Shot Pouch A# 39952
Most pirates wore a cartridge box that hung from either a waist belt or a shoulder sling. This pouch was made of leather and braced with wooden slats to maintain its shape. It could be waterproofed by coating it in wax.
When opened, it was found to contain loose powder and shot together with the remnants of pre-made cartridges.
To make these cartridges, a small sheet of greased paper would be rolled into a cylinder and folded on one end. A lead ball was dropped in the end and the paper folded around it. Gunpowder was then poured in with a small powder measure and funnel and the other end of the cylinder was folded.
When loading, the musketeer bit the end off the cartridge, poured a bit of powder into the priming pan and the rest down the barrel of the gun. He then spat the ball down the muzzle and folded the paper before ramming it down as wadding atop the powder and ball.
As complicated as this sounds, a trained musketeer could fire three shots a minute.
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