period rifle loading details

[AZbpBurner]

You'll need to also decide on whether to pack the mule or go horseback to the range.

Then there's the mussel shell scraper in lieu of toiletpaper.

 

[Spikebuck]

...then places it on the honey-combed muzzle of his piece.

Ideas on what constitutes a "honey-combed" muzzle? Is this what we might refer to as a "decorative star" filed into the lands or grooves at the muzzle?

Mike

 

[George]

I've always assumed he was talking about the shape of the barrel being similar to the cells in honeycomb. Honeycomb is 6-sided, but looks a lot like an octagonal barrel.
https://www.google.com/search?q=ho...%2Fphotography%2Fhoneycomb-21286%2F;1920;1200

Spence

 

[Homesteader]

the feather is drawn from the touch-hole, the powder fills the pan,

That part is interesting.
Musta been one honkin' big touch-hole. :shocked2: Never paid much attention to the hole size in museum guns. Will have to check out next time.

My favorite rifle came with a feather in the patchbox that fits the touchhole perfectly, and it's not at all bigger than normal. I often use it to indicate there's a charge in the barrel, and occasionally as I load to keep the channel clear.

 

[Homesteader]

Who said they used a "patch" knife? Sheath knife was mentioned, but what defines a sheath knife? I would suspect a common simple knife of a medium size used for general cutting needs rather than a single purpose knife for patch cutting.

I've always felt that way. I doubt that they were as gadget oriented as we are today. Some today seem to want a specialized tool for every little process. Just look at today's kitchen knife selection. They offer you a different knife for everything from bread to grapefruit.

I completely agree with that. However their tools were very specific, much more so than now. When I started building my cabin I learned about the tremendous number of draw knives, spoke shaves, braces & bits, adzes, more axes of specific purpose than I ever dreamed of, and far more. Do you think there may have been a similar attitude in their shooting gear?

Not saying there was, just curious about your thoughts.

 

[Coot]

the feather is drawn from the touch-hole, the powder fills the pan,

That part is interesting.
Musta been one honkin' big touch-hole. :shocked2: Never paid much attention to the hole size in museum guns. Will have to check out next time.

My favorite rifle came with a feather in the patchbox that fits the touchhole perfectly, and it's not at all bigger than normal. I often use it to indicate there's a charge in the barrel, and occasionally as I load to keep the channel clear.

In the description above, I believe that the idea was that the touch hole was large enough to allow enough powder to spill into the pan upon removing the feather that no further priming was needed. A number of people use a feather as an indicator of a loaded gun or to keep a channel into the charge open as you do but those practices will work with any size touch hole (assuming a proper fitting size feather). It would seem that a pretty large hole would be needed to consistently spill enough powder to be reliable for priming.