The Blunderbuss: History's Goofiest Boomstick

[@FeatheredDino]

I have heard a lot of speculation about why the Blunderbuss has it's iconic, strange muzzle; many people thinking it was designed that way because they believed it would increase the spread of shot. I however firmly believe it was designed that way for the explicit purpose of making loading a handful of small, loose shot much easier.

[@BartJBols]

Actually, it might also have served another function. Lower quality iron being used, the point where the most stress presents is the nozzle. A way to help manage those stresses might be to flare the nozzle and allow the high pressure gasses to flare slowly instead of having them flare abruptly like in modern firearms.

[@eleithias]

Yes, the trumpet muzzle was there to make loading random things easier and faster.

[@jimvargaco.6344]

@@BartJBolscould see that being the case on the early guns and then sticking around on those used for shot loads.

[@kamrynsikes]

@@eleithias also, and most critically, more comical looking when reloading.

[@pieterverhaeghe5143]

My own guess, lookingat the typical reinforcements on the barrel, would be that a blunderbuss was typically loaded with more powder and either a heavier ball or multiple, so it would be more the earlier variant of a shotgun

[@ZackeryStang]

I have a pristine French blunderbuss made around 1750... it has a French baronett's name engraved in script down the center octagonal strip of the barrel.. with 110 grains of 2f powder and 3oz of my homemade swan shot it is DEVASTATING on a 2 x 6 piece of lumber at 10 to 15 paces and recoil is absolutely ridiculous

[@TTillahFK]

Hello American 😅

[@JamesGrim08]

@@TTillahFK Its a flintlock... Can you not own primitive firearms?

[@TTillahFK]

@@JamesGrim08 hehe yea, but the description, 👌🏼😂 Where I live no, to sabres knives etc, except hunting and only one.. flintlock is still a gun, don't think there is a gray area there 😉

[@nonethelessfirst8519]

​@TTillahFK that sucks ass.

[@justicar5]

​@@JamesGrim08UK you could, think it would be a shotgun license to own one along with shot and powder, if you didn't own any method to fire it, it would probably be considered an 'obsolete' weapon, so no license needed. (Plus you would have to have an explosives licence for the powder, I think some modern alternatives are considered 'propellants' not explosives for weird ass reasons)

[@christopherdobrilovic-h.6470]

A 40+ minute documentary on the blunderbussy, I'm here for it.

[@franciscomagallon3364]

Damn i came here literally to just say "blunderbussy"

[@Dino3014]

My grandfather hunted with a blunderbuss in his youth when he lived on the island of Sardinia, between 1920-1930. He stated that often he would be giving chase to prey and while running, scoop up rocks and debris as projectiles. He stated that his blunderbuss put food on the table for his entire family in Italy. When he emigrated to the US, he was unable to bring his trusty firearm. He slathered the grease, wrapped it in oil cloth and hid it within a stone wall being renovated. I think of that blunderbuss often.

[@otakunthevegan4206]

"What is this? 1850?"

[@ThexVaultxTech]

Undead nightmare reference is itself almost as ancient as the blunderbuss

[@PatrickKiefer-ck7eu]

1750

[@Garren-kx2jg]

"Yes thank you so much" "Thank you" "This might just be what i need to Buss" "Just might be what i need to Buss" "Cuz Ambassing! Ambassing! Ambassiiiiiiiiiinguhhhh!"

[@Flesh_Wizard]

"AMBATUBUSS!" *fires blunderbuss*

[@jam1087]

Cuz Ambassing. What is that, Pashtun?

[@fuz5567]

what the hell???

[@TheWonkster]

Amazing

[@dartmart9263]

“Associated with pirates” And cartoon Pilgrims!!!

[@judgedrekk2981]

and hillbillies! lolz

[@dartmart9263]

@@judgedrekk2981 Lol. Really? I saw one in an Appalachian “antique store”. I didn’t get a hands on check of the piece, just saw it hanging on a wall, so I couldn’t tell you if it was legit or some replica.

