Another Oldie: a Matched 1880 Amberg M71

[majspud]

I traded one of my CMP Garands (12/42 SA/SG) even up for this all butt (not a typo) matching 1880 Amberg I.G. (Infanteriegewhr) 71. Pictures speak for themselves. I love these transition pieces - looks like a musket but has a bolt and a black powder cartridge 11.15x60mm (.43cal). The '82' next to 1880 means the year placed in service. Butt plate is the only part that does not match, about 1700 units earlier. Unit marked B. 17R. E. 154 (Bavaria, 17th replacement (Ersatz) Battalion, Waffe #154). Pleasant light patina over bright metal surfaces. Sling is a new reproduction.

Thanks for the look,

T.

For you Garand aficionados, I will be at CMP South on 6/28 with cash in hand looking for the elusive Garand subspecies known as Winchesterius.

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[AZPhil]

Nice One. So what is the big screw on the side of the bolt for?

Semper Fi
Phil

[majspud]

That is the removable bolt stop. Note the rounded cut out in the rear receiver which catches the enlarged washer, for a better term, when the bolt is withdrawn.

T

Got the unit switched; 17th Regt. Bavarian Infantry, Ersatz (Replacement) Company, weapon 154.

[Patrick Chadwick]

As you can all see - Old Mausers have numbers on parts where other rifles don't even have parts!

Don't just admire it - go out and shoot it!

[majspud]

Have 20 rounds of new black powder cartridges on the way from WI.

T

[Trap4570]

Great rifle! I have a model 71 carbine that is pristine except for the stock. All matching numbers down to the screws. Someone had sanded the stock to the point that the metal parts are larger than the wood and the only band on the carbine has been lost sometime in the past. It's still an accurate shooter at 100 yards and I intend to build a new stock ... one of these days! I've been saying that for 15 years.

[majspud]

Took a month to get here, but we're off to the range Sunday.

T

[majspud]

Range report. Scattered showers, 72 degrees. 100 yards, seated, no sling, reloaded 11mm with black powder. 10 rounds (at $4 each). Took a few shots to figure out the Kentucky elevation, settled at 4:00 and a little low. Not too bad for a first time. Awkward to remove the spent case; the bolt has an extractor, not an ejector. A hoot to shoot.

T.

[Patrick Chadwick]

Good to see the old smoke-pole banging again. Unless you want to spend a fortune on ammo, you are just going to have to get into BPCR reloading. You now have some fire-formed cases, and IF you can get the right size bullets, you will not have to do any more resizing than just neck-sizing. In fact, if you are lucky in the bullet/chamber combination, you may be able to get away with NO-sizing - which is what I do.

Get hold of a soft lead .45 round ball and drive it through the well-lubricate bore from the breech end. A yard or meter length of 3/8" or 9mm brass rod will make short work of that. Measure the ball to see what you need as a maximum bullet diameter. The answer will probably be around 0.446", and the next thing is to measure the inside diameter of the neck on a fired cartridge. Since lead bullets will obturate to fit the bore, you have some leeway in bullet size. If you can get a mold that casts a bullet that is a finger/thumb push-fit in the neck, that is pretty much ideal. And your cases will last for a very long time indeed!

Bullet size as-cast and obturation is also dependent on the lead-tin alloy. Something in the range 3-5 % of tin will do. Avoid wheel-weights, whatever the penny-pinchers may tell you. Use pure lead. Roofer's lead flashing is pure enough. A bit of experimentation is unavoidable, but worth it. With ammo matched to your rifle, and off a rest at 100, you should be able to get all shots in the black more or less immediately, and all in the 8 ring with a bit of practice.

Re. Kentucky elevation. Use the 6 o'clock aim, and practise holding the foresight really deep in the V. This will provide a better horizontal centering than the often propagated top-of-V-and-foresight "in-line" method. And is the only accurate way to bring the POI down at 100, unless you want to start carving up the backsight leaf (DON'T), which would be an irreversible alteration to an antique..