Got another Armi-Sport

15 years ago or so I had an Armi Sport 1861 Springfield, I didn't know what I was doing as much with BP firearms back then but the unsized Minies I managed to get down the bore were exceptionally accurate and the rifle was nice.

I sold it because I "didn't need" it a few years later.

Today I received the Armi Sport CS Richmond I got as New-Old Stock , which is obviously for all intents and purposes the same as their 61 Springfield.

I like it , it seems well fitted. Can't wait to shoot it. I already have a leather gear setup for it , I'm ready to roll up some cartridges.

Nice! Where'd you find it?

This GunBroker dealer named Two Wright Arms, $800 for the rifle with a poorly fitting bayonet and a sling. The people were nice, just took forever to ship.

I have an Armi 1861 as well. I had trouble finding an accurate load for it, so I gave up on it years ago in fovor of my other neglected "darlings in the dark" (gun safe).. The rifling seems pretty shallow, hence better suited for Minie's than RB's. What load did you find to be best for it?

That's a very nice rifle!

There's one in our club, a bit older - perhaps ten? And yes, Miniés are what it likes to shoot. Lyman's, like mine that go well in the P-H Musketoon, over 60gr of 3Fg. all in a 6" black at 100m.

Can't be bad.

Two Wright Arms 5-6 miles from me. They have a decent shop.

If I recall I used 60 gr of the old metal red can Goex 2f and the 575 Minies from Dixie , I smeared Bore Butter in the grooves and fired 50 of them through my first 1861 Armi Sport Springfield . I know now why I had to fight some down the bore , I didn't know about "sizing " then.

I was (am) a really good rifle shooter and I recall being amazed how accurate that Armi Sport 61 was. Tight groups at 100 ? No way...I thought. The old guys tell me these can't shoot accurately. Wrong.

Not accurate??? I have several that will disprove that. Both my Parker Hales are sub 2moa even with my old guy eyes and astigmatism.

I've noticed that there's lots of misinformation out there regarding shooting these guns well. Some of it is from armchair competitors, some from just pure speculation, and something from plain old, hey yall, watch this.

If you get the system in balance as Minie designed it, it can be as accurate as most modern rifles and can run many shots straight without wiping. Borrowing info from another thread I posted in, I've run a Zouave this summer in three open shoot sessions with the Boy Scouts where the gun was shot 48, 53, and 43 times straight without wiping nor a decline in accuracy.

Get your ammo right, and they're great shooters. The loose nut behind the stock is often the limitation.

It seems people get stuck on the idea that every muzzleloading rifle is either a flintlock smoothbore or Paps deer rifle

Even other "gun people" are like "not bad for a front stuffer those things aren't much good beyond 100 yards" I'm just like "where are you getting this information , from the 90 year old dude that hangs out at the gun club but never seems to bring any guns? That guy probably fired a flintlock once in 1971 but now he's gonna teach you how to shoot yours

I used a '61 Armi-Sport in skirmishes with the 7th Iowa for several years. I used the target minnie from a Lyman mold, I lubed with a mixture of Crisco and light wax. The minnies were fun through a sizer making loading effortless. The charge was 45 grains of FFF. It did very well out to 100 yards. When I got the rifle-musket it had been tricked out by a fellow skirmisher, better front sight and freshed out rifling.

I rigged up a "sizing press" with a cheapo Harbor Freight arbor press, and push thru sizers.

I use a candle melter to melt beeswax and tallow, I hot dip the Minies and then size them. I'm gonna try to melt SPG blackpowder bullet lube next.

Maybe some day I'll get a lubri sizer but my setup works for now.

I only lube and size about 50 at a time so its not bad.

Armi Sport sometimes gets a bad rap but the fit and finish on this CS Richmond is in my opinion the same as my Pedersoli 1863 Springfield.

My Pedersoli 1816 percussion conversion has a better "feel" to the lock.

I eventually plan to get an Armi Sport rifled 1842, they make decent stuff in my opinion.

I even have a Chiappa "unmentionable " revolver and it's been just fine.