71-608: The Martini–Henry is a breech-loading single-shot rifle with a lever action that was used by the British Army . It first entered service in 1871, eventually replacing the Snider–Enfield , a muzzle-loader converted to the cartridge system. Martini–Henry variants were used throughout the British Empire for 47 years. It combined the dropping-block action first developed by Henry O. Peabody (in his Peabody rifle ) and improved by
142-691: A .38 blank cartridge to propel the harpoon. A special barrel—effectively a hollow tube that acted as a spigot—and stock were fitted to accommodate the harpoon and to lower weight. Unable to purchase Martini–Henry rifles from the British because their entire production was going to rearming British troops, The Ottoman Empire purchased weapons identical to the Mark I from the Providence Tool Company in Providence, Rhode Island, United States (the manufacturers of
213-549: A barrel tip-down, remove the plug and reload actions. The later breech-loaders included the Ferguson rifle , which used a screw-in/screw out action to reload, and the Hall rifle , which tipped up at 30 degrees for loading. The better breech loaders, however, used percussion caps , including the Sharps rifle , using a falling block (or sliding block ) action to reload. And then later on came
284-535: A bullet fit in a percussion cap. Usually derived in the 6 mm and 9 mm calibres, it is since then called the Flobert cartridge but it does not contain any powder; the only propellant substance contained in the cartridge is the percussion cap itself. In English-speaking countries the Flobert cartridge corresponds to the .22 BB and .22 CB ammunitions. In 1846, yet another Frenchman, Benjamin Houllier , patented
355-417: A copper base with integrated mercury fulminate primer powder (the major innovation of Pauly), a round bullet and either brass or paper casing. The cartridge was loaded through the breech and fired with a needle. The needle-activated central-fire breech-loading gun would become a major feature of firearms thereafter. The corresponding firearm was also developed by Pauly. Pauly made an improved version, which
426-547: A cylindrical breech plug secured by a horizontal wedge in 1837. In the 1850s and 1860s, Whitworth and Armstrong invented improved breech-loading artillery. The M1867 naval guns produced in Imperial Russia at the Obukhov State Plant used Krupp technology. A breech action is the loading sequence of a breech loading naval gun or small arm . The earliest breech actions were either three-shot break-open actions or
497-530: A few years later. The carbine was used extensively by the Forest Rangers, an irregular force led by Gustavus von Tempsky that specialized in bush warfare and reconnaissance. Von Tempsky liked the short carbine, which could be loaded while lying down. The waterproofed cartridge was easier to keep dry in the New Zealand bush. Museums in New Zealand hold a small number of these carbines in good condition. During
568-521: A main fight, and to prevent or delay infantry attacks. A similar "drop volley sight" whereby the rifle's bullets were dropped long range onto the target was employed on the later .303 Lee–Enfield rifles of WW1, which had a graduation lever sight calibrated up to 2,800 yards. The Nepalese produced a close copy of the British Martini–Henry incorporating certain Westley Richards improvements to
639-528: A poorer quality than those made by Royal Small Arms Factory , Enfield, but accurately copied down to the proof markings. The chief manufacturers were the Adam Khel Afridi , who lived around the Khyber Pass . The British called such weapons " Pass-made rifles ". In the original chambering, the rifles fired a round-nosed, tapered-head .452-inch, soft hollow-based lead bullet, wrapped in a paper patch giving
710-527: A revolver using rimfire cartridges. The first centrefire cartridge was introduced in 1855 by Pottet, with both Berdan and Boxer priming . In 1842, the Norwegian Armed Forces adopted the breech-loading caplock, the Kammerlader , one of the first instances in which a modern army widely adopted a breech-loading rifle as its main infantry firearm. The Dreyse Zündnadelgewehr ( Dreyse needle gun )
781-528: A unique recessed primer well (much like that of the Lebel rifle) to prevent the firing of standard shells. The cartridge also had a bottle-necked tapered wall and corresponding shotgun breech that would prevent the insertion of other shells. In addition to the cocking indicators found on military Martini-Henry rifles, the Police Gun features a safety lever that automatically engages when cocked. An example can be seen at
