Re: Black powder

Berthold Schwarz has nothing to do with it.

The terms black powder and Schwarzpulver (its German equivalent) were
not used before the introduction of smokeless propellants in the
nineteenth century. Before that time the mixture of saltpetre, sulphur
and charcoal was simply called gunpowder (Ger., Schiesspulver).

The early smokeless powders were often colors other than black.
Schultze's, for example, was basically a nitrated sawdust and had a
sort of cream color. I have a small quantity of the old E.C. powder
and it is an pinkish-orange. Others were light grey. "Black powder"
was so called to distinguish it from these new products and the term
is still so used. as I write this I am looking at an old I.C.I./Kynoch
box of .450-3-1/4" "Black Powder Express" cartridges loaded with 325-
gr. copper-tube bullets. We can tell from this description on the box
that they date from after 1898, for it was in that year that Rigby's
introduced the .450 "Nitro Express" (the same cartridge case, but
loaded with Cordite and a .480-grain solid). Before this time,
cartridges of the former description would simply have been called ".
450 Express." I have seen old Alex. Henry cartridges so headstamped.



On Mar 30, 4:39 pm, DrStupid <DrStu...@xxxxxx> wrote:
fargow...@xxxxxxxxxxxx schrieb:



Bob is correct: so-called black powder is in fact a dark gray color.

Maybe the name "black powder" has nothing to do with the color of this
mixture but with the German monk and alchimist Berthold Schwarz.
"Schwarz" is the German word for black.

.