Hi fellow cast bullet enthusiasts. Like many of you, I have used thousands of these copper alloy bullet base protectors over the years. In the past few years or so, I got to wondering about their history, when they were first introduced and by whom, testing that was done prior to they're introduction, and so on.
I dug around my library and found one of the answers I was looking for in Lyman's Centennial Journal 1878 - 1978. On page 31 it mentions that the gas check was first shown in Ideal Handbook No. 17 published in 1906. The illustration shows a "gas check cup" which appears to have some internal ribs running lengthwise in it. The official patent date is March 12, 1907.
The 308284 bullet designed for the .30 U.S. Govt. (.30-40) was the first bullet specifically engineered to use the then new gas check. The next was the 308291 for the .30-30 & .303 Savage, then the 319295 for the .32-40 followed by 375296 for the .38-55.
But what event lead up to the research and development of this new cast bullet device? A hint of that was noted in Ideal's 1904 manual. Dr. Walter G. Hudson, who was a World Champion Rifle shooter and held many records in his day was working on the problem of trying to achieve a mimimum velocity of 1,500 f.p.s. in the .30-40 with 200+ grain bullets for accurate shooting at 500 yards. The problem he encountered in trying to achieve that goal was fusion, or gas cutting as we know it today.
He tried experimenting with antimonial alloys for stronger bullets but fusion persisted. He worked with J.H. Barlow of Ideal on bullet design and diameters, even to the point of using a front "gas check" band (front driving band) diameter of .325"(!) but to no avail.
It appears that between the years of 1904 and 1905, Dr. Hudson and Mr. Barlow of Ideal Manufacturing Co. hit upon the idea that a copper alloy spacer to insulate the bullet from the hot powder gases might work. They tried copper discs under plain based bullets, and found that they successfully prevented fusion. Higher velocities were then able to be achieved with no leading. Further development lead to the cup profile and the Ideal bullet #308284 (today‘s 311284).
Since the gas checked 308284 worked very well, Mr. Barlow set to work to develop additional gas checked bullets very quickly. Samples of cartridges loaded to factory velocities with the new bullet designs were sent to the Marlin Firearms Co. and Savage Arms Company for their evaluation. Marlin reported “We have the pleasure of reporting to you that these appear to be in every way equal to factory loaded ammunition with metal jacketed bullets.“ Savage wrote back that they tested them in the .30-30 and .303 Savage and they compared favorably in accuracy with their jacketed bullets.
A few years later, in 1909, the Ideal Handbook No. 19 illustrated a total of 15 different gas checked bullets in calibers ranging from the .25-20 up to .38-55.
It is known that these first gas checks were designed to fall from the base of the bullet shortly after leaving the muzzle. Some 60 or so years later, Hornady Manufacturing came along with a new crimp on engineered gas check designed to stay with the bullet in flight. And the rest shall we say…...is history.
w30wcf
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