As a result of complaints about the recoil compared to the Snider cartridge, Woolwich developed a lighter loading with a bullet driven by of blackpowder, the "Cartridge S.A. Ball Martini Henry Rifle Rolled Case Mark IV". The Mark IV is visually identical to the Mark III and once removed from its bundle can only be identified by weight, it was produced in batches between 1873 and 1880 by which time complaints about the recoil had ceased, presumably as soldiers became accustomed to it, and later production reverted to the Mark III.