Home Forums Hunting & Shooting BPCR gunner500's 1874 Sharps .45-110 of 1877 production

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Since the rifle does not type words here, maybe gunner500 will.

Initial inspection:

Triggers, sights, loads and shooting:













Shoots well at both 100 yards and 200 yards, rifle with gunner500 at the controls.
Sunlight was OK on the sights that day I reckon.
How was the wind ?

good stuff Gunner500

Damn, that's a beauty! Original barrel?

Nice

Very nice.

I will second that

LOL Sir Ron, Thanks for posting the pics Sir, two rounds at 100 in the same splat holding sight well into the gong, one round at 200 i pulled a bit, no splat lines on the gongs in the morning dew, i repainted them the night before at dusk, the old rifle wears a semi buckhorn rear sight, and of course wont file the front to raise bullet impact so revamped the load to a full 110gr Swiss FG under the 516gr round nosed paper patch bullet from a Mos mould Saint Bagwell had made from an original Sharps rifle factory bullet, it now lands around three inches high at 100 with a six o'clock hold, i'll send you the pic of the new 200 yard bullet strike tomorrow.

The standard 100 yard mark is on, the 200 yard setting on my other Sharps rifles is the setting for 150 yards with this rifle, the ladder up and leaf to the bottom is the 300 yard setting for the other rifles, this one is dead 5 inches high at 200 yards, perfect brisket hold for dead game animals.

Thanks everyone, this rifle lettered being sent to Kittredge in Cincinnati in 1877, a fun old 45 2-7/8ths it will be.

TMitch, yes sir, all original, it's a buffalo rifle that never did i guess, thinking some gentleman rancher up in Montana ordered it just to have one, the blue isn't even worn off the barrel flats yet, spoke with Ranch13 here and Kirk at Shiloh, he sent me pics of two different tang sights of the day, a short base and a long base, hence the extra threaded hole in the tang.

Cool. You found a "regulation" load for your rifle's sights.

Yes Sir, as Saint Bagwell said many times, feed them what they like, they'll give you what you like!

Very Cool rifle, and Great shooting!

Thanks saddlering, i really need to find a special hunt somewhere for that old Buffler rifle and put it back to work, i still cant believe those fire blued screws have lasted this long, i have new Shilohs just a few years old that i've already coon fingered those screws to shiny steel.

SHOW-OFF !!!!!! :-)

Obviously the rifle got the "kid glove" or "velvet glove" treatment for the last 144 years.
To double your money at a future sale, get some kid gloves for field use.
From your cold, dead, kid-gloved fingers someday.
Deserves a rewrite of the will,
horny-handed son of toil with coon fingers !
Cody Museum appraisal ?

gunner500 you can come up with some cool guns. I would love to find one like a friend of my uncle hade when I was in my early teens. I am all most sure it was a marlin in 38-55 black powder single shot with a lever action to open it tang sight nice wood with a but plate that looked like what they used on them rifles for the German shooting matches . if I ever find one I will have to sell every thing to buy it LOL

From gunner500:

LOL Biebs!

10-4 on the easy glove touch Sir Ron, i can have Wife will that rifle to you if i get hit by a bus next week, no word on Cody ; ]

LOL 44, hope the right one at the right price comes by someday soon.

Thanks again for posting the pic Sir Ron, the 5 inch high dead center hit was with the new found sight setting with a 6 o'clock hold at 200 yards, the first strike from the earlier picture is still visible high right, guess the last shot took some paint off and exposed the earlier hit that shows high and left.

I'm going to lay low some critter with that rifle this season, wearing a Go-Pro hunting with a rifle like that is damn near gayer than a bucket of peckers, but i'd love to share the hunt with you men.

Hell, it feels weird looking at game cam pics on my iPhone while sitting in my heated blind while holding my Sharps. But then again I am getting old so I deal with it😜

Nice looking 74 gunner, I have a B gun in 45-2.1" that was shipped to Kittredge in Oct of 77 but it's not in that kinda shape but the bore is good. Nice gun and great results
Mb

No sheet pacecars, talk about time warp/tech shock LOL.

Thanks Magnum Bob, this old rifles bore looks better than the outside too, i'll shoot nothing but paper patch through it, what bullet do you fire on your original 45-2.1"?

