A study on firearms tools

[Marcus den toom]

There might already be a thread about this, but i couldn't fid it :/

The purpose of this thread is to share knowledge about firearm tools, like bulletmolds, wheel lock spanners, powder horns etc.

Tools which have been discussed before can of course just be linked


To start of, i show you my bulletmold.. it looks pretty old, but how old is for me a mystery. It is definitly before the 1800s but no clue on it other than this.
It has an 8 bullet capacity, 7 of 6mm and one of 14mm. The "arms" are hinged.

[fernando]

Nice 'rustic' mould you got there.

[adrian]

A "buck & ball" bullet mould. It would have been for a musket of a caliber to suit that ball. The user could fire either a musket ball, at large game, or buckshot at smaller game, or both at an enemy - individually or buck & ball in the one load. So quite versatile & quite handy with its foldaway handles.

[JamesKelly]

Looks like this mould makes different size "buck" shot. What caliber is that large ball?

To add to this thread, here is what Grandfather said was a gun tool. He had a good handle on family events of the 18th century, but I am not so sure of this. Dad looked in his tool box one time, found this & asked Grandfather what it was? "Oh, its a tool to remove the drum from a rifle". Dad quickly traded him a nice Sears & Roebuck screwdriver. The rifle in question would have been my great-great grandfather's rifle, made in Western Pennsylvania, USA, some time before 1850. My Grandfather hunted & won turkey shoots with this rifle, never having fired a breech loader until age 18 (1900 A.D.)

Clearly a screwdriver, I personally cannot figure out how that U-bottomed side extension could unscrew a drum, or really do anything. Wood handle 102mm (4 inches) across, steel blade 108mm (4-1/4 inch) total length. U-shaped extension fits an 8.4mm (0.33" mm) diameter round, too small to fit the drum of the rifle in question. So I really do not know for sure what it is, beyond what Grandfather said.

Ideas?

[adrian]

It perhaps fits the breech plug of a small caliber rifle, it is the right shape etc. This might have been what was meant by "drum".

[kahnjar1]

Originally Posted by JamesKelly

Looks like this mould makes different size "buck" shot. What caliber is that large ball?

To add to this thread, here is what Grandfather said was a gun tool. He had a good handle on family events of the 18th century, but I am not so sure of this. Dad looked in his tool box one time, found this & asked Grandfather what it was? "Oh, its a tool to remove the drum from a rifle". Dad quickly traded him a nice Sears & Roebuck screwdriver. The rifle in question would have been my great-great grandfather's rifle, made in Western Pennsylvania, USA, some time before 1850. My Grandfather hunted & won turkey shoots with this rifle, never having fired a breech loader until age 18 (1900 A.D.)

Clearly a screwdriver, I personally cannot figure out how that U-bottomed side extension could unscrew a drum, or really do anything. Wood handle 102mm (4 inches) across, steel blade 108mm (4-1/4 inch) total length. U-shaped extension fits an 8.4mm (0.33" mm) diameter round, too small to fit the drum of the rifle in question. So I really do not know for sure what it is, beyond what Grandfather said.

Ideas?

You don't say how wide the middle of the U bit is, but it could well be a nipple wrench, for unscrewing percussion nipples.
Stu

[Marcus den toom]

@JamesKelly, the bal is 14mm wide.

Khanjar1 has a very plausible answer here, since the tool does not look like it was designed to take the mechanical stress that a breechplug would cause.

[Andi]

Here is a really simple and unimpressive tool from Fokke Museum in Bremen, Germany, described as a clearing needle (Räumnadel). It is not dated and I guess it is from 17th or 18th century. The shaft between the handle and the needle assumes that the tool was inserted in hilt or a sheath (probably in connection with a bandolier?). I am not really sure of the material of the neelde whether it is iron or bronze because on the needle are brownish residues like rost but it also has a greenish patina like copper alloys, I preferrably assume it is made from iron.

