Can anyone identify this round ball?

[Derringer]

I found this round ball bullet in an area that dates as far back as 1760’s. I have found plenty of Civil War stuff here, any idea of the caliber of this one and the Age? It’s approximately 1.32 cm. In millimeters it’s around 12.7

 

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[Charlie P. (NY)]

1.32cm = 0.52" . . . but also 13.2mm?? A little small for a .54 caliber rifle but if it is 12.7mm that is pretty much a 0.50" ball. Which is a VERY tight it in a .50 cal rifle (you'd need a metal rod and wood mallet to load).

As rifles got tired it was common to freshen the bore and use a slightly larger ball - which may be the case with yours. You really need a micrometer (thousands of an inch, hundredths of a mm) to be sure with bullets.

Age? Sometime after 1400 to present. I still hunt deer with cast round lead balls and a flintlock for the sport of it. They have been in continual use in some parts of the country since flint tipped arrows fell out of favor.

 

[Derringer]

Thank you very much

 

[civil_war22]

1.32cm = 0.52" . . . but also 13.2mm?? A little small for a .54 caliber rifle but if it is 12.7mm that is pretty much a 0.50" ball. Which is a VERY tight it in a .50 cal rifle (you'd need a metal rod and wood mallet to load).

As rifles got tired it was common to freshen the bore and use a slightly larger ball - which may be the case with yours. You really need a micrometer (thousands of an inch, hundredths of a mm) to be sure with bullets.

Age? Sometime after 1400 to present. I still hunt deer with cast round lead balls and a flintlock for the sport of it. They have been in continual use in some parts of the country since flint tipped arrows fell out of favor.

Could possibly be .50, I’ve hammered them into an old Hawkins. They were a tad bigger than .50, I mean cm difference so not by much, but my Hawkins was all original, and the bore was heavily worn. I packed it with a heavier load, and it would launch quite hard, and fairly far. Kind of scary doing it especially with a hotter charge, and head pressure.

 

[pistol-pete]

Why do you put measurements in METRIC We use inches in US

 

[Locke]

Why do you put measurements in METRIC We use inches in US

True, US is not on a metric system, but when talking about weapon calibers metric units are very frequently used (i.e. 9mm ammo) so there is nothing wrong with measuring ammo in metric measurements.