The "Six Inch Rule"

**Maillemaker** · 12-20-2018

Doesn't matter how long or short it is if you can't hit the right spot, eh?

Steve

**Southron Sr.** · 12-21-2018

Agreed- that accuracy trumps in the Musket Team Matches.

However, lets do a theoretical exercise. Say you have two musket teams competing with each other, one team is armed with, say, Enfield Naval Rifles with 33 inch barrels....the other team armed with replica P-53 Enfields with 39 inch barrels.

Also say that ALL the shooters on both teams are excellent shots and never miss. Which team would win? I say the team with the Naval Rifles would simply because Naval Rifles can be loaded faster because they have shorter barrels.

**John Bly** · 12-21-2018

I only know a few people who have had a perfect skirmish(never missed a target) and there have been maybe a dozen or so in the entire history of the N-SSA who could shoot a musket 4-5 times a minute AND hit the target. People load at a different cadence so your theoretical exercise is pointless. Yes, perhaps most could load a shorter musket a tenth of a second faster but we are talking about the best shooters. When I see a team shoot for 5 minutes and break less than 10 pigeons on the board it doesn't matter how fast they were loading and it seems that they don't care. Maybe they just like to hear the gun go off or like the smell of burned black powder.

**Chris Sweeney** · 12-23-2018

I see Southron's point. I am 5' 5" and shoot a 3 band smoothbore. It is a struggle sometimes to get the ramrod out in a timely fashion - I usually shoot it well, but there are times when a second or two has made a difference. I suppose if you were one of those oversize folks (5' 9") it wouldn't matter . . .

**B P Shooter** · 12-23-2018

Cant believe I just spent a few minutes of my time reading all this. Hahaha. But since I'm here...

I shoot a Zouave, so really can't say much and prove it, but wouldn't a longer barrel theoretically have more riflings and offer better accuracy?

**Muley Gil** · 12-23-2018

Originally Posted by B P Shooter

Cant believe I just spent a few minutes of my time reading all this. Hahaha. But since I'm here...

I shoot a Zouave, so really can't say much and prove it, but wouldn't a longer barrel theoretically have more riflings and offer better accuracy?

No, it doesn't work that way. Generally, it is finding the right combination of rifling twist, bullet and powder charge.

**John Holland** · 12-23-2018

The longer the sight radius, the less deviation in human error.....minuscule, but there is a difference.

**Southron Sr.** · 12-27-2018

Dear John:

I also like to humorously complain that Skirmishers that shoot three banders in the Musket Team Matches have an "unfair advantage" because, on the firing line, the muzzle of a three bander is 6 inches closer to the target than the muzzle of a two bander!

What would be an interesting project; because the N-SSA has been putting a picture of the winning Musket Team at the Nationals on the covers of the following Skirmish Line would be to examine, say, 10 years worth of Skirmish Line covers and count the number of two banders and three banders used by the members of the winning teams.

My guess is that the number of two banders would outnumber the number of three banders used by the members of the winning teams by a fairly large margin. That would validate the "6 inch rule."

HAPPY NEW YEAR EVERYONE!!!

**John Holland** · 12-27-2018

Southron - Shooting with the 44th NY, I was on three 1st Place National Musket Teams, all before there were classifications. I used a full length M-1861 Springfield Rifle Musket (Bill Large barrel) and only missed one shot on each of those National Championship wins! OK, full disclosure, I was nearly 50 years younger than I am now!