[@ricefarmer-kr4yv]

And now, the one to blame when someone die to bonber ( yes i play hut and blackpowder)

[@PUPPIES_OF_PESTILENCE]

It makes sense it was associated with pirates, seems to be an Ideal weapon for fighting below decks, much like a shotgun was great for trench warfare.

[@BlueJayWaters]

For the longest time, shotguns were the main firearms used on US Naval ships, because you could fire and not risk penetrating through the hull. When I was in bootcamp, they said it was technically a tradition, as blunderbusses were mainly used below decks during repels. They mostly use the M4 now, but up until the mid 2010's you were still trained on a shotgun for standing watch

[@JamesGrim08]

I'd say its less likely a penetration issue back then, both then and now a shotgun would be a far better weapon for holding down a choke point in a corridor. Thats interesting, thanks for sharing.

[@brittakriep2938]

Either in Drachnifel or scholagladiatora channel, there was an episode, oldest british wwll warships had still boarding pikes on board.

[@Khorne_of_the_Hill]

@@JamesGrim08 I'd rather the M4: it's more accurate, has a higher magazine capacity, and less recoil, yet it being select fire means it can also send a large number of individual projectiles very quickly just like a shotgun can if need be

[@kingleech16]

@@Khorne_of_the_Hill And yet the shotgun remains the premier demonslaying firearm of all time… 🤪

[@waltonchan3931]

Benerson Little, the fencer and author??? 25:35 He was my fencing coach when I went to school in Huntsville, AL!. I still practice my lunge and remise in the same way he taught me a few years ago. Incredible research, effort, and quality in this G&G video as always. Cheers!🍻

[@KnjazNazrath]

How did he teach you to lunge and remise? We want *specifics*, dagnabbit!

[@jacktribble5253]

A little lard on that iron slug and you shouldn't get a spark in normal, responsible use.

[@eleithias]

Yes, this was fairly common actually

[@Uncle_Roadkill]

You know why pirates are called pirates? Because they ARRRRRRRR!

[@DG-iw3yw]

You've got me hooked ye basterd

[@KnjazNazrath]

Why did the pyrat refuse to look at a map? 'cause he knew he was C6.

[@flipflierefluiter5665]

I told several people to dislike this comment.

[@junglerajah7838]

As a gun nut, I admire these videos of early firearms, especially this one as the blunderbuss is my personal favourite when it comes to pirate firearms. I often see online sources state that the ancestor of the shotgun would be the blunderbuss, but I’d disagree with these sources and would say that its history would start with the predecessor of all firearms, the fire lance. Similar to shotguns, the fire lance later shot pellets at close range, which were mainly made out of iron or broken pieces of pottery.

[@michaelrredford]

Thanks!

[@fringehead]

This was very well researched and presented, I have owned four blunderbusses over the years, mostly Spanish and was happy to see many Spanish guns in this vid

[@taylor6164]

Love the style of presentation of your videos. Appreciate your sense of humor too, hard to toe the line in historical content like this but you do a great job. Piracy and the age of sail is clearly your passion but I'm sure I speak for many of your watchers when I say if you ever wanted to switch it up and feature something else from history that interests you as a one off video I would love to see your take on it just as well. There are a lot of history channels that clearly put in a lot less effort than you with much bigger followings. I especially appreciate your insistence on actually finding relevant artwork and visuals instead of uncanny AI stuff. I'm confident your channel will really take off soon. Thanks for the content.

[@bigblue6917]

I remember some years ago seeing a replica handbill which was displayed in a pub. The handbill was from someone who was making a coach trip to London and was was in need of a guard for the journey. The handbill stipulated what weapons the guard should carry and that list included a blunderbuss. Interestingly the pub was originally a coaching inn called the Royal George and may have been the place where the traveller set off from.

[@Mortablunt]

Hath blunderbus and cutoe, ready travel.

[@sunandshadow6593]

Really looking forwards to the video(s) on the muskets and/or carbines!

