Flintlock Musket: Napoleonic tap loading - fiction and fact

[blaketheawesomedude]

I'm confused. how does scissors beat rock?

[MrDannysuzy]

@blaketheawesomedude first of all he had paper. second dynomite beats rock and rock beats windows and small children

[cdsadler]

@blaketheawesomedude Peter showed paper and lost to scissors.

[45bloo]

Noticed the comments about the coming Zombie Apocalypse. All good tounge in cheek fun I am sure. But as one who has been confronted in a dark parking lot by an individual suffering the effects of long term meth use I can say that I no longer feel that it is so very far fetched. :) just say-n

[45bloo]

Have read accounts from the civil war (US) that spoke of the of the soldier's blackened teeth and face in the aftermath of the battle. I know they used percussion caps then but would they have used this method? When he approached the table after the rapid fire I noticed his teeth blackened and he spent some time spitting up the powder

[mandowarrior123]

@45bloo it was certainly used in the civil war.

[TheElvishfarmer]

@45bloo Probably not. Most muskets issued to infantry during the American Civil War were rifled muskets, not smoothbore. Also, the minie ball was conical with groves at its base to grab the rifling, not a spherical ball. The bullet had to be forced to the breech with a ramrod. Gravity + tapping would not be sufficient. I have seen reenactors perform tapping when their powder fails to ignite after the percussion cap is struck, but in that case, there is no round in the barrel.

[fothinator]

this is kinda neat. i'd never heard of spit/tap loading before. had i not seen this video i'd be skeptical it would even work decently.

[AUG351]

So the tapping gets the bullet down the muzzle? Also wouldn't they also have to place a patch on the end of the barrel before placing the bullet?

[cdsadler]

@AUG351 You need to read up on muzzle loaders - suggest Wikipedia as a start point.

[AUG351]

@cdsadler No, I've fired muzzel loaders before and know how to load them but I loaded them from a powder horn not cartridges and used a patch but I wasn't sure how the musket ball wouldn't roll out if tilted forward without using the paper or a patch.

[GSpeedEmotion]

This was used by line or light infantry?

[cdsadler]

@GSpeedEmotion Both

[GSpeedEmotion]

@cdsadler What about the musket itself? This shown in the vid in particular.

[cdsadler]

@GSpeedEmotion The Sharpe video shows the Brown Bess infantry smoothbore musket, if that is what you mean.

[johnnybriggs118]

Bite pour spit tap, indeedy!  Fascinating stuff.

[mandowarrior123]

@45atMYside Not technically "loaded" till after the mouth has put the bullet in ;)

[cdsadler]

@45atMYside If you have actually seen a gun fire from 'embers', say exactly the circumstances. Gun primed? Lock not faulty? How soon after powder was poured down the barrel? Percussion or flintlock? Blank or full cartridge? We have fired tens of thousands of rounds and never had such an event. It could happen but to injure the loader, the powder would have to land on the embers but not ignite until the ball was being spat in. We considered the probability near zero for six shots.

[rstaron]

Roger Lamb who served in American Revolution in the both the 9th Regiment of foot and later as a SGT in the RWF 23rd Regiment of Foot mentions this method in his memoirs. However, he also mentions haw dangerous the practice was. I guess fear of the enemy was paramount to musket safety in the 18th C. Really cool experiment.

[cdsadler]

@rstaron Excellent - thank you for your post.

[coy0te9]

I watched the Sharpe series with a great deal of skepticism but entertained none the less. You said you can't find tap loading in any early 19th century accounts, which leads to the question, where did the author get the idea?

[cdsadler]

@coy0te9 Bernard Cornwell has thanked us for the test but did not say where he got the idea. English Civil War re-enactors tell me that tap loading is well documented in their period (circa 1650).

Since we did the test, I have found a British eye-witness account that the French skirmishers at Quatre Bras in June 1815 were using tap loading.

[Worldslargestipod]

@cdsadler Does the heat of the barrel or muzzle after repeated firing have an effect on the efficacy of this method [mainly the spitting part]?

[cdsadler]

@Worldslargestipod We did not test that issue. For safety and consistency of load issues, the 10 round accuracy test was loaded with a measured charge and the ball dropped in. Barrel heat was never an issue.

I have loaded very hot Baker rifles - touching the barrel has an 'ouch' factor but you would need to hold it for several seconds I suppose to get a burn (I'm not about to try it to find out!).

