old bullet surprise

[donkarlos]

So I found this in Mass, along a colonial pathway - supposedly (I found NOTHING else yet).
I'm not up to snuff on these old bullets though I've hunted modern blackpowder.
What turns it white? Is that a good sign of age? Or is this something modern?

 

[goldencoin]

Looks like a minnie ball run over a few times (civil war era). The white stuff is lead oxide (the equivalent of iron rust) and the whiter it is, the older it is. Nice find!

HH
-GC

 

[donkarlos]

Crazy! Thanks for the info. There was not any battles in this area unless you count Indians. Maybe someone hunting...

 

[goldencoin]

Soldiers often brought back bullet molds and supplies from the war, although the design did not remain popular for long afterwards. It definitely is old

HH
-GC

 

[got2dig]

Cool lead.

 

[TheCannonballGuy]

Donkarlos wrote:
> There was not any battles in this area unless you count Indians.

That proably explains why your bullet appears to have the form of an Indian Wars era bullet rather than a Civil War era bullet. Unfortunately, it's too corroded and smushed for me to be more specific about its ID.

 

[donkarlos]

What is the form of an Indian Wars era bullet?
I keep looking at it and questioning the dimensions. Other bullets I see seem more robust. Maybe its from a pistol?

 

[TheCannonballGuy]

Answer: Its long length in relation to its width indicates it is a rifle bullet, not a pistol bullet. Also, its width in comparison to the penny suggests its is less than .50-caliber. The "common" civil war rifle bullets were not long & skinny, nor below .50-caliber... but the "common" Indian Wars era rifle bullets were.

Unfortunately, your bullet is too mashed and corroded for certainty about its ID, but it does resemble one particular version of very-common Indian Wars era rifle bullet... the .45-70 Springfield Rifle (or Carbine) bullet. Here's a photo showing some. Note the shorter version on the right, for the Carbine.

 

[donkarlos]

Yeah, I think you nailed it here - it definitely has a blunt nose and is elongated - two distinctions from the common CW bullets I've seen.
Thanks a ton for explaining all this. It really looks like the bullet on the right.

 

[TheCannonballGuy]

Okay, glad you agree with my guess. Because it is an Indian Wars era bullet, and you said you found it in Massachusetts, I suspect you might be curious how your bullet came to be used in that state. Vast numbers of the Model-1873 Springfield rifles & carbines were sold to the public as "war surplus." It became a very popular with civilians for game-hunting. So popular that it is still used for that purpose today, by Blackpowder-class hunters.

 

[donkarlos]

Very interesting info. Thanks

 

[HomeGuardDan]

The caliber looks too small for it to be a standard .54 or .58 three ringer. Just by looking at the penny for size comparison. With it even being smashed, it actually should appear to be even larger. My guess would be a .45-.36 round.

 

[donkarlos]

Yeah, I think it probably is the .45 Springfield carbine, which adds up based on the size and location of the find, etc. I struggled with a good way to photograph it, as it was squashed from two directions which didn't really flatten it, but sort of made a square-ish shape to it rather than a flattened or round shape, if you follow. The blunt nose helped, and location of the rings which I got a feel for by handling it. I did look at a lot of images on the web to compare. It may be a .36 but unless there is some way to weigh it, I guess I'll never know for sure.
Crazy, I searched the area again today and found a coyote of deer leg bone sticking straight out of the ground. That was enough for me. But hey, I moved on and found that musket ball.

 

[got2dig]

It's nice good find.