[@denmarkball7728]

This channel is sooo fking good. I applied to the school of navigation and im gonna watch this channel religiously to hype me up for studies

[@deadhorse1391]

I have an original English flintlock blunderbuss made in the late 1700s by Sharps. Has the feature of a spring loaded bayonet on top of the barrel, you slide a catch back and the bayonet springs up and out. Pretty neat

[@nestori-w]

"Goddamn you, you have missed me, but i won't miss you!" *misses*

[@KnockinOnYourDoor]

Funnily enough, in Greek we have a term that's a loan word from Spanish "trambuco" "τραμπούκος" (trambucos) meaning "thug" or "bully"

[@Juji-Bo]

firing the blunderbuss pistol sounds like a surefire way to dislocate your entire hand

[@unknowntrooper_2791]

A very good vid again. Cannot disagree with that muskets were the main pirate guns as they were so versatile but I think based on quotes and whatnot the blunderbuss was quite omnipresent at sea (mentioned of various different rover companies) but always only in small quantities here and there. How common it was is really a matter of what you compare it with. It was rarer than most people may imagine due to pirate toy guns and whatnot. I have always seen them as niche boarding guns perhaps already because in my language the gun is known as "the crowd gun" giving an image of a weapon only suited for close shipboard combat. I think they are kinda like submachine guns nowadays, an assault rifle can do the same and more (like muskets back in the day) but they have their niche uses. Anyway waiting eagerly for more vids of guns and more. I hope these get views. Cheers!

[@torchlight4212]

⁴ttt//tyt+

[@piotrmroczkowski2324]

Named 'garłacz' in Poland, after the end of a drain pipe, from French 'gargouille'. Also named 'szturmak' from 'to storm' suggesting it was used in storming fortifications.

[@keithtorgersen9664]

I am surprised no one has mentioned the classic Donkey Kong villain Kaptain K.rool. The barrel mouth of his Blunderbuss was widened to the size of a trumpet. Very comical indeed.

[@RietasB.Murunen]

bussy sea men

[@DG-iw3yw]

Please exit the cockpit now

[@jackrice2770]

Yet another thorough and entertaining presentation! As a pirate fiction author, I rely on you and the wonderful Pirate History Podcast by Matt to fuel my imagination. I try to stay within the realm of plausibility with my fiction, wanting to give modern audiences a non-Disneyfied form of entertainment. If I commit any sins of fact in my work, it is certainly not the fault of my sources. Thanks for this work. I appreciate both the historical accuracy and entertainment value. I'd fire off a salute, but, alas, cannons are frowned upon where I live. At least, for personal use.

[@richardprice5978]

well i learning something's like dag/others-like-it=modern model's SBR-tax/ban's the AFT/NFA ( hello dutch and or tea act's sarcasms ) is not historically or modern correct-enforcement as it violates bill of rights ( and for those also under uk-law wink's ) and was completely common to see pistol's ( similarity to broomstick ww1 maser's Germany's were fielding ) and or shorter barrels than 15~in's and or pistol's with 12inch+ long, personality i like the ( fun to see/knowledge that 40MM~smokes-ect can be launched but i don't have any planned yet ) uk browns-bess 4ft~ and 9in~navy-dragon and later cowboy-types and now i see ( wonder that for a year now, still think that was a military/naval 40-75cal mistake and i would have used them in special troops like how there was the horsemen+pistol unit ) that wellington-uk vs founder's 17c-to-1840's~ fight as uk( plus napoleon/France as well but also rejected that idea/adoption ) did have sampled fully automatically rifles but if rockets/bombs lunches and combo in shotgun mode would be part of why vs rebels and lowered ammunition ( Washington at one point writing about his frustrations of low powder and quality, = less options for granider's/cannon's something wellington/king didn't have to worry about as much as long as they were next to port's/loading-shipment's and ship's ) and other supplies so snipers-equipment and 55~cal fully-automatic/roman-candles ( and a earlier belt/chained-feeding models but they didn't get the contracts to my knowledge as they weren't reliable enough yet, by the civil-war/brass-cartages era they were ) model ( workshop/craftsman had about 100 on contract and or repairs, so not as completely commercially commonplace as later revolver/gatlin's/powder-box-types are but also showing federally governmental activity/controls is way out of line as they were in citizenship's-home's-ect ) that continental congressional act passed for a $$ subsidy's ( something generally im not a fan of as a capitalistic+socialism types, but Washington/signer's saw it necessary for well-regulated arms/defence ect ) for private ownership and support for local militia members

