Civil War Chewed Bullet!!!!!

[RingMaster44]

Lund this chewed bullet today. Do you think it's a 3 ringer or an enfield. And do those pics look like molar marks. Thanks Here are the pics

Here is a 3 ringer found 5 feet away from the chewed one

 

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[creskol]

NOPE had them looked at by dentist - human sized molar marks

He must be quite a dentist!

 

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[RingMaster44]

<img src="http://www.treasurenet.com/forums/attachment.php?attachmentid=935329"/> small sample of musketballs (got more) - chewed a few said same thing to me - got to be an animal - NOPE had them looked at by dentist - human sized molar marks large piece looks like it would fit perfect in pallet

Really cool!

 

[Blskypilot]

Truth is you'll never be able to solve the debate but certainly looks human. I call the hog theory hogwash.

I can't believe that an animal whose got a nose that takes up 3/4 of his face and can smell expensive culinary delicacies growing under the soil (truffles) thought an odorless piece of lead was food? Nah.

 

[creskol]

Truth is you'll never be able to solve the debate but certainly looks human. I call the hog theory hogwash.

I can't believe that an animal whose got a nose that takes up 3/4 of his face and can smell expensive culinary delicacies growing under the soil (truffles) thought an odorless piece of lead was food? Nah.

Have you ever seen what squirrels can do to car battery terminals? Why, with and abundance of corn, nuts, acorns, and other culinary delicacies would a squirrel choose to eat a battery terminal? Don't know, but they sure do!

 

[Blskypilot]

Sharpening their teeth for crunching nuts. I've seen rodents damage all kinds of non food sources.

Just saying that the hog did not mistake the bullet for food and as it isn't going to have an odor I doubt he dug it in order to chew unless he stumbled across it while looking for a food source. The amount of bullets with chew marks to me says they weren't all confused as food sources.

 

[CASPER-2]

He must be quite a dentist!

I used to shoot black powder - I used to hold my next shot in my teeth -
although not advisable - now and then Id chew on a musketball out of boredom
waiting for others to shoot -
I really did not have to ask a dentist - my mom used to work as a dental assistant and she said they looked like human teeth marks
and I could easily see the comparison of how mine looked when I got done to the ones found
many of mine were found at early colonial fort sites

 

[flatbutton]

Here's 3 chewed bullets that came from the "hog" field. The farmer told me he personally witnessed his pigs chewing on bullets. I have no reason to doubt him, especially when he was so nice to let me hunt his property! Anyways, these were chewed by something, but not a human

 

[462]

Just found this one last week and it defiantly looks chewed, but buy human or animal I don't know.

 

[TheCannonballGuy]

Creskol wrote (and asked):
> Have you ever seen what squirrels can do to car battery terminals?
> Why, with and abundance of corn, nuts, acorns, and other culinary delicacies would a squirrel choose to eat a battery terminal?
> Don't know, but they sure do!

The answer: Animals chew on lead because lead tastes sweet. Solid historical documentation exists that the Romans used lead to sweeten wine.

Despite some dentists saying the teeth-marks on those bullets are human-made, they are mistaken, for a very "solid" reason. (The pun is intentional.) A human's jaw-muscles are not strong enough to make more than very slight dents in thick lead. If more force is applied, the tooth will break. Here is a simple test for doubters of that fact: Use a pair of pliars to try to make dents in a large-caliber lead bullet. Use all the hand-strength you can. You will see that you can only barely dent the bullet, even though the tool is made of steel, which is far-far stronger than human teeth.

Here's an even simpler test for people who insist that these are civil war human-chewed "pain" or "hospital" bullets. Buy a reproduction lead Minie-ball, and bite it between your molars (rear teeth) as hard as you can. Then, on your way to the dentist to get your cracked teeth fixed, see if you were able to make that lead Minie-ball look like the "human-chewed" one you dug (or bought).

What, aren't any of you guys willing to put your strong belief in civil war "hospital/pain" bullets to a personal real-life test?

