Before the Ball: Clod Shot of 1375 - the Earliest Lead Gun Ammunition!

batjka · 19th September 2015, 02:22 PM

I was referring to Matchlock's post #10 that in turn refers to the depiction in the post #1.

Post #22 talks about a different depiction which corresponds to the theory he had described.

Still, a question remains, how were the gunners able to load the superimposed loads as to ensure that the touch holes line up with the powder charges. One version is that they had used a ramrod with markings that indicate where each projectile must end up in relation to the muzzle. I had offered another explanation, supported by the depiction in the post #1 - depth probe was inserted through the hole in the projectile and when it touched the front of the projectile below, that's when the gunner knew it's all in the proper position. This makes a lot more sense than to try to tap it from the front, where an accidental extra hit could throw the whole sequence off. The left man on the photo in the post #1 clearly has this "probe" inserted through the projectile ready to load it into the barrel.

19th September 2015, 02:22 PM	#31
batjka Member Join Date: Mar 2014 Posts: 39	I was referring to Matchlock's post #10 that in turn refers to the depiction in the post #1. Post #22 talks about a different depiction which corresponds to the theory he had described. Still, a question remains, how were the gunners able to load the superimposed loads as to ensure that the touch holes line up with the powder charges. One version is that they had used a ramrod with markings that indicate where each projectile must end up in relation to the muzzle. I had offered another explanation, supported by the depiction in the post #1 - depth probe was inserted through the hole in the projectile and when it touched the front of the projectile below, that's when the gunner knew it's all in the proper position. This makes a lot more sense than to try to tap it from the front, where an accidental extra hit could throw the whole sequence off. The left man on the photo in the post #1 clearly has this "probe" inserted through the projectile ready to load it into the barrel.