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#1732863220001852-400: A wider diameter of .460 to .469-inch; it weighed 485 grains . It was crimped in place with two cannelures (grooves on the outside neck of the case), ahead of two fibre card or mill board disks, a concave beeswax wad, another card disk and cotton wool filler. This sat on top of the main powder charge inside initially a rimmed brass foil cartridge , later made in drawn brass. The cartridge case
923-402: Is far quicker to load the projectile and propellant into the chamber of a gun or cannon than to reach all the way over to the front end to load ammunition and then push them back down a long tube – especially when the projectile fits tightly and the tube has spiral ridges from rifling . In field artillery , the advantages were similar – crews no longer had to get in front of
994-409: Is much easier as well, as the ammunition can be unloaded from the breech end and is often doable by hand; unloading muzzle loaders requires drilling into the projectile to drag it out through the whole length of the barrel, and in some cases the guns are simply fired to facilitate unloading process. After breech-loading became common, it also became common practice to fit counter-recoil systems, such as
1065-465: The American Civil War , at least nineteen types of breech-loaders were fielded. The Sharps used a successful dropping block design. The Greene used rotating bolt-action, and was fed from the breech. The Spencer , which used lever-actuated bolt-action, was fed from a seven-round detachable tube magazine . The Henry and Volcanic used rimfire metallic cartridges fed from a tube magazine under
1136-545: The Panzerfaust 3 and RPG-7 , and the GP series grenade launchers, have remained in common usage in modern military conflicts. However, referring to a weapon specifically as breech-loading is mostly limited to non-repeating firearms, including single-shots , derringers , double-barreled shotguns , double-barreled rifles , combination guns , and volley guns . Breech-loading provides the advantage of reduced reloading time because it
1207-664: The Royal Armouries Museum in Leeds . Greener also used the Martini action for the GP ("General Purpose") single-barreled shotgun firing standard 12-bore 2 + 1 ⁄ 2 or 2 + 3 ⁄ 4 -inch ammunition, which was a staple for gamekeepers and rough shooters in Britain. The GP was built from 1922 to 1964 by W. W. Greener, and from 1965 to the 1980s by Webley & Scott. The front end of
1278-447: The hydro-pneumatic recoil mechanism on the Canon de 75 modèle 1897 , onto field guns and howitzers to prevent the recoil from rolling the carriage back and forth with every shot and ruining the aim. This provided faster rates of fire, but this is not directly related to whether the gun is breech-loading or not. Now that guns were able to fire without the entire carriage recoiling, the crew
1349-526: The 1960s for the commercial market, and again were found to be very reliable and, being smokeless, eliminated fouling issues. The powder's burning with less pressure inside the cartridge case prevented the brass cases from sticking inside the rifle's chamber (because they were not expanding as much as the original black-powder loads did). The rifle remained a popular competition rifle at National Rifle Association meetings, at Bisley, Surrey , and (NRA) Civilian and Service Rifle matches from 1872 to 1904, where it
1420-619: The African and Middle Eastern theatres during World War I, in the hands of Native Auxiliary troops. A shotgun variant known as the Greener Police Gun , Greener EG (for "Egyptian Government"), or the Greener Prison Shotgun was chambered in a 14.5-gauge 2 + 7 ⁄ 8 -inch (18×73mm) full-length brass shell used only by this gun. That would make the weapon useless to anyone who stole it, as no other cartridge could be loaded. It
1491-515: The Enfield–Martinis were withdrawn, converted to 0.45 calibre, and renamed Martini–Henry Mk IV "A", "B" and "C" pattern rifles. Some 0.303 calibre black-powder carbine versions were also produced, known as the Martini–Metford , and even 0.303 calibre cordite carbines, called Martini–Enfields (the former name for the type of action and the latter name for the pattern of rifling). During
