Search results
Results from the WOW.Com Content Network
The Pattern 1800 Infantry Rifle, better known as the Baker rifle, was a flintlock rifle designed by English gunsmith Ezekiel Baker and used by the British Armed Forces from 1801 to 1837. First seeing action during the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars , it was the first British-made firearm to be issued as a service rifle to all soldiers ...
Baker rifle. The Baker rifle was a muzzle-loading flintlock weapon used by the British Army in the Napoleonic Wars, notably by the 95th Rifles and the 5th Battalion, 60th Regiment of Foot. This rifle was an accurate weapon for its day, with reported kills being made at 100 to 300 yards (90 to 270 m) away.
Ezekiel Baker (1758–1836) [1] was a master gunsmith from Whitechapel, London, who became known for his design of the Baker rifle in 1800. Baker was apprenticed to gunsmith Henry Nock and opened a gunshop of his own at 24 Whitechapel Road, London in 1775. [1] He later wrote a book on his experiences when making and using rifles. [1]
The shots were "from a range that seemed extraordinary to the" men of the 95th Rifles, [5] who were trained to shoot targets with a Baker Rifle at 180 metres (200 yd). Their marksmanship was far better than the ordinary British soldiers, who were armed with a Brown Bess musket and only trained to shoot into a body of men at 50 metres (55 yd ...
A prime early example of a sword bayonet-fitted rifle is the Pattern 1800 Infantry Rifle, later known as the "Baker Rifle". Sword bayonets were used by German Jagers in the 18th century. The hilt usually had quillons modified to accommodate the gun barrel and a hilt mechanism that enabled the bayonet to be attached to a bayonet lug.
The new rifle was designed to accept a bayonet, though the design was changed with the mounting moved further back since experience had shown that the Baker rifle could not be fired with its bayonet fixed. In December 1836, trials were conducted to compare the Brunswick rifle against the Baker rifle. The Brunswick rifle proved to be equally ...
The converted rifles received a new breechblock/receiver assembly, but retained the original iron barrel, furniture, lock, and hammer. The Mark III rifles were newly made. They featured steel barrels which were so marked, flat nosed hammers, and a latch-locking breech block instead of the simple integral block lifting tang.
The factoid saying that the Baker rifle fires 2 to 3 rounds per minute is downright wrong. This is a musket's rate of fire, not a Baker rifle. While the musket could easily be loaded within a 20 second timeframe by a well-drilled soldier, the Baker rifle required its ball ammunition to be wrapped in a leather patch so that it would grip the ...