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Long rifle. The long rifle, also known as the Kentucky rifle, Pennsylvania rifle, or American long rifle, is a muzzle-loading firearm used for hunting and warfare. It was one of the first commonly-used rifles. [1] The American rifle was characterized by a very long barrel of relatively small caliber, uncommon in European rifles of the period.
May 4, 2020 · It was a .40 caliber weapon with a 46-inch barrel and cost $250, a considerable sum in the early 19 th Century. The stock was trimmed in sterling silver with figures of the Goddess of Liberty, a raccoon, a deer’s head, an elk’s head, and an alligator over the trigger guard.
- More Barrel, Less Powder
- A “Typical” Kentucky Rifle
- Sinkers from Bullet Molds
- Many Kinds of Sights
- Turkey Shoots Were Fun
- Washington Asked For Riflemen
- Kentuckys Still in Use
Now it was lengthened, ranging in the early Kentucky models from 51 to 77 inches, or up to more than triple the length of the average big-game rifle of today. This meant that less powder was needed than before, because it burned cleaner. In the opinion of several authorities, this long barrel which gave great accuracy at the same time that it deade...
All these developments didn’t come at once. They were spread over years, but if it were possible to describe a “typical” or composite Kentucky rifle it might be approximately like this: Its 42-inch barrel, probably full octagon, gave the .45 caliber rifle an overall length of about 55 inches. The stock, which extended to the muzzle, was of curly ma...
Bullet molds were made of brass, stone, and even from old curling irons. They resembled pliers, with a hollow in one jaw to shape the bullet. Anglers of the day used them to cast weights for fish nets and seines. Powderhorns were carved with scenes, family histories, and maps. They were often scraped so thin that the black powder showed through, gi...
Plain open sights were preferred by the early hunters—some type of notch, say, for the rear with a post or a fin in front. Rear sights were placed on grooved slides, and horizontal adjustments were possible. Most frontiersmen sighted in their rifles to shoot a bit high at 50 yards. The ball reached its peak height between 50 and 100 yards; at 100 y...
A hunter needed all the practice he could get if he planned to enter a regular turkey shoot. Ranges depended on how much of the turkey was visible. If only the neck and head could be seen when the bird peered over a bulletproof plank, the range was shorter than if the entire bird was tied out in plain sight. Many shooting matches were held in the w...
George Washington had learned the value of Kentucky riflemen in the French and Indian War. When the Revolution began, he urged the Continental Congress to put in a call for them. So it happens that the first troops raised by a central government on this continent were companies of straight-shooting backwoodsmen—and this might be called the beginnin...
While these cold figures demolish some of the tall stories of frontier legend, the fact remains that the Kentucky rifle was a great firearm for its day. Compared with the best sporting and military arms of the time, it represented nothing less than a revolution in its field. Some flintlock Kentucky rifles are still in use today, mostly for target s...
Apr 1, 2005 · The Story of the American Longrifle. There developed in the latter days of the American colonies, a uniquely American firearm. From early in the 19 th century this unique weapon came to be known as the Kentucky Rifle. Extensive research over the past four decades makes it clear that the Kentucky Rifle, as it is popularly known, was produced ...
Sep 20, 2023 · The Kentucky Long Rifle at War. As can be imagined, a groundbreaking weapon can easily prove beneficial throughout a war, and the Kentucky long rifle was no exception to the rule. After 1776, The War of Independence continued to progress, and as it did, the redcoats came into increased contact with Americans sporting Kentucky long rifles.
by James K. Swisher. The battle at Kings Mountain in October 1780 was the only clash of the American Revolution in which the entire colonial force was armed with American long rifles. Thus this decisive engagement provided a distinct and undisputed test of 18th-century European close-order, volley-fire tactics against the precision-fire, open ...
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What is a Kentucky Rifle?
This rifle is also known as the Kentucky, the hog rifle, or the long rifle. It was designed to be light, slender and graceful, and was the first truly American firearm. Created in the 1730s in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, by skillful immigrant craftsmen from Germany and Switzerland, the Kentucky rifle was the supreme implement created as a state of ...