[@Robitron2084]

​@@richardprice5978holy yap bro. Wtf are you even trying to say😭

[@LunarBulletDev]

​@@Robitron2084he's too high on the Diddy potion

[@krietor]

​Woah. Yeah. All that makes perfect sense to you. It's way beyond my comprehension, however. I can't read much. Well, if I'm being honest, I can, but only if it's written in plain English - & much better if it's spelled & formatted with decent grammar. Your intellect is obviously in a state of high awareness. Thank you for the attempt to share, though. It reminds me of what's possible for those of us who become lucky enough to be enlightened by . . . something. In other words, why the revolution of mental science can or cannot, but chance plus unaccountable forces claiming the bulk of what's in store for brain-fodder = 3, 4, possibly more (or less) lines of plain thought with inspiration coming from who knows what & who with how being more influential to the ultimate outcome, & we all hope it's either whiskey or a go-go different ways from hell to high water even if twenty or more strong-smelling pits even the score around the turn of the millennium. I think I done spilt the spelt now. I'll get me coat before I get your goat, or perhaps after, vis-a-vis who done it this Tuesday? Locking up the Tasmanian Devil only contributes to its mania. Tit for tat, under my hat. That's that right where it's at. ​@@richardprice5978

[@krietor]

​@@Robitron2084Yeah. All that (info?) interrupted by ZERO periods. None. Unless I counted incorrectly. Wow. Yeah. IDK. Mofo gotta be tweakin'!

[@matteoorlandi856]

I'Ve shot a early, early repro of and handgonne last year. The thing was Just an octagonal chunk of metal the size of and Apple with a short barrel and a touchole, and a tick stock more like a mace. It was called in italian "bombardella manesca" (hand-held Mortar/ bonbard) and It was clearly designed to be used as a mace when not fired, you could easily crush a skull with It.

[@logansomething]

Your hat is just terrific.

[@justsomedude5727]

Dude I was just wanting to learn more about Blunderbusses this week, great timing

[@jarodmasci3445]

That extending stock could also be used to wedge between the arm and side of your torso. For tacticool hip firing

[@kMegalonyx]

I know *Im* keeping that thing as far from my face as possible

[@bluewolvesstudios2822]

The Boomstick with its larger muzzle = Earliest Shotguns. that is all...

[@DARIVSARCHITECTVS]

Such a detailed and interesting documentary ! Thanks !

[@tristanmoors7835]

"but the shooter is kind of a big boy with grizzly bear hands"

[@julzy3]

"On the dance floor when they drop the beat" 😂 "quack quack mother f-er"😂 Katzenkopf?🙀

[@TomFynn]

The Blunderbuss: When you really need to go out and touch someone. Or some people. Or the general area in front of you. Accept no substitute.

[@longrider42]

Right, I have always found the Blunderbuss, to have a flared muzzle, to be easier to load on a moving ship, or on a carriage or stage coach. I used to hunt with a muzzle loading rifle. And I can tel you this. A smooth bore with a flared muzzle, would make it pretty easy to load.

[@MrCher2]

Minute 3:05, the gun below has an inscription. It says: POR CASTILLA POR LEON NUEVO MUNDO HALLÓ COLÓN. It is Spanish and it means "Columbus found a new world for Castile and Leon". Castile and Leon were two kingdoms in Spain.

