Historically, the smoothbore musket had been the primary weapon of the infantry while the rifle was reserved for specialist units. Some such weapons included clones of the Sharps carbine, the Richmond/Fayetteville rifles (a Springfield clone) and imitations of Enfield rifles and musketoons. The back action lock is European for the most part and even US made guns for the most part used imported locks. The 9-pound, 40-inch-barreled Model 1861 was also a more reliable weapon than preceding military arms through the use of percussion caps. This rifled musket , with the lock marking "1861 Springfield" and an eagle, was the principal infantry arm of the civil war. Many of these poorer quality weapons were swapped out on the battlefield for Enfield rifle-muskets whenever one became available. Polly Pocket toys may be small in size, but they're big on value. Remove the ramrod, put the hammers on half cock, remove the key and lift the barrels up. Some guns made in Belgium were proofed and sold as English as they would bring better money. Civil War Hats: Different Types and Where to Find Them, From reenactments to museums, you can find beautifully preserved artifacts detailing the daily lives of Americans during the Civil War. Cannonballs were solid, round objects that would ricochet off the ground and often used to target fortifications and enemy artillery. Admittedly, I know almost nothing about guns (a fact thats obvious to you). Arms and Equipment of the Civil War. The relatively poor South only bought 50,000 by August 1862, while the North bought 726,000. As the war escalated, those arms stockpiles were quickly diminished. Explore this article. Hi. Back in our 2018 December Premiere Auction, RIAC sold a standard, good conditioned Springfield Model 1861 for $3,163. The rear sight on this one is very creative, since Leman removed the Austrian rear sight when he converted the weapons. In September of 2018, RIAC sold a confederate copy of a Sharps rifle for a whopping $28,750. One of the things we used to do was collect up everything that came out of the barrels to see how and what they were loaded with. Many officers, however, preferred the Springfield muskets over the Enfield musketslargely due to the interchangeability of parts that the machine-made Springfields offered. Took a propane torch to heat them and I had not removed all the caked in powder. In September of 2018, RIAC sold a Paris marked First Model Le Mat revolver for $17,250. 2023 Rock Island Auction Company. Examples altered by them feature a cone-in-barrel conversion, and some are fitted with a US M1855 style long range sight and are rifled. Most of the rifles during that time were loaded with a small lead musket ball or with a minnie ball (or Mini ball) and black powder. The Confederacy, having a very limited ability to produce weapons, bought over 2,000 Brunswick rifles for delivery to their troops. (2012). Unknown No More: Identifying A Civil War Soldier : NPR While both sides used the 1853, it was a particularly important arm in Confederates' hodgepodge arsenal. The gun is 50 long and 36 from the business end to trigger. Conically-shaped with a hollow base, the Mini ball could be easily loaded but expanded upon firing to fit the rifling grooves. [19], The use of more exotic types of ammunition during the Civil War is harder to confirm. p. 109-110, Historical Dictionary of the U.S. Army.