[BrotherOfBullets]

fucking weirdos

[Octavius0]

nice video

[andresrojas22]

BITE!POUR!SPIT!TAP! BITE!POUR!SPIT!TAP! BITE!POUR!SPIT!TAP! BITE!POUR!SPIT!TAP! BITE!POUR!SPIT!TAP! BITE!POUR!SPIT!TAP! BITE!POUR!SPIT!TAP! BITE!POUR!SPIT!TAP! BITE!POUR!SPIT!TAP! BITE!POUR!SPIT!TAP! BITE!POUR!SPIT!TAP! BITE!POUR!SPIT!TAP! BITE!POUR!SPIT!TAP! BITE!POUR!SPIT!TAP! BITE!POUR!SPIT!TAP!

[samdogdamndog2]

@andresrojas22 Well said, Sergeant Harper, well said.

[EddyHouchins]

Excellent video!

[higuma75]

I'm pretty sure I'd take the possible safety risk with spitloading if I had a couple of angry Frenchmen coming right at me with their bayonets pointed at me.

[mandowarrior123]

@higuma75 I'm sure as he said instead of getting another shot off your could do 6 shots in two minutes and one cleaning, a healthy compromise.

[Tiwaz81]

taploadin can work with a loose ball. Spit loading is dangerous though. and not likely to work.

[cdsadler]

@Tiwaz81 Not sure what you mean with the comment. We were testing spit loading as described in the Sharpe books - it does seem to work.

Agreed that safety is an issue. For safety issues, see comment to @ollieproductions1 below.

[colddrake80]

Thanks for the video it was quit interesting.

[tommiatkins]

Guy on the left. Its Captain Fredrickson!

[cujomojo2007]

One sure fire way to blow your own head off if that ball didn't seat properly. I read somewhere many years ago that the British often used the smaller (.69 I think) French ball, where as the French could not use the .75 British ball. Could this have been the case in this instance?

[cdsadler]

@cujomojo2007 The measurements you recall are the nominal bore size. Actual bores were a bit larger. Ball diameter is much less - Peter gives the details in the clip. You are correct that contemporary writers noted that the British could use French cartridges but not the reverse.

For safety issues, see comment to @ollieproductions1 below.

[MajBlood]

I guess the result is it is much better to use the Ramrod as tap loading can be unsafe and damaging to gun. However, it is definitely much quicker and could be a feasible option if you were about a die (a cavalary unit was almost up on your ass) and you needed to get a shot in very quick.

[cdsadler]

@MajBlood Agreed. It is definitely NOT something to do without careful and continuous attention to safety. And tap loading is unlikely to be safe with the usual sized Brown Bess balls used today (.715 or .725 inch).

[LutzDerLurch]

@cdsadler I am curiouse about your Oppinion: I consider the ca. .69 Ball in the actual ca. .77 Barrel as beeing a very easily loading Combination. The Paper of the Cartridge tied around the Ball, serving a little bit as a Wad, and preventing the Ball from obtaining a random Spin, and the Rest of the empty Cartridge being crumbled between the Powder and the Ball forming a primitive Pseudo-Sabot, improving the gas-Seal. Still far from optimal considering Accuracy [cont.]

[LutzDerLurch]

@cdsadler [cont.] I consider the naked Ball without Paper, which is the case when doing the "sharpe-style" loading, to be even worse accuracy-wise and with significant loss of muzzlevelocity subject to even greater drop.

So when properly accustumed to firing with paper Cartridges and ramming tham as usual, I think that a Group of Soldiers then switching to Sharpe-style-Loading might end up firing into the ground in front of their targets, and achieving even less hits than with the usual firing

[cdsadler]

@LutzDerLurch We thought exactly the same as you until we tested it. Both shooters had never fired with tap loading until the day we made the video clip, and there were no off-camera shots to practice. We were both firing at the centre mark on the black plastic.

As we say in the clip, acceptable accuracy at 100 yards, and ranges would usually be shorter than 100 yards.

[LutzDerLurch]

@cdsadler Have you done comparative firing with the Paper still around the Ball? I'd be highly interested. I am, at the Time, preparing a Test with a fixed musket using paper Cartridges, and firing at cloth targets, at 10 yd. increments and putting some 60 to 120 rounds through each, to record the spread of the balls at each distance. At The moment I am Thinking of conducting tests at 20 to 100 Yards, at increments of 10. Also I want to record the Drop of the Ball.

