rough and ready powder loads

[rusty bubbles]

Recently reading some comments by Lord Byron- a well known duellist
back in the 18th and 19th centuries-made me wonder about the powder loads
people of those times used in their hand guns.

for instance- he speaks of the load for a duelling pistol -quote-"Place the ball in the cupped palm of the hand, and just cover it with powder,this being sufficient to kill or maim, while keeping a minimum of recoil,thus ensuring a true aim"

We know from his verse* that the duelling range was only 12 yards-
So a seemingly small amount of powder was enough to despatch one's opponent- but what about the black powder revolvers of the civil war-did thoe soldiers use a measure for each cylinder-or is black powder so "forgiving"as to be practically foolproof?


*It has a strange,Quick jar upon the ear;
That cocking of a pistol when you know
A moment more will bring the sights to bear
Upon your person, twelve yards off or so.

rusty

 

[Oyeboten]

Interesting...


I have often wondered how people measured the volume of powder used in Rifles especially, where accuracy over distance was important.

One sees endless Powder Horns of the Flint and early Percussion period, but they never have any means of measuring a specific volume...

Flasks having the dispensator/cut-off under the Spout, could and do measure a specific volume of Powder, so long as one's mode of use is consistent.

 

[mykeal]

I believe volumetric powder measures were quite common in the 18th and 19th century.They were most often fashioned from wood, but brass and bone were occasionally used also. They were fixed volumes, of course. They're most often seen attached to the same belt or sash as the powder horn/flask with a leather thong but are rarely mentioned.

Issue ammunition during the mid 19th century (Civil War era) was, of course, the venerable paper cartridge, so the line troops rarely had any need to measure powder.