What to look for in Sniders and Martini Henrys for a safe shooter

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AnotherCanuck

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I'd like to join you this summer in making great gouts of smoke from a Snider and MH, don't own either yet.

Goal is to get one of each in shooting condition to enjoy at the range and if I can get them shooting to my satisfaction possibly even hunt with.

I've done some research in terms of model, I believe I want a Snider mk2 2 star or mk3 for the stronger breach. Anything similar in the MH?

When examining them what should I be looking for to make sure I get one that's safe to shoot? Are there any tests I could do while I handle them?

Appreciate your time & thoughts on this
 
sniders the mk3 is the better of them made new not from a converted musket. martinis are all pretty well the same for strength other than Nepalese francotte and gahendra these were made in Nepal and the francotte's have some issues the gahendra's have less id stick to British built guns if I wanted a shooter.

look for pitting at the wood line of the barrels it has to be deep for it to be considered unsafe to shoot same goes for heavy pitting in the bores.

also beware of Khyber pass guns that pop up from time to time these are made to look like british martinis but its very clear that their crudely made

have fun and make some BP smoke
 
My experience with Sniders is that they have been very difficult to get to shoot accurately. Probably because they have fairly shallow rifling. A martini in 577-450 I think is potentially easier to shoot accurately but important to recognize that the bullet is significantly larger than the .458 molds you might be tempted to use. Also well worth considering paper patching the bullets

cheers mooncoon
 
mooncoon said:
My experience with Sniders is that they have been very difficult to get to shoot accurately. Probably because they have fairly shallow rifling. A martini in 577-450 I think is potentially easier to shoot accurately but important to recognize that the bullet is significantly larger than the .458 molds you might be tempted to use. Also well worth considering paper patching the bullets

cheers mooncoon
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yes most British made martini mk1 through 4 will like .468-.470 bullet's paper patching a .458 or .459 will get you there
 
The rear sight for the three-ban Snider is the same as for the two and three-band P53 Enfield - the Snider was made by converting them to a breechloader.

As with the Martini-Henry, cases and correct bullet mould can be obtained from Martyn at X-Ring Services in Spokane WA.
 
2 days ago I bought yet another Snider Enfield infantry model with yet another missing the ladder's 'Rear Sight+screw.' A common missing part, for some reason.
 
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AnotherCanuck: With Sniders, going for a Mk III (or equivalent commercial type) with locking breech is not a bad idea. However, I wouldn't pass on any earlier type if the block fits nice and tight in the "shoe". Sniders had headspace limits and a loose, wiggly block means it's not optimal. Frankly, I don't even shoot any Mk IIIs I have that have extremely ill fitting blocks. The barrels on Sniders are extremely thick and I have yet to come across one so deeply pitted that I would be fearful of firing it. On the other hand I've had a couple that were so corroded in the bore that I wouldn't waste my time putting ammo through them. There are plenty out there with superb bores so my suggestion is to look for that along with general mechanical condition (particularly fit of block in the shoe). With regard to steel barrels, references I've seen suggest this improvement was primarily to reduce accidental deformation (from bayonet usage, etc) near the muzzle and make the rifling longer-lived. The iron barrels (of Mk I-II**) are plenty strong.

milsurpo
 
tacfoley said:
Has anybody here actually looked at the Dyson website to see what is readily available?
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I’ve ordered a few items from them and they don’t have very many Snider items left unfortunately and they recently updated their website making a Snider parts search even more difficult.
 
I have an ammo question concerning the Snider and Martini Henry. I have 2 Sniders that I plan on reloading for and a new to me Martini Henry on the way.

I have new brass from Martyn and plan on fire forming them with .578 to be able to use .600 after fire forming. Do I have to keep certain cases linked to each rifle or do you think I can interchange them between the rifles. Guess I’ll find out shortly if the chambering is similar enough in these rifles.

There is an awesome Utube video on the Snider forum of reloading for these guns without a press and that’s what I plan on doing. I’ll see if I can find a link to this video.
 
Bush1: Probably best to plan on keeping brass from each rifle separate after fireforming until you have a chance to try interchanging them. I have a couple that will use each other's fireformed brass but others that won't. I found that even with resized brass and .575 bullets, chamber length variation meant I had to trim to 1.950" (brass length) to be able to chamber in all my Sniders (and that didn't do it as I have one BSA Mk III with a very short chamber). I've done quite a few chamber casts on Ordnance issue Sniders and found the length to the steep throat to be one of the main variables.

milsurpo
 
I used a Martini 577/450 for many years deer hunting. My biggest expense was the reloading dies and brass.. this was 20 yrs ago.
my bullet was a lee mould for a 45/70 500gr round nose. paper patched up with normal printer paper.
load was 31.5 gr IMR 3031 with a filler on top
 
Just got this -

To:you Details
Dear tac
Thank you for your message, I have, in stock 1 only reproduction Enfield sight reference # 0760 @ £110 + post and packing
Please let me have your instructions
Sincerely
Wendy Dyson
 
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