Before anybody tries that test... remember that humans frequently break their teeth by trying to crack a pecan shell... which isn't as hard as a lead Minie-ball.

 

[kuger]

I have dug quite a few "chewed bullets,that came from sites that had no reason for pain,or any military or battle affiliation........rodent chewed

 

[RingMaster44]

I have dug quite a few "chewed bullets,that came from sites that had no reason for pain,or any military or battle affiliation........rodent chewed

I wonder if it is human

 

[HomeGuardDan]

I have found them with very obvious teeth marks that leave little doubt as to them being human. Lot's of controversy over the chewed bullets, but yours doesn't look like just a rodent to me. The larger deeper gouges anyway. Just my 2 cents.

To put this to a test (I have seen it done) it is virtually impossible for a human to make the marks made in "chewed bullets." Take a bullet and a modern pair of pliers and see how much muscle it takes to do the damage. Leather straps, wood were better options. I have dug probably over 100 of these and I honestly don't believe that any were human done.

 

[CoilyGirl]

This thread is giving me shivers.

 

[matt092079]

Just a myth, folks. I believe the damage comes from something else, what, I'm unsure of. I have found several so mangled up, as far as dents and there is no way a human chewed on a bullet as if it were a piece of bubble gum. Even though lead is soft, it isn't soft to the bite I'm quite positive.

 

[creskol]

Just a myth, folks. I believe the damage comes from something else, what, I'm unsure of. I have found several so mangled up, as far as dents and there is no way a human chewed on a bullet as if it were a piece of bubble gum. Even though lead is soft, it isn't soft to the bite I'm quite positive.

I think they were used as caltrops ..

 

[dieselfool]

Pure lead is very soft; you can easily dent it with a thumbnail. Lead bullets are made in various hardnesses depending upon the application. For instance, one may bite a common .22 rimfire bullet nearly in two, but the same jaw pressure won't even mark a hard-cast lead alloy projectile. I believe some civil war bullets were soft so they would tend to flatten out and make a larger wound.
Today experts claim lead is a toxic substance to handle, causing brain damage, yet I have cast bullets for over 40 years with not the least sheytk foeoe tetetetetete applesauce herrrrheh?

 

[bayhawk2]

I can't tell by the pics..And I'm no expert on chewed bullets..But to me,it looks like the marks are swerving in a spiral..as if they were rifling marks..In that time period of 3 ringers,riflings were in the barrels.Just my thoughts.

 

[RingMaster44]

I can't tell by the pics..And I'm no expert on chewed bullets..But to me,it looks like the marks are swerving in a spiral..as if they were rifling marks..In that time period of 3 ringers,riflings were in the barrels.Just my thoughts.

Maybe...

 

[chazman]

for those who say these are rodent chew marks, rodents leave OBVIOUS tell tale marks, 2 teeth. see photo.
folks who say they can't bite hard enough to make the dents obviously have never been under the tender care of a civil war doctor performing an amputation...

 

[HomeGuardDan]

for those who say these are rodent chew marks, rodents leave OBVIOUS tell tale marks, 2 teeth. see photo. View attachment 938417
folks who say they can't bite hard enough to make the dents obviously have never been under the tender care of a civil war doctor performing an amputation...

While no one could completely say that they have never been under an amputation process through a civil war surgeon. The science that a human can simply not make those marks is out there. Also - there is almost NO historical accounts of a doctor giving a patient a bullet to chew on during a process - there are however accounts of wooden rods and leather straps. The reason being, they are wider than the mouth and do not provide a choking hazard. The last thing a surgeon wanted to do was to pull a object (perfect enough to choke on) out of a patients mouth in the middle of an amputation. This is just common sense vs folklore.

I have also found modern (late 1800's rounds) with animal chew marks on them. There is a reason why known civil war relic experts and those of us who have spent hundreds and thousands of hours in the field recovering items refute the folk lore. I too once (when I began digging) thought they were all human chewed - years of experience have changed that.