OPTIC AND STRIKER DESIGN FOR A HANDGUN
A handgun having an integrated optic and an improved striker design. The striker may be designed such that it sits lower within the slide of the handgun, thus providing further clearance above the striker for the optic. In some examples, the striker includes an offset tip (as opposed to a coaxially-aligned tip) that allows the striker body to sit lower within the slide of the handgun. In some examples, the striker incorporates more than one spring to reduce the diameter of the main body, thus providing more clearance above the striker. Due at least in part to the altered design of the striker, the optic is arranged on the slide of the handgun such that the top surface of the optic body is aligned with the top surface of the slide.
1 . A striker for a handgun, the striker comprising:
an elongated body having a first end and an opposite second end, such that the elongated body extends along a first direction between the first end and the second end;
a catch structure coupled to or near the first end of the elongated body, the catch structure configured to engage with a sear of the handgun;
an end face at the second end of the elongated body; and
a tip coupled to the end face and extending away from the end face along the first direction, wherein a distance between a first axis extending coaxially along the first direction through the tip and a plane extending along the first direction and coplanar with a topmost surface of the striker is less than 3 mm.
2 . The striker of claim 1 , wherein the first axis is offset by at least 2 mm from a second axis that extends along the first direction through a center of the end face.
3 . The striker of claim 1 , further comprising a spring disposed around an outside surface of at least a portion of the elongated body.
4 . The striker of claim 1 , wherein the elongated body has a substantially cylindrical shape.
5 . The striker of claim 1 , wherein a topmost surface of the tip is substantially coplanar with a topmost surface of the second end of the elongated body.
6 . A handgun comprising:
a frame;
a slide displaceable along the frame in a direction parallel with a bore axis extending coaxially through a barrel of the handgun; and
a fire control group housed within the frame and/or the slide, the fire control group comprising a striker and a sear,
wherein the striker comprises
an elongated body having a first end and an opposite second end, such that the elongated body extends along the direction parallel with the bore axis between the first end and the second end;
a catch structure coupled to or near the first end of the elongated body, the catch structure configured to engage with the sear; and
a tip at the second end of the elongated body and extending away from the second end, the tip having a tip axis passing coaxially through a center of the tip that is colinear with the bore axis,
wherein a distance between a topmost surface of the striker and the tip axis is less than 3 mm.
7 . The handgun of claim 6 , wherein the striker further comprises:
a wing structure extending outwards from the elongated body along a direction substantially orthogonal to the bore axis;
a protrusion coupled to the wing structure and extending longitudinally in a direction parallel with the bore axis; and
a spring disposed around the protrusion, the spring extending longitudinally in the direction parallel with the bore axis.
8 . The handgun of claim 7 , wherein the wing structure is a first wing structure extending along a first direction substantially orthogonal to the bore axis, the protrusion is a first protrusion, and the spring is a first spring, the striker further comprising:
a second wing structure extending outwards from the elongated body along a second direction substantially orthogonal to the bore axis and opposite from the first direction;
a second protrusion coupled to the second wing structure and extending longitudinally in the direction parallel with the bore axis; and
a second spring disposed around the second protrusion, the second spring extending longitudinally in the direction parallel with the bore axis.
9 . The handgun of claim 6 , wherein the tip axis is offset from a central axis passing coaxially through a center of the second end of the elongated body.
10 . The handgun of claim 9 , wherein the tip axis is offset from the central axis by between 2 mm and 4 mm.
11 . The handgun of claim 6 , further comprising an optic mounted to the slide, wherein the optic comprises:
a body housing a power source and an emitter, and
a hood above the body, such that the body is between the hood and the slide when the optic is mounted to the slide.
12 . The handgun of claim 11 , wherein a top surface of the body of the optic is substantially coplanar with a top surface of the slide.
13 . The handgun of claim 12 , wherein a distance between the topmost surface of the striker and a bottommost surface of the body of the optic is less than 2 mm.
14 . The handgun of claim 11 , wherein the slide comprises an optic cut in a top surface of the slide, and the optic is mounted within the optic cut.
15 . The handgun of claim 14 , wherein the body of the optic sits flush within the optic cut when the optic is mounted to the slide.
16 . The handgun of claim 14 , wherein the optic cut has a depth of at least 3 mm relative to the top surface of the slide.
17 . A slide for a handgun, the slide comprising:
a body extending lengthwise parallel to a bore axis of the handgun, wherein the body includes a top surface and a recess cut into a portion of the top surface, the recess having front and rear surfaces, and a bottom surface between the front and rear surfaces, and wherein the bottom surface has a thickness of less than 2 mm.
18 . The slide of claim 17 , wherein the recess has a depth of at least 3 mm relative to the top surface of the body.
19 . The slide of claim 17 , wherein the recess is sized to fit an optic having an optic body mounted flush within the recess.
20 . The slide of claim 19 , wherein a top surface of the optic body is substantially coplanar with a top surface of the body of the slide.