Beautiful 16th Century Saxon Wheellock Pistols

[@smilergrogan1452]

'Anthropomorphically Questionable Dude' - I wonder what the craftsman who did the work would think of that? Oh yeah, what exactly are the bears up to?

[@robertsmith4681]

Probably a local medieval equivalent of a Leprachaun or Elf or whatever, "men of the forest" sort of deal, purposedly portrayed as "monstruous".

[@cabinfever7262]

I bet he would be angry that Ian insulted his mother like that.

[@cstoff6066]

@@cabinfever7262 If he knew this would still be here today, he would offer a 500 year guarantee and be posting 'Anyone still shooting in 2020?' comments here.

[@ChristianRB89]

"Thats a bigfoot"

[@lightweight1974]

@@ChristianRB89No it's a Ye Olde Bigfoot

[@kilianortmann9979]

A lot of weapons (firearms and crossbows) decorated in this style can be found in a hunting context 'Jagdschloss'. And they are even more awesome to see in person.

[@iuploadherebecauseimnotbuy7236]

I would love to have a look at the kind of tools that were used 450 years ago to create such awesome works of art.

[@JeSsSe66]

I also express great interest in this subject. The tools used were very rudimentary like files, chisels, bowdrills, etc. The most important tool back then was TIME. What really interests me are the techniques or 'tricks' they used that would be lost knowledge today. For example, to make a barrel they would literally wrap flat iron sheet around a mandrel and forge it - unlike today we just bore it out of a solid bar on the lathe.

[@allhumansarejusthuman.5776]

@@JeSsSe66 they did actually bore them out on a lathe when they finished forging. It was just a foreign looking lathe to today's eyes.

[@KaletheQuick]

We need to find the oldest firearm still in existence, and get Ian there. Also the oldest beretta, since they still have the invoice for their first order... Of wheel locks.

[@talltroll7092]

You probably need to define "firearm" first

[@lightweight1974]

@@talltroll7092 Is a flaming arrow a firearm?

[@sadams12345678]

@@lightweight1974 No it isn't. A flaming arrow is a projectile.

[@sadams12345678]

@@talltroll7092 Here is the dictionary definition of the term firearm www.dictionary.com/browse/firearm

[@somehobo4410]

You would probably have to look at China since they were the first ones to find gunpowder.

[@andrewsuryali8540]

1st century BC Rome: "Ah yes, this is an original Kopis made in Corinth 500 years ago, and that one is a recent imitation from Crete. Barely worth its weight in bronze." Today: "Right, 15 million for the Corinthian Kopis and 20 million for the Cretan one in better condition."

[@Icetea-2000]

Yeah basically. In my opinion it’s so fascinating to think about the time those things existed. For example in the ancient Roman times the pyramids were longer ago than the romans are today

[@thesturm8686]

I wonder if i make a knockoff hi point how much will it sell in a millennium....

[@ianwhitchurch864]

@@thesturm8686 Depends. Have you made a knockoff hi-point that is highly decorated in an early 21stC style ?

[@CloSeph]

@@ianwhitchurch864 Y E E T C A N N O N

[@oktayyildirim2911]

Do you think people will be hunting down counterfeit plug & play consoles in a couple hundred years? They cost like $15 to make each one, but I'm willing to bet they'll go for thousands relatively soon.

[@fludblud]

6:36 This is why you gotta hold onto your Norinco 1897s and 1911s, they may be 'cheap Chinese replicas of American legends' today but in 200 years they'll be worth a fortune.

[@1SilverDollar]

@Lind_Koda331_337. Well, maybe family down the future line could benefit from a real fake

[@innovacraft]

Wheel lock: 16th century Bic lighter.

[@AGS363]

No, the other way. Bic lighter: Modern Wheellock.

[@VicariousReality7]

What are you talking about...... compare them to a direct equivalent.... the Zippo lighter

[@CptJistuce]

Light your smokes with style.

[@justinthebeau2590]

The wheellock is basically an old fashioned cigarette lighter

[@banthaexplosion]

That fish/snake scale ramrod is beautiful.

[@axelmattheus9203]

Now that is amazing. For it to still be in such a gorgeous condition

[@Andrewbert109]

Good god these are gorgeous. And I love seeing Ian's eyes light up talking about the Victorian era reproductions and their current collector value. His passion for guns is so damn infectious, I am fairly certain people with no interest in guns could watch this video and find this fascinating.

[@randywatson8347]

O M G. I have no words for the 16th century craftmanship.