[cdsadler]

@LutzDerLurch If you click on my channel, you will see a test of correctly loaded Brown Besses at 100 yards. We were concentrating on testing under "combat" conditions - hence the volley fire.

Good luck with your test - it should be interesting.

[LutzDerLurch]

@cdsadler Thank you, and great Video about the "proper" loading. I always considered the Musket way better than Pop-Culture usually shows it. :D

But it is hard to convince People that Hollywood is not aexactly a good primary Source ;)

[LutzDerLurch]

@cdsadler [cont.] I expect the variation in height to vary more than the stray to the sides.

[LutzDerLurch]

@cdsadler [cont. 2] Also, I read somewhere that the "spitting" of the Ball into the Barrel is a misconception, but I cant recall the Details any more...

[LutzDerLurch]

@LutzDerLurch [cont.3] Oh...out of curiosity: how well can you remove the ball from the PAper in your mouth? I am making my Cartridges according to Originals, with heavy thread inf front and behind the Ball.

[cdsadler]

@LutzDerLurch British Bess cartridges were only tied at the front end. US and some European countries used two ties. Peter had no trouble removing the ball from the paper.

[LutzDerLurch]

@cdsadler I have to check my Sources, but if I am not mistaking, they were, at least in the 1770s, tied on the bottom, where the ball is, and directly on top of the ball, to prevent it moving... i have to look it up.

[cdsadler]

@LutzDerLurch One reference we used is Haythornthwaite, P. 1979, 1996: Weapons and equipment of the Napoleonic Wars, Arms and Armour Page 15. There are others but not readily to hand. You could give it a go with a double tied mock up (bead, rice for powder etc) if you like.

[LutzDerLurch]

@cdsadler Why mock-ups? I almost exclusivly use Paper Cartridges of that Construction... One of my Goals is to become sufficiently proficient with the Musket with authentic loads to be ready for the inevitable Zombie-Apocalypse ;-)

[84Masterofpuppets]

@LutzDerLurch LOL well good luck to you in the zombie apocalypse with your musket, you'll last about 1 or 2 days max. I'll take an M60, fully automatic and belt fed ;-)

[LutzDerLurch]

@84Masterofpuppets Well, With a Musket, you can make your very own ammunition, unlike with modern guns. Maintenance is easier etc. Also, contrary to Zombiemovies, I recommend getting your Hands on decent Pieces of Cold Steel, and some kind of Armour would be good to make it more difficult for Zombies to bite you. Half-armour, Jackboots and a decent Sword might become valuable ^.^

[84Masterofpuppets]

@LutzDerLurch LMAO Oh my god and there was me thinking you were just taking the piss, but you've actually really thought this through havn't you? Well theres a gun shop just down the road from me, they've sell swords, knives, stab vests, camo, shotguns, rifles, you name it, if such an event ever were to occur i'd just hold up there, just bring shit loads of MRE's. Sit on the roof with a double barrel and a few cold ones. But you have to remind yourself that zombies are infact fictional lol

[LutzDerLurch]

@84Masterofpuppets Of course they are. But that wont keep me from having fun ^^ Most Politicians dont care about reality too, so why should I *lol* Seriously, part of the fun watching Z-Movies is to shit yourself laughing at the stupidity of the Films main characters, isn't it?

Thanks for remindiing me to take precautions for the Beer-Supply :D. Take care!

[kaiuycn]

@84Masterofpuppets Not all of us are lucky enough to have access to guns...

[TheHandgunhero]

@84Masterofpuppets Good luck trying to get your hands on an M60.

Muskets are easy to make, you can make your own ammunition unlike an M60 which requires specifically 7.62x51mm to work. Muskets are different - they can shoot all kinds of different calibers without adjustment. Hell you can even shoot rocks with a musket if it's small enough to fit down the muzzle. So you practically got an unlimited source of ammunition. And you can easily put them together and build them - they're very simple.

[ISAFSoldier]

@TheHandgunhero not to mention full auto is useless and waste of ammunition on zombies ;)

[mandowarrior123]

@ISAFSoldier Guns in general do more harm than good. the sound and light attracts far more of them. something like a katana or decent axe would be preferable. you could argue for a chainsaw for more close in corridors etc, but it is still very loud. After all, ammunition runs out eventually. only so much you can find and carry, the amount you attract will almost always outweigh the number you can take out with any gun. I would say gun a few miles from settlements, otherwise sword for urban.

