English 1640 Match Lock Musket- Live Firing
This is an original English 1640 Match Lock Musket. It is a practical weapon and is fully functioning.
All weapons in this hire category are capable of firing live ammunition and are therefore strictly controlled by the UK firearms act. However, for film and theatrical use, we have adapted many of our firearms to function firing blank rounds only.
All of our practical firearms are available for hire for film, television and theatrical performance on the condition that each contract is strictly supervised by an approved and qualified company Armourer.
Please refer to our standard Terms and Conditions of hire.
Description
The matchlock was the first mechanism invented to facilitate the firing of a hand-held firearm. Before this, firearms (like the hand cannon) had to be fired by applying a lit match (or equivalent) to the priming powder in the flash pan by hand; this had to be done carefully, taking most of the soldier’s concentration at the moment of firing, or in some cases required a second soldier to fire the weapon while the first held the weapon steady. Adding a matchlock made the firing action simple and reliable by a single soldier, allowing him to keep both hands steadying the gun and eyes on the target while firing.
