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Civil War Cased Target Rifle

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Joined
Dec 14, 2018
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I’ve been focused exclusively on flintlocks for more than a decade, but about a year ago in a moment of weakness I got a Pedersoli 1859 Berdan Sharps. Ive been having fun learning the in’s and outs of paper cartridges. As I looked into the history of US Sharpshooters, an infatuation developed for the civilian target rifles used by some sharpshooters in addition to their Sharps.

One thing led to another, and I decided that the Pedersoli Tryon Rifle would, short of starting from scratch, be the best option to start with. Dixie had it in stock, so . . .

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The Pedersoli Tryon was about perfect for a late civilian rifle. It has a back action lock which was common to the target rifles used by sharpshooters. The 32” x 1” barrel makes it a little heavier than most production muzzleloader. Plus unlike some of the “Hawkens” and similar rifles, it is a pretty close replica of a historic rifle. I’m really impressed with the quality of the Pedersoli. Fit and finish is some of the best I’ve seen on production muzzleloader.
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Though some might consider it blasphemy to put a scope on a muzzleloader, it is correct for the civilian rifles used by sharpshooters, so I went with a Hi-Lux Malcolm 6x scope with the new sliding mounts. The company was great to deal with and everything is high quality. The new sliding mount fits directly in the rifle’s dovetails, and is much simpler than the standard mount. I can’t find any documentation on the sunshade/extension for the front of the scope, and suspect it’s used to keep manufacturing costs down, but it looks good on the rifle.
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Anyway, I cobbled together a case, and hope to take it to the range soon.
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Beautiful!

I've an original heavy barrel target rifle that's fun to shoot. Similar to you, my interest stemmed from my USSS impression. I still need to get a "case/wagon box for it (my wood working skills aren't up to putting something together) and get some implements for in it.

Mike
 

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