[Marcus den toom]

A very nice tool indeed, to open up the ventholes from a flintlock or even a wheellock. Because blackpowder leaves some residue it may clog the vent (the hole in the barrel). I heared the name vent pick a few times but i am not sure if it is correct.
The metal is most likely hardened iron.

[JamesKelly]

Just touch your Räumnadel with a magnet.
Iron or steel will be attracted, bronze or copper not.

On my tool the U-shape opening seems too large for a nipple wrench, at least for the nipple now in the rifle. Drum means drum, that thing screwed into the barrel into which the nipple goes. About that term Grandpa would have been clear. Just do not know what he was thinking about this tool.

And that "buck and ball" mould that started this thread is more complex than I have seen American tools to be. From what I have seen, I think it quite unlikely for an old American mould to have folding handles.

[fernando]

My 'Räumnadel' is a very basic one, not much worthy; probably 19th century ... or even later, if it was used in operational gun replicas. In this case it could either be for clearing ventholes or percussion niples.
I was found on the grounds of a shooting range, after a contest involving all types of ignition, from matchlock to percussion, open to originals and reproductions.
I wouldn't know what name these things have/had over here; arms lexicon is not 'universal'; we call venthole 'ear' and nipple 'chimney'.

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[fernando]

I kept thinking about these ball & buck moulds and, as i had seen one of the kind several months ago in a local dealer, i went back there and bought the thing.
This one is said to be a military version. I wonder if i may date it end XVIII century.
The cavities fit (close to) 15 m/m and 18 m/m bullets (balls) and a 9 m/m buck shot.
The mould itself is rather surdy, made in bronze. The whole device weighs 1,150 Kgs.
I wish Adrian were around to comment on this example; i am sure this is his area, both tool and period, and would be thankful for his input, with all eventual corrections to the above assumptions .
Other members opinions will obviously be welcome

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[adrian]

It is difficult to date & identify this unless there are some identifying marks, even with its measurable caliber as a guide. For most of the black powder military history it was far more expedient to supply ready made ammunition rather than to supply separate lead, casting tools, melting vessels etc & loose powder. Certainly there are examples whereby bullet making utensils/moulds were provided, as a back up, such as to outstations, expeditions & where re-supply was unlikely/unreliable, etc, but this would generally be the exception. If there was a conflict where hastily raised troops may have been required to provide their own arms then ammunition supply would probably have relied to some extent upon casting balls as required at an individual level due to varying calibres.

[fernando]

Thank you so much, Adrian. All wise info noted. Unfortunately there are no marks in it .

[fernando]

This is another bullet mould, which i forgot i had it for a while.
Again a rustic one, of very small dimensions, but still with sprue cutter and a 'cube' for turn off barrels.
Approximate caliber 12 m/m.

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[Marcus den toom]

Hi Fernando

Your first bullet mold is quit a heavy thing
I can't imagine that any particular soldier would carrier it with him, also the fact that it has 3 calibers in it would sugest some other use (shotgun?)

In case of a shotgun it could be explained, since some shotguns had 2 barrels with different calibers. The 3rd caliber could be buckshot?

At the first sight of it i thought immediatly about a german mountain man of some kind, with his double barrel shotgun hunting game , but i do have a significant fantasy

[fernando]

I regret having to cool down your fantasy .
I have meanwhile been paging Collectors Illustrated Encyclopedia of the American Revolution, by Newmann & Kravic.
Inumerous moulds are shown there, since folding handle to ball & buck models, similar to all examples shown here.
I don't think these multi use moulds, like the one i have posted, are for double calibre guns but for casting projectiles for different weapons, depending on respective necessity. Naturaly heavy weight devices are not portable and are certainly destined to backing facilities. Whether they may considered military or civilian is a question that, being omitted by Neumann, falls into knowledged Adrian's criteria.

[Andi]

From my last visit at Germanisches Nationalmuseum in Nuremberg, Germany.

An early multi-tool. A powder tester with integrated powder measure and fire striker from the 17/18th century.

The second one is just a single-tool only, a powder measure of the 17th century.