Target Sports

BLACK POWDER: MORE THAN A MATCH

Created on 27th May 2009

DAVE FROGGETT meets his match with a European-style matchlock - have the fire extinguishers ready!

IN THE very early days, guns generally involved loading a blind end tube with powder and ball and sticking a smouldering cord in a touchhole (basically a hole in the breech or plugged end of the tube). This procedure made any kind of aiming a bit of a challenge, as you needed to be looking at where to apply the cord. With one hand holding and guiding the burning cord, you're only left with one hand to hold and aim the tube. It even reached the point where it became a two-man job, one holding the gun and the other applying the cord!

The matchlock is a significant step forward: the touchhole is moved to the side and a mechanical contrivance thrusts a smouldering slow-burning match into a pan of powder, which connects with the touchhole. This may seem simple but it was actually a major advancement as it allowed one man to hold the gun with both hands, and to aim and operate a trigger very effectively. Some of the fundamental principles of marksmanship start to evolve as soon as you have a trigger-based system.

A barrel and pan may seem familiar to flintlock shooters. However the pan has a sliding cover and a serpentine (which takes the place of the more familiar cock) which, when the trigger is pulled, lowers towards the shooter at a similar rate to which the trigger is pulled.

Put another way, drawing the trigger smoothly rearward lowers the match steadily into the priming. Not an instantaneous event by any means. However, it's a trigger none the less. The snapping matchlocks came later which took many refinements to prevent them extinguishing the match as it plunged into the pan - nowhere near as big a leap as the original development.

Although the matchlock was overtaken in technological terms by wheel-lock and snaphaunce guns, it remained in military use through that era right up until the early flintlock (doglock) era. It was cheap to make, robust, and simple to use, which made it useful in combat. However, by around 1660 European armies had moved over to the more modern flintlock systems, leaving matchlocks to the eastern countries.

Henry Krank's matchlock

Henry Krank's reproduction is of a European-style matchlock that would fit into the English civil war period. The smoothbore barrel is 42" long, octagon to round in profile and around 0.75" calibre (10- bore). It is finished bright and contributes substantially to the matchlock's overall length of 57".

A steel bead front sight is the only means of aiming. The trigger and other fittings are finished bright, except the brass band which reinforces the muzzle end of the stock. The rammer is tapered with a steel loading tip and is supported by one thimble under the front of the forend. Personally I didn't use the rod, opting to use a range rod; it makes loading much easier.

The dark hardwood stock extends to the muzzle and is well figured with a lacquered finish. It is of the ‘fishtail' design, which presents a large contact area to the shoulder.

The barrel is held in place by three barrel pins and a tang screw. The length of pull is around 12½" - I thought it was quite short and anticipated being in for a pounding when the gun went off, but a groove in the wrist of the stock prevented ‘nose issues' by keeping the thumb out of the way under recoil. Two long screws attach the large lock to the stock, with the pan and its cover being independently mounted. The serpentine has stylised snake's head finial; the jaws being tightened by a winged screw.

The big match

The heart of this shooting system is the slow match. You can prepare your own slow matches by soaking suitable braided cordage in a saturated saltpetre solution and allowing it to dry. However, Henry Krank supplied me with a piece of ready-made match cord so I didn't have to resort to alchemy. The saltpetre used is an oxidising agent and ensures a consistent burn of the cord but, as with all such chemicals, it is a great maker of rust, so it's best to keep it away from steel tools etc.
The cord burns at about nine minutes to the inch and the oxidising agent is basically there to prevent it going out.

Shooting

As I gazed over the open muzzle of the 10-bore matchlock and the short stock I couldn't help thinking, "This is going to hurt". Most of the smoothbores I have shot respond well to the ball being driven hard - and in a 10-bore that amounts to a substantial amount of powder: I chickened out (as usual) and went for a more sedate loading. I started with a charge of 80gn of Swiss 3 and pushed down a 0.732" diameter ball with a 15 thou patch: so far, so good. Then the pan cover is pivoted backwards, a generous dose of priming is added to the pan and the cover is replaced. Now here's the bit that scrambled my software. Take the smouldering match, blow on it to ensure it is glowing and clamp it in the jaws of the serpentine. I kept thinking, "I am loading a blackpowder gun and oh look - I'm fastening a burning piece of string to it!"

Anyway, the pan cover is then drawn back. Taking aim, I squeeze the trigger and the match slowly lowers into the pan. At this point the little guy in my head is saying, "Any second now this is going to kick your head in." He wasn't disappointed - I momentarily disappeared into my familiar muzzle-loading world of flames, smoke and recoil - but this time there was much more of it. However, the length (57" overall) and weight (9lb) of the gun went some way to making the experience more pleasant. The short length of pull wasn't a problem - I suppose I'm used to normal stock dynamics and feared the gun getting a run at my shoulder or a painful thumb/nose interface. The position of the trigger is well to the rear due to the layout of the lock in relation to the barrel.

The trigger-pull is a long smooth draw over about ¾" of movement with a peak weight of about 6lb. On firing the match was blown from the serpentine - many matchlock shooters hold the other end of the match in their left hand as they grasp the forend.

Once the novelty had subsided (I won't say worn off because it never did) I set about shooting a group. Without any real tinkering on my part the matchlock started putting together its shots into about 7" at 25yd. The 80gn of Swiss 3 gave a healthy muzzle velocity around 800fps.

I'm sure it could do better. More velocity and some messing with the patch/ball relationship should shrink groups considerably.

Have-a-go heroes

Soon a crowd gathered, all wanting a go of course. I dropped the charge to about 65gn of Swiss 3 behind the same ball and patch combination. Soon everyone was enjoying the matchlock experience - although some shooters were seen to be a bit lacking in the follow-though department, perhaps due to the overall fear of being set on fire. You find yourself saying, "Just look at the sights, squeeze the trigger and keep looking through the sights after you've fired." And then it dawns on you - the principles for a shooting a matchlock are the same as any gun - it's not that different and indeed it's where it all kicked off. It was quite a revelation when today's technology met that of our ancestors in a full circle.

I think the calibre of the gun impressed many people as much as the operation. One of my friends picked up the 595gn ball and declared, "Never mind going into battle - I wouldn't want someone throwing that at me!" and I could see what he meant.

Conclusions

Henry Krank's matchlock is a good addition to the selection of repros available today. It covers a base left open by most other manufacturers and will provide an inexpensive introduction to matchlock shooting.
I think the re-enactors will love it and it's robust enough to withstand the rigours of their activities as well as being a viable shooter.

For me the concept of matchlock shooting is just a bit too retro to pursue on a regular basis. However, it really got me to thinking about the fundamentals of shooting techniques, where they came from and the very roots of our sport. Knocking yet another 150 years off was quite refreshing - and damn good fun to boot.

Technical Specification

Model: Henry Krank Matchlock
Make: Not specified
Calibre: 10-Bore
Action: Matchlock
Weight: 9lb (4kg)
Overall length: 57"
Barrel: Octagon to round
Barrel length: 42"
Twist: Smoothbore
Length of pull: 12½"
Cost: £395

Contact: Henry Krank
T: 01132 569163

BLACK POWDER: MORE THAN A MATCH

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BLACK POWDER: MORE THAN A MATCH

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