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Thread: Armisport 1853 Enfield

  1. #1
    gunor is offline
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    Armisport 1853 Enfield

    Three questions:

    Who makes a flash guard for a Armisport Enfield - 8mm nipple?

    i notice most of them, flash guard, fit 1/4" nipples - but wondering how much material there is to open the hole.

    Lodgewood tall front sight - any pictures or drawings to show the slot/dovetail needed?

    Anyway to modifiy/fixing the rear sight (not windage or buying a new one) - the slide is loose - I think I have a way to resolve that. But the ladder portion is kinda of 'soft' when down - not much tension to push it down on the 'ladder rungs'. I know I should buy a new sight. But money.....

    I do have access to a mill and lathe..

    BTW - I am just a vistor. I have watch the "civil wars' at Fort Stevens - at the mouth of the Columbia River. . We usually camp on Memeorial/Labor weekends. I am also kinda of geo-graphically isolated here on the coast - so going to matches/re-enactors is kinda of hard. I am a Afghan Vet - I do have a decent Snider...so I have worn a uniform.

    Thanks

    Geoff in Oregon

  2. #2
    Southron Sr. is offline
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    Flash Guard

    Flash Guards on Flintlock Muskets work great-as for percussion muskets, the jury is still out. I have installed Flash Guards on my muskets before and were not happy with them-especially when shooting in team events where part of the force of the caps explosion is re-directed towards your teammate standing next to you on your right side.

    If you are worried about "Cap Burn" on the wood of your stock directly behind the fence of the bolster, you can get a thin sheet of brass and push it down on top of the wood, that is wide enough so the tang and the lock plate can to hold it in position.

  3. #3
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    I had never thought about how to protect the wood from the flash burn, but they also make adhesive-backed metal foils (aluminum, copper, etc.) that might do the trick if you were really concerned about it.

    Steve

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    Blair is offline
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    Suggestion on my part, leave the flash guard/protection off of the Military percussion firearms! They are a major pain with the large Musket caps.
    As for protecting the wood behind the bolster fence area of the stock...Many people dig this area of the stock out and replace it with some sort of epoxy, colored and blended to fit within the contours of the stock.
    Then, as this may burn out, relpace the epoxy in very small amounts, over the years of cap flash burn-out as is needed.
    Just a thought,
    Last edited by Blair; 01-04-2012 at 04:05 PM.

  5. #5
    Southron Sr. is offline
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    Dear Geoff in Oregon

    The West Coast version of the N-SSA is the Civil War Skirmish Association (unless they have changed their name.)

    My understanding is that they have Skirmishes up at Grant's Pass, Oregon among other places. An internet search should get you in touch with them.

    GOOD LUCK

  6. #6
    Southron Sr. is offline
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    Dear Geoff in Oregon-Enfield Sight Mods

    From your description of your rear sight problem, sounds like you have a bad sight spring. You can order another one and easily install it. All you have to do is to unscrew the little screw in the sight, take out the old spring and install the new. Be sure to use a screwdriver that has a tip of the correct size for that little screw. [Careful! Don't lose that little sight screw!]

    The Winchester Sutler (you can Google his website) sells replacement Enfield sight springs.

    IF you have access to a mill, then order one of those 3/8" dovetail cutters from Grizzly. They sell the least expensive dovetail cutters on the market and they work fine!

    Anyway, heat your old front sight and using a pair of Vise Grip pliers, twist it off your barrel.

    Cut the dovetail for your new front sight. Just be careful to cut the dovetail deep enough [but NOT TOO DEEP] and it must me exactly on top of the barrel. I usually do the "set up" by using a level on my Enfield's Nock's Form [the flat on top of the barrel in front of the top of the tang] to be sure that the barrel is exactly level [back & front, left & right] in the vise holding it. Then carefully cut the dovetail.

    Then mill out your front sight making the blade much TALLER and keeping the base the same size as your Enfield's original front sight.

    After your front sight is installed, then you head for the range. Here is what you do:

    [1] Experimenting with different bullets, bullet sizes and powder charges, determining which is your most accurate load. I.E. The one that shoots the tightest group "Off the Bench" at 100 yards. At this point, you just need an "Aiming point" on your target. You don't care WHERE on the target the bullets hit, just group size. AFTER the load that shoots the smallest group is determined, then you can adjust your sights.

    [2] With a very TALL front sight, you will discover your bullets are hitting BELOW your aiming point. Simply file the sight down until your bullets hit level with the X Ring.

    [3[ To adjust your Windage, tap your front sight left and right in the dovetail until your bullets hit in the X-Ring. When adjusting a Front Sight.
    you tap it in the direction OPPOSITE to where you want your bullets to impact on the target.

    [4] After your gun is sighted in, then run some silver solder up under the front sight into the dovetail. This will "Lock" your front sight into position. If you decide to change your Windage later on, you can heat the front sight base, melt the solder and move the sight.

    On my Enfield, I hated the "V" notch in the rear sight. I used a Dremel Tool Cut Off Circular Metal Cutting Blade and a Dremel Tool Arbor mounted in my mill to cut a slot in the vertical part of my rear sight. Then I cut off a small section of an old hacksaw blade.

    I silver soldered the small part of the hacksaw blade into the slot in my Enfield's ladder. Then I simply cut a square "Partridge Notch" in my rear sight blade.

    When I filed my front sight down, I simply sat the ladder all the way down in the rear sight wings. When it is all the ways down, my Enfield is "Dead On" for 50 yards. I also discovered when I moved the rear sight up to the 1st Step, my sights were "Dead On" for 100 Yards!

    Before you start the above procedure, I highly recommend you glass bed your Enfield and do a "Trigger Job" to get your trigger pull weight down to three or four pounds. If you have never done a Trigger Job on an Enfield before, seek professional help because unless you know what you are doing, you can easily mess up your lock!

    GOOD LUCK!

  7. #7
    gunor is offline
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    Thanks - Got the info I needed

    Thanks all.

    Flash guard - I do like the funky adhesive back foil around the lock - with magic marker.

    Southron - Great - exactly what I wanted to know. Seen your other threads on bedding - acragel (spelling?) is on order. And sealing of the wood - thinned poly-urethane

    I was thinking that the spring/interface was an issue. Trigger isn't too bad - I learned to shoot offhand with an M-14.

    I am waiting for my pure lead (rotometal) and hopefully I can cast and shoot some this weekend. I want to at least get a group (prior to the glass bed). Hopefully, I really like to have a group under a dinner plate.

    BTW: When i was in Afghanistan - I saw percussion pistols at the weekly bazaars. I didn't pay too much attention - but they looked like large musket sized locks. The pistols where made out of 'crap'. Always wondered where they got 'real locks'. A little research - British Enfield locks.

    In my travels - I found the mystery behind the locks. Central Warehouse (Afghan Army) - has 1853 Enfield stacked like 'cordwood' - missing the locks. Probably about 200 rifles just stacked.

    Of course they had their history stacked there - M-3 grease guns, MG-34, SMLE, Russian 1891......

    I did not buy a 1853 Enfield - Just really used and abused - the ones I saw.

    Now the Snider - Steel barrel and a shiny bore. Probably because of the lack of cartridges to fire.

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