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#17328632200011562-500: The Ferguson rifle. About the same time and later on into the mid-19th century, there were attempts in Europe at an effective breech-loader. There were concentrated attempts at improved cartridges and methods of ignition. In Paris in 1808, in association with French gunsmith François Prélat , Jean Samuel Pauly created the first fully self-contained cartridges : the cartridges incorporated
1633-591: The GP is offered with a standard 12-bore (.729" or 18.52mm) barrel with a fixed, full choke (.035" or 0.889mm constriction), but other bore/choke configurations such as .719" (18.26mm) barrels are available upon request. Barrel lengths vary from 26" to 32" and other features such as slings and checkering are optional extras. W. W. Greener also used the Martini action to produce the Greener-Martini Light Harpoon Gun used for whaling, and also for commercial harvest of tuna and other large fish. The gun fired
1704-583: The Gatling cartridge was tried in Martini-Henry rifles. However, in parallel developing a new cartridge with a lighter approximately .4 inch bullet was considered since 1880, and after its design was settled on in 1885 a new variant of the rifle for it was approved in April 1886, designated Enfield Martini .4-inch Pattern A. It incorporated several minor improvements such as a safety catch, was gradually phased in to replace
1775-400: The Martini action, was a favourite rough-shooting gun in the mid-20th century. The Martini action was used by BSA and latterly BSA/Parker Hale for their series of "Small Action Martini" small bore target rifles that were in production until 1955. Breech-loading A breechloader is a firearm in which the user loads the ammunition from the breech end of the barrel (i.e., from
1846-701: The Martini–Henry rifles. An order was made to Steyr for 130,000 rifles which were delivered into the early 1880s. These rifles were also used in the First World War , with 142,906 rifles and 8,724 carbines being registered in service on 15 August 1916. Significant numbers of the basic design, with variations, were also produced for the Boer Republics, both in Belgium and, via Westley Richards, in Birmingham, as late as
1917-513: The Martini–Henry with over 21k produced overall. The replacement was planned to be gradual, to use up existing stocks of the old ammunition. A year later a modified Pattern B was approved with tens of thousands more produced. However, before this was complete, the decision was made to replace the Martini–Henry rifles with the .303 calibre bolt-action magazine Lee–Metford , which gave a considerably higher maximum rate of fire. Consequently, to avoid having three different rifle calibres in service,
1988-657: The Martini–Henry's service life the British Army was involved in a large number of colonial wars, most notably the Anglo-Zulu War in 1879. The rifle was used in the Battle of Isandlwana , and by the company of the 2nd Battalion, 24th Regiment of Foot at the battle of Rorke's Drift , where 139 British soldiers successfully defended themselves against several thousand Zulus. The weapon was not completely phased out until 1904. The rifle suffered from cartridge-extraction problems during
2059-546: The Swiss designer Friedrich von Martini , combined with the polygonal rifling designed by Scotsman Alexander Henry . Though the Snider was the first breechloader firing a metallic cartridge in regular British service, the Martini was designed from the outset as a breechloader and was both faster firing and had a longer range. The Martini–Henry was copied on a large scale by North-West Frontier Province gunsmiths. Their weapons were of
2130-470: The Zulu War, mostly due to the thin, weak, pliable foil brass cartridges used: they expanded too much into the rifle's chamber on detonation, to the point that they stuck or tore open inside the rifle's chamber. It would eventually become difficult to move the breech block and reload the rifle, substantially diminishing its effectiveness, or rendering it useless if the block could not be opened. After investigating
2201-512: The barrel. These held a significant advantage over muzzle-loaders. The improvements in breech-loaders had spelled the end of muzzle-loaders. To make use of the enormous number of war surplus muzzle-loaders, the Allin conversion Springfield was adopted in 1866. General Burnside invented a breech-loading rifle before the war, the Burnside carbine . The French adopted the new Chassepot rifle in 1866, which
