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A muzzleloader is any firearm into which the projectile and usually the propellant charge is loaded from the muzzle of the
gun (i.e. from the forward, open end of the gun's barrel).
Modern muzzleloading firearms range from reproductions of sidelock, flintlock and percussion long guns, to in-line rifles
that use modern inventions such as a closed breech, sealed primer and fast rifling to allow for considerable accuracy at long
ranges. Mortars are a type of short-range artillery that are muzzle-loaded.
Muzzleloading can apply to anything from cannons to pistols but in modern parlance the term most commonly applies to black
powder small arms. It usually, but not always, involves the use of a loose propellant (i.e. gun powder) and projectile, as
well as a separate method of ignition or priming.
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