Heavy barrel guns

[jonk]

I am thinking about a new musket for next year... if I see a good deal on one for sale, great, otherwise am thinking of building one.

My general inclination is to get a beater 1863 Springfield for parts, get a heavy barrel for a Whitney militia gun from Bobby Hoyt, stretch the stock, buy a new lock plate and bands, and go from there. I could also consider a Harper's Ferry 1855. I'd rather avoid the Mississippi as the sights aren't as nice. Question is, is there any other heavy barrel design I should consider building/buying?

FWIW right now I'm shooting a Euroarms 2 band Enfield and an Armi Sport 1861 sort of off and on.

[John Holland]

Jonk - There are two versions of the Mississippi that use the same front and rear sights as the Harper's Ferry 1855 Rifle.

JDH

[Rich Foster]

Jonk, Don't know your age but if your eyes are aging the Whitney is a good choice because the rear sight sets way forward up the barrel than most guns. Rich

[jonk]

Jonk, Don't know your age but if your eyes are aging the Whitney is a good choice because the rear sight sets way forward up the barrel than most guns. Rich

Rich,

"Only" 34, but my eyes stink. I'm on the verge of needing bifocals... have worn glasses since I was 2.

I've got a few options on beater springfields that were turned into shotguns that would provide good donor parts for everything but barrel, side plate, and a few other little parts.

[Mike McDaniel]

I'd consider a Fayetteville. Set it up with a peep rear sight, the rear sight is far enough back to make this a really attractive option.

[ian45662]

what lock parts do you use for the Fayetteville? Are they interchangeable with the springfield?

[Mike McDaniel]

I'd talk to the Small Arms Committee. They can provide the most reliable answers.

[Mike McDaniel]

The big point is that for folks with aging eyes, like me, there comes a day when open rifle sights no longer work well. The option becomes to either go with an open sight with the rear sight mounted further up the barrel, or find a rifle with the rear sight as close to the eye as possible and fit a peep.

Moving to a sight further up the barrel sacrifices sight radius. Any error in alignment gets magnified. Going to a rear-mounted sight maximizes sight radius, and a peep simplifies the focus issue. You don't look at the peep sight, you look through it. Put the front sight on the target, release the shot.

And after shooting a Romano 1st Model Maynard, I can assure you that the second solution is pretty good.