Powder magazine

“ Powder magazines make very indifferent conflagrations; they are no sooner on fire than they are off,—all is over before you know where you are, and there is no getting under, which quite puts you out. ”

“ Sometimes traverses are made in the passages to prevent ricochet shot from plunging into them.
Magazines. The present practice is not to make large powder magazines for batteries, but to disperse the barrels of powder, or cartridges here and there in small magazines, about 6 or 7 fathoms, in the rear of the battery; as it appears better to lose a small quantity from time to time, than to run the risk of the whole being destroyed, by a single shell falling into the magazine. These small magazines or entrenchments, will hold about one or two tons of powder; and are about eight or 9 feet square. ”

“ The pouch might be differently constructed, and advantageously converted into a magazine, to carry securely a certain quantity of powder in bulk, in an air tight tin canister, with a screw stopper, to insure its being, at all times, and in all situations, kept perfectly dry; and this is a very essential point, as many cartridges are destroyed or rendered unserviceable in the men's present pouches by rain, a damp atmosphere, and even continued friction ”

“ Wrexham Church struck, this had a copper conductor, but it was too small and the earth contact was doubtful.
List of buildings struck at home and abroad from 1589 to September, 1879, the authorities for the statements being given.
List of powder magazines struck between 1732 and 1878.
Earth Connections. Franklin’s report, 1772, strongly urges the importance of this, in speaking of the powder magazine at Purfleet. In ordinary cases, moist earth is sufficient, but in such a case as this he recommends that a well should be dug at each end of magazine, with 3 to 4 ft. ”

“ When powder is handled in powder-houses on shore, either for the purpose of inspection or preparation for delivery to ships, the baize-cloth is to be spread, and the people, before entering the magazine, must divest themselves of every metal implement, empty their pockets, that nothing likely to produce fire may escape detection, and put on the magazine dresses and slippers. The barrels must be opened only on the floor-cloth, and no metallic setter used in driving either copper or wooden hoops. ”

“ An instrument for trying the strength of powder should not be trusted to: the best trial is with the gun in which the powder is intended to be used, and there can be no better target for trying the comparative strength of different powders, than an unbound book fixed firmly against something solid.
The heavier and harder the metal of which shot is made the better. ”

“ The inside of the barrel should be frequently oiled, the oil being immediately wiped out with a dry cloth wrapped round the cleaning rod. Neat’s-foot oil is best for the lock, and linseed oil is recommended for the stocks, but it is so offensive that we prefer olive oil.
Large-grained powder is generally stronger than small-grained. It is well to be cautious that the grain is not so large as not to fill the nipple freely, or misfires will be the consequence. Powder which suits one gun may not suit another; the larger the bore of the gun, the larger should be the grain of the powder. ”

“ A magazine of the above dimensions will contain about 94,800 lbs. of powder, in piles of 3 barrels each; for a greater number piled above each other destroys the barrels, damages the powder, and occasions accidents. ”

“ When the measure on the flask is regulated as it ought to be, it will hold the requisite charge for a clean barrel on a warm dry day. It behoves the shooter, then, when the atmosphere is moist and the wind boisterous, to increase the charge of powder in each barrel in a trifling degree. However stormy the day may be, the shooter may prevent the particles of powder from being blown away while he is charging ”

“ Comparative merits of foreign and English gunpowder.The Continental powder is usually very soft in [22] its grain, dusty, and quickly absorbs moisture from the atmosphere; its density is below the English powder, on account of its never being subjected to pressure; consequently it is not so durable, and forms a good deal of dust in transport; a great amount of residue is generally left in the gun, and its strength, as a propelling agent, is far inferior to our powders. ”

“ No explosion ever occurred in their transportation, notwithstanding the occasional Railroad accidents, and the many thousands that were sent from the Powder Works during the war.
The powder boxes being filled, were then transported to the magazine, three quarters of a mile still further up the canal. This wood structure was on a rising ground one hundred yards from the canal, enclosed by a high fence. Its capacity was about one hundred tons of gunpowder. ”

“ Notwithstanding the repeated trials and experiments made by the greatest artists, to add to the strength of gun-powder, all have proved without success, and most of them have agreed that the present powder will not admit of a fourth ingredient; therefore it is evident, that any thing being mixed with the present composition of gun-powder, would rather reduce it’s strength than add to it; consequently coloured powder must be weaker than black; so that the making of powder of different colours, is only a fancy that serves to please the curious, without any other effect. ”

“ The shot is next poured in, and a slight shake of the gun in an upward direction causes it to lie evenly;—a wadding is pressed upon it. The shooter next removes the remains of the caps, and looks whether the powder has found its way to the orifice of the pivots, and if it has, he places fresh caps on; if powder is not visible at the orifice of the pivots, he removes any obstacle with a pricker, and contrives to push down a few grains of powder. It is very material to attend to this point, to prevent miss-fires.
——
THE WIRE-CARTRIDGE. The wire-cartridge was invented, in 1828, by Mr. ”

“ The centre space of the floor, about thirty-six feet square, was sunk four feet to allow water from the canal to pass around the bottoms of two of the large evaporating pans, which were placed therein near the centre of this area, and nine feet apart; these were used for a special purpose.
The best quality of gunpowder can only be made from the purest [p13] saltpetre; the impurities of the crude material are mainly deliquescent salts, which rapidly deteriorate the strength of the powder by the moisture absorbed. ”

“ The American Powder Works’ products are used by many experts, the Hazard’s Kentucky Rifle is also a favorite brand, but there are many opinions as to the best powder; if a shooter get good results with a certain brand, it is wisdom to use it exclusively, if possible, as the different brands vary considerably in strength and effect elevations. ”

