Ever heard of the GyroJet pistol?

[les strat]

A lot of you guys know I work at a museum complex - A natural history museum and a world history museum.

We have a deal with an outstanding LGS where we put a very cool and unique piece in their store once a month, kind of a "Gun of the Month."

This month, I put in the 1960's GyroJet. It is a lightweight aluminum pistol, spring loaded, that fires a rocket fuel-propelled round. You can actually shoot someone at short distances and it won't even penetrate. You can basically plug your finger in the muzzle to stop the round. But once the fuel ignites it goes forever. Not rifled or very accurate, so the prototypes were canned and never used by the military and is considered a novelty. They were actually used in some Star Trek episodes back then as a prop since they were so spacey looking for the time.

We actually have one round for the thing. They run about $50 a pop.

Just thought I'd share that with ya.

[Fredr500]

Pictures?

[Bongo Boy]

Yes, I remember it fairly well. Never was sure what the premise was (why anyone thought it was a good idea), but as I recall it, it had a sort of 50s scifi look and feel to it. Cross between a classic ray-gun and those 45ACP survival pistols of WWII era.

[wyntrout]

We had Gyro Jet flare guns... pen guns with a screw-on adapter for the GyroJet flares. One "came back with me" from SEA. I eventually lost the adapter and to fire the last flare I had, I stuck a cut-off nail in the plastic cap covering the primer in the base and dropped it down the barrel from a shotgun... just like a mortar... worked!

Those things were developed for penetrating the canopies in rainforest... jungles. I still have the pen gun part and screwed an RG59 cable adapter for a UHF RF connector into it after inserting a 209 primer... for a "blank-firing" noise maker.
Hey! I don't throw stuff away and like to make bangs and booms!

Wynn

[les strat]

Not my pics. I will have to snap some when we get it back in Jan.

[Charlie98]

I think one of the James Bond movies he had 'rocket powered' rounds for his PPK/s...

[Fredr500]

Thanks for the pics Les.

[ripley16]

The NRA's National Firearms Museum in Fairfax, Virginia has a pistol on display. A rifle was also produced. I've seen these for sale from time to time. The ammo is really the collectable holy grail for these guns.

Here's a link to the display at the museum.
http://www.nramuseum.org/the-museum/...echnology.aspx

[les strat]

Thanks for the pics Les.

You're so welcome.

It still never ceases to amaze me at the collection of just flat out weird and beyond ordinary weapons we have as a part of the late Col. Berman's collection. Punt guns, Knock volley gun, howdah pistols, duckfoots, pre S&W Smith revolvers, periscope trench guns, a mint Gatling, all kinds of spy weapons and OSS stuff..... thousands of weapons. I wish The American Rifleman would do an article on the collection.

[pm9fan]

While in Korea on active duty knew a US Army colonel that tested rocket pistols and rifles for the government. Said the tests were amazing due to the projectile velocity. The pistol version was accurate out to rifle ranges (200-300 m+) and rifle was out to 1000m+. A similar "carbine" with weight similar to the M-16 with the rocket rounds could take out a vehicle like a 50 cal at 1000-2000m. No casings and ammo was in the same weight category. The ammo was similar to the gyrojet but with a various warheads depending on the target (soft or hard target, incendiary, ....). Due to the high velocity, the drop was minimal. Burn time was very short and did not overly highlight the solider.

Said the main reason the US did not adopt the weapons line was the ammo manufacturing and current weapons production lines. In other words, it was all politics.