;Gunner , I have 2 45 caliber molds for paper patch they are KAL Tool 45 TGBS MOLDS. In my 2.1" I use the .442" mold and screw the base plug in to about 1.1" at 420 grs and patch with 9lb onion skin to get .449-.4495". The other 45 TGBS is .440" and adjusted out to 1.46" at 540 grs with 1-60 alloy it's for my Shiloh All Business rifle with an original style chamber that was cut with Orville Loomers reamer. I patch that with Bienfang Vellum they work out to a mile anyway and I like the tin savings of the 1-60 alloy. No that chamber won't take a greaser loaded round. Mb

probably do better if you put an SWFA on it Gunner

That's some sweet dreaming about that gun. Were I to find one in any shootable shape I would make her sing with paper patch and proper load. Be Well G500. RZ.

That'll work MB, i have a couple KAL moulds, both in 45 and 50 cal, that guy cuts a beautiful mould.

LOL G-12, if i knocked the tang and barrel sights off that rifle, railed it with a 6x super chicken, Saint Bagwell would rise from his grave, summons Riflecrank, and i\d be executed post haste! ; ]

Thanks RZ, it's a cool old rifle, more than humbled to be it's caretaker for the time i have left.

And give you a sermon about the penetration capabilities of the 45-70 :-)

LOL yessir Biebs, that would be interwoven into the execution speech ; ]

A few million dead American Bison can't be wrong about the 45-70. Be Well, RZ.

Dang right RZ, i hit my first American Buffalo with a 45-70 Shiloh Sharps, first shot through the heart at 161 yards, second at around 180 through both shoulders, he tried to take a step and fell on his nose, complete penetration on both bullets from a 530gr paper patch cast at 16 to 1 alloy with a 250 thou flat meplat, the bullets were cast from an Ed Tilton mould Saint Bagwell gave me.

Good thing the 44 2 1/4 made the world safe enough for the 45 2.1.....

And I'd be there with a bunch of other folks, watching, cheering them on!

Ed

The little 50-70 Gov cleared the way for all of them ; ]

LOL, i'd deserve no less.

Gunner, the Sharps rifle made the west safe for the winchester to be used.

Our old buddy Saint Bagwell mentioned that many times in his readings to me Magnum Bob, he also spoke of outlaws getting into it with some Buffalo hunters with their Sharps rifles, hiding out in a cabin and even an outhouse, which would have stopped any smokeless rifle of the day provided they could even hit the structures at those ranges, the Buffalo hunters shot through the walls killing them all,

Yes sir the Sharps was used on a ranch house hideout in the Johnson county war over Wyoming. Also got used on George Excelby gang of horse thieves over at Milesville Montana south of Ekalaka. Man with a Sharps was never under armed some Indians found that out via Sgt John Ryan at the Little Bighorn lottsa good history with the 74 Sharps. Seems like Quannah Parkers bunch had to learn that at Adobe Walls too. The lore of the 74 ain't second to none. Mb

Damn, imagine being starved to death, thirsty, dodging scorpions and rattlers in an old cabin as those Sharps rifle bullets whizzed through the walls, knowing full well one's gonna get you in a minute!

Outlaws lived hard and died hard too it seems.

Well yeah my edit function timed out before I could correct my mistakes.


Anybody interested in reading about the Stoneville shoot out on Valentines day 1884 history net has a good article on it so use you google. Up at Ekalaka they have a neat museum and one of the guns there is a 74 45-110 used in this shoot out by one of the locals. Mb

Cool stuff MB, Thanks!

You farming dawn to dusk these days gunner? Mb

LOL, no on the farming MB, fences are in good order and the cows are wading near shin high grass, all good there, get passed a little yard mowing and vegetable gardening my old consulting work is causing the crazy hours, with guys scattered all over the world, when they all get on the ground somewhere and link up for a conference call no telling what time it will be here.

Good stuff for sure. Seems Quannah Parker’s pard took a big 50 slug. Those old guns were and still are pretty fearsome, especially in the hands of a master marksman.

DF

You bet DF would thoroughly blow to have an old Sharps Buffalo hunter cut down on a man back in those days, i remember of another story from Saint Bagwell of an outlaw getting shot with a Sharps, the Sharps shooter walked up on the dying man, he asked, "what rifle is it that sounds like a hummingbird?"