[@TubeRadiosRule]

I have a modern-made one, sold by Middlesex Village Traders. .69 caliber/14 gauge, 15" barrel. My son used to enjoy shooting it (under supervision, of course) when he was a kid. A 70 grain charge of powder and a load of buckshot used to really rock the little guy back on his heels! Then he'd hand it back to me and say, "I want to do it again, dad!" ♥

[@bombfog1]

I have a reproduction blunderbuss and late 15th C. handegonne and they are always conversation pieces at the range, more so than my cooler modern firearms like the MP5.

[@unknowntrooper_2791]

My purse is a bit light at the moment but here something to help to get some hot chocolate, punch or coconuts. Cheers! 🏴‍☠

[@sasqetshenkley1190]

You left *The Muppets* out of the opening scene!! 😂

[@AnthonyErnst-li5rz]

Trump and Vance are in rehearsal.

[@monkstery]

@@AnthonyErnst-li5rzrent free

[@jonathanwells223]

@@AnthonyErnst-li5rzDon’t worry, I bet it sounded funny in your head

[@Spam1192]

Okay fine, I'll subcribe! Seriously though this was the tipping point. I love these silly looking guns and your pirate videos are very well informed.

[@darknessml6145]

Who up blundering their bussi?

[@napalmholocaust9093]

Rings on brass barrels were temporary crack propagation stoppers. You get to see the barrel failure starting at the crown at the next reload. Has to open pretty far to break the ring. No ring and it just unzips in a blink as the first indication. Still did it for iron most the time, not sure if it was functional. Unnecessary with steel.

[@PaulTheSkeptic]

Did the pilgrims carry the blunderbuss? I think I remember a cartoon from when I was a kid when Elmer Fudd or someone was dressed like a pilgrim and had a gun with a trumpet bell shape at the end. Hey, you found it. Cool.

[@honeyLXIX]

I love learning about things like this. The in-depth long-form content is appreciated. Thank you! Well done.

[@thebountyx7282]

Video Idea: Do a historical analysis of the “Black Pearl” like the Jack Sparrow video you made. Only prerequisite is the ship has to be fast and preferably be a black ship with black sails even if the ship usually sports normal color sails.

[@greenspiraldragon]

Blunderbuss might have been carried by an officer useful for suppressing a mutiny. Fire into the mass.

[@myboysd5772]

Okay, you caught me with that thumbnail, take your view, like and the mandatory algorytm comment.

[@Connlic]

"Blunderbuss? What is this 1850?"

[@germanmandalorian3514]

I have one of this Blunderbusses for my LARP, its all ways funny to see the Faces from the other Shieldwall/formation the deadly End of it if i shove it forward. Worth it every Time.

[@alt-ic2il]

The Blunderbuss could also be effective from close range against mounts or armoured soldiers such as cuirassiers.

[@charliebeareuwu]

Honestly you could view the blunderbuss a lot like a .50 Cal rifle or a desert eagle

[@dallintaggart482]

It was a blunder and a bust.

[@bsaneil]

Very good video. I own several muzzleloaders; muskets, rifles and pistols. But now I want one of these!

[@BobLazier-zk8gi]

Fired an old blunderbus as a kid.. I think it was a recreation.. just looked and worked the same.. I’ve got an old 50c muzzle loader that was made in the 60’s that looks exactly like one from the 1700’s.. I think the blunderbus I fired was the same.. a newer blunderbus made to look like an old one but idk it wasn’t mine and idk what happened to the old man who owned it.. could of been an older one for all I know.. it didn’t have the flared muzzle like the ones you showed here tho.. was a shoulder mount.

[@cindys1819]

Amazing, intricate history... Thank You for posting!

[@HenryThree]

The claim that the duckbill muzzle resulted in spreads that were "less tall but wider" seems to contradict the earlier claim that the flared muzzle had no effect on the spread of the shot, which was only determined by the bore of the gun.