Martini–Henry - Misplaced Pages Continue
2272-515: The cartridge case. It is clear from early medical field surgeons' reports that at 200 yards the rifle really came into its own, and inflicted devastating and horrific wounds on the Zulus in the Anglo–Zulu War . The MK2 Martini's sights are marked to 1,800 yards, but this setting was only ever used for long-range mass volley firing to harass an artillery position or a known massed cavalry position, prior to
2343-507: The early 14th century in Burgundy and various other parts of Europe, breech-loading became more successful with improvements in precision engineering and machining in the 19th century. The main challenge for developers of breech-loading firearms was sealing the breech. This was eventually solved for smaller firearms by the development of the self-contained metallic cartridge in the mid-19th century. For firearms too large to use cartridges,
2414-503: The extractor arms, is forced down by the dropping block when the lever is pushed forward, so causing the upright arms to extract the cartridge case slightly and allow easier manual full extraction. As well as British service rifles, the Martini breech action was applied to shotguns by the Greener company of Britain, whose single-shot "EP" riot guns were still in service in the 1970s in former British colonies. The Greener "GP" shotgun, also using
2485-429: The firing chamber (J). To fire the cartridge the block is raised to position the firing mechanism (K) against the cartridge. The firing mechanism consists of a helical spring around a pointed metal striker, the tip of which passes through a hole in the face of the block to impact the percussion-cap of the inserted cartridge. As the lever (E) is moved forward the tumbler (G) revolves and one of its arms engages and draws back
2556-511: The first fully metallic cartridge containing powder in a metallic shell. Houllier commercialised his weapons in association with the gunsmiths Blanchard or Charles Robert. But the subsequent Houllier and Lefaucheux cartridges, even if they were the first full-metal shells, were still pinfire cartridges, like those used in the LeMat (1856) and Lefaucheux (1858) revolvers, although the LeMat also evolved in
2627-407: The force of the recoil rather than the pin (C). Below the trigger-guard the lever (E) works a pin (F) which projects the tumbler (G) into the case. The tumbler moves within a notch (H) and acts upon the block, raising it into the firing position or allowing it to fall according to the position of the lever. The block (B) is hollowed along its upper surface (I) to assist in inserting a cartridge into
2698-399: The gun and pack ammunition in the barrel with a ramrod , and the shot could now tightly fit the bore, greatly increasing its power, range, and accuracy. It also made it easier to load a previously fired weapon with a fouled barrel. Gun turrets and emplacements for breechloaders can be smaller since crews don't need to retract the gun for loading into the muzzle end. Unloading a breechloader
2769-682: The gun had numerous deficiencies; specifically, serious problems with gas leaking. However, the rifle was used to great success in the Prussian army in the Austro-Prussian war of 1866. This, and the Franco-Prussian war of 1870–71, eventually caused much interest in Europe for breech-loaders and the Prussian military system in general. In 1860, the New Zealand government petitioned the Colonial Office for more soldiers to defend Auckland . The bid
2840-493: The key battles, such as Rorke's Drift and the Battle of Ulundi , the order to volley fire was not given until the Zulus were at or within 400 yards. The ballistic performance of a .577/450 is somewhat similar to that of an American .45/70 Government round, as used prolifically throughout the American Frontier West and by buffalo hunters, though the .577/450 has more power due to its extra 15 grains of black powder inside
2911-521: The late 1890s. During the Second Boer War , many of the Boers used the Martini–Henry rifle, since over 34,000 of these had been purchased. The lock and breech are held to the stock by a metal bolt (A). The breech is closed by the block (B) which turns on the pin (C) that passes through the rear of the block. The end of the block is rounded to form a knuckle joint with the back of the case (D) which receives