That dying man heard that blue whistler coming right before it went through him ; ]

The Injun Billy Dixon shot wasn't really even wounded. Dixon did hit him though. I think the bullet pretty much bounced off. The fight was pretty much over anyway as the Comanch and their allies had given up assaulting the 'walls. They quit the country after the shot though. Injun's pards hauled him off.

Have been in the pits during many target rifle matches, and if a bullet coming over your head sounds anything like a bumble bee or humming bird , if it hits the target is likely to leave either an egg shaped hole, a full side profile. Most of the time it'll be a miss.
In midrange you'll hear the shot about the same time as the bullet gets there. In long range/Creedmoor you'll hear the swish of the bullet and see the bullet impact before you hear the shot, If you hear the shot.

That said shooting steel at 1000 yards about the most you'll find from a bullet that hits the target is the base of the bullet about the size of a dime. So even at that range a hit to flesh is definitely not going to bounce off. A 44 or 45 caliber heavy bullet will cut the 2x4 of the target frame in two especially if it hits a knot.

A beautiful Original Sharps! Pretty Cool! Thanks for Sharing!

I wouldn't want to be whacked by one of those big bullets, even after flying thru the air for a mile or so.

I think it would make a dent. Wouldn't want to be the test victim.

I was with some guys year ago, shooting military '06 ammo at a gravel pit. After a while, a car drove up, a guy got out holding a .30 cal. FMJ bullet. He said it hit someone in their party. Our group had no idea they were there, couldn't see them. The bullet didn't break the skin. Pretty scary stuff. The bullet didn't look deformed at all, maybe a ricochet? Who knows. Bullets can do some crazy stuff.

I was shooting tracer .308 ammo off a bridge into a major canal at my farm. It was dark enough to see the tracers. It's amazing what those bullets can do. I saw a tracer hit the water, fly up in an arc out of the canal, land in a pasture where I had cattle. It was scary enough that I didn't shoot any more into the water. It was fun, however, shooting them straight up in the air. Pretty cool.

DF

I have participated in (2 ) 1 mile shoots with the Sharps that's 1760 yds surveyed. The guy who owns the range showed us some bullets that hit the steel target their noses were expanded at a angle to the body because of the angle they were coming down at. Yeah they were still moving at a velocity fast enuff to penetrate flesh easy enough. Don't anyone bullsh*t you on the lethality of big lead bullets. Mb

I’m a believer.

DF

I'm sure it could have killed him, had it hit him in the head or maybe the heart, even if it hadn't broken the skin. It wouldn't surprise me if he had a broken bone or two.

Well it reportedly made a believer out of him and ultimately the whole band.

DF

gunner500,
I truly enjoyed your Pics, and information, on your loads and shooting! Been looking for one like yours for a long time! Especially in that Caliber! I'd be re missed if I didn't say! I'm sure that you've heard it before, and I know that you'll hear it again, but if you ever decide to move it, please put me on the Long list! I've been known to not only step up, but also get creative with trades and the Likes! Thanks for Sharing!

Truly enjoying this post and all the enjoyable stories, relating to the history of the Sharps rifle, along with Adobe Walls, and the likes, with the larger caliber led being slung down field. It kinda reminds me of Lonesome Dove when Gus, (Robert Duval), says "that's enough", adjusted his sights on that old Henry Rifle and hit one of those Bush Wackers, taking pot shots at him, right square in the mid section! Classic!!! Those were hard days, way back when! Great post!

Many Thanks HS58, i was more than proud to be a part of knowing, shooting and hunting with Bill, and now that i cant seem to establish contact with Kurt71 for a reamer to cut a 5/7 degree leade in a 40-90 Sharps [40 2-5/8ths] Bottleneck chamber, i'm about ready to send that rifle off to JES and have hm run a 50-90 Sharps drill bit from stem to stern on that temperamental b-tch! ; ]

Bullshit! No bullet from that Sharps would bounce off someone, even at that range.

Gotta Agree with you on that, HitnRun!

Not too much bounce in that Big lead, from My Experience!

I wasn't there, regardless of stories. I'm only relating what I've read old timers said about the incident. The injun didn't die from the hit. Sharps rifles aren't a high velocity proposition. I'm sure the Taylor Knock Out values are off the hook though.

You do bring up a good point!

We weren't there, and I have also read those accounts from the old timers said, who were there.