[enoughraptor6]

@mandowarrior123 have you ever head someone killed by a blade. Its not quiet by any means. just saying

[mandowarrior123]

@enoughraptor6 have you ever heard even a silenced gun fire? they are leagues apart. stop watching movies.there is a reason the commandos use a knife to slit their enemies throats! might I ask where you have heard such a thing? apart from films? I have heard animals killed by blades, and heard a suppressed pistol fire (still bloody well loud). blade sound barely carries from a room. gunshots go for miles. zombies do not screams in death! even breaking a neck is loud. suggest another method?

[enoughraptor6]

@mandowarrior123 i have watched many videos of men being beheaded with a knife and they make a lot of noise. Also you never slit a sentries throat you grab their mouth and stab the kidney. i learned this from learning to take out enemy sentries in the Marines.

[mandowarrior123]

@enoughraptor6 the point wasn't where, its the fact you STAB them not SHOOT them. SHOOT > STAB in VOLUME.

[cdsadler]

@LutzDerLurch We were not able to find any contemporary British account suggesting tap loading was used around 1800-15. There are accounts from the English civil war (around 1645). If you have a contemporary reference, let us know.

[LutzDerLurch]

@cdsadler I onl recall, if my memory does not betray me, references in the american revolution, which were more to illustrate, how troubled the soldiers in that situation were, that the omitted the ramming....

[cdsadler]

@cdsadler Have located a contempory eye-witness to tap loading by the French. Mike Robinson's excellent book The Battle of Quatre Bras 1815 quotes Ensign Mudie seeing French skirmishers tap loading. The context suggests Ensign Mudie had not seen British troops doing it.

[einherjarl]

umh, why you test it with a Baker rifle?

[MajBlood]

@einherjarl Because that is the rifle Sharpe and company used in the Sharpe shows.

[cdsadler]

@einherjarl This test is with the Brown Bess - because that is the example that Bernard Cornwell used in his book and film.

[Ironzealot7531]

@einherjarl you can't 'tap load' a rifle

it's bad enough with a musket

[LutzDerLurch]

@Ironzealot7531 If you do, you have to use undersize balls, and then I bet your accuracy is even worse than with a musket.

[glynamus]

wow! best testing i ever watched! i enjoyed this very much and myth busters couldnt have done it better. top class and class act all way round! thankyou mates!

[cdsadler]

@glynamus I'll pass your comments to the crew. Glad you found it useful.

[ollieproductions1]

Are you worried about the ball not being seated against the powder in tap loading.

[cdsadler]

@ollieproductions1 See reply to mastertanker below: .... we paid close attention to this issue with every shot. We found you could hear the ball thunk into the powder clearly when loading. We even fired several blanks - which foul much more than with a ball - and still could not get the ball to stick in the barrel. It is all about windage - so listen to Peter's words in the video. And do NOT try it with today's standard 'Bess balls (0.725 inches usually).

[skintrade]

Great recording, crisp sound and well explained.. two thumbs up!

[elendil77]

i'm glad flintlock guns are getting ever more attention ftrom serious people! Altough I like to see them in movies (let's face it action scenes with modern guns are les intense, when loading takes like four sec) but that has given a rise to number of myths that quickly settled with the general public, like absurd accuracy - Patriot comes to mind, altough a good movie, toatally implausible when it comes to musket, and especially pistol, bullseye hits

[beyu1193]

A very impressive demonstration, guys! I have a safety question, though. With the speed of loading and firing, how can you be sure there is not any smoldering grains of powder still in the barrel when you are pouring in a new charge? Or, how about the risks of pouring a charge of black powder down a hot barrel, then putting your face over the muzzle and spitting in the ball? I can imagine the whole thing coming right back in your face! Goodbye face, goodbye head(?)

[cdsadler]

@beyu1193 A similar comment was posted on another of our clips. Here is the response:

Intrigued by the hot embers pre-fire idea. 2/95th has fired many thousands of rounds from Bakers, including from very hot guns, and never had such an event. Are you able to reference a specific incident? Or quote a source that does not relate to cannon?

Nevertheless, as said in the video, not all safety procedures are evident. Do NOT do this at home! See other safety comments below.