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2982-473: The latter half of the 19th Century, but were slowly replaced by various designs for repeating rifles , first used in the American Civil War. Manual breech-loaders gave way to manual magazine feed and then to self-loading rifles . Breech-loading is still commonly used in shotguns and hunting rifles . The first modern breech-loading rifled gun is a breech-loader invented by Martin von Wahrendorff with
3053-609: The matter, the British Army Ordnance Department determined the fragile construction of the rolled brass cartridge, and fouling due to the black-powder propellant, were the main causes of this problem. To correct this, the weak rolled brass cartridge was replaced by a stronger drawn brass version, and a longer loading lever was incorporated into the MK-IV to apply greater torque to operate the mechanism when fouled. These later variants were more reliable in battle, although it
3124-494: The muzzle. The Mark II/14 lacked the nosecap and had a full hunting-style stock. It was discovered that criminals in Egypt were jury-rigging shotguns they had captured or stolen by wrapping common civilian 16-gauge shells with thick paper to allow them to fit the bore. Greener responded in 1932 by coming up with a redesigned gun and new shell design to prevent this. The Mark III/14 Shotgun had a three-pronged firing pin and its cartridge had
3195-498: The new .303 cal. cartridge, which was found to be much more accurate, and thus interest in the .577/450 fell away, to the point that by 1909 they were rarely used at Bisley matches, with shooters favouring the later Lee–Enfield bolt action magazine rifles. In 1879, however, it was generally found that in average hands the .577/450 Martini–Henry Mk2, although the most accurate of the Martinis in that calibre ever produced for service life,
3266-415: The problem was solved by the development of the interrupted screw . Breech-loading swivel guns were invented in the 14th century. They were a particular type of swivel gun , and consisted in a small breech-loading cannon equipped with a swivel for easy rotation, loaded by inserting a mug-shaped chamber already filled with powder and projectiles. The breech-loading swivel gun had a high rate of fire, and
3337-416: The rearward, open end of the gun's barrel), as opposed to a muzzleloader , in which the user loads the ammunition from the ( muzzle ) end of the barrel . The vast majority of modern firearms are generally breech-loaders, while firearms made before the mid-19th century were mostly smoothbore muzzle-loaders. Only a few muzzleloading weapons, such as mortars , rifle grenades , some rocket launchers , such as
3408-456: The receiver is split and the barrel is secured via a takedown screw, which enables the barrel to be removed by rotating it 90 degrees after loosening the screw. Unlike the Martini-Henry or the EG, the GP does not feature a cocking indicator but retains the automatic safety. Two models of the GP was produced, Mark I and II, with the only major exterior difference being a bulkier safety lever and reversing
3479-539: The rifles were manufactured and used in the Battle of Brandywine , during the American Revolutionary War , but shortly after they were retired and replaced with the standard Brown Bess musket . In turn the American army, after getting some experience with muzzle-loaded rifles in the late 18th century, adopted the second standard breech-loading firearm in the world, M1819 Hall rifle , and in larger numbers than
3550-557: The rifles were produced substantially by hand, making the quality extremely variable. Though efforts were being made to phase out these rifles, presumably by the 1890s, some 9000 were still in service in 1906. The Martini–Henry saw service in World War I in a variety of roles, primarily as a Reserve Arm, but it was also issued (in the early stages of the war) to aircrew for attacking observation balloons with newly developed incendiary ammunition , and aircraft. Martini–Henrys were also used in
3621-601: The somewhat similar Peabody rifle ), and used them effectively against the Russians in the Russo-Turkish War (1877–1878) . Ottoman outlaws and folk heroes such as Hekimoğlu famously used the rifle during his raids on landowners. The rifle is referred to as Aynalı Martin in the Ottoman Empire and is featured in several famous folk songs . Beginning in 1879, Romania decided to replace its old model 1867 Peabody rifles with
