Trapdoor Rifles

The cartridges shown are the round nose type, but NOT the type contained in the box, which is the common Navy contract Mark 1 cartridge with a straight case and open mouth. Doctrine at the time called for the straight case and open mouth which allowed the projectile to be slid down the barrel and in...

In addition to ships and maritime use, line throwing guns were also widely used by fire departments. American LaFrance, a major manufacturer of fire engines (engines, pumpers, ladder trucks, etc) also offered line throwing guns as one of the accessories. They seem to be the source of the .50-70 trap...

Note that I said the trapdoor line throwing guns were "Coast Guard approved" which means they met the statutory requirements for life saving devices aboard commercial ships (similar to those for life jackets, fire fighting, pumps, life boats, etc). But, the Coast Guard did NOT use the trap...

The story about the site being used for line throwing gun training is very plausible, and many trapdoors were converted for line throwing use during WW2. However, my research has not turned up any verification of U.S. Navy use of converted trapdoors for line throwing. Many were U.S. Coast Guard appr...

Vance Haynes is not at the Colorado show, so recommend you contact him directly.

I think the documented nickel plating adds about 50% to the value, but not sure if other people would think it detracts from the value. They did not do many, and I've only seen a handful for sale. If you want one, it may be better to pay more now (too soon) than to wait in hopes of finding a cheaper...

Noticed Forager 1075 at the Colorado show today. Looked Kosher but in average condition. Did not see a price.

Probably !st Lt. John J. Dixon of Company C, 14th New York. His date of rank was March 29, 1878. His residence was 301 Navy Street, Brooklyn, NY. Data from Annual Report of the Adjutant General of New York 1881. Will send copy when i get a chance. Did not find out much of anything else about him but...

Chec if it is a standard infantry rifle with 32 1/2" barrel (breech to muzzle, not just the exposed exterior of the bbl) or the cadet model which is about 29 1/2" barrel. Cadets are far scarcer, but people who want a cadet even scarcer than that. Sounds like you may NEED one of each! Price...

Nice. What do we know about the winner who received it?