Trapdoor Rifles

The sleeves in 1866s are tapered. There is an Ordnance report that describes the process. The musket barrels were bored out with a slight taper from breech to muzzle and the tapered sleeve was driven into place. The way the report reads, it was a fairly violent operation. Once pounded home, barrels ...

Doc, Start off with Wolf's book, "Loading Cartridges for the original .45-70 Springfield Rifle and Carbine". This will get you started on the right track. I'm 71 and if you ever get to Charleston I'd be glad to meet you at the DNR range, go over black powder reloading and make some smoke w...

Generally they are not hard to remove, if you have the right wrenches( !) If you don't have the right wrenches, don't try it. S&S Firearms sells a tang wrench. It fits everything from M-1855 muskets through all the Trapdoors. Then you need a vice with padded jaws to hold the receiver without mar...

Can you post a photo of it?

That MAA article is definitely a keeper. I have it scanned to my Trapdoor file for easy reference. One the sling bar tabs... These are plates that are welded to the ends of the bar. They secure the bar to the lock plate screws. On 45-70 carbines the faces are contoured to match the curve of the stoc...

Probably the definitive article on these carbines in in the Dec. 2016 Man At Arms.

#769 is mentioned in that article and attributed to Vance Haynes. The photos in the article show a thick sling bar with the flat face M-1870 style lock screw tabs.

If this is a shooter rifle and not particularly collectable, Dixie has 2 notch tumblers and sears for reasonable prices. Usually when this happens you will find that either the stock wood is swollen and won't let the sear drop into the half cock notch (which is easily fixed), or the overhanging part...

You can also make 50-70s from 8MM Lebel. It's a lot of work, and once you're done the rims are under 50-70 diameter, so extraction can be iffy. 348 rims are undersize too.

If you want to keep the original barrel on it, Bobby Hoyt in Fairfield Pa. can sleeve it back to the original dimensions. He isn't a computer guy, so you have to call him. Morning are best as he is either in the shop or working the farm in the afternoons. 717 - 642 - 6686

If you actually hunt with it, you want to take that ring off, or wrap it with electrical tape. It can make noise at the most inopportune moment. I suspect that a lot of rings disappeared that way.