Shiloh vs Pedersoli

[Zsdad]

I have an opportunity to buy a lightly used older Shiloh 1863 Sharps Carbine with an Original Lock. Would it be worth a $700 premium over a new Pedersoli from Cabella's? I'm going to be using it for target shooting and reenacting/living history. What issues do I need to watch out for?

-John

[Scott Lynch 1460V]

Having purchased a new Pedersoli a few years ago I was really disappointed to find that after spending $1,000.00 for a new gun it needed to have $250.00 of Breechblock work done so that I could shoot it more that 4 times without haveing to use a malled and drift to open the breech. It required a new breechblock and sleave job with an "o" ring done by Bill Welch of the Maryland Guard. This allowds for shooting 40 -50 rounds without disassembly and cleaning. The "o" rings last about 100-150 rounds and can be easily replaced with one from a hardware store.

The Shilohs don't need this as they shoot right from the factory. As the saying goes " You never have to apologise, when you buy quality". Get the Shiloh.

[Don Dixon]

Second Scott's comments. The Shiloh is vastly superior to the Pedersoli if you intend to shoot it.

However, The Sharps design - from whatever manufacturer - is not a good design for "living history" or reenacting. Blanks to not produce enough internal pressure to properly force the gas sealing mechanisms in the breech to seal. All of the them will leak gas with blanks, some much more so than others. More bluntly, its a lousy reenactor gun.

Regards,
Don Dixon
2881V

[John Holland]

Don.....Well said!