[beyu1193]

@cdsadler No, I know of no specific incident. I was asking from ignorance. I know, of course, that with cannons it is SOP to swab out the barrel with a wet swab between firings. So, I guess a question is, if it is needed with cannons, why is it not with a musket? Is it because of the quantity of powder, and because a coarser grade is used in cannon?

I have experience with modern firearms, but not black powder, which is obvious, given my questions.

[cdsadler]

@beyu1193 I have been told the issue is incomplete combustion of the linen case that SURROUNDS the cannon powder charge (but I am no expert on this). In a musket, the paper cartridge is rammed down after the powder is poured in.

The main risk event is a primed gun on half-cock sparking due a faulty lock. Mitigation is obvious and we did it. And the reason why we measured how much powder a tap-loaded charge would contain was to enable us to load most rounds using a measure and priming last.

[beyu1193]

@cdsadler Thanks for the prompt answer. I had not thought of the issue of the linen case, that makes sense to me. I have a 1763 Charleville .69 caliber flintlock musket that has been above my fireplace for years. I am asking these questions because I have decided to take it down (finally), clean it up and start shooting it. So I need to educate myself on black powder safety. I may also take the weapon to a gunsmith for a safety check, although it seems solid to me. It is a 30+ years old replica.

[slowpokebr549]

@cdsadler I have participated in many rendezvous events and have seen premature ignition during rapid fire events. In the instances that I have witnessed, loose powder ignited as soon as it was poured down the bore. Cannon are indeed more prone to this because of linen wrapped powder charges and very coarse powder.

The few times I have seen it happen in small arms, no one was hurt badly as the bore was tilted away from the shooters face.

[cdsadler]

@slowpokebr549 There you go - an eye witness. Do not do this at home.

[cthulhudreamsable]

@slowpokebr549 It strikes me as very unlikely that the gunpowder auto ignited. The auto ignition point of black powder is 464 degrees Celsius. If your barrel was that hot, you'd burn yourself badly. I doubt it's possible to get to those barrel temperatures with a muzzle loaded firearm.

Far more likely that the shooter primed before loading, fully cocked or had faulty gear and accidentally discharged. The other explanation is that his previous charge didn't blow out the wadding

[geeress]

@cthulhudreamsable I agree that getting barrels this hot is difficult. The saying "going off half-cocked" was probably invented as an excuse by poor shooters who primed at full cock.

Good to see someone actually injecting a touch of science into the debate

[aceblazer25]

Very interesting clip. Thx for ending this debate guys!

[PocusUK]

so "biting the bullet" I wonder if there's a risk of lead poisoning?

[cdsadler]

@PocusUK See reply to TheMaxelll 8 months ago.

[HerzausStahl]

@PocusUK No, not at all but don't swallow it.

[ms199304]

another beautiful arm by pedersoli

[Sonnypjim09]

Great and fair test guys! The accuracy suprised me alot. What type of weapon was you using? The Brown Bess it looks.

[cdsadler]

@Sonnypjim09 Thank you. Both muskets shown were reproduction Brown Bess.

[Sonnypjim09]

@cdsadler No problem. Iam really considering trying to get hold one of myself. I've always liked medivieal and musket era weapons. Takes alot more courage & skill to use and face.

[UtrinqueParatus95]

@cdsadler Should you not be using Baker rifles, chaps? Correct me, if I'm wrong, but they had a supposedly longer loading time, and a range of up to 400 yards. Indeed, one member of the 95th Rifles shot a french general at that distance I believe.

[cdsadler]

@UtrinqueParatus95 We were testing tap loading as described in Cornwell's Sharpe series - he portrays it with the Bess.

See our other video on Baker Rifle - Sustained Fire for a test of the practical rate of fire of the Baker rifle.

To correct any potential misunderstanding, the 2/95th (Australia) uses Baker rifles as its standard weapon.

[ollyrukes]

@cdsadler IIRC in the books he describes taploading on the baker rifles too

[fwi1298]

very useful thank you

[mark3smle]

my dream job

[RabidMortal]

This is really interesting. And I really like that you put a target @ 100 yards as this shows that a smoothbore is not nearly as inaccurate as the textbooks wold have us believe (and here, I'll bet that simply having better sights would make a world of difference).

That said, I'm not totally sold on wisdom of putting one's mouth over the muzzle of a loaded weapon!

[cdsadler]

@RabidMortal We were surprised at the accuracy as well. I agree that even a basic rear sight would likely improve accuracy remarkably.

