smoothbore caliber?

[huntertrapper]

whats the biggest caliber for a smoothbore .75? just wonderin thanks

 

[Many Klatch]

75 caliber just happens to be the biggest bore that the British military muskets used. I have seen 8 and 4 bore, which are a lot bigger that were developed for big game. Sorry I don't know the calibers of those bigger bores, but they can kill at both ends when you shoot a round ball out of them.

Many Klatch

 

[Grenadier1758]

Our unit has a wall or swivel gun that is a 4 gauge. The 11 and 10 gauge guns are the largest that can be shoulder fired without more than considerable pain.

 

[paulvallandigham]

The 8 gauge is .835" in diameter. The 6 gauge is .919" in diameter, and the 4 gauge is 1.052 ". I have fired an 8 gauge with 6 drams of powder and 3 oz of shot that got my attention, but with 4 drams and 2 oz of shot it is manageable. You can load any large gauge shotgun down to smaller gauge loads, and get better efficiency, since fewer pellets are going to rub against the walls of the barrel. The owner of the 8 gauge gun is building a 6 gauge gun now. He shoots the 8 gauge well, but will not take my advice and load only 3 drams of powder and 1 1/2 oz of shot for clay targets. I know the load I have recommended will pattern well, there would be almost no recoil, and the owner would be able to use the gun in match shooting at friendship. As it is, he uses it in local club shoots and for practice, but not in competition. He usually wins a plaque or two at each of the national shoots at Friendship.

 

[Adam Isrow]

I saw a show on the History Channel called "the History of Hunting" or something similar. Near the end they showed a guy shooting what i believe they called a punt gun. It was this mammoth shotgun that had to be mounted to the front of his little boat. He'd row quietly and sneak up on a flock of fowl, than when he was in the most advantageous position...BLAM!!! Get 20 or 30 at a time. And that's how they fed London's insatiable appetite for ducks.
The barrel was 2" or 2.5" diameter and the guy literally used a shot glass to load it. He pulled a string to release the percussion lock.

 

[Mike Brooks]

This one is a 6 bore.

I've built a 4 bore and build 10 bores all the time.

 

[paulvallandigham]

Punt guns were also used in this country by commercial duck hunters, on all the flyways. Its use was banned with the first conservation laws along with commercial hunting, and restricted commercial fishing. The largest legal gauge that can be used to hunt Migratory Waterfowl now is the 10 gauge. Most states have similar restrictions on shotguns used to hunt upland game. The only use for larger caliber shotguns is for nuisance birds, like the English Sparrow, Pigeons, Starlings,and other pests which have no restrictions on them. Some varmints can also be shot with just about anything, depending on the state. This is where practicality comes into play. Since a punt gun was so heavy and cumbersome that it was mounted on the transome of a john boat, and floated into position, It is hardly a gun of choice to use in shooting anything other than waterfowl, for which it is now an illegal weapon. The punt guns that were not turned into scrap are in museums and private collections.

By comparison, The belled-muzzle, " blunderbuss" can be, technically, used to hunt as it meets the gauge requirement. The guns are " portable ", but its highly unlikely they would be very easy to swing effectively on passing or rising birds. That having been said, IF I owned one, I might be tempted to take it out to shoot pigeons around grain elevators, where they do a lot of damage to the grain. :hmm: :thumbsup:

 

[huntertrapper]

i had read an article about the gun in fur fish game