JUst purchased M1862 Springfield....now what?

[garandman]

58 caliber, in pretty good condition. Strong rifling.

I intend to shoot it, so is there any special prep to shooting a 150 year old rifle?

All advice welcome.

 

[steved]

That was quick. Where did you find it?

Before shooting my original M1842 I took the barrel off to inspect the breech area to be sure it was sound with no evidence of cracks, bulges, pitting, improper seating of breech plug into breech - things like that. Although the original nipple was in great shape with strong thread, I put in a replacement to avoid breaking or chipping the original. I also started off with a light powder charge of 50gr FF. Can't give you any advice about shooting a rifled .58 cal, assumedly with Minie balls. Surely others with experience shooting .58 cal rifled Springfields will pitch in with advice

 

[garandman]

Found it on Gunbroker. :idunno: I'm happy with it...pending receipt and three day inspection period. Seller has a very good reputation.
http://www.gunbroker.com/Auction/ViewItem.aspx?Item=294318636

Good advice - thanx. Where did you find a replacement nipple?

I figgered to start with round ball....hadn't really thought about minies, but that should be fun too.

 

[varsity07840]

Drop the ramrod down the barrel. Hopefully you'll get a clang
when it hits the breechplug face meaning there's nothing stuffed in there. Remove the barrel, plug the nipple and pour solvent into the breech and let it set for a while. Check the rear of the breech
for leaks. The original nipples have a large orifice at the bottom.
Modern replacement nipples with a small orifice perform better. The bores on original muskets varied quite a bit. If you do plan on shooting
minies, you'll need to determine the bore size and use a minie .001-.002 under. A charge of 40 gr or so of 3F and a proper size minie is a popular load with skirmishers.

Duane

 

[ken.clements]

if your looking for just plinking and making smoke...go with a PB...cheaper, easier than Minie's and you get to know your rifle...
The Rifle was made for a Minie...and that is a lot of frustrating fun :grin:


BTW that with the mineral spirits to check a barrel, I never heard of...good idea.....when I'm done with checking am I allowed to just pour the pwoder load on top of the Spirits? :grin: :slap: sorry :grin: couldn't resist

 

[garandman]

Excellent info - thanx!

Please y'all , keep it coming!

 

[steved]

garandman,

The GB link dind't work (maybe against forum rules), but if the musket is Item #294318636 it's a real sweet looking Springfield. And you got the bayonet to go with it. Nice!

I noticed in the pictures that it looks like the lock is missing a sear or bridle screw. It's an easy screw to replace. Originals are avaialble on the S&S Firearms website for $3 each. They also sell the replacement nipple. Just be careful when you remove the lock to inpsect the internals, othewise you risk knocking off a splinter of wood from the lock panel. Before taking off the lock, dab some Ballistol or gun oil or Kroil with a Q-tip at the junction of the lock plate and panel and let it sit for a while. Then take a fine X-acto knife of razor blade and trace along the mating surfaces to break the seal of any old grease joining both surfaces. Then back out the two lock screws a turn or two and gently tap them. If you see the lock plate move out, back out the screws a couple more turns and repeat until the lock plate is free from the mortise. If there is resistance or you see some movement in the wood on the panel, soak the area some more with BP solvent, WD40, Kroil, etc. Nothing uglier than a big chip missing from the lock panel.

 

[Blackfingers]

Nice buy! Now, you need to purchase my remaining minie balls, 88 of them, cavity is filled with beeswax. Also have lots of .570 and .575 round ball by Hornady. PM me for price, Blackfingers

 

[Trot]

garandman,

The GB link dind't work (maybe against forum rules), but if the musket is Item #294318636 it's a real sweet looking Springfield. And you got the bayonet to go with it. Nice!

I noticed in the pictures that it looks like the lock is missing a sear or bridle screw. It's an easy screw to replace. Originals are avaialble on the S&S Firearms website for $3 each. They also sell the replacement nipple. Just be careful when you remove the lock to inpsect the internals, othewise you risk knocking off a splinter of wood from the lock panel. Before taking off the lock, dab some Ballistol or gun oil or Kroil with a Q-tip at the junction of the lock plate and panel and let it sit for a while. Then take a fine X-acto knife of razor blade and trace along the mating surfaces to break the seal of any old grease joining both surfaces. Then back out the two lock screws a turn or two and gently tap them. If you see the lock plate move out, back out the screws a couple more turns and repeat until the lock plate is free from the mortise. If there is resistance or you see some movement in the wood on the panel, soak the area some more with BP solvent, WD40, Kroil, etc. Nothing uglier than a big chip missing from the lock panel.

That one has problems, it appears to be a Model 1861 stock, and lockplate with a Model 1864 barrel and hammer. The patina on the hammer doesn't match so I don't believe it was a period repair.

 

[garandman]

Hopefully. making it all the more likely it saw action.

Which is kinda the point, to me.

 

[ian45662]

Before you shoot it I would give the barrel a good scrubbing with maybe kroil and a brush and plenty of patches. Good cleaning rods and brushes can be had at S&S fire arms or lodgewood MFG and they will have muzzle guards on them. That barrel has what is called progressive depth rifling which means that is has something like a choke on a shotgun only it is rifled. The bore isnt perfect but it can still be made to shoot accurately. The gun wasnt made to shoot roundball so dont be discouraged if your roundballs dont shoot to good but who knows they may do just fine. If you get a cleaning rod get a bore gauge so that you can figure out what the bore diam is and from there you can size your minie balls .001-.002 under bore diam. Only pure lead will work for minie balls. PM me if you like and I could give you a call. Some of these things are better discussed over the phone

 

[garandman]

ian -

VERY helpful info. I will take you up on your kind offer.

 

[garandman]

I have two trapdoors, and the patina on the hammer of both is different from their respective lock plate. (Same is true of different parts of my 1898 Krag) So I'd say your speculation of "problems" is presumptuous. Thanx anyway....

 

[Trot]

Hey, as long as you are happy with it. There have been so many Civil War muskets thrown together from mismatched parts through the years since the Civil War , that you have to be careful. I haunted Gunbroker and the other auction sites for months looking for a correct one. I finally gave up and went to a reputable antique arms dealer and actually got a correct one for a better price than the mismatched ones I had been looking at. Same with my trapdoors, they all have matching patina and correct parts. I've been shooting my Model 1861 and having a blast. Enjoy!