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1856 REPORT OF EXPERIMENTS WITH SMALL ARMS – VERY
NICE ORIGINAL OF A SCARCE AND SIGNIFICANT SMALL ARMS
MANUAL – MINIE BALLS, RIFLING MODEL 1842 MUSKETS,
REBORING MODEL 1841 RIFLES, PISTOL CARBINES – IMPORTANT
CONTENT: This edition of
REPORTS OF EXPERIMENTS
WITH SMALL ARMS FOR THE MILITARY SERVICE, was
printed in Washington, by A.O.P. Nicholson, in 1856.
Retaining its original
cloth bound covers with the title imprinted on the spine
in gold leaf, and the Ordnance Department seal imprinted
on the cover in gold leaf, this edition is in very good
condition.
This is a particularly significant
manual in the continuum of firearms development and
testing in the years immediately preceding the Civil War
as the results would directly affect the capability,
type and caliber of the arms in use on the fields of
Bull Run, Gettysburg and Manassas. The manual details
the experiments that included: determining the proper
rifling for the Model 1842 .69 caliber smoothbore
barrels, the change in caliber and rifling for the Model
1841 Mississippi Rifles, the proper charge and bullet
size for the Model 1855 pistol carbines, as well as
other related experiments and trials. The data is
presented in detail with numerous tables, charts and
diagrams.
This manual is in very good condition, with the covers
showing very minor wear, the binding and spine still
very strong with no loosening, and there is no loss of
content or integrity. All of the pages are intact, in
very good condition and legible.
The book measures 8 ½” by 5
¾” and consists of 153 pages and 2 folding illustrated
plates. One of the plates is separated at the fold, but
is still present in full.
I doubt this manual was printed in large quantities and
was likely limited to distribution within the Ordnance
Department and possibly senior officers, thus making it
a fairly scarce edition. Considering the impact these
experiments would have on the tactics and kinds of arms
developed during and after the Civil War, this manual
represents a significant chapter in the story US
Ordnance. (C
121) $350
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