O.k.; more Ballard info. It looks like Marlin purchased Ballard in 1875. The rifles were stamped "J. M. Marlin - Ballards Patent" until 1881, when the stamping was changed to "Marlin Firearms Co., New Have, Ct. - Ballard's Patent". Marlin did continue with the Ballard Everlasting chamberings in .44-100-530, .44-75, .40-65-33, and .38-50-250. They were also available in most of the standard chamberings of the day, including most of the Sharps and Remingtons. I can't seem to find my reference on when the rebated shelf was added, or when the action was changed from the casting to the forging. Can't seem to find a reference to Eric Johnson, either. I bet he came after the period my references cover.
Here are a couple of shots of my Ballard No. 5 Pacific model. It's a post-'81, originally chambered in .40-63 Ballard. a.k.a. the .40-65 Winchester. It was re-bored and re-chambered to .45-70 in the '40's by a gunsmith in Oroville, Washington. It is believed by the family from whom I obtained it that it had been in a closet, unused and forgotton, since the '50's.
When I first got it the action was rusted shut, the lockwork unuseable, and the barrel looked like the exhaust manifolds on a similar vintage truck. I screwed the barrel off, removed the stock (it looked like a piece of dried-out driftwood, and came appart as soon as I loosened the through bolt) and threw the action in a can of brake fluid, then forgot about it for the next year.
When the brake fluid had done its magic, I was able to open the action and take inventory. Surprisingly, the major parts had not returned to the elements. With a new screw kit and various action parts from the parts bin, I got that part back back together and working. The barrel was scraped with a chisel tip x-acto blade, wire-wheeled, and draw filed to remove the rust. The whole while I was rubbing a coat of linseed oil into the stock as often as it would accept one.
After a year of fooling around, it was ready to shoot. Except for the pitted bore, anyway. I wound up loading up a couple dozen rounds with the Lymann #457125, the big 500 grain Government roundnose, cast from a 20:1 mix. "Bullet lube" was actually JB Bore compound, a very fine lapping compound. A couple dozen rounds and the bore was as shiny as a new nickle. A little oversize, but with soft bullets and black powder, that's not an issue.
It has since been used extensively as a hunting rifle, fulfilling a promise made to the guy that gave it to me. Standard load is the Lyman #457193, a 420 grain flatnose cast from wheelweights, over a duplex load of 7 grains of Reloder 7 and 53 grains of Goex FFg. Good for about 1300 fps, it has killed everything I have ever pointed it at.
You will also notice a tang sight base. It has seen double duty as a match rifle, actually winning a couple of mid-range (500 and 600 yard) matches for me. It likes the RCBS .45-500 BPS in a 20:1 mix for the long range work, over the same duplex load. Anyway, it's been a great rifle for me; resurected from the dead and put back into service. It still excells at everything it was ever meant to do.