[@djackmanson]

"Is that a REAL fake?" "No, that's a fake fake"

[@joeblow9657]

?????

[@_wanted_outlaw3007]

@@joeblow9657 100 people understood

[@Alekontilt120]

@@joeblow9657I’m with you here

[@Mishn0]

"Puffer style" may come from the period fashion of dress, "puff and slash" as was worn by the Landsknechts.

[@Mishn0]

@Patrick Kiani My comment was written in English, in which language the plural is "Landsknechts".

[@alexdemoya2119]

i wish id look as good at 400 years old

[@vertigo4236]

And still get a shot off...

[@joshuak4553]

@@vertigo4236 Ba-dum tsss.........

[@Tsudoshi09]

The work that went into those pistols is just insane....

[@ogilkes1]

Great video! Cavalry firearms like this were in part intended for use in a manoeuvre called the caracol. As the name suggest it was something the Spanish cavalry were noted for. A unit of horsemen armed with pistols and or longish arms of one sort or anther, would approach an infantry unit at a trot or walk. The front rank would fire and then wheel back through the other ranks to the rear, while reloading. Next rank fires and then wheels and so on. Such firearm cavalry were common on late 16th and 17th century battlefields and were usually armoured so as to sustain fire from the infantry. They rarely charged home, indeed there are a number of examples of such Calvary being surprised and routed by cavalry who did charge them! That was one of the tricks of Gustavus Adolphus' Swedish horsemen during the 30 years war, they actually charged into the opposing and largely stationary cavalry of the German Imperialists. This and the increasing effectiveness of muskets put an end to this peculiar tactic. One of the last instances i can thin of was at the Battle of Roundway Down in 1643, when Sir William Waller's Western Parliamentary army included a regiment of armoured 'lobsters' equipped in this fashion (though I suspect with primitive flintlock pistols) who were shot to pieces by Sir Ralph Hopton's Royalist musketeers.A magnificent pair of pistols, wish I had the price they will probably sell for!

[@lakrids-pibe]

Perkele !

[@ogilkes1]

@RocketSurgeon firepower and shock tactics!

[@CanalTremocos]

A Wheellock with that level of decoration wasn't made to ever leave the castle in wartime.

[@contactacb]

Estimated Price: $80,000.00 - $150,000.00 Search RIA's site under wheel lock. Apparently originally in the State Heritage Museum in St. Petersburg Russia in modern times and moved around a bit since

[@metalman6708]

Quarter million dollars

[@clamum]

Wow. Really incredible pieces there. Talk about guns as art! They're in such good shape too, for being over 400 years old. Very cool stuff, thanks Ian!

[@Tizzandor]

they are absolutely gorgeous, even more so when you think about how old they are. Beautiful craftsmanship

[@loreman2803]

Most people: C96 is so bulky and weird. So is the Mars. Forgotten weapon: Observe.

[@tngdwn8350]

C96 is iconic and beautiful :3

[@loreman2803]

@@tngdwn8350 oh definatly tho I prefer the C93

[@tngdwn8350]

@@loreman2803 Fancy as well

[@loreman2803]

@@tngdwn8350 Steampunk

[@chrissinclair8705]

Hold my beer....lol

[@stefanmolnapor910]

Truely Beautiful! The art and craftsmanship!

[@Fulgrim2]

Ah, for when a hunter from Bloodborne truly wants to style on his fellow hunters.

[@ultrablueberry2420]

Full Flex

[@DP-fq7iy]

Get parried, casual.

[@kobarau]

My peasant ears!! Hand carved stag horn from nearly 450 years ago... This is incredible. Awesome content!

[@lakemanson8051]

For a weapon that old, the art is incredible

[@lykatheaaflame8254]

You could be surprised ! These pistols are quite sober in comparison with other arms or armors.

[@rocket_pod_man7]

That stuff should be in the Rüstkammer in Dresden, they just restored the Langer Gang for old guns like that

[@Jdflana1]

Ian I was a member of the Worms, Germany shooting club 1490, many years ago. The 1490 referee to the year the club was started and to the gun that wad the reason for the club. It a was snap Schusswaffen that was referred to as new at the time. Exactly how the club came to own the gum I have no idea, but the gun in 1490 was worth all of the following ; 100 morgen land, living house, 2 destrier, full suit of chain, 5 weapons of choice, 10 male serfs, and 8 Gold coins.

