Thinking about the fiction plot device “Modern military guy/men are trapped in the past/fantasy world with their guns” or the hypothetical “Could a guy with an M-16 have changed Agincourt?” style question led me to wonder the two-part question:
(1) How far back could you go with a modern firearm before you were screwed once you ran out of bullets? Assume, for sake of discussion, you have access to that era’s metalworkers and the ability to show and explain what you needed (fiction writer’s fiat – the “king” wants to keep you armed). Also assume you have a supply of gunpowder. Actually, I know today’s bullets don’t use “real” gunpowder as the propellant so how big a deal is that?
(2) Would you be better off with one gun over another? A revolver over a semiautomatic pistol? I’m just guessing that a shotgun would be easiest since they still use paper cartridges and the shot would be more forgiving than a bullet. But you’d still need to fashion the striking end. Want to keep it to modern arms though despite knowing it’d be easier to supply a musket.
I did a little reading and saw that the first metal cartridges were produced in the 1840’s and paper cartridges had been used well before that but I don’t know how well a modern firearm would tolerate them. Anyway, sorry if I got any terminology wrong.