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#17328632200013692-446: The spring until the tumbler is firmly locked in the notch (H) and the spring is held by the rest-piece (L) which is pushed into a bend in the lower part of the tumbler. After firing, the cartridge is partially extracted by the lock. The extractor rotates on a pin (M) and has two vertical arms (N), which are pressed by the rim of the cartridge pushed home into two grooves in the sides of the barrel. A bent arm (O), forming an 80° angle with
3763-498: The takedown screw's orientation. Internally, the Mark II employs circlips to retain various pins instead of keeper screws, and as a result the internals are not interchangeable with the Mark I due to the design change done to accommodate the circlips. As the receivers were made in batches and assembled at a later date, it isn't unusual to find an earlier serial block receiver mated to a barrel exhibiting more modern proof markings. By default,
3834-604: The trigger mechanism but otherwise very similar to the British Mark II. These rifles can be identified by their Nepalese markings and different receiver ring. A noticeably different variant incorporating earlier Westley Richards ideas for a flat-spring driven hammer within the receiver in lieu of the coil-spring powered striker of the von Martini design, known as the Gahendra rifle, was produced locally in Nepal . While generally well-made,
3905-482: Was 49 inches (1,245 mm) long, the steel barrel 33.22 inches (844 mm). The Henry patent rifling produced a heptagonal barrel with seven grooves with one turn in 22 inches (559 mm). The weapon weighed 8 pounds 7 ounces (3.83 kg). A sword bayonet was standard issue for non-commissioned officers; when fitted, the weapon extended to 68 inches (1,727 mm) and weight increased to 10 pounds 4 ounces (4.65 kg). The standard bayonet
3976-476: Was a socket-type spike , either converted from the older Pattern 1853 (overall length 20.4 inches (518 mm)) or newly produced as the Pattern 1876 (overall length 25 inches (635 mm)), referred to as the "lunger". A bayonet designed by Lord Elcho was intended for chopping and other sundry non-combat duties, and featured a double row of teeth so it could be used as a saw; it was not produced in great numbers and
4047-491: Was a limitation and danger present in the weapon's mechanism. More breech-loading firearms were made in the early 18th century. One such gun known to have belonged to Philip V of Spain , and was manufactured circa 1715, probably in Madrid . It came with a ready-to load reusable cartridge. Patrick Ferguson , a British Army officer, developed in 1772 the Ferguson rifle , a breech-loading flintlock firearm. Roughly two hundred of
4118-419: Was a single-shot breech-loading rifle using a rotating bolt to seal the breech. It was so called because of its .5-inch needle-like firing pin, which passed through a paper cartridge case to impact a percussion cap at the bullet base. It began development in the 1830s under Johann Nicolaus von Dreyse and eventually an improved version of it was adopted by Prussia in the late 1840s. The paper cartridge and
4189-408: Was able to remain grouped closely around the gun, ready to load and put final touches on the aim, prior to firing the next shot. That led to the development of an armored shield fitted to the carriage of the gun, to help shield the crew from long-range area or sniper fire from the new, high-velocity, long-range rifles, or even machine guns. Although breech-loading firearms were developed as far back as
4260-416: Was adopted, which had minor design updates as well as more interchangeable parts with Martini-Henry carbine. In late 1870s British military was looking forward to unify ammunition for its rifles and machine guns (they were both .45 caliber, but different cartridges). The .577/.450 turned out to be poorly suited to the hopper feed as well as existing box magazines due to a very pronounced bottleneck, so in 1881
4331-596: Was especially effective in anti-personnel roles. Breech-loading firearms are known from the 16th century. Henry VIII possessed one, which he apparently used as a hunting gun to shoot birds. Meanwhile, in China, an early form of breech-loading musket, known as the Che Dian Chong , was known to have been created in the second half of the 16th century for the Ming dynasty's arsenals . Like all early breech-loading fireams, gas leakage
