A total of 63,872 model 1876s are believed to have been produced beginning in 1876 and spanning through to 1898. The weapon was a sucess having a range of 250 yards, bettering the musket whose range was about 50 yards. Spencer, on of the most important mechanical inventors of the 19th century. Consequently, the army ordered a limited number of henrys. One hundred of these, of the two hundred or so made, were issued to a special rifle corps in 1777, but the cost, production difficulties and fragility of the guns, coupled with the death of ferguson at the battle of kings mountain meant the experiment. Winchester continued to refine firearm designs with inventors benjamin tyler henry and nelson king, and on may 22, 1866, the winchester repeating arms company was born. The spencer rifle, with its lever action, seven shot tubular magazine and internallyprimed metalliccased cartridge, was a popular wartime breechloader. The girardoni air rifle was 22shot, magazinefed, nearly silent. In the 1870s the military officially adopted the trapdoor springfield in full length and carbine versions. Mar 11, 2018 this rifle was used by the british against the americans in 1777. The spencer repeating rifle was a leveraction, seven shot repeating rifle with a rotating block.
Henry goldenboy texas edition lever action rifle h004tx, 22 lr, 20 octagon, walnut. Catalog 38 pages, over 8 x 5 12, softcover in full color. It was adopted by the french army and had a 44 barrel in. This rifle had a lethal combat range of 125 to 150 yards. Guns of the revolutionary war 17751783 military factory. The repeating rifle had four different clip and magazine types, stripper clip, en bloc, box magazine, and drum magazine. The first production model 1876s were chambered to fire the.
By the time the civil war ended, some 50,000 had been made, not counting the followon. Spencer model 1860 repeating rifle this spencer rifle bears serial number 4452 and was manufactured in 1863. Repeating rifle, rifled shoulder arm typically designed with a springloaded tubular or box magazine holding metallic cartridges, each of which is fed into the chamber or breech by a lever, pump, bolt, or semiautomatic mechanism. Peterson revealed that two repeating firearms were manufactured before the revolutionary war between the united states and great britain. Winchester rifles, antique winchesters for sale collectors. Their slogan made in america or not made at all highlights the companys dedication to maintaining the countrys domestic manufacturing heritage, as well as the henry rifles history. What was the impact of repeater rifles in the civil war. The spencer repeating rifle lives on, its popularity spurred considerably by the guns appearance in clint eastwoods film the unforgiven and its use by civil war reenactors and cowboy action shooters. Thomas jefferson purchased two of these rifles, which he sent west with lewis and clark. The first standardized infantry rifle was the model of 1763 which became known as the charleville musket. The henry was an improved version of the earlier volition, and later volcanic. Bayonne, nj february 5, 2020 henry president and owner, anthony imperato, designed and donated 60 rifles for 4yearold beckett burge of princeton, texas, and. The unrelated henry repeating arms produces a replica of the model 1860 henry rifle with brass receiver and american walnut stock, but a modern steel barrel and internal components.
The first, the kalthoff rifle, was invented about 1650, by an unknown person. Lighter and optimized for the hunt, every design aspect of the model r25 gii was rethought and perfected to create the most agile and dependable msr on the planet. For the next 14 years, winchester aggressively sought new markets, created new products and explored new. In 1776, the ferguson rifle was tested, at his own expense. This rifle was used by the british against the americans in 1777. As far as the union goes the rifles were meant to be used by infantry and cavalry formations alik. However, colts rifles met some harsh criticism and were unfavorable by the end of the war.
A great many of these were given to the revolutionaries in 1776. Its bright brass receiver was the basis for the nickname of yellow boy. These arms are significant in that the model 1842 was the last u. The girandoni air rifle was in service with the austrian army from 1780 to around 1815. The winchester model 1876, therefore, became their fullpower answer and also went under the name of centennial model due to it appearing in time for americans 100year birthday celebration. Brief history for a detailed history, read stephen hunters article in the washington post, cited below.