Incredibly nice rifle.

Long range shooting with Buffalo guns was done at Sandy Hook about 150 years ago, at ranges far longer than the Adobe Walls incident.

http://www.researchpress.co.uk/index.php/firearms/long-range/sandy-hook-1879

Dang, i missed this post Ranch, maybe i got the sound of the bullet wording wrong, now i trusted Bagwell and he trusted me, i asked to go squat down behind/beside his 300 meter berm, iirc he said it was 327 yards, i got his flip phone set on speaker so we could talk, before i left he said, "Look Here"......."I want you to see i have my 400 yard sight setting on"

Got down to the berm and was watching as he fired at the 400 meter turkey right beside and slightly over me, i saw the puff of smoke, then heard the whizzzzzzz/buzzzzzzz of the bullet passing by, then heard the bullet strike, then the boom of the rifle, it was the coolest chit i've done in awhile, he was laughing into the speaker, i had him do it again, great fun to get to see these rifles work, he was firing my 45-70 paper patch load, 1.335" bullet length from an 18 twist rifle, plenty stable, load clocks 1244 fps, 16 to 1 alloy, what a smack on the steel.

Thank You High Noon.

Dan, Bagwell read me many accounts of the Sandy Hook shoots, iirc some were in excess of 3600 yards.

I look at questioning the penetration capabilities of the Sharps rifles when impact velocities drop to 750-800 fps like the 230gr full metal jacket 45 ACP load except with over twice, and sometimes even over three times the bullet weight, as in 730-750gr 50 cal, no one ever asked twice if a 230gr ball load would shoot through, they were probably to busy sticking their thumbs in the leaking holes ; ]

Just Wanted to Re Visit this Wonderful Specimen, and Give it it's Due!!!

HS58, you know, today over in zone 13 Arkansas happens to be the very last day of modern gun season, i should get my work done, throw that old rifle in the truck and go try to fill that last buck tag i have, i know where a monster lives and what creek bottom he travels, man that would be fun to drill him with 516gr of paper patched lead from that old rifle, Thanks for the compliments Sir.

BTW, Saint Bagwell cut the patches for this rifle too.

Gunner,
You've gotta do it!

Enjoy the Moment good Sir!

Bagwell, would be Proud!

Believe i should Sir, buck or not, it'd be a great last day, light rain has moved out for several days, a nice stroll through the creek bottom this afternoon would be great.

Have a modern 45-90, but have to agree that is really cool.

gunner500 rig, looking for a buck:

Great Combo!

Can't beat it!

Hey Gunner,
I bet Bill has a smile ear to ear on his face right about now to see you down grade to a girly caliber LOL. Fine looker for sure.

Hey I replied and sent you PM's after FlyboyFlem got ahold of me. I don't log on here to often to see the PM envelope blinking.

Kurt

Many Thanks again Sir Ron, man it was a hell of a hunt, saw three mama's, two with yearlings, that spot of land is a tad over 800 acres, the winding creek bottom will provide miles of hunting walking it out east/west, it was a great day, was planning an over the should pic to say goodbye to the creek bottom and clearcut for the year, but as luck would have it i caught movement at last light, sit there unable to take a pic but studying the movement through bino, i had the wind so no one got educated, waited a bit, then hit a trail out to the road, it was great carrying that old original Sharps, dont think i added anything to it's character with new hunting bumps or bruises to its wood or metal ; ]

Sir Tony, Thanks, that's a 6 inch octagon barreled 500 Linebaugh revolver hanging on that pine tree with the old Sharps, it needed to be bloodied as well, was going to use it on a pig if one got close.

LOL Kurt, Saint Bagwell loved the 45 2-7/8ths, 516gr paper patch at 1378 fps is a great load in the old rifle, man it shoots good for a weapon being invoiced and sold in 1877, i gotcha on the contact, it was about the 40 cal 5/7 degree leade reamer, i'm going to go ahead and try to run paper patch in this 40 2-5/8ths SBN with full chamber length RMC brass when it gets here, it's the most hateful, cantankerous, moody chambering i've ever fooled with, that heifer best shape up quick or i'll send it to JES and have him run a 50-2.5" sharps drill bit from stem to stern on that hateful hag!