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#17328632200014402-416: Was found that, while the rifle with its 485 grain bullet shot point of aim to 100 yards, the carbine load when fired in the rifles shot 12 inches (30 cm) high at the same range, but then made up for this by shooting spot-on out to 500 yards (460 m). These early lessons enabled tactics to be evolved to work around the limitations of this large, slow, and heavy calibre during the Zulu War. During most of
4473-642: Was much improved over the Dreyse needle gun as it had dramatically fewer gas leaks due to its de Bange sealing system. The British initially took the existing Enfield and fitted it with a Snider breech action (solid block, hinged parallel to the barrel) firing the Boxer cartridge. Following a competitive examination of 104 guns in 1866, the British decided to adopt the Peabody -derived Martini-Henry with trap-door loading in 1871. Single-shot breech-loaders would be used throughout
4544-459: Was not standard issue. The Mk II Martini–Henry rifle, the most numerous modification adopted in 1877, as used in the Zulu Wars, was sighted to 1,800 yards (1,600 m). At 1,200 yards (1,100 m), 20 shots exhibited a mean deflection from the centre of the group of 27 inches (69 cm), the highest point on the trajectory was 8 feet (2.44 m) at 500 yards (460 m). In 1879, Mk III rifle
4615-669: Was not until smokeless nitro powders and copper-jacketed bullets were tried out in these rifles in the 1920s that accuracy and 100% reliability of cartridge case extraction was finally achieved by Birmingham ammunition makers ( Kynoch ). English hunters on various safaris, mainly in Africa, found the Martini using a cordite charge and a 500-grain full-metal-jacketed bullet effective in stopping large animals such as hippopotamus up to 80 yards away. The nitro based/shotgun powders were used in Kynoch's .577/450 drawn-brass Martini–Henry cartridge cases well into
4686-414: Was paper lined so as to prevent the chemical reaction between the black powder and the brass. Known today as the .577/450, a bottle-neck design with the same base as the .577 cartridge of the Snider–Enfield . It was charged with 85 grains (5.51 g) of Curtis and Harvey's No.6 coarse black powder, notorious for its heavy recoil. The cartridge case was ejected to the rear when the lever was operated. The rifle
4757-479: Was protected by a patent on 29 September 1812. The Pauly cartridge was further improved by the French gunsmith Casimir Lefaucheux in 1828, by adding a pinfire primer, but Lefaucheux did not register his patent until 1835: a pinfire cartridge containing powder in a cardboard shell. In 1845, another Frenchman Louis-Nicolas Flobert invented, for indoor shooting , the first rimfire metallic cartridge , constituted by
4828-509: Was really only capable of hitting a man-size target out to 400 yards. This was due to the bullet going subsonic after 300 yards and gradually losing speed thereafter, which in turn affected consistency and accuracy of the bullet in flight. The 415-grain Martini Carbine load introduced in 1878 shot better out to longer ranges and had less recoil when it was fired in the rifles, with its reduced charge of only 75 grains of Curtis & Harvey's. It
4899-554: Was unsuccessful and the government began instead making inquiries to Britain to obtain modern weapons. In 1861 they placed orders for the Calisher and Terry carbine , which used a breech-loading system using a bullet consisting of a standard Minié lead bullet in .54 calibre backed by a charge and tallowed wad, wrapped in nitrated paper to keep it waterproof. The carbine had been issued in small numbers to English cavalry ( Hussars ) from 1857. About 3–4,000 carbines were brought into New Zealand
4970-419: Was used by prison guards and police in Egypt, Burma, India, and Australia. Over 60,000 had been produced by the time production ended in the 1960s. The gun was originally designed to replace the Egyptian police's obsolete Martini–Henry rifles, which they usually loaded with brass shot-shells. The Mark I/14 ("14" for the gun's gauge), first produced in 1918, had a full wooden stock and a large metal nosecap over
5041-419: Was used up to 1,000 yards using the standard military service ammunition of the day. By the 1880s the .577/.450 Boxer Henry round was recognised by the NRA as a 900-yard cartridge, as shooting the Martini out to 1,000 yards or ( 3 ⁄ 4 of a mile) was difficult, and took great skill to assess the correct amount of windage to drop the 485 grain bullet on the target. But by 1904 more target shooters were using
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