TopGun
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The Espingol
An espingol consisted of one or more main gun barrels. Smaller-diameter gun barrels, loaded with between 16 to 32 bullets, were inserted, like a modern magazine clip, into the larger diameter main barrels.
For ammunition lead bullets were used. The powder loading of the outermost bullet was ignited by a fuse. The powder loading of the next bullet was ignited, when the first bullet was discharged. The bullets discharged at intervals of two seconds. When all bullets in a barrel were discharged, the empty inner barrel was extracted and replaced by a new, fully loaded barrel, just as one removes a magazine clip form modern automatic infantry weapons. The effective firing range of the espingol was about 200 meters.
The espingol provided superior firepower compared to contemporary Danish infantry weapons. However, the espingol's high rate of fire had the predictable drawback that the resulting volume of gun smoke obscured targets in the immediate vicinity, which made aiming the espingol difficult. The demanding task of loading the inner gun barrels had to be performed by specialists prior to going into combat, complicating ammunition logistics. Some times the barrels bursted because bullets got stock, when they did not ignite.
Two types of espingol were developed. The "divisionsespingol" consisted of just one main gun barrel, into which the inserted inner barrel could be loaded with between 16 to 32 bullets. The "kolonneespingol" consisted of three main gun barrels, into which the inserted inner gun barrels were loaded with 16 bullets each. The gun barrels of the "kolonneespingol" could be discharged individually or simultaneously. Normally the espingol was mounted on wheels.
An espingol consisted of one or more main gun barrels. Smaller-diameter gun barrels, loaded with between 16 to 32 bullets, were inserted, like a modern magazine clip, into the larger diameter main barrels.
For ammunition lead bullets were used. The powder loading of the outermost bullet was ignited by a fuse. The powder loading of the next bullet was ignited, when the first bullet was discharged. The bullets discharged at intervals of two seconds. When all bullets in a barrel were discharged, the empty inner barrel was extracted and replaced by a new, fully loaded barrel, just as one removes a magazine clip form modern automatic infantry weapons. The effective firing range of the espingol was about 200 meters.
The espingol provided superior firepower compared to contemporary Danish infantry weapons. However, the espingol's high rate of fire had the predictable drawback that the resulting volume of gun smoke obscured targets in the immediate vicinity, which made aiming the espingol difficult. The demanding task of loading the inner gun barrels had to be performed by specialists prior to going into combat, complicating ammunition logistics. Some times the barrels bursted because bullets got stock, when they did not ignite.
Two types of espingol were developed. The "divisionsespingol" consisted of just one main gun barrel, into which the inserted inner barrel could be loaded with between 16 to 32 bullets. The "kolonneespingol" consisted of three main gun barrels, into which the inserted inner gun barrels were loaded with 16 bullets each. The gun barrels of the "kolonneespingol" could be discharged individually or simultaneously. Normally the espingol was mounted on wheels.
