Firearm hand guard mounting assembly

Abstract

A hand guard mount assembly and method of securing a hand guard to a firearm in a manner that resists rotation and / or longitudinal translation of the hand guard relative to the underlying firearm. The hand guard mount assembly includes a mount clip that is defined by a body having a first portion and a second portion. The first portion of the clip is constructed to be received in a slot defined by a handguard and defines a smallest diameter associated with a receiver end of the hand guard. The second portion of the clip radially and / or longitudinally indexes the mount clip, and a hand guard associated therewith, relative to at least one of a barrel nut, a barrel, and a receiver associated with the underlying firearm.

Description

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS[0001]This application is a Continuation-In-Part of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 14 / 667,922 filed on Mar. 25, 2015 titled “Firearm Hand Guard Mounting Assembly” and the disclosure of which is expressly incorporated herein.BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION[0002]The present invention relates generally to mounting arrangements associated with securing a hand guard to an underlying firearm assembly. More specifically, the present invention relates to a mount clip, and methods for securing a hand guard to a firearm that defines the compression associated with a compression slot associated with the hand guard. In another aspect, the present invention is directed to a mounting arrangement that prevents rotation and / or longitudinal translation of the hand guard relative to the underlying firearm when the hand guard is secured thereto.[0003]Many firearms, particularly when provided as a rifle or tactical firearm configuration, arc provided with a hand gua...

AI Technical Summary

Benefits of technology

The present invention provides a firearm hand guard mount assembly and method of forming a hand guard mounting assembly that overcomes drawbacks of previous methods. The mount assembly includes a mount clip that is defined by a body having a first portion and a second portion. The first portion is designed to be received in a slot defined by a hand guard so as to secure the hand guard to the receiver of the firearm. The mount clip has a second portion that radially indexes the mount clip and the hand guard relative to the receiver. This ensures that the hand guard cannot rotate when assembled. The invention also includes a firearm assembly that includes a barrel, a receiver, and a hand guard, with the hand guard extending longitudinally along a portion of the barrel. The assembly includes a clip that is designed to cooperate with the hand guard and secure the hand guard to the firearm. The invention provides a more secure and stable mounting of the hand guard to the firearm, preventing rotation and ensuring proper alignment.

Problems solved by technology

The accuracy associated with use of the firearm, and particularly use of the firearm with hand guard supporting sighting accessories, can be detrimentally affected if the hand guard should become loose or otherwise movable, even slightly, relative the underlying firearm.

Unfortunately, many known mounting arrangements are susceptible to various undesirable operations which can damage one or more of the structures associated with securing the rearward facing end of the hand guard relative to a firearm.

For instance, over-tightening of one or more fasteners associated with securing the hand guard to the firearm can result in damage to one or more of the hand guard, and commonly the threaded openings configured to cooperate with the fasteners, the fasteners themselves, the mating features associated with the contacting interfaces between the hand guard and the receiver and / or barrel or barrel nut, and / or deform or undesirably stress the structure of the hand guard.

Undesirable or unexpected loosening of the fasteners, unobserved debris associated with the attaining the initial interface, different rates of thermal expansion and contraction, as well as various other factors can detract from the ability to acquire and maintain a desired secure physical interaction between the hand guard and the underling barrel, barrel nut, and / or receiver.

Once assembled, small and sometimes imperceptible translations of the hand guard relative to the underlying firearm can detrimentally impact use of the underlying firearm.

For instance, if sighting devices are supported by the hand guard, any movement of the hand guard relative to the underlying firearm can result in unacceptable inaccuracy associated with use of the firearm.

Arguably, although rotational translation of the hand guard relative to the underlying firearm can have a greater detrimental impact on repeatable and accurate use of the underlying firearm than true axial displacement of the hand guard relative to the receiver due to misalignments associated with sighting devices supported by the hand guard, any translation between the hand guard and the underlying firearm after assembly is undesired.

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