Torador Matchlock - Finished

[kahnjar1]

Originally Posted by Pukka Bundook

A very nice thread gents,

I have just enjoyed the last few new comments.

Steve, In translation we may well have lost the true meaning of how Akbar had the barrels tested. A full Chamber sounds more sense than a full barrel!

This also begs the question, Why a chamber would be constructed so large that it was (apparently ) common to only half fill it.?

Loading these chambered barrels appears to have taken longer, and why they were continued in use after corned powder I do not know.
We do read that some Very high quality powder was produced over there, So I for one can't come up with a good reason for what we find today.

Stu,

The powder you used years back would be coarse, like 1F or 2F I would imagine. 4F is priming powder for matchlocks and such, and would more or less detonate in a barrel if used as the main charge.

Regarding air space, a small airspace in a cartridge is completely fine with black powder, Some International shooting friends load in this manner, but please do not give me grief about it, because I do not! :-)

Steve, again if I may,
Trying your cow dung yesterday worked very well. The toradar went off like a rocket. :-)
It packed nicely in the chamber so appears to be very cheap form of wadding! (Here on the farm, that is!....Dried, Not fresh stuff LOL!)

I would Really look forward to us having some kind of a competition for these old arms!

We Do have an annual shoot here on the farm, and I did use mine a little last year. We also shoot European style matchlocks, my latest creation being a short snapping matchlock based on one of Michael T's beloved guns.

If anyone would like to come up (or down) to Alberta in late June, please just drop me a line, you would be more than welcome! (Victorian theme really, but we sneak other things in!)

To try an old arm, I usually tie it to a saw horse and fire it remote with a long string.
At the time of trying the toradar barrel yesterday, I also tried a lovely little Persian barrel, it is very promising though may need the touchhole re-piercing, as it is Much too high and flashed repeatedly.

All the best,
Richard.

Yep the memory grows foggy with age.(Probably due to all the smoke generated at the time!). Of course 4F is priming powder. We would have used 1 or 2F, as you say.
Stu