I think the inlines originally were devoleped to be more reliable and easier to clean. The performance thing just sort of came along with it. You could get the same performance out of a side lock if you used a barrel that could handle the charge and had the twist rate (green mountain barrels).

The inlines just fire more consistantly because the ingnition time is shorter and travels in a straight line. Plus they are waay easier to clean or get a fouled charge out of.

I hate it when people compare them to centerfire rifles. I have owned both, my inline ML is deffinately not a center fire!

I will do some research on it when I get time and see what I can turn up on the net.

Paul