[@ianwhitchurch864]

Either it's a very pretty piece of art, or someone got ripped off for that gun. Twenty years later, in 1510, Captain Willem Turck is paying 24 stuivers for a harquebus in Leiden, or about a weeks pay for a working man. james.wardware.com/J-Europ-Econ-Hist.pdf

[@kylemcgill4580]

Ian's facial hair really matches the vibe of these pistols

[@jongreenshields2815]

Last time I was this early, weapons like these were cutting edge

[@aldenconsolver3428]

Thank you, I would just love to see more of this kind of video

[@JimYeats]

These are simply spectacular. Just...wow.

[@Zpicismrad]

I love how all the animals have eyebrows. Bears, boars, lions, everything.

[@loupiscanis9449]

Thank you , Ian .

[@coonus1]

If only gun makers made this type of quality still. Absolutely beautiful pieces of history there. Love em.

[@TheHylianBatman]

It's fascinating how much art and history can pop up from a firearm. One could say something about the perceived necessity of a person and their weapon throughout history.

[@oktayyildirim2911]

I can't even begin to imagine how anyone could so casually handle a pistol that's older than even the early American colonies. Imagine, you could make something in your lifetime that ends up being admired and displayed by the people of centuries ahead.

[@earlgrayteabeard8471]

I'm thinking of building a Wheellock rifle with most of the features that I've seen through research, a breech loading system, the aperture sights seen on these pistols and a self spanning wheel

[@ILikeTheThingsIDo]

Aperture sights on a smoothbore black powder pistol are an amazing example of optimism.

[@iainsmith6643]

That's real craftsmanship.

[@aintit]

I can only imagine the incredible amount of skill it took to make and engrave those guns. No lathes, no mills, no presses, no powered engraving tools or computer programs or anything like that. Incredible amounts of skill.

[@georgewilson7432]

A work of art.

[@revolverDOOMGUY]

I still remember the lorenzoni rifle you showed us once... probably my favourite weapon you ever showcased. It complitely demolished what i knew about flintlocks.

[@Gordonseries385]

The cleaning technique and care back in the days the surface quality looks great

[@MrPants-zu6dm]

The sights are very cool and impressive.

[@novaterra973]

2:10 And cracking someone's skull in pinch, I assume. EDIT: Apparently not, from the comment in Victorian counterfeit wheellock video.

[@colbunkmust]

According to the Royal Armouries they were also used as bludgeons, although I doubt this pair was ever intended for battlefield use.

[@RiderOftheNorth1968]

Nice of you to edit your post. Not many would admit to being wrong, Thumbs up for you!

[@novaterra973]

@@RiderOftheNorth1968 Ian mentioning the counterfeit wheellock reminded me of that video, so I checked.

[@RiderOftheNorth1968]

@@colbunkmust Not really. perhaps in the outmost dire situation i can see a military wheellock pistol being used as a club but with the barrel, not the pommel. The barrel end is heavier and better to hit with.

[@luisnunes2010]

16th century cavalry swords crack skull much better, even if they are primarily thrusting weapons.

[@BathtubBass]

Wow those are gorgeous! True craftsmanship that doesn't exist today!

[@Nephutis]

if not already, these gorgeous weapons deserved to be immortalized as video game weapons. i can just imagine a 16th century dante with these as his ebony and ivory.

[@SuperOtter13]

Thank you for sharing these with us sir! Love looking at firearms from this time period.

[@jameskazd9951]

absolutely amazing craftsmanship

[@niros9667]

What an amazing piece of history!

[@chara7678]

I've seen ones very close in design to those in person at the tower of London exhibits, just near a set of gun based melee weapons, including my favourite, a four barrel wheel lock gunaxe, where the four barrels were concealed behind the flip open axeblade

[@collinmclaren6608]

3:39 The guy looks like one of those renaissance painting memes *"Mother, why have you birthed me into this living nightmare of flesh and suffering?"*

[@luizpaulo45]

i remember carrying 3 of them or some variation when playing Mount & Blade Fire and Sword.

[@GoldPlatedGhost]

Wow... the condition on these pieces is unbelievable! ✨

[@Koolaidheart11]

The history of these two must spectacular

[@balancedfordaylight1]

a peep sight on a 16th century pistol !! that's nuts !!

[@kenhelmers2603]

Very cool! Thanks Ian

[@limmortelpingouin432]

It's place is in a museum!

[@neilstanley1651]

Jaw dropping craftsmanship from 450 years ago.

[@picax8398]

The attention to detail is absolutely insane. And to think these are 450 years old... *450*

[@1anthonybrowning]

Wheel locks are really cool.

