|
|
Joined: Jan 2001
Posts: 13,858
Carpal Tunnel
|
OP
Carpal Tunnel
Joined: Jan 2001
Posts: 13,858 |
Dear tsuwm: Faldage's URL clarifies everything, except how "frizzen" got to be so widely
used. The idiots always have us surrounded and outnumbered. My compliments to Faldage.
|
|
|
|
|
Joined: Mar 2000
Posts: 1,027
old hand
|
|
old hand
Joined: Mar 2000
Posts: 1,027 |
Very clear. I especially like the expression this vital piece of machinery in this context  .
|
|
|
|
|
Joined: Mar 2000
Posts: 11,613
Carpal Tunnel
|
|
Carpal Tunnel
Joined: Mar 2000
Posts: 11,613 |
I have a guess: that it came from people saying something like, "The flint strikes the frizzle 'n then the gun fires."  This gun actually WAS a vital piece of equipment in its time. Here's a quote from the site's home page. The Northwest Territory Alliance (NWTA) is an American Revolutionary War reeanctment organization located in the American Midwest. We have over five hundred members from states as far west as Iowa, east to Ohio, north to the Canadian border and south to Tennessee.
The NWTA is a non-profit educational organization that studies and recreates the culture, lifestyle, and arts of the time of the American Revolution, 1775-1783. We strive to duplicate the uniforms, weapons, battlefield tactics and camp life of the era as accurately as possible.Re-enactments...hey, CK, you-all got any flintlocks over there?
|
|
|
|
|
Joined: Aug 2000
Posts: 2,204
Pooh-Bah
|
|
Pooh-Bah
Joined: Aug 2000
Posts: 2,204 |
There's several hundred in the Tower of London, Jackie, mostly in reasonably good state fo repair. Just in case, you know
|
|
|
|
|
Joined: Jan 2001
Posts: 13,858
Carpal Tunnel
|
|
OP
Carpal Tunnel
Joined: Jan 2001
Posts: 13,858 |
The thing that irks me most is that I got the word "frizzen" from
"The History of English in it Own Words" by Craig M. Carver, p 187,
in a discussion of "skinflint". Too bad he didn't research the word
before he used it.
The correct terms seem to be part of the problem. The "cock"
holds the flint, and strikes the "hammer". This is hardly the ordinary
sense of "hammer" which is usually in motion striking something else.
A case of "hitting der hammer mit der nail".
|
|
|
|
|
Joined: Sep 2001
Posts: 6,296
Carpal Tunnel
|
|
Carpal Tunnel
Joined: Sep 2001
Posts: 6,296 |
One reader of AWAD sent some information that if you google "frizzen" and "flintlock," you'll get more information about frizzens that frizzles. Here's one basic hit, for example, but you all can google to your heart's delight: http://members.aye.net/~bspen/flintlockfaq.htmlAfter a quick review of all the sites that mention frizzens, I'd say the jury is still out... Blast regards, WordWeapon Not!Edit: Here's another frizzen mention from the "How Stuff Works" site, which is a pretty standard kind of site. No frizzle mentioned at all: http://www.howstuffworks.com/flintlock2.htm
|
|
|
|
Forums16
Topics13,913
Posts229,318
Members9,182
| |
Most Online3,341
Dec 9th, 2011
|
|
|
0 members (),
775
guests, and
1
robot. |
|
Key:
Admin,
Global Mod,
Mod
|
|
|
|
