|
THE CARTRIDGE COLLECTOR'S EXCHANGE |
| Contents
Cartridge
Lists
Prior Picture Pages:
Links to Other Sites
Cartridge Collectors Organizations:
Auctions:
Books:
Other Collector's Sites: |
Home of the Old Ammo Guy's Virtual
Cartridge Trading Table Featuring a wide range of antique, obsolete, and modern ammunition for collectors Picture Page January 2007 .577 Snider shot cartridges ..... Most of us have picked up examples of the .577 Snider shot cartridge.
These typically consist of a standard cartridge case loaded with a
shot-filled paper bullet; most of the
The two Dominion boxes below originally held cartridges loaded with #6 shot. .
. . . . .
. And here's an old Snider rifle made in 1871 by BSA Co. that I picked up at the last local gun show. Its not something I really needed, but the price was reasonable and I had money burning a hole in my pocket, so........
. .
. . . . . . . . . . . .
Pity the poor soldier at Fort Yellowstone in 1894..... The picture below was taken in 1894 at Fort Yellowstone, Wyoming by the post surgeon, Lieutenant Charles Gandy, who I believe is the officer standing in the picture. The military presence was needed in the newly designated national park primarily for the purpose of preventing the hunting of the park wildlife. The story behind these eight buffalo heads is that they were seized from a group of poachers within the boundaries of the park. You can pretty much be assured that all four officers are thinking simultaneously, 'How am I going to get one of these up on the wall of the sitting room without the wife noticing?'
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Between 1888 and the mid-1890s, Lt. Gandy was stationed at Forts Concho and Clark in West Texas, and Fort Yellowstone. He was an amateur photographer and throughout his military career took photos of military and family subjects, and the buildings in and around the forts where he was stationed. I believe he went on to become the Assistant Surgeon General of the Army. . .
A Frankford Arsenal Benet-primed .45-70 box.... Here's a nice old Frankford Arsenal box that originally held .45-70 rifle cartridges made in December of 1881, and packed in the box on the 28th of that month. The headstamp, as noted on the label, would have been R 12 F 81. It is interesting to note that the rifle cartridges in this box had 405 grain bullets. This was the last month these were loaded, because in January of 1882, the 500 grain bullet were adopted as the standard for rifle cartridges, with the 405 grain bullet continuing to be used for carbine cartridges only. Also included on the label are 'BLOOMFIELD GILDING METAL', indicating that the cartridge cases were made of copper, and 'FOLDED HEAD, CUP ANVIL', indicating that the cartridges were Benet cup-primed. Externally-primed .45-70 cartridges were not produced at Frankford Arsenal until August 1882. In October of 1888, brass replaced copper as the standard case material at the arsenal.
. . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . . . . |
ones
I encountered were made by the Dominion Cartridge Company. This picture
shows the variations of .577 Snider shot cartridges that I currently have
in my collection. The first one has a paper wrapped shot load stuffed in the
case mouth, and the case is composed of a paper covered coiled brass case
with a paper lined cup, and a separate iron head that is held in place by
the boxer primer. I believe this to be a Mark II load, which should be
loaded with thirteen.275" lead balls. The second has a drawn brass case, but
also has the separate head with the boxer primer. On this one, the case
mouth is crimped over the shot load and top wad, which is marked with a '4',
for the size of the shot, and with 'The Colonial Ammunition Company' around
the perimeter. This company had its factories in New Zealand. The last two
cartridges were made by the Dominion Cartridge Company in Montreal, Canada,
and are loaded with shot-filled paper bullets, these two being white and
red. The color of the paper bullet might indicate the size of the shot, but
this is only a guess. .
The
cartridges shown here are representative of the cartridges that
would have been in this box, having the R 12 F 81 headstamp. One has been sectioned, showing the internal copper cup that is
held in place by the two crimps in the side of the case. The close-up shot
of the cup shows the raised center portion in which the priming compound was
held, and the two flash holes. 