[@ScottKenny1978]

Wow, that engraving is impressive!!!🤯

[@dave_h_8742]

Some nice fancy pistols at The Royal Armories,Leeds. Easily find out who the makings are of and where they worked as they have a good library too.

[@PieterBreda]

They are gorgeous. Amazing work

[@TheCatBilbo]

Beautiful - the endless days of work that went into the pistols is amazing, not just the engraving but the metal working, too. Yes! Comparison video of Victorian fakery would be fascinating.

[@dylanskutches3539]

My favorite kind of thing to see on the channel, amazing!

[@edwardgarea7650]

Wonderful video of a time when even weapons were works of art. I’m surprised, Ian, that you didn’t take it apart to show how it worked. But if you did that, the folks at RIA would have massive coronaries.

[@sejembalm]

Big, ancient-style ball-butted horse pistols are fun to shoot! I found a simple but massive reproduction matchlock pistol with a .69 caliber smoothbore barrel as long as my forearm. Very utilitarian with no decoration or trigger guard. Goes great with my Swedish 1590 .75 matchlock arquebus reproduction. From the time of Queen Elizabeth I to the end of the Thirty Years War in 1648, sailors and cavalry experimented with numerous models of shortened matchlock arquebus firearms. Infantry arquebus models proved too long for mounted troops. Among them was the matchlock "handgonne". It was a transitional firearm, replaced shortly after by wheellock pistols.

[@MysterySmell]

Oh your neat Ian......lots of love from new Zealand.....since the Christchurch shooting we cant even own a ten22...

[@CosmicDust5000]

Amazing pieces

[@operator1192]

That’s one of the prettiest firearms I’ve seen, so ornate.

[@Leverguns50]

Those things are spectacular

[@judgejimbobrowntown7600]

Holy engraving that’s more art then gun !!!!! People back then had it wrong there a time for paintings and a time for guns but not both lol

[@positroll7870]

Meet the school for gunsmithing and engravings in Suhl, Germany ... kzbin.info/www/bejne/op3UnJSlo9GWodU

[@thermostance1815]

you should get a tilt shift camera, as it allows you to change the plane of focus, via tilting it, and you will be able to get the sights SOOO much better.

[@canadiansfor2A]

What a beautiful pair of guns

[@MoguTheMagician]

old guns are always beautiful

[@rockyhoughtaling2007]

Definitely up there with some of the coolest firearms ever 😯

[@Pokkuti]

those engravings are actually a secret map to hidden treasure. Believe me, I'm playing a lot of video games.

[@PenitentHollow]

"That belt clip kinda looks like the Assassin's Creed logo." *Abstergo has entered the chat*

[@Thomas-yf1ve]

You should take a day trip with marques brownlee. his close up shots are phenomenal. itd be cool to see these guns in the ultra smooth 4k style he has

[@johnfisk811]

Nice to see a pair of pistols two centuries older than my new house. The sights were also seen on much older crossbows. I would love to know how they established how to line them up to match the ball's flight. I have seen old matchlocks where the tube has a slot into which you slotted in a small plate with the hole so you could make several plates until the sights lined up.

[@pscwplb]

Judging by the differences, I'd say the engravings were done by different craftsmen working to the same pattern.

[@Ijusthopeitsquick]

Yep, that's what he said.

[@51WCDodge]

There are a number of such picies in the Wallace Collection in London , and sooo much more. Each though it may as you say follow a pattern is unique. Even after centuries you just look and gasp.

[@Eturian]

Holy expletive those are a handsome pair!

[@viliussmproductions]

These belong in a museum!

[@Ch4rmander]

Oh I can't wait to see how much these sell for, that's incredible

[@Payne427]

Love the channel, Ian. I discovered the channel from a suggestion by KZbin that said "Mars Pistol" and my first impression was "Who's this dirty hippie?! He scares me!" But, I powered through and subscribed and now a fan. Keep doing what you're doing.

[@llamallama1509]

That's a really pretty pistol, thanks for sharing!

[@demian1057]

kinda funny to see those type of pistols on youtube, i live in dresden (capital pf saxony) and the (very cool) museum in the castle of the city actually has quite a bunch of interesting weapons including quite a number of ornate flintlock pistols, but also swords with integrated guns, and other cool stuff if you ever plan a trip to germany and you're interested in medieval weapons i highly recommend checking the museum out

[@Spiro20004]

its also worth noting that historians have theorised that the large "pommel" like part of the grip could be used to make the gun a crude mace once fired

[@rmhaven142]

or as we in the trade call it: Ending them rightly

[@notahotshot]

Ian addresses that in another video. You would be more likely to strike with the barrel than the pommel. It does not require changing grip, and the barrel will be harder than the wooden pommel.

