Magazine Woes
Part of the problem was the gun’s magazine. Ken liked the drum design over the easier-to-build “stick” model so he had to work out how a round magazine would actually feed .22 LR ammo. After much experimentation, he finally fabricated a working 24-round version.
Ken has told me if he builds another Gatling gun, it would be for the .38 Special cartridge. Building a .22 LR Gatling gun required smaller-than-normal parts that are difficult to manufacture due to the close tolerances involved. A .38 Special version would use larger, somewhat-easier to fabricate parts plus the cartridge has a crisp rim making the extraction of fired cases mechanically easier. One final bonus: Factory .38 special rounds are more expensive to purchase but can be reloaded many times, making the Gatling gun cheaper to shoot in the long run.