Howdah Pistol

Bill M · 1st October 2008, 11:50 AM

Thank you, Jim for your glowing response!

I really loved the howdah pistol Michael Douglass carried in the "Ghost and the Darkness" also. I can see how this would have been a good lion defense.

I had read that the British military did have some kind of large bore pistol that was used "brutally" in India. Possibly against people who went amok.

I am eager to get this in my hands. I realized that this, being about .70 caliber fired a huge bullet, perhaps some kind of buckshot. The barrels are about the size of a 12 ga shotgun.

With a healthy charge of black powder, it would cause serious damage to a lion. But the recoil would be substantial. Not something you would shoot often with "full-house" loads for fun!

But this is one of the neat things about muzzle loaders. It is easy to load them lighter for practice.

I am quite curious about the "straight rifling." There is no twist. Neither the seller nor I have ever seen anything like this. Any ideas?

1st October 2008, 11:50 AM	#3
Bill M Member Join Date: Mar 2005 Location: USA Georgia Posts: 1,599	Thank you, Jim for your glowing response! I really loved the howdah pistol Michael Douglass carried in the "Ghost and the Darkness" also. I can see how this would have been a good lion defense. I had read that the British military did have some kind of large bore pistol that was used "brutally" in India. Possibly against people who went amok. I am eager to get this in my hands. I realized that this, being about .70 caliber fired a huge bullet, perhaps some kind of buckshot. The barrels are about the size of a 12 ga shotgun. With a healthy charge of black powder, it would cause serious damage to a lion. But the recoil would be substantial. Not something you would shoot often with "full-house" loads for fun! But this is one of the neat things about muzzle loaders. It is easy to load them lighter for practice. I am quite curious about the "straight rifling." There is no twist. Neither the seller nor I have ever seen anything like this. Any ideas?