Love this guy!
Not about the type of weapon, but the ability to match force.
The british weapon of the period, the musket. Big heavy ball, smooth bore, useful for skirmish line volley fire at short to medium distance (tactics left over from Greek, Roman, Europa infantry).
The higher tech of the militia was the rifle! Smaller caliber, but able to knock an officer off his horse, whack a cannon lighter, or kill a lead team horse from well beyond musket range.
Love this guy!
Well, lots of the minute men had muskets, too. But they were hunters who knew the land and how to get close to their quarry. Hell, it’s less the weapon than the skill and determination to use it. Consider what Henry V did at Agincourt. His bowmen were as effective as machine gunners. At Waterloo, Wellington considered recruiting a company of archers, only to find that the training of such men required years if not decades. A medieval archer had back and shoulder muscles that were so huge he looked like a serious body builder. Going back to the 19th of April, the average colonist was probably a better shot than the average Redcoat. He went hunting for small game, at least very often.