Strange Bullet

[kevikens]

I picked up a lead bullet said to be from the Mexican War, the battle of Buena Vista. It is a round ball of about .524 caliber but with a very strange projection. Imagine a sprue sized projection but about an eighth of an inch off the surface of the ball, much larger than an uncut projecting sprue from casting. It looks almost like a miniature cannon ball with the projection for inserting a fuse. Sorry I cannot post pictures but my question is, "Does anybody know what firearm this type of bullet would have come from? Thanks

 

[Jobe Holiday]

What you have described is a round ball from a U.S. Model 1841 Rifle mould, with the sprue still in place. The M- 1841 Rifle of course is better known as a "Mississippi" which got its name from that very war!

 

[kevikens]

Thank you. From casting my own bullets, round ball, minie ball and modern bullets. I have seen a lot of sprues and always file them down to the ball because, at least in the case of the round rifles balls, they could hang up on the barrel going down. I have never had a sprue this large. Are sprues of this size normal for the Mississippi rifle? Do they have any effect on loading or ballistics? Why would the soldier not remove it? Thanks again.

 

[Frederick14Va]

The M1841 "Mississippi" rifle was predominately using conical bullet ammunition by this time.... Another possibility is it could be a projectile for the Hall Carbine or Rifle... Which was still using a lot of round ball ammunition then and of the same caliber...

The sprue being that large as you describe would tend to imply and give the impression that it might actually be a lead case shot ball from an artillery shell... Those commonly found with the sprue left as is and not trimmed as one would find in small arms ammunition...

 

[Jobe Holiday]

With all due respect: The Mexican-American War was from 1846 - 1848. The conical bullet designed by James H. Burton, Master Armorer at Harper's Ferry, which was to be used in the Mississippi Rifle and all others, was still in the experimental testing stages as of October 1854. The elongated ball was finally adopted in 1855. It was known officially as the "Harper's Ferry Bullet", unofficially as the "Burton Ball", and commonly as the "Minie Ball".

All projectiles fired from U.S. military long arms during the Mexican-American War were round balls.

J.

 

[kevikens]

What you have described is a round ball from a U.S. Model 1841 Rifle mould, with the sprue still in place. The M- 1841 Rifle of course is better known as a "Mississippi" which got its name from that very war!

id like to see a photo

You are right. It is likely from a Mississippi rifle. I found a photo of an original Mississippi rifle with the contents of its patch box. One of the round balls clearly has a very pronounced raised sprue exactly like the one I picked up at a flea market. It is pictured in the book, "Civil War Weapons" by Graham Smith, Chartwell Books, 2011, page 147, lower right hand corner, left hand bullet. Thanks for the assistance.