Ethnographic Arms & Armour - View Single Post - A 1548 Nuremberg Dagger-grip Over-and-Under Double Wheellock Pistol

Marcus den toom · 16th December 2013, 09:34 AM

I am starting to learn Michael

I was away this weekend, but Saturday the postman brought my book "Superimposed load firearms by Baxter", you where right abut that one, i will be reading till next year

Raf, i myself have thought about this subject. It seems at some points strange that the wheel lock was developed at all, High cost, maintenance and the need for skilled blacksmiths are reasons to suspect a different outcome.
My thoughts about this are that in the time the iginition systems where developed, the Italian empirre was one of the leading authorities in art and science (talking abut the beginning of the Renaisance). Italy was at war with France and Spain during the turn of the century (1500). Thus the need for new firearms (better firearms win wars).
I have no information as of yet about the geological places of flint. But i do now that the coast of France and Spain are covered with this material. This would make it easier for these countries to develope a flintstriking mechanism.
The italians had to come up with something else i think because of the lack of flint (assumption!!). Pyrith, used for wheel locks, has to be scraped by a piece of iron to create sparks, if you would just strike a piece of pyrith it would crumble without effect. Thus a rotating wheel or even earlier, a horizontal bar with a rough surface to scrape a pyrith stone, forgot the name of this device

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As i already stated, this is just a assumption, some good old facts would do us good

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16th December 2013, 09:34 AM	#35
Marcus den toom Member Join Date: Jun 2013 Location: Netherlands Posts: 494	I am starting to learn Michael I was away this weekend, but Saturday the postman brought my book "Superimposed load firearms by Baxter", you where right abut that one, i will be reading till next year Raf, i myself have thought about this subject. It seems at some points strange that the wheel lock was developed at all, High cost, maintenance and the need for skilled blacksmiths are reasons to suspect a different outcome. My thoughts about this are that in the time the iginition systems where developed, the Italian empirre was one of the leading authorities in art and science (talking abut the beginning of the Renaisance). Italy was at war with France and Spain during the turn of the century (1500). Thus the need for new firearms (better firearms win wars). I have no information as of yet about the geological places of flint. But i do now that the coast of France and Spain are covered with this material. This would make it easier for these countries to develope a flintstriking mechanism. The italians had to come up with something else i think because of the lack of flint (assumption!!). Pyrith, used for wheel locks, has to be scraped by a piece of iron to create sparks, if you would just strike a piece of pyrith it would crumble without effect. Thus a rotating wheel or even earlier, a horizontal bar with a rough surface to scrape a pyrith stone, forgot the name of this device . As i already stated, this is just a assumption, some good old facts would do us good .