Harper's Ferry bullet

[tmont]

Gentlemen: I have been hearing about a musket bullet called the Harper's Ferry and am not familiar with it. Would one of you gents please help educate me? Thanks in advance, as always.

[mike lynch 4731]

http://www.rockislandauction.com/viewitem/aid/54/lid/1143
Here is a link that shows a harpers Ferry Mold that was up for auction
Mike

[mike lynch 4731]

1920

Here is a picture of the mold

[mike lynch 4731]

1920

Here is a picture of the moldhttp://americancivilwarrelics.com/Civil%20War%20Bullets.htm
The link list shows Harpers Ferry Slug BulletsHarpers

[John Holland]

What you want to do is a bit of research on is what is known as the "Burton Ball". That is the American version of the hollow based projectile designed in France by Capt. Claude-Etienne Minie. The American version was designed by James Henry Burton while Master Armorer at the Harper's Ferry Armory, with the final version settled upon in 1854. In many circles this was known as the "Harper's Ferry Bullet". To those of us who admire J.H. Burton it is still the "Burton Ball"! I would recommend reading "From Under Iron Eyelids", by Thomas K. Tate. This is the most complete biography of James. H. Burton I have ever read. You will be amazed at his accomplishments.

[R. McAuley 3014V]

William Greener (1806-1869) British gunmaker and inventor who developed an early self-expanding rifle bullet, a predecessor of the later widely used Minié projectile. A number of inventors had already devised self-expanding bullets when, in 1836, Greener developed such a bullet consisting of a ovloidal conical ball with a cavity in which a metal plug was inserted. When the gun fired, the plug drove forward and caused the bullet to expand and engage the rifle grooves. Greener submitted his invention to the British government, but it was rejected; later, when a French captain, Claude Minié, received £20,000 from the British government for a similar bullet, Greener sued for plagiarism and ultimately was awarded £1,000. Greener was the author of several books on gunnery; he also patented inventions in other fields, such as a process (co-invented by W.E. Strait) for the manufacture of pencils from the hard graphite carbon deposited in the interior of gas retorts. His son, William Wellington Greener (1834–1921), invented a new type of shotgun mechanism and wrote several books, including The Gun and Its Development (1881).

[Phil Spaugy, 3475V]

http://www.nps.gov/ncr/photosmultimedia/photogallery.htm?id=299F15F7-1DD8-B71C-078F1E7357247D9C

[Maillemaker]

I find it fascinating that with many of these early designs it was assumed that there had to be a mechanical object being forced into the bullet to enlarge it, instead of just the gas of the powder explosion itself.

Steve

[tmont]

You gentlemen never cease to amaze me in the depth of your knowledge and willingness to share with us new guys. Thanks! Tom