You trying to shoot greasers in that 40 2 5/8"? Patch to bore diam only on those gunner if it sill has the original chamber


Mb

Hello MB, no greasers yet, i patch up to 0.400 inch, the rifle wears the original 45 degree chamber, hoping with my full length RMC brass i can cover that valley in front of the chamber with brass and let all the fouling blow down the barrel, no match shooter here, only hunting, so cant wipe between shots.

Been shooting Starline converted 45-2.6 time a guy gets it ready to go it's about .005" short. I have to squeeze the fl sized cases necks down with a 40 S & W tungsten carbide sizer die for the initial fire form. But after that their good to go. It's an original style tight chamber won't take greasers. 93 grains of Fg old E card wad ,grease cookie, another card wad and the ppb all you have to do then is blow into the chamber 4-5 breaths after each shot for about 5 shots then need to wipe. Last year after the Q was done at the end of the day I ran 2 doz rds thru it on the 400 yard target, just blow tubed the whole way thru....mb

Sir Jerry,
I'm glad that you got to take that pair out for a Walk. You deserve it, as does the old Sharps, and the 500 Linebaugh.
I'm sure that old Creek bottom was happy to see you also. I know it would have been great to Bloody that 500,
a bit, but as you know, just getting out for that walk is some of the best Medicine we can get!
Glad to see that your keeping your powder dry.

Sir Ron,
Love the Pic, thanks for posting!

Sir Tony

Thanks for that MB, i have a case and a half of old Goex 1F to use in this rifle, have read over and over 1F is the powder, it does foul a lot softer than the 1F Swiss i've used, man i long for the days of KIK powder, 1F KIK would perfect with this cartridge.

You bet Sir Tony, a fine, fine afternoon it was, on the bright side, i still have a few months to shoot an eating size pig with either before the weather warms to much.

Yeah gunner I hear you. For as little as I shoot my 50-140 anymore I have enough Kik Fg to see me through. GOEX Cartridge grade and Express were also good in the big gun...mb

10-4 MB, agreed, speaking of 50-140, lord i hope that thing has a shotgun butt ; ]

And three Mercury recoil reducers in the buttstock

Yeah it's got the shotgun butt , only has a standard weight 34" barrel though 10# 3oz. It don't wear you out carrying it only when you shoot it....mb

LOL Kurt!

MB, yes sir, i have similar, an 11 pound 50-90, 750gr flat nosed greasers at 1375 fps over 120gr Old Eynsford 2F is quit enough ; ] that damn thing plain train wrecks deer, done a bangup job on Eland and Sable too.

Gunner I sorta parked my big shooter and went and ordered a girley .38-50 shooter Tore the retina in both eyes last June shooting a .45-90 in high temp heat and lost a lot of my center vision.
I guess age is starting to catch up with 26 year old mind frame.

Bill warned me that can happen shooting Calamity as much as I did.

Dang, i'm sorry to hear that Kurt, but man you had a good run, i'm closing in on 60, not ready to park mine yet, but will admit 30 rounds from the bench has me thinking about a gallon of liquid advil and a cool drink!

Gunner,

I still shoot it but not 400 rounds plus a week anymore. At 82 I think I'm getting to get a little soft.

Stay well and have a fine new year.

Kurt

Lord, if i knew even today i had to fire my 50-90 400 rounds this week i'd have already been on the phone yesterday ordering a truck load of ice and have Wife send a nurse out for a gatorade I.V. in one arm and advil I.V. in the other!

You guys take care up there to Kurt, hope you all dont get to much snow this year, come on Spring!

I'll be danged, there's our old buddy Bill Bagwell, is that you in the yellow shirt? Orville in the middle?

Great pic Kurt, Thanks!

That's a Great PIC that never gets old!

Yes and that feller laying on my foot is Bills dog Lieka.

That was the day Bill shot Calamity my .50 and it split his lip. He only shot it once and handed it back to me.
I said hit that Buff again and this is the first time I ever heard Bill use a cross word. I said shoot it not kiss it

LOl, i'll have to remember that one, ""Shoot it, Dont kiss it!"" looks like you guys were having fun out West somewhere according to the scenery behind you, wish i had known you guys and was there at that time.

That was on the Shiloh range.

Dang, bet that was a heck of a fun time!

Ditto!

I sure wish the same thing! I know that I could have learned a trick or two!

Hahaha! Shoot it don't Kiss it! Great Line!