Author Topic: 1853 3 band Enfield reproduction - shooting & care (Read 1097 times)

Cement Man · « **on:** January 21, 2006, 01:23:22 PM »

I have a Cabelas (Armi-Sport) Enfield that I have had for years but never fired. I recently got some new shooting glasses and I feel like I can enjoy open sights again. Would anyone share some insights and experiences on loads, bullets, cleaning, accuracy, etc.? Thanks for any info.

dodd3 · « **Reply #1 on:** January 22, 2006, 01:04:19 AM »

cement man corect me if iam wrong i think the armisport enfield has a 1 in 66 twist so a round ball would be the way to go. 70 grains of 2f and a .570 patch ball give that a try, i had the parkerhail enfields which had a 1 in 48 twist
very good with minis you might wont to try a mini it might shoot ok in your
gun you never no untill you try hope this helps.

bernie

filmokentucky · « **Reply #2 on:** January 22, 2006, 08:12:26 AM »

Actually, the slow twist Enfields will stabilize a Minie. My old Parker-Hale '53 is very accurate using a 560 grain, .575 Minie over 70 grains of ffg. Does well with patched ball loads, too.

Cement Man · « **Reply #3 on:** January 23, 2006, 02:28:53 AM »

Thnaks guys. I found the information on the rate of twist to be 1 X 1600mm - comes out to a bit over 65". It looks like I will try both the patched ball and the minie and use around 70 grains. We'll see how well she shoots! Thanks!

dbm · « **Reply #4 on:** February 07, 2006, 07:02:20 AM »

The three band Enfield (Pattern 1853 Rifle Musket ) with a 39" barrel had three groove rifling with a 1 in 78" twist.

The two band Enfield (Pattern 1858 Naval Rifle is the typical repro) with a 33" barrel had five groove rifling with a 1 in 48" twist.

Both of these have progressive depth rifling, which may not be reproduced in the repro. Both the rifles were designed for use with the Minie bullet, not roundball. With careful load development the rifles are quite accurate and here in the UK we shoot Enfields out to 600 yards (and have occassional forays to 800 yards!).

Have a look at the article on Managing The Enfield on my web site for more information them.

David

Cement Man · « **Reply #5 on:** February 07, 2006, 07:24:46 AM »

David,
I looked at the website - very interesting, and the Enfield article is just what I was looking for. Many thanks!