It had a tubular magazine that fed 5656 rimfire cartridges into the chamber. The rifle is named for the group of gunsmiths who produced the rifle. Henry repeating arms company is the largest leveraction rifle manufacturer in the united states. The henry rifle was patented in 1860 by benjamin tyler henry. It was designed to be manufactured with the extensive use of aluminum alloys and synthetic materials.
The reason i ask is i hear folks say that the reason we need new gun laws is that guns were single shot muskets back when the 2nd amendment was written and not anything like we have today. The overall impact was minimal and here are some reasons to the why. Use features like bookmarks, note taking and highlighting while reading american rifle. Made and used by the english the also sold some to russia. Others have already covered certain aspects pretty well, but here goes anyway. And proof the fittest not only survive, but conquer. Henry garden gun smoothbore lever action rifle h001gg, 22 lr, 18 14, walnut stock, blue finish, 15 rds. By andrew fagal in may 1792, joseph gaston chambers almost revolutionized world history when he approached the u. Here is a less complicated repeating flintlock pistol from 1814 i have seen some from before 1776, there is just a video for this one, where the lock slides on the barrel and the powder and balls are loaded like a roman candle or one of those metalstorm guns, this one holds 5 rounds. The promise of american repeating weapons, 17911821 age.
The promise of american repeating weapons, 17911821 age of. Spencer repeating rifle simple english wikipedia, the free. Called the spencer repeating rifle, it was fired by cocking a lever to extract a used case and feed a new cartridge from a tube in the buttstock. Born of the most advanced design aspects of ar15style rifles available today, the model r15 is a top choice for piling up predators. Henry brings concept to reality with launch of x model series. A history of the first repeating rifles, historian joseph g. The girandoni air rifle was an airgun designed by tyrolian inventor bartholomaus girandoni circa 1779. Roberts provides about 6 pages of step by step illus. But that was a time of great transition for firearms, and the military was slow to catch up. Flag images indicative of country of origin and not necessarily the primary operator.
Oct 14, 2015 the spencer repeating rifle lives on, its popularity spurred considerably by the guns appearance in clint eastwoods film the unforgiven and its use by civil war reenactors and cowboy action shooters. Entries are listed below in alphanumeric order 1toz. Thomas jeffersons assault rifle the girardoni air rifle. Our famous junior repeating rifle with military bolt action this model is the only. Without special sealing the revolver mechanism produced a gas discharge close to the face when used in a long rifle. Like most firearms of the time, the hammer had to be manually cocked after each round in a separate action before the weapon could be fired. Henry singleshot break open shotgun h015b20, 20 gauge, 26, walnut stock, silver finish. Springfield officers model trapdoor rifle nra museums. One of the old hand processes used in the making of the american long rifle. Jul, 20 others have already covered certain aspects pretty well, but here goes anyway. In a stroke, the henry rifle and spencer rifle and. War department with a musket that could, he claimed, fire 20 rounds in a minute.
The budgetminded army brass thought the winchester repeating rifles were too expensive and too complicated for the typical soldier. At the tail end of the civil war, cartridge guns like the first lever rifles and the spencer rifle began appearing on the battlefield. This legendary rifle is now available from winchester repeating arms in a new grade i short rifle. M1841 us rifle mississippi rifle m1842 springfield musket. Before the invention of the selfcontained cartridge projectile.
A repeating rifle, or repeater for short, is a rifle capable of repeated discharges from a single barrel between ammunition reloads. This spencer catalogue is filled with information about the company, what newspapers, officers and others think of the rifle as well as charts, prices and specifications. Also in 1776, major patrick ferguson patented his breechloading ferguson rifle, based on old french and dutch designs of the 1720s and 1730s. This is more than just a gun book about one of the most famous rifles of the civil war, it is also a biography of c. Automatic weapons available in 1776 and other lies the nra. Spencer repeating rifle simple english wikipedia, the. Consequently, the army ordered a limited number of. The rifle was invented by christopher miner spencer and patented in 1860.
