Ceramic Durable Solid Lubricant Coating for Firearms

Medium caliber aircraft guns like the M197 rotary cannon experience multiple points of friction and therefore need preventative maintenance cycles to address wear and corrosion. Wet firearm lubricants like TW25B must be regularly removed and re-applied because they collect sand, dust, and carbon, which increases wear on the part. The overall objective of this project is to increase weapon system readiness by reducing downtime due to scheduled maintenance and system failure. This is accomplished by reducing the reliance on wet (oil) lubricants, reducing premature system failures due to corrosion, and increasing the service life of replacement parts. TDA’s goal is to replace TW-25B lubricant used on the M197 gun with a durable solid lubricant coating. To accomplish this goal, we will produce a durable, dry coating that exceeds the current lubricity, wear resistance, and corrosion protection of the coatings currently used on the M197 gun.  In Phase II, we will continue to improve, test, and scale-up the production of the coating system. The final prototype coating will be applied to M197 components which will be assembled into the full gun, and we will work with the Navy to perform a dry cycle endurance test demonstration.