[@Jansie_NL]

Quick input on the Dutch Donderbus. The word "bus" means cylinder, usually a cylindrical item used to store food and/or stuff, like a "beschuitbus". (beschuit seems to be an exclusively Dutch product, similar to toast only round and the entire thing is extremely light, fluffy and crunchy. Didn't know that it's not an international thing before writing this comment! =D ). I have not done ANY etymological research into this whatsoever, but my suspicion is that Donderbus should be translated to Thundertube or Thunderpipe maybe?

[@painmt651]

Seems to me you are talking biscuits, man…

[@twanheijkoop6753]

Bus is old-dutch for canon and later more specifically for man carried firearms. But I wouldn't doubt that the cylinder shape gave the earliest guns this name

[@Jansie_NL]

@@twanheijkoop6753 Awesome! Thanks for the quick history lesson on my language! ^^

[@Jansie_NL]

@@painmt651 Most likely! Haha

[@twanheijkoop6753]

@@Jansie_NL dutchie as well, that did do a bit of etymological research ;D

[@tomdom5846]

#unexpectedTF2 ❤️ Great content, loved the depth of details and the little jokes thrown in ! We have a nice pirate festival/concert in our little french landlocked town, always love to see the blunderbusses and the musketoons

[@semi-useful5178]

I've been trying to find a good book on the evolution of the Blunderbuss because ever since discovering the Odzutsu of Japan I've been wondering that if they had such a big hand cannon why did they not develop the blunderbuss, it's even stranger because Japan had massive civilian firearms ownership for hundreds of years.

[@WetDoggo]

Donderbuss seems related to Donnerbüchse... Which means can of Thunder

[@gwoody4003]

I always assumed the funnel barrel of a blunderbuss was to make it easier and faster to reload on a swaying deck or on horseback. They had to have figured out pretty quickly that it really didn't make the shot spread out much more. The lead would naturally retain its clump regardless of the flared barrel. It wouldn't clump more, like with a choke, but it wouldn't spread out in a big cloud with the wider muzzle. Barrel length has more of an effect on that. Now if you were dropping iron shot, rocks, nuts n bolts, thise crazy rectangular shot show in the video... stuff thats not soft and malleable as lead or more likely to jam up a traditional barrel.... then yeah it would give you a wider spread and make it possible to drop almost anything down the barrel to use as shot. They do make a duckbill choke for modern shotguns that does spread the shot in more of a flat line... but not much more. The KZbin channel "Derfledermaus" is entirely devoted to testing shotgun equipment, modifications and ammunition, and they showed that the flared blunderbuss barrel and the duckbill choke do not make much of a difference in the spread pattern.

[@queefcheif9306]

find it wild how it can be stuffed with anything that fits in the barrel

[@PerfectionHunter]

First movie clip is from Pirates of the Caribbean Dead Men Tell No Tales 2017

[@PackLeader12690]

Fable 2's best gun type

[@matthewgragg2152]

A great gun for crowd control and confirmed spaces.

[@louisduplessis2075]

In fiction .".Kidnapped "...the first time David Balfour sees his ominous uncle..he was pointing a blunderbus at him...saying."..Beware I have a blunderbus" After that...things started going South...

[@darthplagueis13]

4:17 Slight mess-up here. It's a Streuröhre, not a Streürohre.

[@Fraser1988er]

Thank you for the deep dive! It has been very informative.

[@scottn322]

You got my sub as soon as you mentioned John Marston

[@ClimateScepticSceptic-ub2rg]

I kept hearing 'flat muzzle', and then worked out that you meant 'flared muzzle'. Good video though.

[@tcup3946]

During the Napoleonic wars, Dragoons carried a variation of long pistols that shot a variation of shot. Similar to blunderbuss. They would carry 2 or even 3 of them into battle.

[@anewguy-n9z]

Just curious, did pirates ever act completely in rouge like we often see in media? Betryaying a birth country for example, or did almost all of them still have patriotic loyalties to their home nation? I suppose it depends on personal grudges.

