Within the SSAA, muzzleloading involves competitive shooting with replicas of firearms used during Australia’s colonial days.
Many of the excellent replicas available are exact in every detail and it surprises many people just how accurate these firearms can be in the hands of proficient shooters.
Being in touch with the guns the early settlers, farmers and bushrangers used transports you back in history. Many serious muzzleloaders have tried other types of shooting and have switched to what are lovingly described as ‘smoke poles’.
The Firearms
The range of long arms in use by muzzleloaders include:
* Smoothbore matchlock muskets – circa 1600-1650
* Smoothbore flintlock muskets – circa 1700-1800
* Smoothbore percussion muskets – circa 1830-1860
* Flintlock rifles – circa 1750-1830
* Percussion rifles – circa 1830-1860
* Percussion shotguns – circa 1830-1860
The various types are divided into three classes:
* Military
* Traditional
* Open
Handguns also have three different classes:
* Revolvers
* Pistols
* Open
Handguns used include matchlock and flintlock single-shot pistols, smoothbored and rifled, and the revolvers are percussion cap and ball models used during the American Civil War.