On the safety issue, as we say in the video and in the comments below, tap loading is not recommended as standard practice on a range. Not all safety procedures we used are evident in the video - do not do this at home!!

[ILOVETHE1700s]

Does tap loading make a ramrod unnecesary then?

[cdsadler]

@ILOVETHE1700s No - balls would normally be loaded with the paper wrapping to prevent them rolling out if nothing else. Tht requires ramming. And the ram rod was necessary for cleaning. I assume that balls loaded with paper cartridge wadding would have more power and accuracy.

[E2theSamps]

I've done American Civil War reenacting, and I've done a similar feat with my 1861 Springfield percussion rifle-musket. Similar results, with good accuracy, since the .577 minie ball expands into the rifling. With all due safety, of course.

Always nice to see a professional reenactor community overseas!

[cdsadler]

@E2theSamps Accuracy with a Minie ball is more understandable (but I'm no expert on Minies) - we were really surprised with the accuracy of the round ball used in the Bess.

Like you, we think experimenting to test assumptions and claims is really important.

Thank you for your comment.

[maddymann8]

great video, but i was just wondering , is that a white leather sling on that musket or is it a white canvas sling , and also by the time of the napoleonic wars the british army were not using the long land patern brown bess but they where using the 3rd model brown bess, correct me if i'm wrong

[cdsadler]

@maddymann8 It is a white leather sling.

I'm not an expert on Brown Bess models - but the model makes no difference to the test because the bore was the same.

[mastertanker001]

Were you ever concerned that the ever increasing amount of fouling inside the barrel would prevent the ball from seating firmly on top of the powder? I'm sure I don't have to tell you that big enough air space between the ball and powder will turn any gun into a hand-held pipe bomb.

[mastertanker001]

@mastertanker001 Concerned while you were shooting, I mean?

[cdsadler]

@mastertanker001 We expected the test could fail for exactly this reason. We paid close attention to this issue with every shot. We found you could hear the ball thunk into the powder clearly when loading. We even fired several blanks - which foul much more than with a ball - and still could not get the ball to stick in the barrel. It is all about windage - so listen to Peter's words in the video. And do NOT try it with today's standard 'Bess balls (0.725 inches usually).

[elgostine]

now you need to see if sharpe himself if he could have pulled it off with his weapon i.e with the rifle.,. that said, in 'sharpes rifle', you see harper using the ramrod when hes offered to betray sharpe to the french. so i dunno

[cdsadler]

We may do the experiment one day. I am not optomistic because the windage in rifles is much less - around 0.02 inches in a rifle compared to maybe .09 in a brown bess. The chance of the ball not rolling down the barrel is much higher.

[phillitupp]

@cdsadler

I loved this video ever since I saw the Sharpe's Episode I wondered "Could that be done?" and with a lack of a Rifle could not test it myself (Dangerous in uncontrolled conditions) Also I really love Bernard Cornwell's book Sharpe's Tiger I started from the beginning of his series now I want to read the next one (In order of course) But thank you again.

[cdsadler]

@phillitupp Cool - glad you liked it. I'll pass your thanks to the team.

[elgostine]

@cdsadler yes, reading the books i can see what you mean.

[AdPaylor]

Super work guys, really enjoyed your video. Greatings from the Rifles in the UK :)

[mfsm67]

"running ball", right ?? a little dangerous I think...

[cdsadler]

Indeed - we do not recommend this loading technique on a shooting range. On the other hand, battlefields are dangerous places, and the risks associated with tap loading might be judged worth the increased rate of fire. But that is a decision that Napoleonic infantry commanders would have to make - we were just testing the practicality. And as we say in the commentary and mention in the subtitles, safety was important factor. We had no safety concerns throughout the test.

[TheMaxelll]

did that guy get lead poisining??

[cdsadler]

LOL - but we did consider the issue.

[Yakanomaloo]

Really good research to prove the point from Cornwell's novel.

[cdsadler]

Author Bernard Cornwell was one of the first people to view the clip. He has posted the link on his bulletin board and thanked us (see 4 Nov 09 entry).

[fretwoork]

Excellent test - well done. People talk about it but I've not seen anyone demonstrate it with real ammunition. Obviously, the Sharpe video was using blanks and small charges.

[petfoodonly]

@fretwoork

Agreed fretwoork. We've been taught to be pretty dubious of movies. Good to see it both being rigorously tested and showed correct