Is it ? Or no ? Snider Cavalry Carbine

[Accumulator]

A curious early Carbine . Falls within all the parameters of NWMP issue . 1871 lock mK lll . Serial number falls between 2 authenticated issues . 415 and 494 . According to Klancher there is just no way to definitively say , yes or no . Some 330 examples out there Scattered all over from 400’s to 9000. Only solid markings are the DC and 19 . Aside from the typical British stampings . Someone’s initials punched in at some point . Aside from that apparently the Carbines are the most difficult to authenticate . A very nice clean example at any rate . Anyone with further info to share ?
Thx
Cheers

 

[Guy JR]

Cant help with your question but man would I love to see your collection of cool stuff.

 

[Incurable Collectoer]

Yes it looks like it is a genuine Cavalry Carbine. No, it is probably not an NWMP gun. The Mountie carbines did not have DC markings on them so what you have is a Canadian Militia carbine.

 

[Jon9021]

Would there not be some kind of NWMP property markings on it?

 

[Incurable Collectoer]

Later on there was a property stamp on the guns but the Snider did not have it and I believe the first batch of Adams revolvers was not stamped either.

 

[Accumulator]

Unfortunately they were not stamped . Oddly enuff Klancher had no comment about the DC stamp . I’ve sent another email to him to clarify if authenticated examples had a DC while others , yes I am aware , did not .

 

[RangeRover]

I have documented almost 30 Mk III Cavalry carbines like yours, which have the I-broad arrow stamped in both the roundel on the buttstock and on the lock plate. Most are 1871 production, with a few from 1870. The I-broad arrow is a mark seen as a stores mark showing production for/acceptance in India. Curiously though, almost all of the examples I've tracked down are in Canada, or have a Canadian connection of some sort. Many are marked with the D.C. Canadian-ownership mark - a few within the diamond, but most without a diamond enclosure. Many also have a number adjacent to the D.C. marking (like your '19'). Having talked to David Edgecombe about them, and posting on several forums to try to glean knowledge - their exact provenance remains unknown/disputed. No indication of any connection to the NWMP on any examples I have documented.