“ The high-grade powder used in warfare in these days is known in this country as "brown powder," because of its color. In Europe such powder has a dozen or more names, generally called after the men who have invented each kind. There are only two places in this country where the powder used in our big guns is made. ”

“ The manufacture involves no danger, it is said; no explosion can take place except by way of contact with fire. The powder-paper leaves no greasy residue on the inside of the gun; it also produces less smoke, gives a less violent recoil, and is less impaired by humidity than gunpowder. ”

“ However, powder is usually effective only on objects which have a hard, smooth, nonabsorbent surface, such as glass, tile, and various types of highly polished metals and is usually not effective on absorbent materials, such as paper or unfinished wood or metal, which absorb perspiration so that there is nothing on the material’s surface to which the powder can adhere. ”

“ The invention and development of smokeless gunpowder, mainly during the ten years between 1887 and 1897, resulted in radical improvements in guns of all calibers.
Only about 44 per cent. of the products of combustion of the old black powder and the brown [182] prismatic powder were gaseous. The balance, about 56 per cent., were solid matter, and produced smoke. It will be seen, at a glance, that smokeless powder, whose products of combustion are entirely gaseous, possesses enormous ballistic advantages, quite independent of its smokelessness. ”

“ As upward of fifty-seven per cent of the products of the burning of ordinary gunpowder are solids or easily compressed vapors, this comparative smokelessness of the modern powders is a very important characteristic, and when used in battle they seriously modify our former accepted methods of handling troops. While this is the feature of these powders which has attracted popular attention, a far more important quality which they possess is the power to impart to a projectile a much higher velocity than black powder does, without exerting an undue pressure on the gun. ”

“ But this classification is very rough; because although some of the better known purely military powders are not suited for use in sporting guns, nearly all the manufacturers of sporting powders also manufacture a special variety of their particular explosive, fitted for use in modern rifles or machine guns, and occasionally, it is claimed, for big guns also.
Of the purely military powders, the best known are cordite, ballistite, and the French B.N. powder, the German smokeless (which contains nitro- glycerine and nitro-cotton) ”

“ Saltpetre, at first used in its natural state, began to be produced artificially, and then the manufacture of powder extended among the nations. During the French Revolution, according to Carlyle, the revolutionists were driven to such extremities for want of powder that they scraped old cellars seeking material for its manufacture. Many recent improvements have been made in the production of gunpowder, the most important resulting in the smokeless powder.
Before the introduction of cannon using gunpowder as a propelling force, various machines were used in warfare for hurling missiles. ”

“ All powder, whether it is intended for blasting, hunting, rifle-shooting, or warfare purposes, is made in the same general way, and so, in telling of a visit I recently made to the Du Pont Works, near Wilmington, I shall reveal no secrets if I describe the various mills and processes which practically all powder goes through before it is finished. Ordinary powder is composed of three ingredients—saltpetre, sulphur, and charcoal, or nitrate of soda, sulphur, and charcoal. Powder intended for blasting is generally made with soda; powder intended for shooting is generally made with saltpetre. ”

“ Meal powder, a fine dust containing the ingredients of ordinary gunpowder, but in which the relative proportions of these ingredients vary, according to the rate of burning desired, and the object for which the powder is to be used. Used principally in pyrotechny, and in mortar fire to communicate the flame from the charge to the shell. Also “German” or “American” “White Gunpowder,” more powerful than ordinary gunpowder, but more expensive; acts upon iron, and is very little used in gunnery. ”

“ With respect to the granulation of powder, we may observe, that although some writers consider that granulated powder is stronger than the fine powder, yet others are of opinion, that its strength is not increased by granulation. Grained powder is more fit for use; but the graining of it prevents the whole of the powder from taking fire instantaneously. Gunpowder, although prepared in the best manner, is not wholly consumed by inflammation. ”

“ Other advantages suggest themselves in the use of Gunpowder, such as the comparative cheapness of the ingredients composing it, and the ease with which they may be obtained; for the sulphur and saltpetre are very abundant productions of nature, and the charcoal can be manufactured cheaply and with great facility, and if care is taken in the process of the fabrication of powder, little deterioration will take place on its exposure to heat or moisture. ”

“ A very little placed on a piece of paper and fired should instantly explode with a flash, and neither leave an appreciable residue on the paper nor burn it. Dried by the heat of boiling water, or in vacuo, it should not lose more than 1⁄2 to 1% of its weight. Damp powder rapidly ‘fouls’ the gun. Gunpowder, containing more than 7% of water, does not recover its strength by simply drying it. The sp. gr. ”

“ The strength and goodness of powder is judged of in several ways; namely, by the colour and feel, by the flame when a small pinch is fired, and by measuring the actual projectile force by the eprouvette, and by the distance to which a given weight will project a ball of given dimensions under circumstances in all cases exactly similar.
When powder rubbed between the fingers easily breaks down into an impalpable dust, it is a mark of containing too much charcoal, and the same if it readily soils white paper when gently drawn over it. ”

“ Up to a certain pressure, hardness, density, and size of grain of a powder have an effect on the rate of burning and therefore on pressure. Glazing or polishing powder grains, also exerts a slight retarding action on burning and enables the powders to resist atmospheric moisture better. Excess of moisture in gunpowder has a marked effect in reducing the explosiveness. All powders are liable to absorb moisture, the quality and kind of charcoal being the main determinant in this respect; hard burnt black charcoal is least absorbent. ”

“ I shall soon propose a quantity of powder that will satisfy him. Only I wish to have it understood that during the war, and for the largest guns, the weight of the powder was reduced, after experience, to a tenth of the weight of the shot."
"Nothing is more exact," said Morgan; "but, before deciding the quantity of powder necessary to give the impulsion, I think it would be well to agree upon its nature."
"We shall use a large-grained powder," answered the major; "its deflagration is the most rapid." ”