[@ptonpc]

Quack Quack Mother Ducker indeed. An entertaining and informative video. Thanks and subscribed.

[@AGermanFencer]

Very nice 17th cent fashion youre sporting there. :)

[@TheLoyalOfficer]

The hand cannon.

[@sibsonoid3021]

I just learned where dragoons come from and what H.M.S. means, great video

[@hippiedude2232]

17:15 that top gun... "Quick someone get the booze, my gun's too depressed to shoot straight!"

[@specterknight873]

My favorite version of the blunderbuss is the cartoon version that just fires a cannon ball

[@couchbear6108]

As the founding fathers intended

[@VRSVLVS]

"Bus" in "Donderbus" can also be translated as "tube". The modern Dutch term for "tube" is "buis", but in early modern Dutch this was often "bus". Bus in modern Dutch not more specifically refers to a tin can, particularly a round one. Note that the word "bus" as in "fire arm tube" can also be found in the Dutch word for black powder: "Buskruit". Literally this translates to "tube spice" or "tube herb". Essentially the word "bus" was the general term for a firearm in early-modern Dutch. Essentially calling all firearms "tubes". In modern Dutch the term "vuurwarpen" is more commonly used. lit: fire weapon. Long guns tend to be referred to as "geweer" (compare German "Gewehr), and pistols and revolvers as "pistool". There is no modern Dutch word that can be used to directly translate the English word "gun", except the early-modern Dutch "Bus". The word bus has nothing to do with the modern Dutch word "bus" as in the public transport motor vehicle. That bus ultimately derives from "omnibus": Latin for "for all" as in, transport for all.

[@Wavy_Gravy]

Sawed off blunderbuss! 18:00

[@plzletmebefrank]

As several with a large degree of practical experience with firearms have pointed out... You're not gonna break your wrist firing any sort of handgun, no matter how powerful. It will either fly out of your hand (possibly into your face or body), or damage your thumb, or both. Your grip breaks before your wrist does.

[@SenseNom17]

Fun fact: in Catalonia there are whole traditional folckloric dance groups that the only thing they do is to fire blunderbusses: the "trabucaires".

[@homuraakemi493]

Blunderbuss is my favorite gay pirate gun!

[@claptrap4084]

The blunderbuss, or atleast, the flared out barrel was originally made for cavalry. The flared barrel made it easier to load powder and ball down the barrel without wasting, since loading down a regular sized barrel would be obviously much harder to do. The flared barrel does also help spread shot out if used as a shotgun, but that was an unintended benefit

[@thecore8605]

My favorite firearm, the blunderbussy

[@TheDocLamkin]

As a fellow FN Mag fan and veteran I say good day sir. In America it's called the M240, at least it was 20 years ago. Anyways another great video

[@SabreArchon]

The Blunderbuss seems to have been most effective used as a home defense weapon.

[@lordmanatee439]

It's a gun, that shoots shot. It's a shotgun.

[@Dan964917]

Damn dude gold and gunpowder was a grunt? Hell yeah.

[@meanmanturbo]

21:30 Just a clarifaication, B-Force is a translation of the Swedish term for Opposing Force/OPFOR

[@WalldoTheWInner]

Always seemed like it'd be way more effective than every other firearm of the time.

[@Khorne_of_the_Hill]

Even if the BP in that video wasn't using some kind of modern powder like 777, the power is going to be affected by how finely corned the powder is, and it's common to use a finer, and therefore more powerful, powder such as FFF or even priming powder today because the fears that doing so would risk rupturing the barrel were either unfounded and/or eliminated by improved metallurgy used on replica firearms

[@neilelsewhere9473]

Very good Sir!

[@Stranded_Adventures]

My internet poisoned brain CANNOT read that name

[@Iowa599]

How does the flared muzzle change the sound generated?

[@leadingauctions8440]

Is there a video on the pyrotechnic medieval rocket launcher gun? Are there any surviving examples of those mad things?!