Possible Antique Bullet Extractor? - Medical

Jim McDougall · 28th January 2017, 11:35 PM

In the Wild West, the old images of the fancy dressed gamblers wearing silk vests in the saloons made them look dandy. Truth was that it had been realized that silk was powerfully resistant to many bullet types, especially the cap and ball with lower velocity.
Most guns in the 70s and 80s west in towns and saloons were basically lower caliber and smaller 'pocket' type pistols as the wearing of guns openy was typically prohibited in town.

In the early 20th the military was interested in developing bullet resistant vests and material using silk, however it was not pursued, probably cost?

In one shooting instance in a saloon in c. 1880s, the attending doctor was astonished that a silk handkerchief on the victim had been carried into the wound, and surrounded the bullet but did not penetrate the silk.
Unfortunately the wound was fatal, but bullet came out handily.

kronckew · 29th January 2017, 09:50 AM

archduke ferdinand was wearing a thick silk vest when he was assassinated along with his wife. unfortunately he was shot in the neck an inch above the upper limit of said vest & it severed his jugular (not sure about his wife). tests done on a reconstructed section of such a vest shot at with the same make/mode of pistol (a 9mm automatic) at the same 2 metres, they proved it worked, stopping penetration and spreading the impact. *

greeks and romans at one time used folded linen armour, efficacious against arrows and slashes. as did poor archers with padded jackets in the anglo-french 100yrs. war. modern soldiers and police carry on the tradition with kevlar vests, helmets and gloves. the english in the crimean war complained about their new fancy quill backed blades bending on the greatcoats of their russian opponents, making their thrusts ineffective.

the romans used an arrow extractor that covered the barbs from behind when it could not be pushed thru & out the other side. they also understood the need to cleanse the wound of debris and used strong vinegar as a disinfectant, they had a better medical system than most modern battlefields up to very recently.

*- the BBC had a two-part documentary on the development of english firearms, i recorded it last week. watched it last night in fact. they had the segment on the duke and his bullet proof silk vest. the test was done at the royal armoury at leeds, uk. coincidental timing

fernando · 29th January 2017, 01:00 PM

They don't make bullet extractors like they used to

,
During my stay in the Wild West, bullets were extracted with a Bowie knife ... and anesthetic was wiskey. After the surgery we disinfected the wound by burning it with the Bowie point heated up in the fire. Do you guys never see te movies ?

29th January 2017, 09:50 AM	#2
kronckew Member Join Date: Mar 2006 Location: Room 101, Glos. UK Posts: 4,224	archduke ferdinand was wearing a thick silk vest when he was assassinated along with his wife. unfortunately he was shot in the neck an inch above the upper limit of said vest & it severed his jugular (not sure about his wife). tests done on a reconstructed section of such a vest shot at with the same make/mode of pistol (a 9mm automatic) at the same 2 metres, they proved it worked, stopping penetration and spreading the impact. * greeks and romans at one time used folded linen armour, efficacious against arrows and slashes. as did poor archers with padded jackets in the anglo-french 100yrs. war. modern soldiers and police carry on the tradition with kevlar vests, helmets and gloves. the english in the crimean war complained about their new fancy quill backed blades bending on the greatcoats of their russian opponents, making their thrusts ineffective. the romans used an arrow extractor that covered the barbs from behind when it could not be pushed thru & out the other side. they also understood the need to cleanse the wound of debris and used strong vinegar as a disinfectant, they had a better medical system than most modern battlefields up to very recently. - the BBC had a two-part documentary on the development of english firearms, i recorded it last week. watched it last night in fact. they had the segment on the duke and his bullet proof silk vest. the test was done at the royal armoury at leeds, uk. coincidental timing Last edited by kronckew; 29th January 2017 at 10:15 AM.*

28th January 2017, 11:35 PM	#1
Jim McDougall Arms Historian Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: Route 66 Posts: 10,295	In the Wild West, the old images of the fancy dressed gamblers wearing silk vests in the saloons made them look dandy. Truth was that it had been realized that silk was powerfully resistant to many bullet types, especially the cap and ball with lower velocity. Most guns in the 70s and 80s west in towns and saloons were basically lower caliber and smaller 'pocket' type pistols as the wearing of guns openy was typically prohibited in town. In the early 20th the military was interested in developing bullet resistant vests and material using silk, however it was not pursued, probably cost? In one shooting instance in a saloon in c. 1880s, the attending doctor was astonished that a silk handkerchief on the victim had been carried into the wound, and surrounded the bullet but did not penetrate the silk. Unfortunately the wound was fatal, but bullet came out handily.

29th January 2017, 01:00 PM	#3
fernando (deceased) Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: Portugal Posts: 9,694	They don't make bullet extractors like they used to , During my stay in the Wild West, bullets were extracted with a Bowie knife ... and anesthetic was wiskey. After the surgery we disinfected the wound by burning it with the Bowie point heated up in the fire. Do you guys never see te movies ?