This is typically achieved by having multiple cartridges stored in a magazine within or attached to the gun and then fed into the chamber by the bolt via either a manual or automatic mechanism, while the act of chambering the rifle typically also recocks the. Download it once and read it on your kindle device, pc, phones or tablets. Multishot assault weapons of the 1700s and the 2nd. No surviving copies of the belton rifle remain but in 1821 reuben ellis of new york received an improvement patent on the belton design.
I dont think i mention it, but the 1858 enfield used in the civil war has a rifled. The book describes, in word and pictures, the development and use of the first effective repeating breech loading military rifle. How it arrived in america in 1803 is unknown but it became the essential weapon of lewis and clark on their westward explorations. The henry used copper later brass rimfire cartridges with a 216 grain 14. So at the birth of our nation in 1776 it was about 7080 years before cartridge development came to where. Jul 09, 2017 the budgetminded army brass thought the winchester repeating rifles were too expensive and too complicated for the typical soldier.
Spencers have become so en vogue, in fact, that reproductions of them are offered by a number of companies, chambered for such things as. Repeating rifles enabled the shooter to fire multiple shots without having to reload. The girandoni, the most important gun in american history. Model 1866 leveraction was the very first rifle to wear the winchester brand. Using the ferguson rifle, light infantry troops could continue loading and firing without breaking cover, even when lying prone. The book describes, in word and pictures, the development and use of. Multishot assault weapons of the 1700s and the 2nd amendment.
During the civil war, the 15shot henry rifle was available for usehowever, it cost four times that of the springfield. There were many stories of battles being won because they were armed with the henry rifle. This process is described in detail in the well known book the muzzle loading caplock rifle, by ned roberts, 1940. Oct 07, 2015 at the tail end of the civil war, cartridge guns like the first lever rifles and the spencer rifle began appearing on the battlefield. It was a good design and was rivaled only by the henry repeating rifle, the ball rifle and colts revolving rifles. The american springfield musket of 1795 was based on it and was also known as the charleville pattern. Oliver fisher winchester, founder of winchester repeating arms company. Henry repeating arms lever action rifles for sale online. The standard model 1876 rifle barrel was between 26 to 28 inches in length though there were 23 inch and as long as 36 inch lengths available with varying lengths in between. The brown bess is a smooth bore musket, like most shotgun barrels. There are a total of 5 guns of the revolutionary war 1775 1783 entries in the military factory.
An obscure air rifle can be credited to have an enormous influence on how the young country of the united states of america developed. Henry rifles henry repeating arms henry repeating rifle. The gun that really puts the lid on these anti gun arguments that the founders could not have envisioned the repeating guns we have today is this masterpiece, the puckle gun of 1718. Sportsmans guide carries a large assortment of henry rifles or also known as the first practical lever action henry repeating arms rifle. In 1860, after three years of experimentation, spencer patented his repeating rifle. Jun 11, 2014 the girardoni air rifle was 22shot, magazinefed, nearly silent. Oct 20, 2016 but seeing their potential, the navy quickly adopted the technology and between september 18 and april 1814 contracted with philadelphia arms manufacturers to produce at least 53 sevenbarreled swivels that could fire over 200 bullets apiece alongside components to assemble 30 more, 200 repeating muskets, and 100 repeating pistols. This is a takedown rifle, which is good for cleaning given how hard it is to take out the bolt. Bilby unfolds the fascinating story of how two new england inventors, benjamin henry and christopher spencer, each combined generations of cartridge and rifle technology to develop reliable repeating rifles. A repeating rifle is a single barreled rifle containing multiple rounds of ammunition that are loaded from a reservoir chamber magazine by means of a manual or automatic mechanism. The mauser rifle of the late 19th and early 20th centuries is the most famous of the bolt action types.
123 948 1527 496 922 1236 1316 1128 1232 1566 994 1402 1216 333 213 990 409 1339 376 650 1276 689 303 1397 342 1426 105 1063 414