Enfield proofs

[Taji04]

I just purchased an 1853 type 3 Enfield with an 1862 Tower lock for cheap. This rifle is heavily pitted on the barrel and was aggressively clean by some one with a power tool. It is also a mixmaster. The stock and brass parts are unmarked. The reason for this post is that I am curious about the barrel markings. There some, but not many, and I can't find any information about them. Photos are attached. It is not a Nepalese barrel that I can tell (no funky markings that are not English).

I am interested in who made the barrel and perhaps a time frame. I assume that it is a contract musket. BTW, I plan on "correcting" this rifle by replacing the barrel bands and etc. to restore it to a correct type 3.

Sooooo.......what do you all think about this?

 

[UCVRelics]

The P&H is for Potts & Hunt, the other markings on top of the barrel don't appear to be British proof. What is the lock plate marked? I'm going to defer this one to our resident experts paging @Lanyard Puller @Craig L Barry

 

[Taji04]

The P&H is for Potts & Hunt, the other markings on top of the barrel don't appear to be British proof. What is the lock plate marked?

The lock plate is 1862 over Tower. There is a crown on the left side of the plate.

Potts and Hunt: were they a contractor or a parts supplier?

 

[Taji04]

Here are some more pictures. A project rifle for sure. The hammer is a Snider hammer retro fitted to be an 1853 model hammer. Swing and a miss. Not sure what to do with it. Two of the barrel bands that came on the gun are not right. And the read sight will be to be replaced. I understand that it is soldered on. Oh BOY! The nose cap is riveted onto the stock, which would make it an earlier stock???? This is all new ground for me.

 

[Craig L Barry]

Potts & Hunt was a London commercial gunmaker which had premises in Birmingham, but I have not known the firm to mark the barrel in anyway with their initials (being gunmakers and not barrel makers) or produce any P53s with Tower marked locks. The locks are usually marked with the name of the firm, in the fashion of other London gunmakers. The barrel looks like it is marked Heptinstall. Thomas Potts relocated to New Zealand and seems to have given up his ownership interest in Potts & Hunt in the 1850s and left England to concentrate on bird watching of all things. Thomas Hunt seems to have continued on with the enterprise at least until the 1870s. I have seen other Tower marked P53s with Heptinstall marked barrels with the initials P&H, I am not sure that is for the firm of Potts and Hunt though...the nosecap riveted into the stock (with two brass rivets) was characteristic of Birmingham commercial contractor P53s.

 

[Taji04]

Craig, thank you for this information. I was not sure how mixed this rifle was considering that it has replaced barrel bands. So then, it is possible the lock, barrel, and stock are original together. It is also good to know a bit about the manufacturer. I assume, then that Hepinstall made the barrel and Potts and Hunt just marked it for their contract? What do you think that MC looking stamp is?
I wish the guy who "cleaned up" this rifle was not so heavy handed. It looks like he erased some proofs while doing so. One more question: how would I go about replacing the rear sight?

 

[Lanyard Puller]

I'm posting as a very long time Enfield collector now specializing in CSA weapons, but IMHO:

I'm sorry, but in assessing your restoration project, I can't be positive. Enfield parts are very scarce and expensive now, and worse than that, they are not interchangeable.. You will have to get a small bucket of barrel bands, for example, before 2 of 'em fit. A P53 rifle musket sight in decent condition runs around 200.oo, a correct ram rod $150 or so {if it fits... they are different diameters}. If you get a P53 hammer there's very little chance it will fit the tumbler. In other words, you'll spend far more than it could ever be worth and the finish could never match with all the different parts.

 

[Taji04]

I'm posting as a very long time Enfield collector now specializing in CSA weapons, but IMHO:

I'm sorry, but in assessing your restoration project, I can't be positive. Enfield parts are very scarce and expensive now, and worse than that, they are not interchangeable.. You will have to get a small bucket of barrel bands, for example, before 2 of 'em fit. A P53 rifle musket sight in decent condition runs around 200.oo, a correct ram rod $150 or so {if it fits... they are different diameters}. If you get a P53 hammer there's very little chance it will fit the tumbler. In other words, you'll spend far more than it could ever be worth and the finish could never match with all the different parts.

Lanyard, you are very much correct. It sounds like you've had many trials and tribulations in your endeavors. Thank you for your insights. Indeed I will need not only a bucket of barrel bands and parts, but money too. I got the rifle for cheap, but for what I need to put into it to make it really decent, I can easily triple what I got it for. I have recently realized just what you have stated and it seems that I will have to pick my battles with this rifle to avoid breaking the bank.

That said, I am not looking to make it really decent, but as complete as I can. To that end, I am just looking to get it correct. I have found some bargains on some parts, and will wait for the long haul to get others. So far, so good. And I also like the challenge this rifle offers. It will probably be my only Enfield. I have access to a shop with welders, torches, presses and such to make repairs and etc as needed. This is more of a fun project for me since I like to tinker and restore stuff. So given time and patience, I am OK with the hurdles you mentioned. I have purchased some reference books, so the learning curve is high, but tolerable. For what it's worth.

 

[UCVRelics]

now specializing in CSA weapons

Does that mean your Bannerman's CSA is avaiable