A rifle which was fired by driving a long needle-like firing pin through a paper cartridge to strike the detonator, placed in the middle of the propellent charge to ensure even combustion. Early needle guns were muzzle-loading but the most well known was the breech-loading Dreyse Zündnadelgewehr, adopted by the Prussian army in 1841. As propellent quality improved, the detonator was moved to the base of the charge and the needle system was replaced by a spring-loaded short firing pin within the bolt head.
Bibliography
- Peterson, Harold L. (ed.), Encyclopaedia of Firearms (London, 1974)
— Stephen Wood