[@Spiro20004]

@@notahotshot this is true however i have come across examples with iron pommels, some even with ridges or spikes

[@rmhaven142]

@@Spiro20004 yeah like pistol whippin

[@appalachiangunman9589]

The craftsmanship of these pistols is phenomenal. Imagine the pieces those craftsmen could have built with today’s manufacturing technology.

[@positroll7870]

They still make hunting guns with similar level of craftsmanship in Europe - for royalty and oil sheiks who can afford the horrendous bill. Master gunsmiths dont come cheap per hour ... See eg this double barreled bolt action with gold inlay kzbin.info/www/bejne/h4fdpamEmc9jh6c tech explained here kzbin.info/www/bejne/n4Sofq1pnsaGrtE

[@appalachiangunman9589]

Posi Troll that’s a beautiful rifle, I think I may have saw Ian’s video on it before.

[@Joe-ie8vk]

Jaw dropping Beauty.its just mind blowing the detail,that someone sat there and did all that by hand is just amazing.i wonder what the man hours would be to produce just one of those pistols. And then to think someone would have fought with something that ornate to are standards today is laughable.in a world of polymer and aluminum with 20 or 30 rounds ot more at your disposal. To use who cares what it looks like as long as its tuff and functional.its really cool to see this stuff and just let your mind wonder on what these things have seen in there lifes if they could talk you know.

[@positroll7870]

1400 man hours for a pair of them (modern replica) www.engerisser.de/Bewaffnung/weapons/Wheellockpuffer.html

[@warehousetroll-dp4kt]

YES! we like this stuff too. thanks Ian

[@chkpnt-fq5rv]

Those are beautiful pistols.

[@Number6ManUrinates]

Never ask a Woman, shes age A Man, his salary A Saxon soldier, his fanciness

[@machintelligence]

These were not for a soldier, but for royalty. They were never used, obviously, and really were not intended to be, but were fancy jewelry, after a sort. Given the corrosive properties of black powder, I wonder if they were ever loaded after being proofed.

[@VR-ym8ys]

@Matt "Grammer"?

[@E5rael]

Umm, it's Fräulein. You're in big trouble, mister. Good luck to you.

[@Number6ManUrinates]

@Matt wdym Grammer?

[@MarkDavidKnight]

Those are very beautiful pistols

[@brealistic3542]

I believe the Pummel was also used like a Algonquin war club once the weapon was fired. That is probably where the phrase.... " I will pummel you " comes from.

[@nosferatu5]

At 5:36 you can see the craftsman messed up on the top illustration, on the bottom pistol. Perhaps he followed the sketch upside down when he noticed his mistake, or held the firearms carving piece upside down. The wave on the left starts upside down, but the right end of the wave is right side up, compared to the top equivalent, it looks like he tried to mask it by adding a small curve the right way next to the mistake just like in the top too, which didn’t really help. Pretty cool detail for the history of the firearm.

[@ducomaritiem7160]

I want to see them out there on the range!

[@Woodclaw]

I've a photographic book about handguns that include a pair of incredibly similar Austrian-made wheelocks that are listed as part of the royal arsenal in Madrid.

[@claudelamoreux8543]

Thank you for this video. I would like to see more on muzzle loaders. Also, thanks for not perpetrating the myth that the "pauffer" was used as a bludgeon.

[@talltroll7092]

I'd bet any sum you name that they were used that way sometimes, even if it wasn't the intent

[@claudelamoreux8543]

@@talltroll7092 I'm sure that they were. I'm also sure that the shooter often discovered, to his great dismay, that they were not one piece with the stock but were a separate piece doweled to the stock and subsequently broke off. I hate when that happens.

[@talltroll7092]

@@claudelamoreux8543 If it kept the burly dude with the pike from ventilating you in new and innovative ways, I don't suppose you cared that much :)

[@claudelamoreux8543]

@@talltroll7092 gee, you're busy today. ;)

[@PlymouthT20]

Lovely video, don't skip the old stuff please.

[@luisnunes2010]

That sight. Never saw anything similar before the 18th!

[@positroll7870]

In the late 16th century they already had - breechloaders, - water balances on light wall cannons to make sure they were level and firing straight - polygonal rifling - double triggers and lots of other goodies ...

[@luisnunes2010]

@@positroll7870 But a peep sight, that's still a first for me. 👌