Flintlock Coach Gun
Various Gunsmiths · Shotgun · Discontinued · 1780
Also known as: Coaching Gun, Coaching Carbine, Flintlock Coaching Shotgun
Overview
The Flintlock Coach Gun is a short, double-barrelled smoothbore shotgun built for close-range defence during the British coaching era of the late 18th and early 19th centuries. With side-by-side barrels typically 18 to 24 inches long and a flintlock ignition on each lock, it was carried by guards and travellers to fend off highwaymen who preyed on stagecoaches crossing isolated countryside. Its abbreviated length made it fast to bring to bear inside and around a coach, while a load of shot compensated for the smoothbore's limited accuracy at the short distances where such confrontations occurred.
Specifications
| Weight (empty) | 3200 g (112.9 oz) |
| Overall Length | 990 mm (38.98") |
| Barrel Length | 585 mm (23.03") |
| Action Type | Muzzleloader |
| Firing Mechanism | Flintlock |
| Trigger Type | Double Trigger |
| Magazine Capacity | 2 rounds |
| Muzzle Velocity | 275 m/s (902 fps) |
| Muzzle Energy | 1070 J (789 ft·lbf) |
| Effective Range | 30 m (33 yd) |
| Maximum Range | 100 m (109 yd) |
| Barrel Rifling | Smoothbore |
| Frame Material | Steel |
| Barrel Material | Steel |
| Stock Material | Walnut |
| Finish | Browned |
Calibers
- 14 Bore · primary — also known as 14 Gauge, .693 Smoothbore, 14 Bore Muzzleloader
Features
- Firing modes: Manual
- Feed systems: Muzzleloaded
- Safety mechanisms: Half Cock Notch
- Features: Side By Side Barrels, Double Lock, Engraved Locks, Muzzleloading, Flint Ignition
Service history
Operators
- Private coach guards and travellers
Production
Production years: c.1780-1840
Made in small numbers by individual gunsmiths; no centralized production figures exist.
Origin
Country of origin: United Kingdom
Discontinued: 1840
Notes
A type rather than a single model; produced by numerous English and Continental gunsmiths such as Harvey of Exeter. Bore sizes commonly ran from 12 to 20 bore. Superseded by percussion-cap coach guns from the 1830s onward.
Background
Coach guns take their name from the stagecoach guards who rode shotgun on the box seat, a short double-barrel across the knees ready for highwaymen. The flintlock coaching gun was the original 'riding shotgun', its cut-down barrels trading reach for the speed needed in an ambush.