I thought it might be fun to show off some of the oldies that are often relegated to the predominantly non-milsurp black powder sub-forum. In this thread, I'm curious what milsurp collectors on this board have by way of early military surplus rifles, and particularly those from the British commonwealth (including Canada, of course!).
I'm happy to go first with my earliest example. In this case a Snider-Enfield MkII* 3-band infantry rifle in .577 Snider. This example was converted from an 1862 production Enfield-made Pattern 1853 musket. The conversion was also done at Enfield. It is apparently one of the approximately 30,000 sniders shipped to the Dominion of Canada in 1867 after the Fenian raids, and has a well-stamped DC cartouche. Sniders were made or converted from 1866 until about 1871.
Next up, I'll show my example of a Martini-Henry MkIII short-lever rifle in .577-450. This one is also a Canadian rifle, made at Enfield in 1883. It's marked to the 5th British Columbia Regiment, Canadian Artillery, rack number 283, and is in remarkable condition for a Martini-Henry. Most you see served time in India and Nepal and are in fairly dire condition.
Since someone is sure to ask, I've fired both of these rifles and they both still get shot a few times a year with black powder handloads. Really fun rifles, and I highly encourage people to seek out and try a Snider or Martini. Nice condition Sniders are easier to find in Canada than Martinis in their original calibers. Canada used the Snider in far greater numbers for quite a few years.
Let's see what others have!!
I'm happy to go first with my earliest example. In this case a Snider-Enfield MkII* 3-band infantry rifle in .577 Snider. This example was converted from an 1862 production Enfield-made Pattern 1853 musket. The conversion was also done at Enfield. It is apparently one of the approximately 30,000 sniders shipped to the Dominion of Canada in 1867 after the Fenian raids, and has a well-stamped DC cartouche. Sniders were made or converted from 1866 until about 1871.
Next up, I'll show my example of a Martini-Henry MkIII short-lever rifle in .577-450. This one is also a Canadian rifle, made at Enfield in 1883. It's marked to the 5th British Columbia Regiment, Canadian Artillery, rack number 283, and is in remarkable condition for a Martini-Henry. Most you see served time in India and Nepal and are in fairly dire condition.
Since someone is sure to ask, I've fired both of these rifles and they both still get shot a few times a year with black powder handloads. Really fun rifles, and I highly encourage people to seek out and try a Snider or Martini. Nice condition Sniders are easier to find in Canada than Martinis in their original calibers. Canada used the Snider in far greater numbers for quite a few years.
Let's see what others have!!
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