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ORIGINAL .50 CALIBER TOMPION: Standard
issue, however considerably scarcer than the standard
.58 and .69 caliber versions, this .50 Caliber Tompion
was issued during the Civil War and through the early
Indian War years with the appropriate carbines and
rifles, including all of the 1868-1872 long arms
chambered for the .50/70 issued on the frontier and
included in the various trials. Each soldier was issued
one of these to prevent debris and moisture from getting
into the barrel of his rifle or carbine. Albert Barnitz
mentions what would have been these particular tompions
in his memoir’s Life in Custer's Cavalry: Diaries and
Letters of Albert and Jennie Barnitz, 1867-1868,
relating that the 7th paused just before
attacking Black Kettle’s Village on the Washita to
remove the tompions from their carbines, providing an
excellent historical reference for this appendage. In
like new condition with no wear or damage, these scarce
tompions just don’t show up very often. (C96) $125
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