion kit of the present disclosure installed.

(3) FIG. 3, including FIGS. 3a-3e are illustrative views of the upper receiver assembly of the prior art semi-automatic assault rifle of FIG. 1.

(4) FIG. 4, including FIGS. 4a-4d are illustrative views of the upper receiver assembly of a semi-automatic assault rifle with the bolt action conversion kit of the present disclosure installed.

(5) FIG. 5, including FIGS. 5a-5c are illustrative exploded views of the upper receiver assembly of the prior art semi-automatic assault rifle of FIG. 1.

(6) FIG. 6, including FIGS. 6a-6c are illustrative exploded views of the upper receiver assembly of a semi-automatic assault rifle with the bolt action conversion kit of the present disclosure installed.

(7) FIG. 7, including FIGS. 7a-7f are illustrative alternative views of the upper receiver of the prior art semi-automatic assault rifle of FIG. 1.

(8) FIG. 8, including FIGS. 8a-8g are illustrative exploded views of the upper receiver of a semi-automatic assault rifle with the bolt action conversion kit of the present disclosure installed.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

(9) The disclosed embodiments of bolt action conversion kits allow for the converting of a typical semi-automatic assault rifle (AR-15) model (as shown in FIG. 1), Military Model 16 (M16), AR-10, Military Model 4 (MP4) or similar firearm to a bolt action rifle. FIG. 2 shows an example of an assault rifle once the conversion is complete. Once the conversion is complete, the rifle will only be usable as a bolt action rifle and no longer have the ability of auto loading its bullet cartridges. The design is based around the existing dimensions of the assault rifle platform and can install without any modification to the lower receiver assembly. However, in other embodiments, the conversion kit can be used to convert other semi-automatic weapons into bolt action single fire weapons.

(10) FIG. 3a illustrates a side view of a typical semi-automatic assault rifle (AR-15) upper receiver assembly. As shown in FIG. 3b, the existing upper receiver assembly of the AR-15 includes a charging handle which allows for an initial manual loading of ammunition. The charging handle allows a shooter to pull the bolt to the rear. The upper receiver assembly includes the main components needed to fire ammunition. FIG. 3c illustrates the gas flow needed for the automatic bolt cycling of the weapon. Gas is tapped from the barrel as the bullet moves past a gas port (designated as L in FIG. 3c) located above the rifle's front sight base. The gas flows into the port and down a gas tube (as shown in FIG. 3E), located above the barrel, which runs from the front sight base into the AR-15's upper receiver. Here, the gas tube protrudes into the carrier key (as shown in FIG. 3D) which accepts the gas and funnels it into the bolt carrier. The bolt carrier cycles back and forward between each shot. The bolt is propelled back by recoil or expanding gas and propelled forward by the recoil spring.

(11) The bolt recoil causes movement in the shooter which decreases a shooter's accuracy and precision. When the bolt moves back, the extractor, an integral part of the bolt, pulls the spent casing from the chamber. When it moves forward, it strips a cartridge from the magazine and pushes it into the chamber. Once the case is clear of the chamber, the ejector kicks the case out of the weapon. As an example, in firing ten rounds from a semi-automatic firearm, the action would initially be cycled to load the first round and the trigger would need to be pulled ten times (once for each round fired). Semi-automatic weapons cause a shooter to fire multiple rounds unintentionally, thereby wasting ammunition. With installation of the bolt action conversion kit, ammunition is conserved.

(12) FIG. 4a shows a side view of a semi-automatic assault rifle upper receiver assembly with the bolt action conversion kit installed. FIG. 4b shows the top view of the upper receiver assembly with the bolt action conversion kit which includes a new charging handle being attached for manual loading of ammunition. Since installation of the bolt action conversion kit utilizes the existing barrel assembly of the semi-automatic weapon, the conversion begins with the gas charging components of the semi-automatic weapon being removed as they are no longer needed. This includes plugging or blocking the gas port in the barrel as shown in FIG. 4c. FIG. 4d shows the new designed carrier key, bolt carrier and upper receiver.

