A US soldier drops a shell into the muzzle of an M224 60-mm mortar.

A muzzleloader is any firearm into which the bullet is loaded from the muzzle of the gun (open end of the gun barrel). Image File history File links Download high-resolution version (484x710, 160 KB) Soldier Firing the M224 60mm Mortar. ... Image File history File links Download high-resolution version (484x710, 160 KB) Soldier Firing the M224 60mm Mortar. ... The M224 60 mm Lightweight Mortar is a smooth bore, muzzle-loading, high-angle-of-fire weapon used for close-in support of ground troops. ... US soldier loading a M224 60-mm mortar. ... This article does not cite its references or sources. ... .357 Magnum cartridges, containing bullets A bullet is a solid projectile propelled by a firearm and is normally made from metal (usually lead). ... The muzzle of a firearm is the end of the barrel from which the projectile will exit. ... A gun is a common name given to a device that fires high-velocity projectiles. ...

Modern muzzleloading firearms range from reproductions of sidelock, flintlock and percussion long guns, to in-line rifles that use modern inventions such as a closed breech, sealed primer and fast rifling to allow for considerable accuracy at long ranges. Mortars are a type of short-range artillery that are muzzle-loaded. Two flintlock pistols Flintlock is the general term for any firearm based on the flintlock mechanism. ... The percussion cap or primer was the crucial invention needed to make fire-arms that could fire in any weather. ... The percussion cap or primer was the crucial invention needed to make fire-arms that could fire in any weather. ... US soldier loading a M224 60-mm mortar. ...

Muzzleloading can apply to anything from cannons to pistols but in modern parlance the term most commonly applies to black powder small arms. It usually, but not always, involves the use of a loose propellant (i.e. gun powder) and projectile, as well as a separate method of ignition or priming. A small cannon on a carriage, Bucharest. ... A Browning 9 millimeter Hi-Power Ordnance pistol of the French Navy, 19th century, using a Percussion cap mechanism Derringers were small and easily hidden. ... Black powder for sporting can be freely bought in Switzerland. ... Small arms captured in Fallujah, Iraq by the US Marine Corps in 2004 The term small arms generally describes any number of smaller infantry weapons, such as firearms that an individual soldier can carry. ... Wikipedia does not have an article with this exact name. ...

Loading

Loaded Muzzleloader. (1) Priming charge (2) Main propellent charge (3) Wadding (4) Projectile (5) Wadding

In general, the sequence of loading is to put in: Image File history File linksMetadata Download high-resolution version (2576x1932, 895 KB) File links The following pages on the English Wikipedia link to this file (pages on other projects are not listed): Muzzleloader Metadata This file contains additional information, probably added from the digital camera or scanner used to create... Image File history File linksMetadata Download high-resolution version (2576x1932, 895 KB) File links The following pages on the English Wikipedia link to this file (pages on other projects are not listed): Muzzleloader Metadata This file contains additional information, probably added from the digital camera or scanner used to create...

• gunpowder, either by inserting premeasured pellets, pouring in loose powder, or by inserting a pre-measured bag of gunpowder usually called a "cartridge"
• wadding, soft material like cloth or paper; in shotguns, this is placed in before and after the shot. With round balls, it is wrapped around the base of the ball and called a "patch", the purpose of which is to grip the rifling and impart spin to the loose fitting ball. In the Enfield rifle and other Minie rifles, no patch is used as the projectile has a hollow base which expands to grip the rifling.
• the projectile, which may range from a solid lead ball to jacketed sabots to shot. The gunpowder used is typically blackpowder or blackpowder substitutes like Pyrodex.

Since the items are generally tight-fitting, and the barrel long, a tool called a "ramrod" is used to push the items down. Wadding is used in guns to seal gas behind a projectile. ... It has been suggested that Break action be merged into this article or section. ... A projectile is any object sent through space by the application of a force. ... An APFSDS separating from its spindle sabot Anti-tank flechette round with its sabot A sabot refers to a device named for a shoe used in a firearm or cannon to fire a projectile or bullet that is smaller than the bore diameter. ... Smokeless powder Gunpowder, whether black powder or smokeless powder, is a substance that burns very rapidly, releasing gases that act as a propellant in firearms. ... A modern hammer is directly descended from ancient hand tools A tool or device is a piece of equipment which typicallly provides a mechanical advantage in accomplishing a physical task. ...

