Buck and ball load

[mikee51848]

What would a buck and ball load consist of, in a .75 Bess?

 

[Hiparoo]

ball with whatever size small ball will stack in threes-I've used 6 balls on top of a roundball, leaves a mean and oozing corpse...

 

[Russianblood]

I believe the "standard" is a .715 RB with 3-.32 RB buck loaded on top. I don't have a .75 though. I use a .600 RB with 4-.25 RB buck for my 20 bore.

 

[mikee51848]

What kind of damage does that do to a target?

 

[Russianblood]

What kind of damage does that do to a target?

It puts one big hole and 4 little holes in it. :rotf:

I doubt I would ever hunt with that kind of a loading. No need to with a 325gr round ball striking the target. What good would four more 23gr round balls do?

 

[Brasilikilt]

It's my understanding that buck and ball loads were mainly used by the military.
More projectiles means a higher probability of hitting someone in formation.
I doubt those little balls were very lethal at across the battlefeild ranges, but if ya got hit by one, chances are you wouldn't be fighting much more that day

 

[mikee51848]

What kind of damage does that do to a target?

It puts one big hole and 4 little holes in it. :rotf:

What good would four more 23gr round balls do?

Four more holes in a lobster-back?

 

[rifleshooter2]

The Legion Of The United States had two different loads for their muskets. The Infantry carried a Buck and Ball load 1 Ball 3 Buckshot. The Light Infantry carried a full Buckshot load of 9 Buckshot and no ball. According to Wayne they were both very effective for close in fighting.

Andy Michaels
Legion Ville Historical Society[url] www.legionville.com[/url]

 

[Lone Carabiner]

You're correct from what I read in 'American Rifleman' an article about the load being used in the War Between the States, mainly by the Southern troops where smoothbores were more common

 

[musketman]

What would a buck and ball load consist of, in a .75 Bess?

They can also be pre-made like in the image...

 

[Wes/Tex]

As most of the posts indicate, buck & ball loads are mostly a military proposition. I experimented with them in a Bess some years ago but anything beyond 15 yards was a waste for hunting use. The large ball dropped nearly 6 inches compared to being fired by itself and the buckshot went everywhere. During military battalion firing all the stray buchshot could certainly cause debilitating wounds and one Wisconsin regiment erected a oblesk monument with a buck & ball arrangement on top in honor of their success at Gettysburg.