✅ SOLVED Minnie ball

[stevengugas]

I have found a lot of .58 cal Minnie balls at a CW campsite. Many of them have ridges on them that resemble fingerprints, see the attached photo. Is that what they are or is it just a natural part of the molding process? Thanks . Hope you can see the ridges on the photo
Sorry, I do know the difference between a Minnie ball and a musket ball, just got carried away.

 

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[Tedyoh]

Before that ball is rammed down the barrel they wrapped a cloth "patch" around the ball.....the fingerprints or pattern you see are probably from the cloth patch.

 

[gunsil]

That is a round ball not a minie ball.

 

[Charlie P. (NY)]

Round ball.

I have them that I fired that show the cloth patching weave.

 

[Yak1366]

Does the pattern go all the way around? Only half the surface would suggest it was created during firing.

What is the diameter of the roundball?

 

[stevengugas]

One some balls the pattern is on both sides, on others only on one side. I don't have calipers but the ball is 5/8? in diameter, so I am assuming it is a .58 caliber ball.

 

[Joe G from Md]

Could it maybe be case shot?

 

[Tony in SC]

The ridges could have been caused by the mold the ball was cast in. I have seen some old crude molds that had grinding or scrape marks in them. There were arms that were 58 caliber.

 

[Charlie P. (NY)]

5/8" (0.625") is closer to a 16 gauge size ball. I shoot 0.648" cloth patched balls in my 16 bore (0.662")