Duelling Pistols - accuracy? anybody into BP?

[ora8i]

I was watching "Castle" on the TV the other evening and the two heroes were trying to shoot holes in a US Police silhouette target at about 10 or may be 20 meters with a pair of 200yr old duelling pistols.

They didn't manage to hit a single silhouette.

I always thought that the fancy duelling pistols were very accurate, Ok they muzzle loaded and fired a round ball but they were the pinnacle of the gun makers art.

So could those old pistols shoot straight?


ATB Ora

[tufty]

Think it was more to do with the shooters!!

[reaper6]

Think it was more to do with the shooters!!

Nah i think its more to do with the telly

[Stover Rover]

There was a programme on pistols on the Military channel last week. Apparently duelling with swords went out of fashion because 1 or both oppenents were likely to get wounded or killed. With duelling pistols both were more likely to escape unscathed but the honour would have been settled as a draw.

[blooregard]

^^^Wot he said^^^

Additionally, you did not aim you merely turned and fired, aiming was seen to be unsporting.

They were made to point naturally like an extension of your hand and the trigger was usually very light. The pistols were matched so that both behaved and handled the same, this giving an advantage to the owner as the light trigger would be unexpected and often result in an ND in the hands of his opponent. When familiar with the pistol though they could be quite effective.

I suppose in many ways they are the forerunner to the target pistol.

Ian Hogg has some good bits about duelling pistols in some of his books, the complete handgun has a section on duelling and individual details of many pistols from the era.

[MikB]

Additionally, you did not aim you merely turned and fired, aiming was seen to be unsporting.

I think that varied with time and circumstance. I think in some duels the participants fired by turns and could take time to aim if they wished.

I don't believe I've ever seen a comprehensive and definitive description of pistol duelling codes, though.

Regards,
MikB

[enfield2band]

As it has been said. It is probably the shooters.
The muzzleloading pistol, smoothbore or rifled, is capable of good accuracy.
The quality of the patch and lubricant is critical.
If they have just rammed any old bit of cloth down the barrel with no lubricant, or poor lubricant, then they will not be very accurate.

[DJS]

I believe that duelling pistols had to be smoothbore so probably not very accurate.
Daz

[Jim McArthur]

There was a programme on pistols on the Military channel last week. Apparently duelling with swords went out of fashion because 1 or both oppenents were likely to get wounded or killed. With duelling pistols both were more likely to escape unscathed but the honour would have been settled as a draw.

I don't know. . . I'd heard that it was the other way around: that with swords, sometimes duels were arranged to be fought only until "first cut": or that if a first cut were made, the referee would ask the challenger, "Is honor satisfied?" and he might well say that yes, it was: thereby ending the duel.

With pistols, a mortal or serious wound tended to be inflicted, always: unless both duellists missed, and they elected to proceed no further.

Jim