(TFT) Don't go off half-cocked

["grabowski" <grabowski@erols.com>]

Rick stated,

<<<<I don't mind the idea that some sort of bacteria causes
the powder to rot.  The full price for powder would include
a premium to ship it to combat quickly enough that it would be
fresh.  Old powder would become increasingly more likely to
be bad.  (Old powder in my campaign is much more likely than
1 in 6 to fail to go off.)>>>

Ironically, Rick, in a test done in the 19th century of a typical 18th
century Brown Bess musket v. a 19th century percussion weapon, the misfire
rate for the 18th century weapon was 1 in 6 shots v. 1 in 66 shots for the
percussion weapon.  But to qualify this, using my experience with
flintlocks, if the weapon is cleaned before hand with a new flint, you may
get off 30-40 rounds off without a misfire.  The main problem being the
spark hitting the powder or no spark at all.  As for firing matchlocks, I
cannot give you the misfire rate (this is the type of gun used in TFT) but I
would say it is about the same as the flintlock.  Problem with the match is
once in a while the coal falls off or the match itself buries itself in the
powder in the pan.  The reason armies went away from matchlock weapons was
because of the cost of the match.  Remember, in order to get match, you have
to plant the material to make the rope material for the match, spin the
rope,  gather the saltpeter, mine the sulfur, etc...; whereas with the
flintlock, you only had to knap a rock.

As far as accuracy for a smoothbore musket, at the range of 75 yds (appx. 69
m.) a typical musket had a six foot hit-miss radius.  Hence, the linear
formations from the 18th through the 19th century in combat.  Weapons
dictate tactics.  Basically, this tactic was used to make the weapon more
effective.  (At 125 yds = 9 foot hit-miss radius).

As far as gun/cannon fire and distance, a typical six-pound iron gun could
fire a projectile approximately 2500 yds (I wish the heck we Americans would
get rid of our antiquated measurement system.  Sometimes, we are too
hardheaded).  The distance measured is not totally in the air but bouncing
along the ground as well.  The Americans at Yorktown did this so well that
they fired at the howitzer "shells" in front of the British fortifcation
walls.  This way the shell would bound over the wall exploding into the
Brits hidden behind.

Another thing to remember about artillery is that up until the 19th century
long barreled guns did not fire shells that exploded.  They fired solid
shot, grape-shot, canister, bar-shot but nothing that exploded because of
the possiblity of the shell exploding within the barrel when loading.  Think
about it!!!!

Yours in Cidri and on the move again with the list,
Justin



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