When aiming for ultimate accuracy, muzzle-loaders are usually cleaned ("swabbed") before reloading, so that there is no residue left in the barrel to reduce accuracy, though in competitions run by the international governing body, the MLAIC, this is prohibited. Large calibre muzzle-loaders such as cannons are always swabbed between shots to prevent accidents.

Muzzleloading

Varsity Scouts of the Boy Scouts of America learning about muzzleloading rifles

Muzzleloading is the term used to describe the sport, or pastime of firing muzzleloading guns. Muzzleloading guns, both antique and reproduction, are used for target shooting, hunting, historical re-enactment and historical research. The sport originated in the United States in the 1930s, just as the last original users and makers of muzzleloading arms were dying out. The sport received a tremendous boost in the 1960s and 1970s, and a flourishing industry manufacturing working reproductions of historic firearms now exists in the United States and Europe, particularly in northern Italy near Gardone. Image File history File links Download high-resolution version (1536x1024, 383 KB) Varsity Scouts preparing black powder rifles as part of a Frontiersman activity. ... Image File history File links Download high-resolution version (1536x1024, 383 KB) Varsity Scouts preparing black powder rifles as part of a Frontiersman activity. ... Varsity Scouting is part of the Boy Scout Division of the Boy Scouts of America (BSA). ... The Boy Scouts of America (BSA) is a United States Scouting organization, with some presence in other countries. ... World map showing Europe A satellite composite image of Europe Europe is one of the seven traditional continents of the Earth. ...

The National Muzzle Loading Rifle Association holds two national tournaments a year at Friendship, Indiana. The NMLRA Logo. ... Friendship, Indiana is a town located in Ripley County, Indiana. ...

See also

Muzzle-loading gun on its cheek

• Firearms
• Gonne
• Matchlock
• Wheellock
• Snaplock
• Snaphance
• Miquelet
• Flintlock
• Caplock mechanism
• Black powder

Image File history File links Download high resolution version (1280x960, 450 KB) Please see the file description page for further information. ... Image File history File links Download high resolution version (1280x960, 450 KB) Please see the file description page for further information. ... Look up Cheek in Wiktionary, the free dictionary The Cheeks are the fleshy area of the face below the eyes and between the nose and the left or right ear, the skin being suspended by the chin and the yaws. ... A firearm is a kinetic energy weapon that fires either a single or multiple projectiles propelled at high velocity by the gases produced by action of the rapid confined burning of a propellant. ... Hand gonnes from the Historisches Museum, Bern Hand gonne being fired from a stand, Belli Fortis, manuscript, by Konrad Kyeser, 1400 The gonne, hand gonne or hand cannon, as it was called, was the first handheld, portable firearm. ... The Matchlock was the first firearm to have a trigger mechanism for firing. ... Wheellock, Wheel-Lock or Wheel lock, is a mechanism for firing a firearm. ... Snaplock refers to a mechanism for igniting a firearms propellant usually in a muzzleloading gun. ... Snaphance or Snaphaunce refers to a mechanism for igniting a firearms propellant usually in a muzzleloading gun. ... Miquelet (miguelet) is a modern term applied to a distinctive form of flint-against-steel ignition mechanism (lock) prevalent in the Mediterrean lands in the late 16th to early 19th centuries. ... Two flintlock pistols Flintlock is the general term for any firearm based on the flintlock mechanism. ... The caplock mechanism was the successor of the flintlock mechanism in firearm technology, and used a percussion cap struck by the hammer to set off the main charge, rather than using a piece of flint to strike a steel frizzen. ... Black powder for sporting can be freely bought in Switzerland. ...

External links

• National Muzzle Loading Rifle Association
• Muzzle Loaders association of Great Britain
• Detailed information on shooting muzzle loading pistols