Also known as: sabot.
| Function | Seals the bore and transmits the rifling's spin |
|---|---|
| Smoothbore type | A wooden block strapped to the round |
| Rifled types | Lead or copper cups and bands, brass, and papier-mache |
| Related | Rotating and expanding bands |
How sabots work
The sabot solved two problems at once: sealing the gap between projectile and bore so propellant gas was not wasted, and, in rifled guns, forcing the projectile to take the spin of the rifling. On smoothbore fixed ammunition a wooden sabot strapped to the round centered it and held it to the powder bag.
Rifled projectiles used many sabot systems, among them expanding lead and copper cups and bands at the base, lead coatings over the body, brass cups, and compressed papier-mache. The variety of sabots is one of the chief ways collectors classify and attribute Civil War rifled projectiles.
On this site
Sources & further reading
- United States Army, Ordnance Department. The Ordnance Manual for the Use of the Officers of the United States Army. 2nd ed. Philadelphia: J. B. Lippincott, 1862.
- CivilWarArtillery.com research archive: manuals, reports, and reference pages.