Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Hunter's Campfire Punt Gun

Need more gun, for For a big hog...

Kentucky ballistics is a fun channel

Have seen them in museums.

Imagine they'd sluice some ducks when used.

Kentucky Balllistics is a great channel, saw that video yesterday.

Did you see the video where he almost died because his rifle exploded? Brutal!

Punt guns were used when they had duck meat markets back in the 1900's almost wiped out the ducks.

That would shoot you right out of the blind.

That will over penetrate on bunnies.

Market hunters also used repeaters with magazine extensions. Punt guns wiped out multiple rafting birds at a time.

Good for squirrels

Michener’s book “Chesapeake” has a section on these guns, used by Market hunters supplying water fowl to the big restaurants and hotels in Baltimore.
Quite an interesting piece. IIRC, they were loaded with 2 Oz of black powder, and 18 to 20 oz of shot.
Mounted in a small skiff called a “punt”, the gunner would aim it slightly above a flock resting in the water at night. With a little bit of luck, he’d be gathering up 100 or more ducks or geese.
I’ve seen them in museums on the DeLMarVa peninsula, and Gettysburg had one on display at the old Visitors Center years ago.
You fellows that know me know I’m usually reading American History. But I do occasionally read fiction, and Michener is head and shoulders above the best.
Texas, Alaska, Centennial, but of them all Chesapeake and Space are my favorites.
7mm

The market hunters would tie them into a low profile skiff, with the barrel sticking out at the point of the bow. They could kill dozens of ducks in a flock at one time. They would find them on the water, and sneak up on them in the boat, and let it go when the flock rose up from the surface.

Who's going to cast us some real bullets for it? Someone on here is up to the challenge, I'm certain of it.

Hillbilly artillery.

I learned about Punt guns when I used to hunt Geese and Ducks on the Chesapeake, the owner of the property I hunted on had several antique ones in his Mansion.

They were shooting at rafting birds as Mike _S mentioned. 1 shot could kill 100 birds, if not more and there are bigger punt guns than the one Scott demonstrated in his video.

Sink boat was a very low profile boat (sinks to the washboard with a man inside it)... with Punt gun

Very common on the Chesapeake Bay until banned by [bleep] with .GOV

That would leave a good blood trail with a lung shot on a whitetail.

I don’t remember when they were banned. I’m thinking 1893 or so?
Up until then They were used quite a bit. I believe they had some that were fashioned after “the covered bridge gun” of Civil War era.
I’m going purely from memory, but I wanna say these guns had 12 or more 12 gauge barrels built into a stock made to fit the skiff.
They were fired from a trough of 4F priming powder touched off by the gunner.
Probably somewhat cheaper than a punt gun, and slightly less effective.
But it is a fascinating part of history, and as a gun nut, I admit it sorta captures my imagination!
Not to the extent of the 16 inchers on the battleships, but heck, a gun is interesting of itself.
Colonel Townsend Whellen, I believe.
7mm