(13) FIG. 5 shows a typical semi-automatic assault rifle (AR-15) upper receiver assembly parts in an exploded view. As described above, in FIG. 5a, gas from the barrel flows through the gas tube into the receiver. Gas is tapped from the barrel as the bullet moves past the gas port. The gas flows into the gas port and down the gas tube, located above the barrel, which runs from the front sight base into the AR-15's upper receiver. The gas tube protrudes into the carrier key (as shown in FIG. 5b) which accepts the gas and funnels it into the bolt carrier. This initiates the automatic cycling of the bolt carrier. The bolt carrier cycles back and forward between each shot. The bolt is propelled back by recoil or expanding gas and propelled forward by the recoil spring. The barrel nut, as shown in FIG. 5a, connects the upper receiver to the barrel of the assault rifle.

(14) The conversion kit transforms such a semi-automatic weapon as discussed above into a bolt action or single action firearm. As shown in FIG. 6a, the gas tube and gas block are removed from the semi-automatic weapon as they are no longer needed. The existing gas port is blocked. As shown in FIG. 6b, the conversion kit assembly components include but are not limited to a bolt action upper receiver, bolt carrier and charging handle. The upper receiver is then inserted onto the existing lower receiver and retains the use of the original barrel components (as shown in FIG. 6a). However, the new charging handle is located on the right-hand side of the weapon where it is often located in bolt action firearms. The charging handle is then pulled back and moved forward, which loads the round. When the round is fired, the casing is withdrawn and ejected when the charging handle is manually reverted back to its starting position. In additional implementations, the bolt action conversion kit is configured to convert other semi-automatic weapons into bolt action weapons.

(15) For further illustration, FIG. 7a-7f shows an alternative view of the upper receiver of a typical semi-automatic assault rifle. FIG. 7c shows a top view of the gas tube port which is an unnecessary component once the bolt action conversion kit is installed. FIG. 7d shows the bottom view of the gas port tube. In addition, the charging handle slot and forward assist port, as shown in FIG. 7d, are also unnecessary components once the conversion kit is installed. FIG. 8a-8g illustrates an alternative view of the upper receiver of the bolt action conversion kit. FIG. 8c and FIG. 8e show the upper receiver without the gas tube port. FIG. 8d shows the slot where the right-hand charging handle is inserted. The upper receiver of the conversion kit also includes standard mounting points where the existing lower receiver of the semi-automatic assault rifle can be attached to. Similarly, FIG. 8d shows the standard assault rifle thread mount which accommodates any assault rifle specific barrel nut which connects to the barrel of the assault rifle. In another embodiment, as shown in FIG. 8g, the upper receiver of the bolt action conversion kit includes a slot for a left-hand charging handle slot to be inserted for the benefit of left-handed shooters.

(16) Various other components may be included and called upon for providing for aspects of the teachings herein. For example, additional materials, combinations of materials and/or omission of materials may be used to provide for added embodiments that are within the scope of the teachings herein. In the present application a variety of variables are described, including but not limited to components and conditions. It is to be understood that any combination of any of these variables can define an embodiment of the disclosure. Other combinations of articles, components, conditions, and/or methods can also be specifically selected from among variables listed herein to define other embodiments, as would be apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art.

(17) When introducing elements of the present disclosure or the embodiment(s) thereof, the articles a, an, and the are intended to mean that there are one or more of the elements. Similarly, the adjective another, when used to introduce an element, is intended to mean one or more elements. The terms including and having are intended to be inclusive such that there may be additional elements other than the listed elements.

(18) While the disclosure refers to exemplary embodiments, it will be understood by those skilled in the art that various changes may be made and equivalents may be substituted for elements thereof without departing from the scope of the disclosure. In addition, many modifications will be appreciated by those skilled in the art to adapt a particular instrument, situation or material to the teachings of the disclosure without departing from the spirit thereof. Therefore, it is intended that the disclosure not be limited to the particular embodiments disclosed.