In 1961, Cass Hough, the president of Daisy Heddon division of Victor Comptometer, purchased the design of a new firearm system. The new system was developed by a Belgian chemist named Jules Van Langenhover. The new gun would be known as the Daisy V/L rifle.[1]
The Daisy V/L ammunition consisted of a .22 caliber bullet with a small cylinder of propellant on the back, and no primer.[2] The rifle resembled a typical spring-air rifle, but the 2,000 °F (1,090 °C) high-pressure air served not only to propel the projectile, but also to ignite the propellant on the back of the Daisy V/L cartridge. The rifle uses a small, unique, and well designed part called an Obturator (obturator/ignitor) to compress the air as it is pushed through a tiny hole. This air is heated as it is pushed through the small hole enough to ignite the powder of the caseless round.[3]
The Daisy V/L rifles and ammunition were discontinued in 1969 after the US Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives ruled that they constituted a firearm, and Daisy, which was not licensed to manufacture firearms, decided to discontinue manufacture rather than become a firearms manufacturer. About 23,000 of the rifles were made before production ceased.
The Daisy V/L rifle and ammunition has been added to the ATF Curio & Relic list.
