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Registered
Join Date: Mar 2004
Location: Higgs Field
Posts: 22,831
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St.Patrick's Day Shooting
Alright, if you are ever really bored, look up the original Creedmoor Matches held on Long Island in 1874. Long story short, the upstart American team beat the world champ Irish team at 800, 900, and 1,000 yards. I have a modern made replica of one of the rifles they used, an 1874 Sharps in .45-2.6" (aka .45-100). I've been playing with a couple of new bullet molds, so today just happened to work out to be range day. My usual test is to fire ten shot groups at 200 yards from prone.
As I was shooting, one of my compadres in the club noticed that it happened to be St. Patrick's Day, and he was watching an Irishman (half German) shooting the very rifle and chambering that the Americans used (along with some Remington Rolling Blocks as well) to beat the Irish in that famous match. I hadn't even though about that, but he was right. So, here's the rifle, my 1874 Sharps, and the best ten shot group of the day. Cast bullets, black powder, and iron sights are still nothing to sneeze at... The load is a 550 grain bullet cast 20:1 (lead to tin) in a Hoch (Dave Farmer) nose pour mold sized .460", lubed with SPG bullet lubricant, .030" vegetable fiber wad, 82 grains of Swiss 1.5 Fg black powder, Starline brass unsized with no neck tension and a very slight roll crimp, Winchester Large Rifle Magnum primer. Powder is compressed .030". I used six breaths through the old "blow tube" to keep the fouling soft. 3.5" group at 200 yards prone, no sling, no jacket:   I have to think this would have been competitive. As a matter of fact, I've actually won 1,000 yard matches with loads that did not shoot this well. I'm going to load some more and make sure, but I think I'm ready for 'em this time...
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Jeff '72 911T 3.0 MFI '93 Ducati 900 Super Sport "God invented whiskey so the Irish wouldn't rule the world" |
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03-17-2021, 08:36 PM
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Back in the saddle again
Join Date: Oct 2001
Location: Central TX west of Houston
Posts: 57,159
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Nice, very cool.
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Steve '08 Boxster RS60 Spyder #0099/1960 - never named a car before, but this is Charlotte. '88 targa  SOLD 2004 - gone but not forgotten
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03-17-2021, 08:49 PM
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Join Date: Mar 2008
Location: Fla panhandle / Roaming in my motorhome
Posts: 4,332
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Beautiful old rifle there Jeff!
Nice tight pattern too. Cheers Richard |
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03-18-2021, 09:00 AM
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A Man of Wealth and Taste
Join Date: Dec 2002
Location: Out there somewhere beyond the doors of perception
Posts: 51,063
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The Brits etal were using Rigby LR percussion rifles. I had one which I bought in OZ land and sold to a LR target shooter in da Netherlands. To be used at the Wimbledon matches in the UK.
The guy flew his gunsmith into LV, rented a car, paid for his room and incidental expenses along with xraying the barrel on the rifle before purchase.. You wana know the real reason why the Americans won the match. I believe it was one of the Irish team members INADVERTENTLY SHOT AT THE WRONG TARGET. I have a LR Borchardt..and one of the best Whitworth military match spoons extant in the world..
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Copyright "Some Observer" Last edited by tabs; 03-18-2021 at 09:27 AM.. |
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03-18-2021, 09:19 AM
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A Man of Wealth and Taste
Join Date: Dec 2002
Location: Out there somewhere beyond the doors of perception
Posts: 51,063
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Quote:
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Copyright "Some Observer" |
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03-18-2021, 09:20 AM
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Registered
Join Date: Mar 2004
Location: Higgs Field
Posts: 22,831
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Yeah, while I do own and shoot a number of original 19th century single shots, lever guns, and single actions, this one is, in fact, a modern made reproduction. It's made by C. Sharps Arms of Big Timber, MT. There are actually two separate companies, both in Big Timber, who have been manufacturing Sharps pattern rifles for quite some time. They are literally right across the street from one another, the other company being Shilo Sharps. I took delivery of a new Shilo just before Christmas - there is little to choose between the two manufacturers.
And, yes, the only reason the Americans prevailed at the original Creedmoor match was because the Irish team member J. K. Milner cross fired on his first shot at 900 yards. He scored the maximum of four points for his "bullseye", he just did it on the wrong target, so he got a score of zero for the shot. Those four points would have put the Irish three points up at the end of the match. Oh well, anyone who has competed for any length of time at long range has done the exact same thing. It's all too easy to do.
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Jeff '72 911T 3.0 MFI '93 Ducati 900 Super Sport "God invented whiskey so the Irish wouldn't rule the world" |
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03-18-2021, 08:40 PM
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Information Overloader
Join Date: Mar 2003
Location: NW Lower Michigan
Posts: 30,038
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Phhfft.
You completely missed four and barely got three. |
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03-18-2021, 09:15 PM
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Registered
Join Date: Mar 2008
Location: Fla panhandle / Roaming in my motorhome
Posts: 4,332
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I thought that Jeff mentioned that this is a 1874 sharps. That seemed pretty old, unless it's a model number.
Chrees Richard |
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03-19-2021, 04:56 AM
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Registered
Join Date: Mar 2004
Location: Higgs Field
Posts: 22,831
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Yup, it's a model number. Both Sharps and Winchester simply used the year of introduction as the model number back in those days. What is interesting, though, is that Sharps introduced their Model 1874 in 1869. No one knows why...
The Models 1875, 1875, 1877, and 1898 Sharps are all currently being manufactured by one or the other of the two companies in Big Timber. They are part for part, screw for screw recreations of the originals in every respect. Both companies have now actually manufactured more rifles than the original company.
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Jeff '72 911T 3.0 MFI '93 Ducati 900 Super Sport "God invented whiskey so the Irish wouldn't rule the world" |
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03-19-2021, 08:30 AM
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