Blunderbuss
- Category
- Shotgun
- Barrel
- 410 mm
- Weight, empty
- 3.00 kg
- Introduced
- 1650
About
What it is, and why it matters
The blunderbuss is a 17th- to mid-19th-century muzzle-loading smoothbore firearm distinguished by a short, large-bore barrel that flares into a bell-shaped muzzle. The flare aided rapid loading of a charge of loose lead shot or buck-and-ball rather than spreading the pattern much, and the gun delivered a devastating short-range blast ideal for confined spaces such as coaches, ships' decks and doorways. Its name derives from the Dutch donderbus, or thunder box, capturing its loud, intimidating report. Carried by coach and mail guards, sailors, and home defenders, it was the close-quarters scattergun of the flintlock age.
Contrary to its fearsome reputation, the flared muzzle did little to widen the shot pattern; its real purpose was to let a rider or guard on a swaying coach pour powder and shot down the barrel quickly without spilling, making it more about speed of loading than spread.
Bore, length and weight varied widely between makers; the .75-class breech bore and roughly 14-18 in barrel are typical of a coaching/sea-service blunderbuss. Many had brass barrels and some had folding spring bayonets. Velocity is approximate for loose-shot loads.
Specification
Everything measured
IdentityWhat it is, who built it and when.
- Manufacturer
- Historical Gunsmiths (generic)
- Category
- Shotgun
- Country
- United Kingdom
- Status
- Out of production
- Produced
- 1650 to 1840
DimensionsAs issued, without a magazine or an optic.
- Barrel
- 410 mm
- Overall length
- 750 mm
- Weight, empty
- 3.00 kg
ActionHow it cycles, what trips it, and what feeds it.
- Action
- Muzzleloader
- Firing mechanism
- Flintlock
- Trigger
- Single stage
MaterialsEach swatch is the material itself, not a colour chosen to stand for it.
- Barrel
- Brass
- Stock
- Wood
BallisticsFrom the service cartridge, not a handload.
- Muzzle velocity
- 250 m/s
- Effective range
- 18 m
- Maximum range
- 50 m
- Rate of fire
- 2 rpm
Trajectory
What the round does downrange
Solved from the muzzle figures and the bullet. The dashed rule is the effective range on the record, and the crosses are the steps the solver returned.
No load solved for this record yetThe flight path is computed from a cartridge and a bullet. This record has no ammunition filed against its chambering, so there is nothing to solve.
Features
What it has
What the record lists as fitted, drawn from the catalogue.
Smoothbore barrel
Flared muzzle
Muzzle loaded- Loose shot load
Brass barrel
Ramrod
Spring bayonet
Standing
How it compares
Each figure against the firearms of the same type and cartridge that record it, or of the same type where that cartridge has too few. Positions are read to the nearest tenth.
| Measurement | This firearm | Median | Position |
|---|---|---|---|
| Empty weightAmong 755 shotguns | 3.00 kg | 3.25 kg | Lighter than about 80% |
| Overall lengthAmong 678 shotguns | 750 mm | 1150 mm | Shorter than about 90% |
| Barrel lengthAmong 782 shotguns | 410 mm | 711 mm | Shorter than about 90% |
Answers
Questions about the Blunderbuss
How much does the Blunderbuss weigh?
The Blunderbuss weighs 3.00 kg (6.61 lb) empty.
What caliber is the Blunderbuss?
The Blunderbuss is chambered in Blunderbuss Bore (loose shot).
How long is the Blunderbuss?
The Blunderbuss is 750 mm (29.5 in) long overall, with a 410 mm (16.1 in) barrel.
Who makes the Blunderbuss?
The Blunderbuss is made by Historical Gunsmiths (generic) (United Kingdom).
When was the Blunderbuss introduced?
The Blunderbuss was introduced in 1650 and discontinued in 1840.
How does the Blunderbuss operate?
The Blunderbuss uses a muzzleloader action, and its firing mechanism is flintlock.
Compatibility
Which parts fit this firearm
Studio
Every part that mounts on this, resolved
Not a list the maker typed out: the answer comes from the mounts this firearm exposes and the interface each part needs, so it stays right when either one changes.
- Every part that mounts on any firearm in the catalogue
- Interface standards, platforms and fit overrides
- The same answers through the API and the MCP server
Requires a signed-in GunSpec account on the Studio plan. The answer is computed per part, so it is not part of the public record.
Provenance
What the record holds
Every figure above was taken from one of these pages. The confidence reflects how much of the record came from a page a claim can be checked against.
In service
- Royal Mail coach guards
- United Kingdom
- Royal Navy (boarding/sea service)
- United Kingdom
- Ottoman and North African forces
- Türkiye
Provenance
Confidence in this record
63%
Stockists
Where to buy
Offers link straight to the shop. GunSpec never takes the order.
No shop has listed this firearm yet
Stock and prices come from the shops themselves. If you sell this firearm, you can list it and it appears here.
List a firearmMCP
Ask an assistant about it
The same record, reached the way a person asks for it rather than the way a program does.
Ask GunSpec
Works with
Point an MCP client at GunSpec and it answers from the catalogue rather than from memory. A free key covers the read tools.
API
The call that returns this record
The same fields, in the same units, from the same endpoint the page reads.
curl --request GET \ --url 'https://api.gunspec.io/v1/firearms/blunderbuss' \ --header 'X-API-Key: your_key'{ "id": "blunderbuss", "name": "Blunderbuss", "manufacturer": { "id": "historical-gunsmiths", "name": "Historical Gunsmiths (generic)", "countryCode": "GB", "foundedYear": null, "website": null, "logoUrl": null, "description": null, "status": null, "defunctYear": null, "stateOwned": null, "makesFirearms": null, "parentId": null, "predecessorId": null, "createdAt": "2026-06-21 23:00:46", "updatedAt": "2026-06-21 23:00:46", "version": "c9a5a0c501cf52e4cae1e5562d57d8846c2200bbdcef8d9c3388dbcefe93361d" }, "category": { "id": "shotgun", "name": "Shotgun", "description": "Smoothbore firearms designed to fire shot or slugs" }, "country_of_origin": "GB", "year_introduced": 1650, "barrel_length_mm": 410, "weight_empty_g": 3000, "action_type": "muzzleloader"}