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Wheellock: The First Self-Igniting Firearm

admin · 2026-03-16T23:03:55.926Z

Spent a decent amount of time last week reading through the history of ignition systems — partly because someone at the shop counter was asking why flintlocks eventually won out over earlier designs, and I didn't have a clean answer off the top of my head. Ended up going deep on the wheellock. Worth sharing. Before it existed, every firearm on earth required an external flame to operate. After it, a shooter could load a gun, set the mechanism, tuck it under a coat, and fire it hours later wi...

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Wheellock: The First Self-Igniting Firearm

The wheellock -- also written wheel-lock or wheel lock -- is a friction-wheel ignition mechanism that generates sparks to fire a gun. It was the first self-igniting firearm ever built. Before it existed, every firearm on earth required an external fl

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