Snap Matchlock Musket
- Category
- Rifle
- Barrel
- 1020 mm
- Weight, empty
- 5.00 kg
- Introduced
- 1475
About
What it is, and why it matters
The snap matchlock musket is an early muzzle-loading smoothbore long gun whose serpentine match-holder is driven by a spring rather than moved directly by the shooter's finger. The cock, holding a smouldering slow match, is drawn back and caught by a sear; pressing a button, trigger, or pull-string releases the sear and lets the spring snap the match down into the priming pan, igniting the charge. This snap action was the first true firearm 'lock', appearing in Europe around 1475 and surviving there until roughly 1640, while it became the standard ignition of the Japanese tanegashima from 1543 and of Korean Joseon muskets from the 16th-century Imjin War onward. Because the match could jar the fragile pan powder, the design was gradually displaced in Europe by the slower but steadier trigger-lever (sear) matchlock, yet it remained in East Asian service well into the 19th century.
At the 1575 Battle of Nagashino, Oda Nobunaga arrayed massed ranks of ashigaru armed with snap-matchlock tanegashima behind wooden palisades and broke the vaunted Takeda cavalry with rotating volley fire, a landmark demonstration that disciplined gunpowder infantry could shatter Japan's mounted samurai elite.
Specifications are representative of a full-size East Asian / early European snap matchlock musket firing a large lead round ball; period smoothbore weights, bore and velocity figures are approximate. The distinguishing feature versus the common trigger-lever matchlock is the spring-driven, sear-held cock that snaps the match into the pan.
Specification
Everything measured
IdentityWhat it is, who built it and when.
- Manufacturer
- Historical Gunsmiths (generic)
- Category
- Rifle
- Country
- European Union
- Status
- Out of production
- Produced
- 1475 to 1640
DimensionsAs issued, without a magazine or an optic.
- Barrel
- 1020 mm
- Overall length
- 1450 mm
- Weight, empty
- 5.00 kg
ActionHow it cycles, what trips it, and what feeds it.
- Action
- Muzzleloader
- Firing mechanism
- Matchlock
- Trigger
- Single stage
MaterialsEach swatch is the material itself, not a colour chosen to stand for it.
- Barrel
- Iron
- Stock
- Wood
BallisticsFrom the service cartridge, not a handload.
- Muzzle velocity
- 300 m/s
- Effective range
- 90 m
- Maximum range
- 250 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
Muzzle loaded- Spring loaded serpentine
- Snap action cock
Sear release- Slow match cord
Priming pan
Pan cover
Ramrod
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 1,612 rifles | 5.00 kg | 3.50 kg | Heavier than about 90% |
| Overall lengthAmong 1,557 rifles | 1450 mm | 1080 mm | Longer than about 90% |
| Barrel lengthAmong 1,659 rifles | 1020 mm | 584 mm | Longer than about 90% |
Answers
Questions about the Snap Matchlock Musket
How much does the Snap Matchlock Musket weigh?
The Snap Matchlock Musket weighs 5.00 kg (11.02 lb) empty.
What caliber is the Snap Matchlock Musket?
The Snap Matchlock Musket is chambered in .72 Caliber Musket Ball.
How long is the Snap Matchlock Musket?
The Snap Matchlock Musket is 1450 mm (57.1 in) long overall, with a 1020 mm (40.2 in) barrel.
Who makes the Snap Matchlock Musket?
The Snap Matchlock Musket is made by Historical Gunsmiths (generic) (United Kingdom).
When was the Snap Matchlock Musket introduced?
The Snap Matchlock Musket was introduced in 1475 and discontinued in 1640.
How does the Snap Matchlock Musket operate?
The Snap Matchlock Musket uses a muzzleloader action, and its firing mechanism is matchlock.
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
- Ashigaru foot soldiers
- 1543
- Joseon Dynasty army
- South Korea
- European mercenary companies
- European Union
Provenance
Confidence in this record
58%
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/snap-matchlock-musket' \ --header 'X-API-Key: your_key'{ "id": "snap-matchlock-musket", "name": "Snap Matchlock Musket", "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": "rifle", "name": "Rifle", "description": "Long-barreled firearms designed for accurate shooting" }, "country_of_origin": "EU", "year_introduced": 1475, "barrel_length_mm": 1020, "weight_empty_g": 5000, "action_type": "muzzleloader"}