Site Index . Ordnance Ammunition Back to Article . Site Index

Site Index > Ordnance > Ammunition > Grapeshot and Quilted Shot Grapeshot and Quilted Shot Grapeshot and Quilted Shot Image: Aeragon © Copyright Aeragon 2008; all Rights Reserved. Grapeshot was a type of antipersonnel ammunition, and it consisted of a multiple of some type of usually round shot. The shot could be made of cast iron, lead or other metals or materials. The main difference between case shot and grapeshot was that grapeshot normally had larger and fewer balls and a different configuration. There were slightly different designs of grapeshot. One of the most common designs, pictured on the left, used 9 balls held together by a central bolt with plates or rings. Another common type, pictured in the center, had more, but smaller, balls and a central rod with a bottom plate of wood or metal. Quilted shot, pictured here on the right, consisted of essentially grapeshot with a fabric cover to hold the assembly together until firing. In many cases, the fabric cover was dipped in pitch or tar. Nasty Little Surprises Nasty Little Surprises Photo: 1865, Alexander Gardner Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division Washington, D.C. Piles of solid shot, canister shot, grape shot, etc., in the Arsenal grounds at Richmond, Virginia. Photograph of the main eastern theater of war, fallen Richmond, April-June 1865. © Copyright 2008 Æ Aeragon®; all rights reserved. Terms of Use, User Agreement, Copyright, Privacy & Disclaimer