I recently purchased an original civil war Springfield in firing condition. its not your typical Springfield though. First off its a two bander, with a 33" barrel (and I assure you its not a Bannerman Cadet cut down). and its not a cut down that was done by a civilan. you can tell plain as day that it was done by the factory. My original bayonet fits like a glove. It has an 1863 style stock and buttplate, 1864 barrel, and 1863 lockplate baring the name Norwich. But its not a norwich. When Norwich contracted there rifles they used parts from M1861 Springfields with the nipple screw, and flat barrel bands, the one I purchased has the flat nipple chamber with no screw, and round barrel bands like an 1863. It sound pretty bastardized i know, but i was reading in the years between 1863-4-5, the government hired seperate contractors to make some short parts guns (meaning they were made up from spare, reconditioned or excess parts) for issue to coastal fortifications; these didn't seen to follow any specific pattern and varied considerably in their makeup. i was told they are rare. but how rare? i guess what im asking is there anyone that could help me narrow this down finding out what this is for sure and maybe tell me what it could be worth?
mystery Springfield
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Where it came from?
Josh,
If you found it in a gunshop, it could more than likely be a piece that some one has made from various original parts and put together as an original. The person who is doing this is very good at it and they are passable for period originals but in fact they are actually not.
The sad part is that they are selling them as originals which is technically true because all the parts of original. Most gunshops won't know the difference. I have seen a large number of these show up at various gunshops recently in the past 4-5 years. They usually sell between $500-$1000 depending on condition. I've only seen one for sell for $1200.
Yours might be an exception. It also could have been something issued for sea service.
Will
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Yes i did happen to get it at a gun shop. a class 3 shop to be exact. he had bought it off an estate that an old woman had, along with pistols, double barrels and a sharps carbine it really tough shape. when I showed intrest it buying the weapon he called a boat anchor and asked me if i new anything about it. he had no clue on any of the old guns he had. the only reason being why he bought the estate was to do the old woman a favor because she didnt want to just throw away her late husbands collection.
I Thought it also might have been weapon put together piece by piece, but all the ones i've ever seen you can tell, parts might be shinier than others and so on. If it had been done that way it was done a long time ago. all the pieces bare the same aged look. I will see about posting pics i would really like for you to look
photo
A photo would be interesting to see. I'll try to post a photo of the one I got. It was essentially a 1842 69 cal. smoothbore springfield cut down to 33" with a Harpers Ferry lock plate from 1833. All the parts are aged and rusted the same. The only odd item was that it was missing the front band spring which was never put in place cause the section was not cut or bored for the pin. The ramrod is the old style from around 1815. It is a neat looking piece but I have my doubts when it was actually shortened. The catch is that it was professionally done or possibly reworked at an arsenal.
The dealer had called it a Mississippi but they were never in 69. Harpers Ferry did rework Springfield barrels prior to the Civil War and they even commissioned to make Springfields.
Will